2 builders who never spoke to each other
Promise a named slot and design the issue to fit
Committing in public to a specific day beats a vague promise of occasional updates, because the promise is what forces the work out. The format then has to match what that cadence can sustain: fixed slots, a set number of items, and a length chosen so a strong monthly issue is not traded for a thin weekly one.
The method
- 01
Fix the issue format into a set number of named slots so the newsletter does not swell or shrink with how much you happened to find that week
- 02
Commit publicly to a named slot rather than a vague frequency.
- 03
Choose quality and reliability over frequency: a great monthly issue beats a mediocre weekly one.
- 04
Match the format to the cadence you promised, because long-form research cannot be sustained daily.
- 05
Fix a publishing rhythm with different jobs per slot: one long-form piece and one roundup of news, recommendations and weekend plans each week.
What it returned
- 5
Seth Godin's few-sentence posts, Robert Glazer's mid-length story pieces, James Clear's researched long-form, Tim Ferriss's 5-Bullet Friday, Sacha Greif's five daily design links, Katie Couric's headline commentary
Worked example uses four slots: a featured project for visual appeal, a full tutorial, a free importable file for beginners, and a closing quick tip
Options given as daily or weekdays, twice weekly on Monday and Thursday, weekly every Tuesday, or the first Monday of the month
Tuesday long-form, Thursday roundup
Sources
- How to grow an audience through curating contentNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · Example 1: X-Carve Weekly · 2018-12-03
- How we grew a local newsletter to 10,000 subscribersNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · The first 74 subscribers · 2022-03-22
- How to start your own newsletter in 15 minutesNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · Set your cadence · 2019-04-01
- 2023 Year in Review: Of Ambition and Aliveness - Ness LabsAnne-Laure Le Cunff · nesslabs.com · Gradually, then all at once · 2023-12-21
the second source
Three plays a week, for the phase you are in
No roundup of links, no news. Three tactics more than one builder arrived at separately, with the numbers each one returned and the disagreements left in.
More in email
- Move the audience you rent onto a list you own7 unconnected
- Hold the schedule you promised to hold5 unconnected
- Decide whether cold email is worth what it signals5 unconnected · contested
- Settle who the publication is for before growing it5 unconnected
- Open the list before the product is real4 unconnected
- Send each subscriber the thing they told you they want4 unconnected