Thread by @daltonmabery

David Perell is one of the most prolific writers of the digital era. He's also a great coach.

Here is his Ultimate Guide to Writing Well by @david_perell condensed in one thread. Enjoy.

2/ We're living in the age of leverage

• Create an online home. If you don't have a website, build one today and publish it tomorrow.
• Leverage = Oppurtunity

3/ You don't need to have original ideas

Instead of writing new blogs, try the:

• Thought Leader Strategy - Create a summary of your favorite thought leader's best work.
• Idea Strategy - Curate a list of best resources for an idea you're interested in.

4/ Examples of both strategies:

1. Thought Leader Strategy
• Dalton Mabery on David Perell
• Tim Ferris on Naval Ravikant
• Mark Zuckerberg on Jack Dorsey

2. The Idea Strategy
• Tiago Forte on Theory of Constraints
• Richard Hendricks on Pied Piper

5/ Content curation is extremly valuable

• If you do the research on a topic and make it into a blog post, the reader saves time. When they save time, they appreciate you.
• There are no original thoughts, only original combinations

6/ Share your work directly with people you think might benefit from it

• If you curate your favorite thought leader's work, send it to them.
• If you curate an idea, send it to well-known people in that field.

7/ Most online writing advice sucks

• Writing about whatever you want doesn't work
• Growth hacking and news chasing aren't sustainable

8/ Focus on one thing at a time

• Don't try to capitalize on every social media channel out there.
• Focus on building an audience on one platform. As that happens, redirect them to an email list on your website.

9/ Growing an email list gives you four things:

1. Sales
2. Permission
3. Promotion
4. Infinite Feedback

10/ How to master SEO:

• Publish excellent articles
• Coin new terms such as Naked Brands and The Never-Ending Now
• Avoid competition by using an uncommon name
(If your name is John Smith, you might want to write under a pen name until you have an audience)

11/ You won't grow an audience overnight

• People will follow those who have earned trust, credibility, and authority. Those can't be bought, only earned over time.
• Don't give up if you're not seeing results.

12/ Learn to write clearly and persuasively

• Write about ideas that stimulate you
• At first, focus on quantity over quality

Consistency develops ability.

13/ The Five Pillars of Writing:

1. Write Evergreen Content
2. Publish Quality Ideas
3. Be specific
4. Listen to Feedback
5. Re-Package Your Existing Work

14/ Build an online reputation in three steps:

1. Pick a high value, emerging industry
2. Learn as much as you can
3. Share what you learn on your personal website

15/ Build your personal monopoly

• No one has the exact same skill set and interests you do. Capitalize on that.
• Write about every aspect of your niche. The history. The people. The key concepts. Explore every nook and cranny of your niche.

16/ The purpose of writing

• Each article you write is a unique sales pitch on that topic
• Attracting an intelligent audience in your area of interest is a guaranteed way to accelerate your learning, cultivate skills, and build actionable knowledge

Now go execute.