Austin Scholar #57: Three Writing Equations Your Kid Can Use
(To Write a College Admissions Essay, a Text, and Win a Negotiation)
Hey, y'all!
This week from Austin Scholar...
Austin’s Anecdote: Turning Equation-Based Writing Into a Course?
Three Writing Equations Your Kid Can Use (To Write a College Admissions Essay, a Text, and Win a Negotiation)
Scholar’s Sources: The World’s Coolest College Essay Writing Workshop
So… I got my driver’s license this week! After months of learning to drive (thanks, mom!) and hours of anxiety at the DPS, I officially became a driver. For some reason, I really felt sixteen years old yesterday, driving my sister and her best friend to pick up dinner and singing Taylor Swift songs in the car while I waited for them.
I also just want to thank my mom for all the time she and I spent freaking out as I accidentally reversed when I meant to go forward and stealing traffic cones to practice parallel parking. I’m so grateful. :)
Austin’s Anecdote: Turning Equation-Based Writing Into a Course?
I got so much really great feedback from last week’s newsletter, specifically on the part that I’m going to call “Equation-Based Writing.”
Apparently, there are a lot of STEM boys (and their parents) who love the concept of improving their writing by looking at it like an equation. Who knew?
Because of the interest, I thought I’d write about this idea some more–and the writing sparked an entrepreneurial idea.
As you know, I’ve been working with David Perell, teaching high schoolers to write on the internet through an online course. And one of my friends (who's about to close on a $300,000 funding deal for his bike park) is the OG STEM boy at Alpha and used to beat me on math tests in third grade, but absolutely hates writing.
I've been surrounded by inspiration.
All of that, combined with the interest in Equation-Based Writing, created an idea for an online course: teaching STEM boys how to write by framing writing as an equation. I'm still in the early ideation phases, but I'm imagining a cohort-based course where math kids enter thinking writing sucks and come out at the end feeling adept at equation-based writing.
Because let's be real–a math whiz who can also communicate ideas clearly has a dangerous skillset.
If y’all have a kid who would be interested (or just generally think this is a good idea), please reach out to me! I’d love to brainstorm more. (I might start a Substack Chat soon, too.) And if you think this is an absolutely terrible idea, also reach out–I’d love feedback.
Three Writing Equations Your Kid Can Use (To Write a College Admissions Essay, a Text, and Win a Negotiation)
For a sneak peek of the types of content I would teach, here are the equations your kid can use to write a college essay, a text to a significant other, and a pitch to convince you (their parents!) of something: