My team and I have been discussing this for weeks. I’ve had butterflies in my stomach. For weeks.
The Ninja Writers Club is closing for the first time since we started it in 2015.
Don’t worry. We’re not closing closing. But, after this week, the Club will close to new students until we launch again later this year.
On Monday, February 14, we’re closing our doors. And, I’m not going to lie, that’s a little scary. We’ve had an evergreen enrollment for seven years. But it’s time to shift gears a little bit.
Evergreen and Open/Close
An evergreen enrollment model means that people can join anytime. Everyday. When the mood strikes, you just sign up. Gyms generally have evergreen enrollment.
Businesses that use the evergreen model welcome new people in on a daily basis. In my experience, there’s a feeling of excitement when you join, that can sometimes be followed by a period of overwhelm and maybe let down when you come into a situation where you’re the only new person.
Open/Close means, just like it sounds, that the program is sometimes open for new enrollment and sometimes not. You can only join during open enrollment. Universities and health care plans have open/closed enrollment.
Businesses that use the open/close model welcome new people in batches. Everyone starts classes on the same day, right? So, even if some people have been around a while, everyone is new that first day.
Ninja Writers is an online writing school. It’s intense. Like diving into the deep end of the work of being a writer. And after a ton of soul searching, we realized that we want to make really sure that when someone joins, they have the support they need.
I don’t want anyone to feel that overwhelm and let down. And the best way to do make that happen is to close the doors for a while.
Here’s Why
Most important reason: closing the Club means that we can spend the time and energy we need to, in order to really welcome new members and make sure they get the most out of this incredible program.
Closing the doors for a while and letting new members join as a group will foster the community atmosphere that is what we’re all about.
We want to focus on our current members for a little bit.
We have some new programs we want to implement over the next six months and to do that right, we need to be able to focus on those of you who are already in the Club.
Gathering Up the Cohort
So, this week, we’re doing a big old launch of the club. It’s our open enrollment period.
And then we’re putting up a waiting list form and we’re going to focus on our incoming students and our current students.
There are benefits to the evergreen model, of course. It provides a steady influx of income. I’ve been able to pretty easily tweak behind-the-scenes things and see how they work quickly because there are always new people coming in.
But it has also resulted in a pretty much constant need for marketing. And that eats up a lot of energy. And time. And frankly, I don’t like it very much.
I’m a little scared. This is a big, big change. But I’m also so excited.
The Pitch Part
If you want to join us in this grand experiment, I’d love to have you. Click here to get signed up.
It’s $5 for the first month. Super low barrier to entry, because I want everyone to have the chance to experience how incredible this program is. After the first month, it’s $25 a month.
While enrollment is closing, you can leave whenever you want. Easily. So there’s no commitment.
Here’s what you can expect when you join the Club this week:
You’ll have instant access to the Ninja Writers Club on Teachable and our calendar of live classes, workshops, and write-ins.
I’m writing this on a Tuesday and Tuesday is a fantastic day to join the club. We have a whole calendar of live events you can join today.
Like our basic tech call where Meg will help you with any tech issue that’s holding you up.
And our fiction co-working call where you can come read some of your fiction and get deep, meaningful feedback from team members Juneta and Kristen (and other writers who are on the call with you.)
And two write-ins where you can come hang out with other Ninja Writers and get some work done.
We have a whole schedule of things every day.
Every new Club member will get a personal email from a Ninja Writers team member.
They’ll make sure you understand how to use Teachable, that you know how to sign up for your cohort (that’s a small group you can choose to join within the Ninja Writers Club), and just overall be your cheerleader and welcome wagon. You’ll have a point person you can reach out to when you have questions.
You’re not going to get an automated email. A real person, really excited to have you join us, will reach out.
And you’re not going to get dumped into a membership and then left to your own devices (unless that’s what you want!)
You’ll be invited to a welcome party on Zoom, Friday, February 18 at 6pm EST
I’ll be there. And seriously, I can’t wait to meet you. You’ll have the opportunity to meet some of the Ninja Writers’ team. We’ll get to meet you, too. You can tell us what you’re working on and we can help you figure out how Ninja Writers can best help you.
You’ll get an email from our accountability guru, Juneta, with an invitation to fill out a form for our Buddy program.
Her superpower is making amazing matches between writers so that they have a partner they can connect with. She’s so thoughtful about it. She really reads the forms everyone sends in. We have Ninja Writers who have made life-long connections with the Buddy Juneta paired them up with.
If you decided to join for the whole year, you’ll get a link to sign up for a coaching call.
Annual members get a 30-minute coaching call with a Ninja Writers team member. They’ll get on a Zoom call with you and you can pick their brain about your project, get some accountability, or they can help you figure out which Ninja Writer workshops will work best for you.
Is Your Writing Career Worth $5?
Okay. That was dramatic. But it’s an honest question.
I say all the time that Ninja Writers is the most amazing writing community on the planet. That’s the truth. I believe it with my whole heart. The writers in this community are kicking serious butt. They’re moving from ‘I really want to be a writer’ to actually being writers. They’re working together, building connections, and encouraging each other as they work toward their writing goals.
We’re closing the Ninja Writers Club until July because the entire Ninja Writers team wants to have the time and energy to work with you. And the best way to do that is to give you a period of time where there aren’t new people coming in and dividing our attention.
For the next several months, you’ll be our focus.
Is that worth $5? Only you can decide.
There’s no commitment. Join us for a month. See if it’s a good fit. You can unsubscribe at any time.
I think you’ll want to stay though. Because, truly, we are the most amazing writing community on the planet. And who doesn’t want to be part of that?
This week, I’ll be sending a series of emails introducing you to myself, the whole team, some of our incredible members, and what the club has to offer. Even if you decide this isn’t the right time for you to join, I think you’ll get some good information.
Very good letter here, Shaunta.