Authority Letters: Write Once, Build Authority That Lasts
Ellen Donnelly
Coach to Authority Entrepreneurs
Turn scattered insight into a clear professional stance with a Long-Form Essay
Authority is built when your thinking can be clearly followed.
Most smart, capable professionals don’t struggle with ideas.
They struggle to articulate one clear point of view others recognise, reference, and remember.
That challenge has become harder as short-form content and fast publishing cycles demand speed and reaction, and AI slop floods the feed.
If your work relies on your perspective or strategy, people need to see how you think in depth. Your true value becomes clear when your ideas are connected and presented as a whole. Your competition aren't doing this.
Authority Letters creates space for depth and authorship.
Inside the course, you’ll choose a clear professional stance (your One Big Idea) and articulate it in long-form. You’ll write and publish a 2,000+ word Hero Piece that brings together your experience, beliefs, and reasoning into a single, coherent argument.
That piece gives your work a permanent home.
You'll share it with prospective clients, funders, and partners for years to come.
So that the right people will understand how you think when you're not even in the room.
By the end you leave with much more than a piece of writing. Your work has its own centre of gravity.
What you’ll learn
You'll make your depth of professional experience tangible. So that your best clients will pay your top rates, without hesitation.
Identify the rallying cry that will connect your beliefs to your audience, content, and services.
Use the HeroPiece AI Bot to refine your thinking between sessions
Get feedback on your One Big Idea from Ellen before you write your Hero Piece
You’ll write and publish a 2,000+ word piece that explains your thinking, and brings clarity and authority to your ideas
Use the HeroPiece AI Bot and the 20-point checklist to guide your writing process
Attend live co-writing sessions with peers to get the writing done
Submit your Hero Piece for Ellen's direct feedback
Make edits and amendments in line with the feedback
Use your peers for extra eyes and inputs
Learn exactly how to share your piece so it gets seen, using the 5-Step Distribution Method and templates to attract attention.
Guidance on where to publish (Substack, WordPress, etc.)
Learn how to make your Hero Piece discoverable by both humans, SEO and AIO
Who this course is for
Founders, coaches & entrepreneurs who know that establishing their own Authority is key to growing their business
Consultants, freelancers, portfolio careerists looking to differentiate themselves and command higher rates for their expertise
Career changers and those pivoting from the 9-5, ready to command credibility and build independent Authority
Prerequisites
A desire to win more client work
Much of Authority Letters centres on securing more clients who value your thinking
Professional expertise and depth
Authority is built on lived experience, you should have at least 5+ years of experiences from which to pull
What's included
Live sessions
Learn directly from Ellen Donnelly in a real-time, interactive format.
4 x Coworking & Writing Sessions
Dedicated accountability to get your writing done or connect with peers on ideas
Expert edits & direct feedback on your work
Submit your Hero Piece for 1-1 edits from Ellen
Library of Resources
Get inspired by example OBIs & Hero Pieces in the Library
Community space
Share ideas, brain storm or get support from other peers on the course
Hero Piece Bot and Templates
Use the AI tool and templates to guide your thinking and writing between live sessions
Maven Guarantee
This course is backed by the Maven Guarantee. Students are eligible for a full refund through the second week of the course.
Course syllabus
8 live sessions • 6 lessons
Week 1
Build Your Authority Foundation
Mar
9
Build Your Authority Foundations (Live Training)
Mar
11
Optional: Co-working & Co-writing
Week 2
Write Your Hero Piece Part 1
Mar
16
Write your Hero Piece 1 (Live Training)
Mar
18
Optional: Co-working & co-writing
Schedule
Live sessions
1-2 hrs / week
1 training per week and 1 optional coworking session per week, plus your own time on your work.
Mon, Mar 9
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Wed, Mar 11
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Mon, Mar 16
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Async content
1-3 hrs / week
You can spend additional writing and thinking time per week depending on your availability.
Testimonials
Authority Letters has got me thinking deeply about what I stand for, my approach to the education I deliver, and the different perspectives that surround my topic. Ellen's take on what it means to build authority today has totally transformed the way I think about how I show up online. I'm so pleased I chose to do this!
Hayley Dawson
Founder • Let's Talk Human SkillsI have loved being part of Authority Letters. The content is so helpful but the best bit is the accountability and community. If you have lots of big ideas but struggle to put pen to paper in a consistent and strategic way, Authority Letters is for you. It was exactly what I needed!
Selena Coles
Founder and consultant • BUILD Networks for GoodMost of the time I'm too busy doing the work to think about why I do the work. Authority Letters has given me an opportunity to properly consider how I do things and what my beliefs are, and distill that into something that (hopefully) will connect with other people. The process and frameworks have been so useful in clarifying my thinking, and I'm already finding key themes and phrases coming up in conversations with clients.
Alan Rutter
Founder • Fire Plus AlgebraIt's helping me clarify my thinking about my offer, not in a sales-y sense but in a big picture "What am I doing with my business?" The biweekly sessions and opportunity for feedback within the group have also been helpful to sense-check and soundboard in real time.
Emma Pegg
Founder • CantadoraAuthority Letters has my brain ON FIRE. I've been really in my head about my positioning, but working through my OBI and how I want to present my Hero Piece has me thinking about and around my topic and my business in so many different ways. Ellen's prompts and examples have really helped me to consider different perspectives. I'm also loving the co-working sessions! So glad I invested in myself!
Caitlin Rozario
Founder | Workshop designer and facilitator • interludeAuthority Letters shaped the depth of my behind- the-scenes work into clear, resonant knowledge in public, at a time when I needed to collect and expand my ideas after a few years in my business, continue attracting aligned clients and collaborations, and do it in a way that didn’t drain my energy through short-form content. Ellen’s guidance has enough depth to be powerful and enough punch to be applied fast. This space helps you build trust, build momentum, and shift your posture — all the way down to the words you choose for an email, a proposal, or a conversation. The authority ripple effect feels real. (edited for Maven)
Donatella Caggiano
Founder • Belonging in between
Frequently asked questions
$1,100
USD