Step Into Success: Crafting a Winning PAS Newsletter for Your Substack Audience

Unlock a proven framework that transforms decades of your wisdom into weekly hits, not misses—every single time.

Hey, Wise Adventurer,

Nobody will read your newsletters if you treat them like your diary or journal.

When I started writing my first newsletter, I struggled. I couldn’t figure out the best formula for writing in an engaging way that people would want to read.

Fortunately, not many people remember this. It’s better to make mistakes in front of a small audience than a big one.

But predictable engagement doesn’t come from inspiration, talent, or skills. It comes from a simple, repeatable structure that works.

Have you noticed those writers whose letters land in your inbox like clockwork, bursting with insight and impossible to ignore? And it’s not because they are more intelligent than you.

They’ve just mastered a proven framework.

You may already know a few popular copy formulas—AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action), BAB (Before, After, Bridge), and 4Ps (Promise, Picture, Proof, Push). All are solid. But for clarity, emotional resonance, and a direct path to action, I swear by PAS: Problem, Agitation, Solution.

I'll reveal more about PAS in this post. By the end, you will have a turnkey PAS template that you can use each week, eliminating the need for guesswork, blank-page anxiety, and wasted time. It's a smooth blueprint for consistent expansion, more interaction, and a vibrant Substack community.

Ready? Let’s turn that blank screen into your next subscriber magnet.

Image by the author using Canva

Why Free-Form Flops — and How PAS Fixes It

You sit down.

The page is blank.

You write whatever comes to mind.

Opens spike one week. They crater the next.

You blame timing. Or “not enough value.”
So you rewrite headlines, chase trends, and even drop in a personal story.
And yet…, the results remain wildly unpredictable.

Free-form feels creative.

Results feel random. You burn time and lose momentum.
Writing by mood is like rolling the dice. Sometimes you win. Often, you lose.
You burn hours guessing what’ll stick.

Momentum stalls, and frustration builds.

It’s not a secure way of building a sustainable income.

You need a reliable process.

You need PAS.

Quick PAS breakdown:

– Problem
• Name their biggest struggle.
• Show you get it. The best way to show that you get it is by using the same language, including phrases and words, as your ideal client. Excellent sources of information are Reddit or Facebook groups, Substack chat, and direct messages and conversations.

– Agitate
• Turn up the heat on that struggle.
• Highlight the real cost of doing nothing. Use numbers (if possible) or emotional costs of not fixing the problem. If you are a financial or marketing adviser, use numbers and show precisely how much money your client will lose if they don’t fix the problem.

– Solution
• Offer a straightforward fix.
• End with a clear next-step call to action (CTA). Tell them exactly what to do and present your offer as the solution to your client’s problem.

Here are some examples to help you understand it better.

Example #1 – Stuck Subscriber Count
Problem
“You’ve spent months crafting issues… but your subscriber graph looks flat.”
Agitate
“Every week you wait is a week of lost income, fading confidence, and zero momentum.”
Solution
“Here’s a 2-step tweak you can send today:

1. Add a one-line pain hook in your subject.

2. Close with a single CTA — ‘Hit reply and tell me your #1 goal this week.’
   Try it in tomorrow’s issue and watch your opens climb.”

Example #2 – Crickets on Your Offers
Problem
“You launch a course, blast your list… and hear nothing but crickets.”
Agitate
“Your inbox stays silent. Your bank account echoes back. You wonder if anyone even notices you.”
Solution
“Use this quick tweak:

1. In your next issue, spotlight ONE reader objection (‘Worried you’ll waste money?’).

2. Offer a tiny proof point (‘Here’s how Anne got her first $500 in two days.’).
   Then end with a clear click-to-your-offer link.”

Example #3 – Blank-Page Panic
Problem
“You sit down to write… and the cursor blinks at you.”
Agitate
“You stare for 10 minutes. Your to-do list glares. Your confidence sinks.”
Solution
“Beat the block in 5 minutes:

1. Open a fresh doc and type: ‘You’re fed up with…’

2. Finish that sentence with YOUR reader’s top pain.

3. Write two sentences showing why that pain costs them.

4. Drop in your solution and a CTA.
   Done.”

Why PAS works for Over-50 pros:
• You’ve got decades of hard-won wisdom.
• Your readers trust your experience.
• A simple formula lets your expertise shine.
• You move from “What should I write?”
to “Which PAS step does my audience need right now?”

Consistency builds trust—and that drives opens, clicks, and sales.

Screenshot by the author

Write One PAS Newsletter in 30-60 Minutes (Then Rinse & Repeat)

You’ve seen the theory.

Now, let’s turn it into a habit.
No more guessing. No more blank-page panic.
Just three simple steps every week to keep your list growing and converting into clients.

Follow this playbook.