Valentine’s Day has a way of sneaking up on us. One minute it’s just another February, the next your inbox is full of heart-shaped subject lines and your social feed is split between grand romantic gestures and aggressively self-aware single memes.
If you’re single, Valentine’s Day can feel like a mirror you didn’t ask to look into. Not because you’re unhappy — but because it has a way of highlighting how strange modern dating has become. So many options, so much access, and yet… so little real connection.
We’re technically more “connected” than ever, but emotionally, a lot of people are tired. Tired of swiping. Tired of half-conversations. And, tired of wondering whether something fizzled because it wasn’t right — or because attention spans are cooked.
And that’s where this quieter shift in dating feels interesting. Led by the Unwritten 12-Week Challenge to Find Love.
The premise of the program by the Sydney dating club, founded by Laura- Jane Hawkins (also famed for its curated events and now offering bespoke
matchmaking services for singles who value authentic, in-person connection), isn’t revolutionary. But it is refreshing. Step away from swiping and commit to meeting people in real life, with guidance, structure and actual human involvement. Not forever. Just for twelve weeks.
Unwritten’s approach sits somewhere between curated social life and modern matchmaking. Over those twelve weeks, singles are introduced to potential matches based on values, lifestyle and long-term compatibility — not algorithms — while also being invited into Unwritten’s calendar of in-person events. Wine tastings, supper clubs, fitness-based mixers, sunset sessions. Environments designed so conversation can happen naturally, without the awkwardness of forced first dates.
What makes the challenge feel different is that it acknowledges something many singles already know: dating fatigue is real. The problem isn’t a lack of options — it’s a lack of intention. Giving love a defined window creates momentum. It removes the endless “maybe later” energy and replaces it with presence.
Founder and matchmaker LJ Hawkins describes it as giving your love life the same respect you’d give your career or health. You show up. You engage. And, you let someone else — a very human someone — help you see patterns you might be missing.
Importantly, Unwritten isn’t pretending everyone will definitely meet their person in twelve weeks. But it does promise something more attainable: clarity, connection, and real-world experience. And for many, that’s the missing link.
This Valentine’s season, Unwritten is also hosting a handful of events that act as gentle entry points for the curious. There’s the Valentine’s Singles Sunrise with Conscious Community — breathwork, ice baths and coffee at Bondi Beach, where vulnerability comes baked into the experience. And the Valentine’s Singles Wine Tasting & Mingle at The Wine Library, where good conversation is helped along by very good wine. Both are designed to take the pressure off romance and put the focus back on shared experience.
It’s no accident these moments land in February. Valentine’s Day has always been symbolic — not just of love, but of possibility. The idea that something could begin. That the next chapter isn’t written yet.
That sentiment is the heart of Unwritten. If you’re single, your story isn’t over. In fact, it may be quietly setting itself up for its best plot twist.
So no, the 12-Week Challenge isn’t about forcing fate or rushing outcomes. It’s about choosing a different way to date — one that values presence over profiles and chemistry over convenience.
And if you happen to find the love of your life by May? Well. That would be the icing on the red-velvet heart shaped cupcake,