From marketing exec to indie author
And the journey to self-publication with Alyssa Jarrett
In 2022,
resigned from her marketing executive position to prioritize her childhood dream: becoming a published author.I’ve been writing alongside Alyssa for half a decade, and it still amazes me how quickly she jumps into action after receiving less-than-ideal news. Her story is similar to many authors at a crossroads, torn between rewriting a story to appease the market or launching directly to readers. So I asked her to join me on
to discuss:Getting compared to Lorelai Gilmore, and why certain projects don’t always align with an agent’s long-term vision.
The compliments that meant most to her at a recent writer’s retreat (that had nothing to do with her prose).
Why books aren’t paying the bills (yet), and structuring her week to accommodate clients and book promotion.
The Journey to Self-Publication with Alyssa Jarrett
WRITE 👩🏽💻 (3:32)
Alyssa started writing her first book in 2014, using a recent breakup as inspiration for how it would feel for a public figure experiencing the same emotional rollercoaster. But after polishing the draft and soliciting beta reader feedback, Alyssa realized it was difficult for the average reader to relate to Alex Waterston-Gardener, a famous-for-being-famous billionaire with “champagne problems.”
But readers gave glowing feedback to Alex’s “Glam Fam”, her curated team of beauty and fashion experts-turned-friends. So after resigning from her in-house position as a marketing executive, Alyssa built a consulting practice while drafting and querying three additional books in the universe. Love Apptually is the first in the series, featuring Casey Holbright, Alex’s best friend and celebrity stylist who nabs a gig dressing Evan Chen, the sexy (but fashion-averse) CEO of tech company Habituall.
My intent is that once you start to fall in love with the Glam Fam, you’ll begin to have more empathy for [Alex] than if she was the first person you met in the series.
LIFE 🐈⬛ (1:01)
In addition to being a romance novelist and marketing consultant to early-stage startups, Alyssa is also a wife, a cat mom and advocate for cat rescue, and childfree by choice. We joke that these roles haven’t changed much since the last time we talked, minus the fact that there are three cats instead of two.
BALANCE 🚀(9:43)
Alyssa’s original intent was to pursue traditional publishing with this series, completing a Revise and Resubmit (R&R) for an agent before receiving “the sweetest rejection.” She still sees value in traditional publishing and intends to have a hybrid career, but at the moment, feels very comfortable using her decade of marketing experience to launch the series herself.
I saw traditional publishing as the institutional validation that I was looking for…but after querying three manuscripts in the course of three years, I began to see agents less as authority figures and more like business partners.
PARTING ADVICE 💭 (48:14)
For anyone considering the self-publishing route, Alyssa recommends getting clear on your why, pointing out that it is easy to get discouraged if you launch a book, but don’t make your money back. She’s very cognizant of the fact that most books, trad or indie, don’t sell more than 5,000 copies. At the very least, she hopes to make enough to pay for her LLC fees.
I would do it regardless of [whether my book is commercially successful] because it’s what makes me truly happy. Connecting with people who appreciate my work and enjoy the stories I’m telling makes it all worth it.
THINGS WE DISCUSSED 🗃
Icebreaker by Hannah Grace
To learn more about Alyssa, you can:
Hope you enjoyed this episode,
Sophia :)
P.S. Want to listen to the beginning of Alyssa’s writing journey? Check out the very first episode of
where we discuss her creative sabbatical and how it morphed into self-employment.