EP 97: The Ultimate Guide to Self-Promotion for Asian American Authors with Stephanie Moon
Meet Stephanie Moon, Marketing Strategist | Authors & Publishers
In this podcast episode, Judy Tsuei, founder of Wild Hearted Words, and Stephanie Moon, a book marketing strategist and consultant, discuss the challenges of self-promotion and visibility, particularly from an Asian American perspective.
They explore the cultural expectations and generational trauma that can hinder individuals from shining and being noticed. Judy and Stephanie emphasize the importance of shifting your mindset, celebrating accomplishments, and overcoming imposter syndrome. They also discuss the concept of measuring progress against one's past self rather than comparing oneself to others.
Stephanie shares her experience in the publishing industry and offers tips for authentic self-promotion. Listeners are encouraged to prioritize self-compassion and self-appreciation.
Meet Stephanie Moon:
Stephanie was one of those kids who read under the covers with a flashlight. Fast forward to her first job and every job since, Stephanie has worked with, in, and around books. From leading campaigns for New York Times Bestsellers, securing partnerships with brands like the San Francisco Public Library, and securing coverage in Oprah’s coveted Holiday Favorite Things list, Stephanie has the experience and ingenuity to craft creative brand and marketing campaigns.
Over the years, Stephanie noticed a trend. Authors who had spent years researching and writing their books did little to nothing to market their books. They left all the marketing and promotion to their publisher and wondered why their book wasn’t being shared with their favorite influencer and why sales were slower than they thought. Stephanie knew she had to change this and teach authors how to market and promote their books. This was the catalyst for creating the Master Your Book Marketing Program.
On the weekends you can find Stephanie gardening in the backyard, getting covered in sand at the beach, or curled up on the sofa reading.
Follow Stephanie Moon, Marketing Strategist | Authors & Publishers:
Episode Highlights
The challenge of self-promotion [00:02:08]
Discussion on the difficulty of self-promotion for Asian Americans and the impact of cultural upbringing on shining less.
Insights on promoting books [00:04:01]
Stephanie Moon shares her experience working with authors and emphasizes the importance of promoting books for success.
Mindset shift for successful authorship [00:06:49]
Exploration of mindset shifts needed for authors, including overcoming shyness and embracing self-promotion as a service to others.
The mindset shift [00:08:49]
Tips and tools to shift your mindset and feel good about your accomplishments.
Imposter syndrome and self-validation [00:12:40]
Discussion on imposter syndrome and the importance of recognizing your own qualifications and achievements.
Celebrating milestones and accomplishments [00:16:43]
The importance of taking time to celebrate milestones and accomplishments, and the need for self-validation.
The gap and the gain [00:17:31]
Discusses the concept of measuring progress against one's past self rather than comparing oneself to others.
Fear of visibility [00:20:28]
Explores the cultural and personal barriers to self-promotion and the importance of representation in media and literature.
Share your accomplishments [00:26:09]
Encourages breaking stereotypes and pushing boundaries by openly sharing and being proud of one's achievements.
The importance of not removing oneself from opportunities [00:27:07]
Discussion on how marginalized populations often don't apply for jobs if they don't meet all qualifications.
The value of self-promotion and finding one's voice [00:28:27]
Stephanie shares her experience working with publishing houses and authors, emphasizing the importance of authentic self-promotion and finding one's unique voice.
How to connect with the speaker [00:29:46]
Stephanie provides her website and Instagram handle for people to connect with her.
Links Mentioned:
The Little Book of Tibetan Rites and Rituals
Stephanie Moon’s website: www.stephmoonco.com
The Gap and the Gain book
There are affiliate links included in this blog post.
Transcript:
Speaker 1 (00:00:02) - Welcome to the Saving Face podcast, where we're empowering mental and emotional health for Asian Americans and voices of color by breaking through taboo topics. Life may not always be pretty, but it is indeed beautiful. Make your story beautiful today. In case you're new to the show, my name is Judy Tsuei and I'm the founder of Wild Hearted Words. We are a strategic branding and content marketing agency, and we focus on working with female entrepreneurs of color to create sustainable six figure success. If you'd like to experience what it's like to work with me, you can sign up for my latest masterclass that's available on my website at Wild Hearted Words. Com Forward slash shop. It's called Overcoming Challenges and Traumas Through Mindset Shifts and Manifestation. And when you sign up for the audio course, that's about an hour. You'll also get a bonus PDF filled with incredible affirmations that you can practice every day to welcome in the life you'd like to have for a limited time. The course is now only $19. Again, go to WildHeartedWords.com/shop.
Now on to the episode. Welcome back to the F*ck Saving Face podcast. I'm very excited and I say that all the time with every podcast intro, but I am because I am an author now. So my book, The Little Book of Tibetan Rites and Rituals, has come out. You can order it on Amazon or wherever you get your books. There's even an audible version, so you can go there and listen to it. And I love audio books, but Stephanie Moon is here with me today and she's a book marketing strategist and consultant. And the reason that I think her insights are so valuable is because from an Asian American perspective, the challenge that I've had and I'm in marketing PR, I have a branding and content marketing agency, my whole job is to help other people get seen and to have the words to be able to get seen and to show up more and like search engine results and all that kind of stuff. I do it phenomenally well for other clients. But when it comes to myself, I do not do that well because I hit the challenge of self promotion.
Speaker 1 (00:02:08) - And you know, growing up as an Asian American, you're taught to fall in line. You're taught to not make a big ruckus. And also, you know, generationally, if you think about like the trauma that's been impacted by a lot of Asian cultures have gone through, being seen in a big way is going to get you in trouble. So I think that's been passed on. And so now, you know, especially if you're in the publishing world, so many traditional publishing houses will tell you that the only way that you're going to be noticed is if you already have a platform, if you're already sitting there in a notable figure or if you are going to be doing all the work to get out there and get seen. So Stephanie has insights that she's going to share with that unique lens of what do you do if you are Asian American or you grew up in any sort of culture or upbringing that maybe taught you to shine less? Because if you shown more, you may get noticed in ways that are not going to be beneficial to you.
Speaker 1 (00:03:05) - So I'm going to turn it over to Stephanie to share a bit about your story and just how you got into this career and where you are now. Yeah, thanks, Judy, for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:03:14) - So I got my start in publishing. I was super lucky to do that. I was always that kid growing up who was reading a ton. It was like my favorite, like after school activity to go to the library with my grandma. And it just felt like a dream to kind of like work in books. So fast forward, I worked in books, traditional publishers for ten plus years and then took some time off and then started my own business. And, you know, throughout that whole time I've worked on hundreds if not thousands of books and with hundreds of authors. And the ones that were most successful were always the ones that knew how to promote their books. And whether that came naturally to them or they learned it, it didn't matter. It's like being able to promote your book made you super successful, and that's like super obvious.
Speaker 2 (00:04:01) - But then as I started thinking about, you know, the different authors that I've worked with and what it was like, I really realized that Asian authors feel very shy about promoting themselves in their books. And sure, lots of other authors of different ethnicities feel shy too. I would say mostly women and Asians feel like the most shy. And to me, it's really a shame because, you know, no matter what type of book you're writing, it is like a years long process. It's not easy. You have to research, create outlines, work with your editor, do revisions. And, you know, to me, it's like you spend years writing your book. And then when it comes to marketing, so many authors just fall flat. You know, like Judy said, your publisher really is going to want you to sell your book. And I know a lot of authors think, especially if they get a deal with a bigger house, that their publisher will do a lot of the work. And yes, the publisher definitely has an amazing marketing and publicity department.
Speaker 2 (00:05:02) - I mean, was a part of like a few of them, you know, so it's true. But you also have to think about that publisher, even if it's a smaller imprint, is working on so many books. So there was never a time that I was working on less than 20 or 30 books per season, and that was me as like one person. So it's like the only books that get a lot of attention are the ones that are really important, ranked really high, maybe going to be a bestseller. So if your book is not one of those, you will get a little bit of attention, but your publisher is going to want you to really drive that awareness and then drive those sales. Knowing that and then seeing others not really do anything and kind of like broke my heart. It's like you spend all this time, you know, kind of pouring your heart and soul into this book. And then when it comes to promoting, like you don't want to tell anybody, you do one post on social media and send maybe one email out.
Speaker 2 (00:05:56) - I've heard authors say like, Oh, but if people want to like, find my book, they'll like, be able to look it up. And then I want to say to them, No. Yes, they absolutely like have a brain and can do that. But will they do it? And it's like, probably not. People are so busy. Social media is so filled with messaging. People just are lazy, basically. So you have to make everything you want your ideal reader to do. Super, super easy. I've just really run into a lot of the Asians who just don't want to. They're like, But I don't want to talk about these like, great things that I've done. So that's why I'm here today to kind of share with Judy, like how Asians and any authors can kind of like make different mindset shifts to be a more successful author.
Speaker 1 (00:06:49) - Well, and also, I mean, whether or not you're Asian American, most creative artists are probably introverted. You know, you're in your head, you're in that creative space.
Speaker 1 (00:06:57) - And then from a marketing perspective, you know, I have my agency, so I know that the stats for anybody paying attention to anything that you're putting out there are so minimal and that you need to be redundant over and over again. And I think that before there was a stat like, you know, decades ago, someone needed to see your message like 7 to 8 times or whatnot. But because of the like, if you're on Discord or Twitter even, that's like an exponential amount that you would have to repeat. And so I think there's also that hesitation of not only am I not going to beat my own chest and like sit here and tell you all these things, but then also, you know, like, oh my God, if I say it over and over, people are going to get so sick of it. But they probably didn't even see it in the first place. So yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:07:38) - I completely agree and I use that stat. So years ago it was 7 or 8 times, but now because of the volume of content plus ads and you know, just how we're inundated with everything it takes 17 times and that's a lot.
Speaker 2 (00:07:52) - And so it's repeating the message and being consistent is where you'll find success. And, you know, even if I mean, yeah, you have no idea what people are seeing when they're seeing it, what they're doing. And you just need to keep kind of sharing your message and sharing your story.
Speaker 1 (00:08:11) - And I think one of the things that you mentioned too, was this mindset shift, which I think is just key to anything in life really. And I think most spiritual traditions will say that like you could be in the same exact experience, but if you shifted your mindset around it, your whole relationship with that experience would shift and change as well. And so I think that, you know, being able to see that if you did put all that heart and effort into creating a book and it is of service, it's your gift to the world, your self promotion is actually potentially helping someone else find your message when they need it the most and looking at it as like you living out your act of service or whatever it is that you're doing.
Speaker 1 (00:08:49) - So I would love to hear more of those tips and tools that you have to kind of shift your mindset around. I feel like and I hope that what comes across is whether or not you've written a book, just you standing in your confidence and your strength to be able to feel good about your accomplishments. I realized this morning, you know, before we go on this call, Stephanie, we're talking and she was asking how, you know, things have been. And I said the last few days have been really weird. And I don't know if there's just something going on. It seems like everybody's going through something. But I've totally been in this kind of funky headspace and feeling, just feeling super frustrated. And my whole challenge has been I'm a very empathic person and a very intuitive in person. So when people come to me, I know exactly what to say or do to help them move through whatever their challenge is. But then when I feel in those places, I feel like other people have a hard time being able to show up despite how much they want to, because I'm not clear about what it is that I need that's going to help me in that moment.
Speaker 1 (00:09:48) - And it's extremely frustrating and even more so for me and my partner. So finally, like, you know, we were talking about it this morning and then he just started telling me all of these affirmations and just all of these ways that he sees me and all of the ways that I'm showing up in my life. And I realized, oh, that is so helpful because, you know, I grew up with Asian parents. They weren't sitting there complimenting me all the time. And I think if you're a parent, too, it never gets old to hear you're doing a good job, like you're being a great mom or like whatever that is. So just hearing those affirmations really helps shift things. And so I was like, Oh, that really works for me. And, you know, I didn't know that that was something. And so I think here in this moment, hearing the tips that you're offering, if it fits for you, whoever's listening to this right now, you know, I encourage you to take it on.
Speaker 1 (00:10:41) - If it doesn't fit for you, just let it float on by. But that wherever you are showing up in your life, that you could give yourself that space and grace and that extra boost of confidence to, you know, be in your gift or be in your accomplishments and just take a moment to celebrate that. So that was a long winded question.
Speaker 2 (00:10:59) - It's kind of like, you know, your partner telling you those things kind of reflects back what they see from you. And I think that, of course, we are our harshest critic, you know, like. We think like, Oh, we should be doing this, we should be doing this, we should be doing this, you know? And definitely that word should makes it feel like, oh, there's like so much there's like a million things to do. And you never really look at the things that you've already done. And that's kind of like where this mindset plus thinking about how you can feel good about your accomplishments, you know, So let's let's talk about the mindset.
Speaker 2 (00:11:34) - And I and I do agree this is for everybody who just wants to feel more empowered about the stuff that they've done, the stuff that they're doing and just feel good about themselves. Think, you know, it's the mindset is so important. And I never learned about that until starting a business like two years ago. And it's like, I mean, why don't people teach this in corporate America or in college or in anything? You know?
Speaker 1 (00:11:59) - And I also want to mention that you started your own business. And if people go to Steph, you can see this, but you have press from Forbes, CNN and Wall Street Journal, like all of these different places. So I want to take a moment to celebrate you and just say, like, that's amazing. Great job. Thank you. Thank yeah. As like overachievers or whatever our our harshest critics are saying. I feel like, you know, any time that I can stop and celebrate, that's what I'm all about. So can you offer us some of those tips that you would share with some of your clients?
Speaker 2 (00:12:35) - So the biggest one and probably one that people do hear about is imposter syndrome.
Speaker 2 (00:12:40) - So it's kind of like that really shows up in you saying to yourself, like, who am I to write this? Who am I to share this? Who am I to do this? And then also, like, why would somebody kind of like care what I'm thinking or care about what I'm writing or care? Because why is my opinion also like important or valid? And so I'm sure lots of people can feel this about lots of different things, You know, doesn't have to just be an author. It's just I think it's about kind of like sharing your voice, you know? I think it also comes up a lot for like in meetings. You don't share your idea or your opinion because you feel like, well, why? Like, why would they care what I think, you know? So I think that's super common. And I think kind of the way to shift that or the thoughts to like think about or have or repeat to yourself would be, I'm the perfect person to share my story and I'm the best person to help you.
Speaker 2 (00:13:31) - My story matters. And then also what I have found that's helpful. And that's probably hard or not hard. Something people don't do that much is. So if you're writing a book, it would be to make a list of like 20 reasons, 100 reasons of why you're the perfect person to write this book. So if you're writing like a book about therapy, like why are you like, you're a therapist, you went to school, you graduated with honors, you've been running your practice for eight years. You have tons of five star reviews. People come to see you for years and years and then get better. You know, there's so many reasons that they could be like big and small, but when you write them down, have them in a list. You, I think, recognize like, Oh, I did do all this like amazing stuff that makes me uniquely qualified to share this story, this information. And people don't do that enough. And, you know, keep that list handy. So when you are feeling like that imposter syndrome, you can just look at it and be like, Oh yeah, I went to school for eight years to like learn about this.
Speaker 2 (00:14:37) - I got all A's. Like, you know, I've written tons of like research papers or articles or whatever. And then that kind of comes to the second thing you can do, which is to collect in one spot all the cool shit you've done. So you can have like a Google spreadsheet or something and just call it like my wins and write down all the cool stuff you've done, like podcasts, you've been on media articles, you've been in awards, you've won any kind of like great thing or even like an email that somebody wrote about you that was like so amazing. Because I think also once you start like collecting all of these things, you'll see like, yes, like I am the perfect person to share. And people also appreciate my opinion, appreciate my thoughts. What do you think?
Speaker 1 (00:15:24) - Well, I was as you were talking, I was kind of wondering, because imposter syndrome comes up a lot in a lot of different facets. And even the most people that we probably look up to is like the most accomplished also experience it.
Speaker 1 (00:15:37) - So I wonder where it comes from and why we all I feel like humanizing things. And part of the reason that this podcast even exists is to bring things to light and to share, like we're all going through it. And so the less that we try to hide it, then the less shame that we may feel about the things that all of us collectively are going through. All of us have probably experienced imposter syndrome at one time or another. And I think especially if you grew up in a harsh authoritarian household, you probably weren't given the opportunities to celebrate any wins to like write down that list of things that you've accomplished. Because the goal post, as I learned through years of therapy, was always moving like I would hit that goal in that milestone. But like right as I hit it, it would move further away and it would be another goal and another goal. So there was never this feeling of like, Oh, okay, like I hit it. I can take a moment and stop. In fact, you know, even with the book that just came out, the Tibetan rights book that I wrote, like launch day came and went and I was so busy with so many other things that I didn't even take a moment to celebrate.
Speaker 1 (00:16:43) - And then I got mad about it because I was like, wait a minute, if I'm not taking a moment to celebrate these milestones and these accomplishments, what am I doing? And so I actively asked my partner today. I'm like, Look, I am very angry that I did not take time to sell a house. So we need to take a moment. And I'm not talking about like going out for drinks or getting dinner. Like no, like I just want a moment. And so, you know, however that looks for you, I think that just in life, keeping a running tally of the things that you've done, like instead of the to do list that we've been making of things that we check off or we don't check off throughout the day, maybe it would be more beneficial and useful to like, you know, create this like checklist of things that you did do. And like all the ways that you did show up.
Speaker 2 (00:17:24) - And I think that that is definitely one thing that's amazing because I don't know if you've read this book or heard about this book.
Speaker 2 (00:17:31) - It's called The Gap and the Gain. And I forget the author, but it's basically talking about how you can't measure yourself against a moving goalpost, basically. Like I think he uses that example in the book because even if you like, make $1 million or on the New York Times bestseller list or whatever, your huge, you know, dream is, once you get it, you're like, okay, got it. Like, let's move on to the next thing. How can I buy a $2 million house? How can I have a second book on the New York Times bestseller list? How can I do whatever? And he really talks about how the best way to measure your progress is against your past self. So it's kind of like, Oh, okay, So for you, for instance, like, I don't know how long your book process took, but it's kind of like, okay, so one year or two years ago, you didn't have a book deal, you didn't work with an editor, you didn't write this amazing book.
Speaker 2 (00:18:21) - You know, your book wasn't available. So then if you reflect back on backwards, you'll see like, Wow, I really did all of this stuff and it's so amazing.
Speaker 1 (00:18:31) - I love that so much. I think that it's funny because when I got my peloton, you know, you're seeing on the leaderboard all of the people like historically who've done that workout than anybody who's actively in the class. And then you can see your rank compared to everybody who's actively working out or historically. And so I'm looking at these numbers of people who are exponentially above me like, what? How are you achieving those numbers? And so I brought that up to a friend who was also working out with me on the peloton, and he was like, No, no, you do not compare to anybody else on the leaderboard. You compare to yourself, What's your personal record? What do you want to achieve? Because otherwise you'll always feel short. I don't know how many times we've ever compared ourselves downward. We're always comparing like upward.
Speaker 1 (00:19:17) - Like that person has more than me. That person's accomplished more than me. We're not looking at like, Well, I have a bed to sleep in and a roof over my head. The majority of the world doesn't have basic, you know, comforts and are fighting for survival. And so, yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:19:33) - So think that backwards. Look when you actually think about it and then start doing it, it feels like, Oh yeah, I mean, I wasn't like working in vain for a year or two years. You know, you did all of this, you kind of accomplished all of this stuff, you know, like all those old to do lists that have like checkmarks you've done. And you have to kind of see those and not just see the like, uncheck boxes that you haven't done yet.
Speaker 1 (00:20:02) - Yeah. So I'm curious, too. I think that sometimes when it comes to self promotion, it can feel like not only who am I to be like doing all this stuff, but like a little bit of like, this ego situation.
Speaker 1 (00:20:18) - Like a little like, you know, and, you know, an Asian culture. You're not supposed to do that. You're not. To think that you were the best. And so how do you adjust that?
Speaker 2 (00:20:28) - So that kind of like. Is in line with the second one, which is like fear of visibility. You know, you're not, you know, so I grew up you're not supposed to like share all these things. You did like I got an A, I was the whatever did this thing in sports. And I think how to flip it is you have to think like oh if my if my story or my book or my work can help somebody, it's my duty to help them. Because I think a lot of things, you know, wouldn't you love to have seen more books by Asian American authors growing up? You know, and there weren't many when we were growing up. And Amy Tan.
Speaker 1 (00:21:12) - Right.
Speaker 2 (00:21:12) - And one adult, Maxine Hong.
Speaker 1 (00:21:14) - Kingston, those are like the two that I know of.
Speaker 2 (00:21:17) - Like there was there were none. And, you know, slowly, slowly, slowly, that's changing. But if you do have that opportunity to share, like think about how many people it could help, you know, especially think about this for kind of children's book authors, fiction book authors. Yeah. Because it's kind of like you want to see yourself reflected in the books that you're reading to know like, Oh, I'm not. This being me is okay. Basically, you know, you want to see that example and that evidence in the world that being an Asian kid who maybe like eats like weird food or whatever is okay, you want to see you want to be represented in the books that you read, you know, And that's so important, you know, And.
Speaker 1 (00:22:03) - I feel like I was listening to a podcast interview with a journalist who's Asian American who was kind of reporting on Asian hate, but like he wanted to be in the forefront on the news on the screen because he's like, I don't care if I'm just playing in the background as the news is on in your house, maybe there's a little Asian kid who's going to see, hey, there's like an Asian male on TV.
Speaker 1 (00:22:22) - And that's possible. I think that as you were talking, I realized that, you know, because of the systemic treatment of media, then what we see as normal is usually a face that doesn't look like ours. And so even in my imaginations and visualizations, then I'm not imagining someone who looks like me. I'm imagining someone who looks like what the majority is that we see, not the global majority, but the majority that's been portrayed. And so I think that that's probably why for so long I tried to bleach my hair blonde, but it would always turn orange. So like, you know, trying to match that. And so I interviewed a children's book author in the first season and then talked about how, like in science fiction especially, and in any sort of fantasy or any sort of like I even think about the Magic Tree House series that I read to my daughter and you know how it goes back through time to different eras. And she is not going to see herself in the Renaissance like because it's not that's not a historical accurate representation.
Speaker 1 (00:23:31) - And so I feel like that's a very interesting place to be in. Fiction in and of itself is so interesting because that's not the kind of mentality that's fostered as an Asian kid. You're taught the left brain engineering doctor, you know, lawyer kind of thing, the things that are hard. And when I say hard, I mean like hard facts, like, you know, hard truths like mathematics and like things like that. It's not like yourself. Go play and, like, imagine, like what all is going to happen in this universe or whatever, Right?
Speaker 2 (00:24:03) - Right. Yeah. And. I think for people, kids and adults alike, to see yourself represented in media and in books and movies is so important, you know, and it doesn't happen enough. I did some research on this. 7% of the publishing industry is Asian, so very little. And then 4% of authors are Asian.
Speaker 3 (00:24:28) - Mm.
Speaker 2 (00:24:29) - Very little compared to the population is about 6% Asian. So we just need a little bit more representation because it really matters.
Speaker 2 (00:24:38) - Yeah. Just wanted to bring that fact up. There's not a lot of representation. You know, publishing is overwhelmingly white and different voices really, really matter. Yeah. And I think also too, like with this maybe new generation or like our generation of parents, like we really care about that, you know, like my, my mom did not like look at any of the books that I read. She was just like, okay, fine, just go to the library. But then I'm like, oh, my son is four. I think about like, okay, are there different books with like different characters that he can read? So I think that that really is kind of like a change. And so Asian parents are ready to buy books featuring Asian characters.
Speaker 1 (00:25:20) - If you'd like a free meditation practice to help you manifest the life of your dreams, go to wild hearted words. Com forward slash money. There you'll find a free five minute guided audio practice that you can download and use at any time to fit your own schedule.
Speaker 1 (00:25:36) - It's filled with beautiful affirmations, ways to keep you focused on your intention and a lovely practice that you can use regularly to keep your energy aligned to the life that you'd like to create. That's wild hearted words. Com forward slash money. Yeah, absolutely. I agree. Well, as we are wrapping up this interview, I ask every guest if you could say fuck saving face to one thing, what would you say fuck saving face about? So what would be your answer there?
Speaker 2 (00:26:09) - I would say share your accomplishments. I think, you know, to break the stereotype, we have to do the things that we weren't taught or that didn't feel like good. And I think a lot is also about kind of like pushing yourself and like stretching your boundaries, you know? So you mentioned earlier like my website, like don't tell. I don't actually think I ever tell authors like, Oh, I worked on like several New York Times bestsellers or like, if I do, I say it very like, Oh yeah, did that or Oh, I helped sell like however many million dollars worth of books I get, just like, that's probably not like a selling point that I share with my clients or potential clients.
Speaker 2 (00:26:52) - But then when I think about it, I'm like, Why wouldn't I? Why wouldn't I share that? Why hide that? So I think it's about sharing your accomplishments and being proud of them. You know, be proud that you wrote a book. It's not an easy process.
Speaker 1 (00:27:07) - Yeah, I think that one of my friends recently brought up to me again, and this is a stat that I had heard before of just like, you know, if you took, let's just say, a white male and he saw a job posting and if he were underqualified, he would apply for it, whereas most other marginalized populations would already excuse themselves from even trying for it because they don't meet 100% of the qualifications. And so I think not removing yourself from the game before it's even started is going to be an important part. Like what happens? Who knows? You can, you know, even in the process right now, as I'm pitching back my memoir again, who knows? Like, if that's not the right person, that's fine.
Speaker 1 (00:27:49) - But at least I'm putting it out there in the universe. They know that that exists. Maybe they know someone, maybe somebody else know someone. And I always believe that luck favors the prepared. So like, you know, the more that you get out there and the more that you try, you know, people are like swing for the fences or however many whatever analogies that you want to use, however many balls are in there, blah, blah, blah, blah. But I appreciate that sentiment. And just before we go, I would love for you to take a moment to share more of those accomplishments. So can you tell me a little bit more about the publishing houses that you work for and the different, you know, like just take a moment to like self promote?
Speaker 3 (00:28:26) - Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:28:27) - And even for me now, it's still feel kind of weird. You know, I've worked in the publishing business for ten plus years, started my business and then work with publishers big and small to help with their marketing and authors directly.
Speaker 2 (00:28:43) - So I've worked with classic Chronicle Books, Party, Grant, Harpercollins and lots of smaller ones that have like fewer books. But I just really love working with authors because I know that they're like, I really light up when I can kind of educate the author on why promotion is important and also help. They can do it like most authentically to themselves. It doesn't have to be robotic emails, you know, or like images of you holding your book up next to your face. It can be tons of different things, but finding your voice and seeing authors do that really makes me so happy, you know? And it really allows them to kind of like be themselves, you know, especially right now as people are like flooded with messaging and flooded with content. You know, the only way you're going to stand out is if you're yourself. Nobody else can be you and nobody else can tell your story the way you did. You know.
Speaker 3 (00:29:41) - I love that.
Speaker 1 (00:29:41) - Yay, yay. Well, if people want to follow up with you, how do they connect?
Speaker 2 (00:29:46) - Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:29:47) - So my website is Steph Moon Co and on Instagram I am at Steph Moon Co and would love to be in contact with everybody.
Speaker 3 (00:29:57) - Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (00:30:02) - Thank you so much for listening to today's episode. If you'd like to support me and this show, please go to iTunes and leave your review. It means so much to me and it'll help others find this podcast. I'll catch you in the next episode and if you'd like to stay in touch between now and then, please visit wild hearted words and sign up for my weekly newsletter. I've had people share with me that it's the best thing to arrive in their inbox all week. Aloha.
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Keywords: F*ck Saving Face podcast, mental health, emotional health, Asian Americans, marriage, relationships, unconventional, space, epigenetics, inner work, healing, duality
