We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Amy Lyle. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Amy below.

Amy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Any thoughts about whether to ask friends and family to support your business. What’s okay in your view?

Inviting your family to support your business is tricky business.

Having worked as a sales manager and corporate trainer for years, my professional endeavors rarely overlapped with my personal circles. However, since 2017, I’ve delved into the life of a creative, which has required me to make the delicate ask of friends and family for support.

I’m in the book business and bombarding anyone with generic “Buy my book” posts is a sure way to get scrolled past. Instead, I aim to offer something of value—whether it’s a moving story, a humorous anecdote, or a unique perspective—to pique interest and encourage engagement. As a previous salesperson, I understand that the audience may be asking themselves, “What is in this for me?”

For my first book launch, to promote The Amy Binegar Kimmes Lyle Book of Failures, I pulled out all the stops, hosting a swanky event complete with a DJ, freebies, and inspiring speakers. While the launch was a hit, attracting over three hundred attendees, how would I sustain the momentum as my friends and family had already purchased the book? I needed my friends and family to introduce my work to their friends and family.

I began sharing a weekly social media post about a failure I’d had during the week. “The Friday Fail.” I’d end the post with ‘How was your week?’ and included my book link. This humorous approach struck a chord with followers, sparking a wave of witty comments about their mishaps and prompting tagging and sharing. This engagement boosted book sales, initiated invitations to be featured at book clubs, and led to speaking/hosting engagements.

When promoting my second book, We’re All A Mess, It’s OK, a real alpaca was brought to the studio for the cover shoot. Incorporating humorous videos featuring a voiceover from the alpaca playfully discussing the book, these short clips became something people looked forward to seeing. The quirky, shareable content entertained my existing audience and reached new viewers, driving book sales and generating buzz.

I’ve found success by avoiding direct requests for my friends and family to buy anything. Instead, I focus on creating fun, shareable content that they may choose to pass along.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

In 2007, I stumbled into a new career path that revolves around exploring my own mistakes, shortcomings, and blunders. My work has led to acknowledgment as an award-winning humorist and author, TEDx speaker, talk show host, magazine contributor, and screenwriter. I’m grateful to be represented by (film) producer Autumn Bailey. Previously, I spent over a decade as a sales manager and corporate trainer with one of the largest staffing firms.

My goal is to help people embrace their failures, learn from these experiences, and share their stories, as I believe perfection is a repellent and the flaws bring us together.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had recognized the power of collaborative community groups sooner!

I attend monthly in-person coffee shop writers’ club meetings that typically draw around a dozen attendees, and the experience has proven priceless. Our members help one another with recommendations from editors and illustrators to marketing strategies and navigating Amazon as an author.

It’s like having a personal launch team—we promote each other’s books, blogs, and articles, read and review one another’s work, and show up at our members’ events. Members who are not inclined to attend physical gatherings still gain invaluable information, as members share so much on our social media page, and they can reach out to other members privately.

I also highly recommend to anyone considering writing a book to check out Laura Peterson’s “Copy That Pops,” podcast and Dave Chesson’s blog and podcast as they are experts in publishing and marketing.

People are often shocked that marketing a book is more challenging than writing a book.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Nearly a decade ago, my initial aspiration was for my female-centric comedy script, about bridging the gap between working stay-at-home moms to be made into a full-feature film. The journey began with promise as the film attracted a producer and Hollywood funding, only to encounter setbacks during the #boycottGeorgiaFilm movement. After a year of stagnation, it found a new home with another producer who envisioned it as a sitcom.

Despite numerous meetings and promises (in typical Hollywood fashion), no deal has materialized yet. However, this venture sparked a chain reaction of opportunities: writing books, movie roles, a recurring spot on an Atlanta morning show, and speaking engagements, including an invitation to share a “Big Idea” at a Boston TEDx event,

While the realization of my original mission, to see my script produced, remains uncertain, the journey has been rewarding. It has allowed me to be part of the creative community, support others in pursuing their goals, and participate in incredible projects.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.amylyle.me
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amylyleauthor/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amylyle.me/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-lyle-bb8a322/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/amylyle?s=09

Image Credits

Andrea Ferenchik
Brian White