We recently connected with Lonnee Rey and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Lonnee thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

I am on a mission to elevate and celebrate the voices of everyday people who, over the last five years, did a pivot for the positive and became better, not bitter. I got my start hosting interview shows on television, radio and internet talk radio, now called podcasting. It was there I learned the art of interviewing, and realized I had a knack for extracting lesser-known stories from guests. Some 80% of people say they want to write a book someday, myself included. The overwhelming task had me frozen with fear. The exorbitant costs meant the dream was going to die with me…or so I thought.

Several years ago, long before I became a freelance writer, editor and book producer, I bought into an anthology book project. It was a pricey offer but I jumped at the chance to join with others in a collaborative effort to create a book together. Great concept, however, my dream-come-true opportunity developed into an ongoing nightmare. If I had listened to my gut, I would have backed out. I could have avoided so much pain, bullying, ostracizing and debt! The Q&A format was corny (I didn’t know anything else was an option), the lead coordinator made the front matter of the book all about her, (confusing to readers), and, after ten long months, they delivered a book so embarrassing the only person to see any of the 100 advance copies I purchased was the trash man.

As heartbreaking as that experience was, it showed me what to do, and most importantly, what not to do, when it came to helping others share their message in ways that truly impact readers. The story behind my mission is best said this way: “It’s all about the WHO that is YOU behind the WHAT that you DO…and then your Special Sauce.”

Lonnee , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I like to take the zipline to the finish line. Idea-to-ISBN in a week is unheard of, let alone creating best-sellers each time. As a marketing-minded writer (who loves promoting others), my methods blend the writers’ career goals within their stories. The result is a title which opens bigger doors for them if that is what they want. Some just want to tick-off “published author” on their bucket list. Either way, their dreams of being a published author come true.

I got a lucky break when a book producer gave me a shot at editing self-help books for his company. My background happens to include a wild array of jobs, truly remarkable life experiences, (overcoming homelessness, addiction, and depression), as well as decades of learning about personal growth, public speaking, marketing and promotions. These added up to a well-rounded editor’s eye for detail, a knack for story development, and the ability to jooj-up content using paintbrush words – all of which made his clients stories about life spring to life.

Having been a “professional tumbleweed,” my writers immediately feel at-ease sharing their difficulties. They trust in my ability to help them craft their story in a way that reaches their ideal reader. As a result, their expertise shines, their business grows and they evolve into more effective speakers, teachers and leaders.

What sets my services apart from all others is the transformational writing weekend workshop that brings total strangers together and magically transforms them into a collaborative unit. From live coaching to learning story development strategies, they are imbued and emboldened with skills they will use forever. Twelve books, in 12 months, have all become best-sellers. This isn’t pressure, this is PRECISION. With a track record like this, they are guaranteed a successful outcome at an extremely-affordable investment.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I believed everyone was the same way as me: looking to improve as a person (I reinvented myself/entire persona) and looking to add/benefit the lives of others. I was gullible as the day is long, giving everyone more than a few “hall passes” only to find myself let down. I was naïve, blind to the fact that not everyone here on earth is here to do good things.

I had to unlearn this “Goody Two Shoes” mentality. It continues to be a struggle, and source of deep disappointment because I never stop believing in people.

What I have been forced to learn is that when you wear rose-colored glasses you miss the red flags.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I was just finished a ghostwriting gig, excited to find another client, when I fell and broke my wrist in two places. The severe injury included a sprained hand, arm and torn shoulder, making it impossible to sit at a desk and write/type in the way a ghostwriter would do. I still type with one hand, BTW. As a result of this, my hand was forced (pun intended), to find another way to survive. Capitalizing on my creative non-fiction writing, story development skills, and PASSION for helping others in the way they most wanted or needed, I developed the “Rattled Awake” anthology series.

I’d never conducted a writing workshop, but soon found the writers so blown-away they insisted I call them “transformational writing workshops” – voila! The many harsh experiences I’d lived through opened the dance floor, so to speak, for them to feel safe as I guided them in taking a chapter out of their lives.

“Bullied: How I got by…short stories from people who have lived to tell about it, literally,” was recently published. It is altogether different from the “Rattled Awake” series in that “better, not bitter” is not necessarily the end-result of being bullied. The challenge was two-fold: to share difficult stories and do so in a way that did not traumatize the reader. So, I created springboard phrases which summarize advice or insights enabling readers to get the gold nuggets without sifting through the rubble. Thanks to this strategy, the book can be read in about 15 minutes.

• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lonnee