Meet A. Brytney Reaves | Author Coach & CEO
We had the good fortune of connecting with A. Brytney Reaves and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi A. Brytney, how do you define success?
I used to think that success was evident in the tangible things we acquired in this lifetime. This isn’t entirely true. I am learning that success is completing things. How frequently you complete tasks is a measure of success. How efficiently you complete the process is a measurement, as well as how many people that task may impact (the size of the task).
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As an Author Coach, I bring to life the stories my clients want to tell. While I do enjoy fiction, helping someone recount and artistically express their own personal stories provides much more satisfaction. Essentially, clients get to be heard in such a permanent way. Once it is published, it is real. The moment Kawaya Haynes, fitness influencer and first-time author, held her book for the first time, her story became legendary. Her life was now a physical, tangible item to be shared and learned from. This is something that could live on well beyond her natural life and through someone somewhere be remembered.
The road to publishing can seem daunting to new authors and I dare not say that it is easy. Everyone’s journey is different and each one has different obstacles to overcome. Kawaya was great to work with and very coachable, even while reliving traumatic experiences. To conquer the battles we faced, it took life coaching, interviewing, and organizational skills that not every author coach or co-author possesses. When assisting anyone writing a memoir or biography, there’s some coaxing, counseling, and emotional intelligence that gets to be involved so that the client feels understood. In our review sessions, Kawaya would often feel as if she was in a surreal time warp where she was listening to herself tell her own story. I aim for all of my clients to experience their stories this way.
To all reading, know that someone somewhere needs to hear your story the way you tell it. I encourage you to share it.
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
While co-writing Bastard Child, there were a few key places perfect for a mobile office. Giti Thai and Hilltop, both on Slauson/Overhill, and Sip & Sonder on Market Street. I’d reveal my all-time favorite place to set up a mobile office, but then too many folks would go there and it wouldn’t be my favorite anymore!
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
This ShoutOut is to my very first author Kawaya Haynes. With her trust that I could tell her life story, she expanded my horizons as a publisher. I created Queen Ex Literature to be a house for the books my family and I wish to publish and was not intended for other authors to submit. Even so, her story was so impactful to me that I had to help her tell it. Thus, her creative nonfiction memoir Bastard Child was born.
Kawaya Haynes deserves a ShoutOut because she is a compassionate motivator and has been vital to my own inspiration while writing Bastard Child with her. She is a major part of my success story as a publisher and for that I offer her the utmost gratitude.
Kawaya, thank you. Your friendship and business relationship is extremely valuable to me and I recognize just how much of a canon event Bastard Child is for both of us. I am thrilled to be part of your author journey. Congrats on your first book!
Website: www.queenexlit.com
Instagram: instagram.com/queenexliterature
Facebook: facebook.com/queenexliterature
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