Unscripted with Ally & Jenn, The Promotion Season

Nine months into the Promotion Season, Jenn and Ally move into the “S” of the ASPEN Method: Strategize. Ally opens by reading straight from Promote Your Purpose:

“Strategy isn’t about doing everything, it’s about doing the right things in the right order and the right way, and a slow, deep foundation often outlasts the flashiest launch.”

From there, the two dig into three practical levers for building visibility: calls to action, partnerships, and cause marketing, which Jenn defines as aligning your book and mission with someone else’s cause so you’re both raising each other up.

The back half of the episode gets personal. Ally walks through two real authors with completely different marketing paths, one chasing broader reach and one who made peace with a slower, quieter release tied to a humanitarian cause in Sudan, to make the point that neither approach is wrong once you know your own goal. That leads into the episode’s sharpest thread: authors comparing their own promotion pace to everyone else’s.

Jenn and Ally land on a reframe that’s worth sitting with, that better is only better when it’s measured against your own yesterday, not against another author’s highlight reel. The episode closes on sustainability, since book marketing has no finish line, the real skill is building endurance rather than sprinting.

In This Episode

* The Strategize phase of the ASPEN Method, and why strategy means sequencing the right actions rather than doing everything at once

* Calls to action, partnerships, and cause marketing as the three visibility levers Jenn returns to most often

* What cause marketing actually means, and how aligning your book with someone else’s mission benefits both sides

* Two real author examples with very different marketing goals, used to show why there’s no single right pace or approach

* Why comparing your own marketing progress to other authors’ undermines your strategy, and the reframe to use instead

* Treating sustainability and endurance as the real goal, since book marketing and promotion never has a defined finish line

Resources & Links

* Free companion workbook for this season: UnscriptedForAuthors.com

* Jenn’s book, Promote Your Purpose: promoteyourpurposebook.com

* The State of Author Marketing survey (2nd annual, open now through October 31)

* The Institute for Author Growth & Impact: authorgrowthandimpact.org

Work With Us

(Ally) Join the email list at The Write Place, Right Time Get on the list for upcoming workshops, including a free “Writing a Memoir That Matters” webinar in October, a guest session with Brave Healers Productions on November 5, and a workshop with the Herstory community in November. Sign up: thewriteplacerighttime.com

(Jenn) Take the State of Author Marketing Survey Help build the data set on what’s actually working in nonfiction book marketing. Open to any published author, whether your book came out yesterday or twenty years ago. Take the survey: bookmarketingsurvey.com

Next Episode

October brings Chapter 10 and the “P” in ASPEN: Plan and Promote. Jenn and Ally shift into building a marketing plan with intention instead of hustle.

Eight months into the Promotion Season, Jenn and Ally leave the foundation-building behind and step into the ASPEN Method, Jenn’s five-phase framework from Promote Your Purpose for making book marketing repeatable instead of overwhelming. This episode is the first time the full acronym gets unpacked on air: Assess, Strategize, Plan, Execute, Nurture. The conversation centers on the Assess phase, and Ally frames it with three grounding principles before getting into the mechanics: Rome wasn’t built in a day, start with what you already have before buying or learning anything new, and don’t lose sight of your own values and working style in the process.

From there, the two dig into “positioning,” a word Jenn calls jargony but essential, walking through what it means to evaluate your book’s place in a crowded market. Ally volunteers her own two books, a nonfiction desk reference and a memoir, as live case studies, working through professional positioning, personal branding, and how lived experience becomes a credibility asset. The episode also tackles a harder question: how authors should respond to negative industry narratives (memoir is dying, DEI books don’t sell, etc.) and whether to “double down” or “water down” a message in the current climate, a question a live viewer pushes further with a question about trusted advisors and blind spots.

In This Episode

* The full ASPEN Method breakdown: what Assess, Strategize, Plan, Execute, and Nurture each mean, explained end to end for the first time this season

* Three grounding principles for the Assess phase before you touch a single marketing task

* What “positioning” actually means, beyond the marketing buzzword, and why book production quality is part of it

* A live positioning walkthrough using Ally’s own books, including a real example of repositioning a book title into a paid speaking topic

* Why lived experience (Ally having written a memoir herself, Jenn having built a business from it) is a positioning asset that’s easy to under-emphasize

* How to read competitor and industry trends without absorbing them as truth, including Jenn’s own story of publishing LGBTQ-focused books in 2012 when almost no market existed

* The double down vs. water down question: how to decide how directly to speak into a difficult topic or climate, and how a “personal board of advisors” can help you check your blind spots

* A live audience Q&A on whether that double down/water down decision should be made solo or with outside input

* A first look at SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) as the wrap-up tool for the Assess phase

Resources & Links

* Free companion workbook for this season: UnscriptedForAuthors.com

* Jenn’s book, Promote Your Purpose: promoteyourpurposebook.com

* The Institute for Author Growth and Impact: authorgrowthandimpact.org

* Book a free 30-minute Story Stroll with Ally: bit.ly/3HPIQkK

* Ally’s nonfiction desk reference, referenced as a live case study: Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One — donotwriteabook.com

* Prior episode referenced: target audience (June) and book ecosystem (May) discussions

Work With Us

(Ally) Book your free 30-minute Story Stroll A quick Zoom chat about your book: what it is, what it could be, and where you’re getting stuck. It’s a low-pressure way to get clarity and find out if working together is the right fit. Story Stroll: bit.ly/3HPIQkK

(Jenn) Turn Your Book Into Something Bigger with the Institute for Author Growth & Impact If you’re ready to grow your book into a larger body of work, the Institute gives you the tools, training, and community to design an ecosystem that supports your business and your message. The Institute: authorgrowthandimpact.org

Jenn also teased an upcoming State of Author Marketing survey, opening for participation and launching officially in September.

Next Episode

September brings Chapter 9 and the “S” in ASPEN: Strategize. Jenn and Ally move into visibility strategies and audience growth, including how AI can support visibility planning without diluting an author’s voice.

Selling feels uncomfortable for most authors, and this episode shows why. Ally and Jenn dig into Chapter 7 of Promote Your Purpose, reframing sales as invitation instead of pressure. Jenn breaks down the meet, invite, sell framework from sales strategist Allison Davis. Ally and Jenn share two real stories: a woman who signed up for a free book drawing at a book fair and came back a year later to join a paid workshop, and a client relationship that took ten years from first conversation to published book. Jenn adds the “borrowed audience” concept (also from Allison Davis), showing how libraries, bookstores, and book clubs can multiply reach without a hundred one-on-one conversations. Together they land on the real test for a sale: it only works when it benefits the author, the partner, and the person being served, all three.

In this episode, you will learn:

* Why authors freeze up trying to “say the words” that mean buy this book, and how to reframe selling as an invitation instead

* The meet, invite, sell framework (Allison Davis) and what each stage actually looks like in practice

* The “three-way win” test: how to know a sale is genuinely aligned rather than a hard push

* Why some sales cycles run ten years, and why rushing someone who isn’t ready costs you the relationship

* The borrowed audience strategy: using book clubs, libraries, and bookstores to reach people you couldn’t reach alone

* The difference between selling the book itself versus selling an idea that leads people to the book

Listen in for a simple way to sell your book that doesn’t require becoming someone you’re not.

“When done right, marketing is an act of service.” — Jenn T. Grace, Promote Your Purpose, Chapter 7, p. 95

Resources & Links

* Promote Your Purpose by Jenn T. Grace: promoteyourpurposebook.com

* Dear Universe by Ally Berthaiume: https://ayberthiaume.com/dearuniverse/

* Free companion workbook for Season 3: unscriptedforauthors.com

* Allison Davis, sales strategist (source of the meet, invite, sell and borrowed audience frameworks): allison-davis.com

Shameless Self-Promotion

(Ally) The Memoir Studio is officially live A nine-month guided coaching and editing container that takes you from blank page to finished manuscript, with structure, developmental editing, craft coaching, and strategic decision-making built in. The Write Place, Right Time: thewriteplacerighttime.com

(Jenn) Join the Institute for Author Growth & Impact A monthly membership ($147/mo) covering writing, publishing, and marketing under one roof, with group coaching, guest experts, and weekly accountability. The Institute: authorgrowthandimpact.org

Prior Episode & Link

* [The Three Audiences That Shape Your Book’s Success (S3E6)]

Next Episode Tease

August kicks off the five-part ASPEN Method with the Assess phase: taking honest inventory of where you’re comfortable showing up and what platform elements to prioritize first, without trying to build everything at once.

Ally Berthiaume is an award-winning author, international memoir coach, and developmental editor. She helps writers transform pain into purpose and build books that matter. Learn more at thewriteplacerighttime.com.

Jenn T. Grace is the founder of Publish Your Purpose and The Institute for Author Growth and Impact, as well as the author of Promote Your Purpose. She helps nonfiction authors turn their ideas into books that create real impact and long-term visibility. Learn more at authorgrowthandimpact.org.

If you’ve been marketing your book to “everyone,” you’ve been marketing it to no one. The authors who build real traction know exactly who they’re writing for, and more importantly, they know that’s rarely just one person.

In this episode, Jenn breaks down the three-audience framework that changes how authors think about reach: the reader who consumes the book, the buyer who purchases it (often a completely different person), and the impact network - the librarians, conference coordinators, writers group leaders, and family members who champion your work to others. Understanding all three doesn’t just improve your marketing. It makes your manuscript stronger, your messaging sharper, and your platform more intentional from the start.

Ally brings the craft perspective: how writing with one specific reader in mind produces a better book and a cleaner promotional story. She also walks through both of her own books live - her memoir Dear Universe, I Get It Now and her nonfiction guide Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One, mapping out exactly who the reader is, who the buyer is, and what transformation each book creates. This is the kind of specific, applied thinking most authors skip entirely.

In this episode:

* The three audiences every author needs to understand and why confusing them quietly kills your reach

* Why your reader and your buyer are often completely different people (and what to do about it)

* How to identify the transformation your book creates - and use that to sharpen everything from your title to your marketing copy

* The reader avatar: what it is, how to build one, and why it belongs in your process before you finish writing

* How Ally maps her two very different books to two very different audience sets - and what that means for how she promotes each one

* Jenn’s unexpected tip: using AI to help you go deeper on audience questions when the exercises feel overwhelming

Tune in to strengthen your connection with the people who will shape your book’s success.

(Ally) The Memoir Studio - Ally’s flagship program for memoir writers is coming soon. Sign up for emails at thewriteplacerighttime.com so you’re first to know when enrollment opens. thewriteplacerighttime.com

(Jenn) What Type of Writer Are You? - authorgrowthandimpact.org/writing-quiz Take Jenn’s new quiz to identify your writing blocks and get a plan to move through them. authorgrowthandimpact.org/writing-quiz

Want the season schedule and companion workbook pages? Grab them at

https://unscriptedforauthors.com

Ally Berthiaume is an award-winning author, international memoir coach, and developmental editor. She helps writers transform pain into purpose and build books that matter. Learn more at thewriteplacerighttime.com.

Jenn T. Grace is the founder of Publish Your Purpose and The Institute for Author Growth and Impact, as well as the author of Promote Your Purpose. She helps nonfiction authors turn their ideas into books that create real impact and long-term visibility. Learn more at authorgrowthandimpact.org.

S3E5: Your Book Is the Gateway to Future Opportunities

Tagline: Your book isn't just a product - it's the center of an entire ecosystem of impact and income.

Episode Summary: This is the episode where the season shifts gears. After four months of inner work - purpose, goals, mindset, accountability - Ally and Jenn move into the active marketing strategy phase, starting with the most important concept of all: the author ecosystem.

Most authors think about their book as a standalone object. What if it was actually the hub that everything else in your professional world connected to? Speaking gigs, coaching programs, memberships, workshops, card decks, merchandise - they're not separate endeavors. When designed intentionally, they're all spokes on the same wheel, all roads back to the same carnival.

Ally introduces the Ferris wheel metaphor for the author ecosystem, and together they explore exactly how books open doors to programs, talks, and new offers - with real examples from both of their own businesses. If you've been wondering what to do with your book after the launch energy fades, this episode gives you an entirely new way to think about it.

In This Episode:

What an author ecosystem actually is - and why "funnel" is the wrong word for what you're building

The four core buckets of the author ecosystem: your book, thought leadership, business, and speaking

Ally's Ferris wheel (and full carnival) metaphor for visualizing how your book connects to everything else

How programs, talks, and new offers naturally emerge from a book when you're paying attention

Real examples of ecosystem extensions: workshops, book clubs, card decks, bravery boxes, memberships, coaching containers

Why Unscripted itself is an ecosystem play - and what that means for how Ally and Jenn think about the show

Ally's Memoir Studio: a new nine-month container now taking intro sessions

What's coming in June: Know Your Reader, Know Your Buyer, Know Your Impact

Notable Quote: "What's most important is that these strategies matter only when they align with your business model or personal vision. Otherwise it's just throwing spaghetti at the wall."

Jenn T. Grace, Promote Your Purpose (p. 66)

Resources + Links Mentioned:

Promote Your Purpose by Jenn T. Grace - Chapter 5: Turn Your Book Into an Ecosystem

Free Workbook (ecosystem diagram included) - unscriptedforauthors.com

Institute for Author Growth and Impact (Jenn) - authorgrowthandimpact.org

Dear Universe, I Get It Now by Ally + The Bravery Box - [link]

Work With Ally: The Memoir Studio - a nine-month container for writing your memoir from blank page to fully developed manuscript. Structure, craft, developmental editing, and personalized coaching. Now taking intro sessions. DM Ally on LinkedIn to start the conversation.

Work With Jenn / Publish Your Purpose: Institute for Author Growth and Impact - monthly membership covering writing, publishing, and marketing. Group coaching, office hours, and expert guest speakers. Join at authorgrowthandimpact.org.

Connect With Us:

unscriptedforauthors.com

Ally on LinkedIn

Jenn on LinkedIn

Next Episode: Know Your Reader, Know Your Buyer, Know Your Impact - June 11 - Getting specific about who your book is actually for and how to reach them.

Tags/Keywords: author ecosystem, book marketing strategy, nonfiction author platform, book to business, author speaking, book launch strategy, memoir author, thought leadership, Promote Your Purpose, Unscripted podcast, author programs, book opportunities, hybrid publishing

S3E4: Motivation Is Overrated: Accountability Builds Books

Tagline: Motivation gets you started. Accountability gets it done.

Episode Summary: Motivation is unreliable - it shows up when you don't need it and disappears the moment the work gets hard. Accountability, on the other hand, is a structure you can build. In this episode, Ally and Jenn make a clear-eyed case for why accountability - not motivation - is what separates authors who promote consistently from those who sprint hard at launch and then go silent.

This episode bridges the inner work of the first quarter (purpose, goals, mindset) with the outward action that's coming in the second half of the year. The key argument: your strategy isn't about showing up constantly. It's about showing up intentionally. Ally and Jenn explore what that actually looks like in practice - the right accountability structures, the right frequency, the right people - without adding twenty things to your plate.

If you've ever started strong on a promotional push and fizzled out, this is the episode that explains why and what to do instead.

In This Episode:

Why motivation is the wrong thing to rely on for consistent book promotion

The difference between accountability structures that work and ones that just add pressure

How to identify your one accountability person - and what that check-in relationship should actually look like

The "fishing net" principle: why being strategic about where you show up beats casting the widest possible net

Why more is not better in book marketing - and how to think about intentional versus constant presence

Ally's April birthday book giveaway (and what it has to do with ecosystem strategy)

Preview of what's coming in May: turning your book into an ecosystem - "this is where the fun starts"

Notable Quote: "Your strategy isn't about showing up constantly. It's about showing up intentionally. The right actions at the right intervals for the right reasons - that's what moves the needle."

Ally

Resources + Links Mentioned:

Promote Your Purpose by Jenn T. Grace - Chapter 4: Stay Motivated with Support, Structure, and Accountability

Free Workbook (accountability exercises in Chapter 4) - unscriptedforauthors.com

Subtract to Succeed Substack by Nell (referenced) - substack.com

Institute for Author Growth and Impact - authorgrowthandimpact.org

Work With Ally: April book giveaway - win a copy of Dear Universe, I Get It Now or Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One. Sign up at therightplacerighttime.com and watch for the giveaway email. Respond by April 20.

Work With Jenn / Publish Your Purpose: Institute for Author Growth and Impact - monthly membership with group coaching, office hours, and marketing experts. Covers writing, publishing, and marketing. Join at authorgrowthandimpact.org.

Connect With Us:

unscriptedforauthors.com

Ally on LinkedIn

Jenn on LinkedIn

Next Episode: Your Book Is the Gateway to Future Opportunities - May 14 - Building your author ecosystem: how your book connects to speaking, programs, thought leadership, and new offers.

Tags/Keywords: author accountability, book promotion consistency, motivation vs accountability, nonfiction author marketing, book marketing strategy, author platform building, Promote Your Purpose, Unscripted podcast, memoir author, book launch burnout, intentional marketing

S3E3: Your Mindset Might Be Your Biggest Marketing Block

Tagline: It's not your strategy that's failing - it's what you believe about promoting yourself.

Episode Summary: You can have the best book in your niche, a solid strategy, and all the time in the world - and still not promote it. Why? Because if you haven't dealt with what's happening between your ears, every marketing task will feel like pulling teeth.

In this episode, Ally and Jenn dig into the mindset layer that sits underneath all book promotion: the imposter syndrome, the discomfort with visibility, the fear that talking about your book is the same as being obnoxious. They introduce one of the most practical reframes in the entire season - shifting from "pitching" to "inviting" - and explore how that single shift changes not just how you feel about marketing, but how you actually show up for it.

This is the last foundational episode before the season shifts into active marketing strategy. Get this right, and everything that follows will be easier.

In This Episode:

Why so many authors (even natural marketers) can't bring themselves to promote their own work

The critical mindset shift: from "pitching" to "inviting" - and why it changes everything

How thinking of marketing as self-promotion creates resistance, and what to think instead

The connection between marketing and sales discomfort - and how to start reframing it now (before the July episode on "sales as a service")

Real talk on the difference between showing up intentionally vs. showing up constantly

Why being in all the places doing all the things is a recipe for burnout and poor conversion

What's coming in April (accountability) and why mindset + accountability together set the foundation for everything else

Notable Quote: "A simple mindset shift from pitching to inviting changes everything. It aligns your values with your actions and helps you show up with more ease, confidence, and sincerity."

Jenn T. Grace, Promote Your Purpose (p. 39)

Resources + Links Mentioned:

Promote Your Purpose by Jenn T. Grace - Chapter 3 covers marketing mindset

Free Workbook - unscriptedforauthors.com

Promote Your Purpose Action Prompt Card Deck - available on Jenn's website and Amazon

Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One by Ally - [link]

Work With Ally: Free 30-minute Story Stroll - a one-to-one conversation for writers ready to develop their memoir. DM Ally on LinkedIn to book.

Work With Jenn / Publish Your Purpose: The Promote Your Purpose Action Prompt Card Deck - bite-sized daily actions for marketing your book without overwhelm. Available on Jenn's website.

Connect With Us:

unscriptedforauthors.com

Ally on LinkedIn

Jenn on LinkedIn

Next Episode: Accountability Builds Books - April 9 - The structures and systems that make showing up actually happen.

Tags/Keywords: author mindset, book marketing mindset, imposter syndrome authors, promoting your book, self-promotion for authors, marketing block, nonfiction author platform, memoir marketing, Promote Your Purpose, Unscripted podcast, author visibility, invitation not promotion

Most authors set goals that feel ambitious but have no measurable teeth. In this episode, Ally and Jenn get specific. Ally walks through how her own book goals have evolved over time and what she now helps authors identify when they’re building a writing or revision plan. Jenn unpacks the strategic framework she uses with authors to set goals that are tied to real capacity, real seasons of life, and real outcomes - not just optimism.

You’ll also watch Ally work through her 2026 goals for both her memoir and her nonfiction book live on air, which means you get to see the messy, iterative process - not just the polished result.

In this episode:

* Why “I want to sell a lot of books” is actively working against you

* The SMART goal framework applied specifically to book promotion - with a live example

* How to align your writing goals and marketing goals so they’re pulling in the same direction

* What tracking actually looks like in practice (and why it doesn’t have to be complicated)

* How to recalibrate when your goals stop fitting your season without scrapping everything

Tune in to learn how aligned goals can transform your writing and your reach.

Ally Berthiaume is an award-winning author, international memoir coach, and developmental editor. She helps writers transform pain into purpose and build books that matter. Learn more at thewriteplacerighttime.com.

Jenn T. Grace is the founder of Publish Your Purpose and the author of Promote Your Purpose. She helps nonfiction authors turn their ideas into books that create real impact and long-term visibility. Learn more at publishyourpurpose.com.

(Ally) Book a free 30-minute Story Stroll Let’s talk about your book - what it is, what it could be, and where you’re getting stuck. Clarity, momentum, and a sense of fit in one conversation. https://bit.ly/3HPIQkK

(Jenn) Grab the Promote Your Purpose Action Card Deck One clear action per card to keep your goals moving forward on the days when you need a nudge. https://promoteyourpurposebook.com/card-deck

Prior episodes worth revisiting:

* What Metrics Should I Use to Define My Success as an Author?

Want the season schedule and companion workbook pages? Grab them at

https://unscriptedforauthors.com

S3E1: Find Your Purpose. Build Your Book. Start Your Impact.

Air date: Thursday, January 8, 2026

Tagline: Before you market anything, you have to know why it matters - to you and to your reader.

Episode Summary: Purpose is the heartbeat of every book and the engine behind every promotional decision. In this season opener, Ally shares how her sense of purpose evolved through writing different books and why that clarity shaped everything that came after. Jenn connects purpose to long-term visibility and breaks down why skipping this step leads to confusion, stalled momentum, and ineffective marketing. Together, they help you understand the deeper intention behind your work so you can write and promote with confidence and direction.

In This Episode:

How to identify the deeper mission behind your book

Why purpose makes every marketing decision easier

How clarity shapes messaging, visibility, and platform growth

Ways to anchor your creative process so you stay focused and aligned

How Ally's two very different books (a memoir and a nonfiction title) each serve a distinct purpose - and what that means for how she promotes them

Notable Quote: "If you don't know why you wrote it, you won't know how to talk about it - and if you don't know how to talk about it, no one else will either."

Jenn T. Grace

Resources + Links Mentioned:

Promote Your Purpose by Jenn T. Grace - https://promoteyourpurposebook.com/

Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One by Ally - https://donotwriteabook.com/

Free Workbook - https://unscriptedforauthors.com

Season schedule and all episodes - https://unscriptedforauthors.com

Prior episode: Alignment and Intentional Action is the Secret to Your Success - https://www.youtube.com/live/wv4nmWijM-A?si=P6U27N3N2S4FMR5G

Work With Ally: Get Do Not Write a Book Until You Read This One - your no-BS guide for writing a strong, smart nonfiction book. Keep it on your desk and use it every time you sit down to write. https://donotwriteabook.com/

Work With Jenn / Publish Your Purpose: Get Promote Your Purpose - follow along all year long and discover practical, purpose-centered strategies to market your book with confidence. https://promoteyourpurposebook.com/

Also: Get the complete Book Marketing Survey Report and uncover the insights shaping successful book marketing. https://bookmarketingsurvey.com

Connect With Us:

https://unscriptedforauthors.com

Ally: @thewriteplacerighttime

Jenn: @publishyourpurpose

Next Episode: Author Goals That Actually Create Growth - Thursday, February 12 - How to set goals that match your bandwidth, tie your book to your business, and actually move the needle.

Tags/Keywords: book marketing, nonfiction authors, memoir writing, author platform, purpose-driven marketing, book promotion strategy, hybrid publishing, Promote Your Purpose, Unscripted podcast, author business, find your why, book launch