All About Platform: Skill Building Reminder

what I did during my ooo + happy pub day!

Not So Secret Agent is an email newsletter all about the inside scoop on cookbook publishing from senior literary agent, Sally Ekus (that’s me!). Make sure we never miss the chance to connect.

Dear Not So Secret Agent readers,

Today’s newsletter will be short and sweet, but don’t worry because I have a doozy for you coming soon. I am currently playing catch-up after over a week OOO! Yup, this Not So Secret Agent was offline indulging in a bucket list goal that I have had for over ten years.

Last week I was in NYC, with some of my best friends, participating in an improv intensive at The Magnet Theater.

Yes, improv comedy. In my other life I am in a mainstage cast that performs on the third Saturday of every month at Happier Valley Comedy. Last week’s personalized intensive was designed specifically for the 16 of us who made our way to the city for one of the most epic improv legend teaching lineups ever. From 10-4 each day, I was in class learning new things, bending my mind, and scribbling in my notebook. I also managed to find the time to take myself to a Broadway show one evening!

Though I travel to NYC all the time for my work as a literary agent, the time warp that I lived last week was a NYC I have never experienced. I am still riding high and vow to not *just* take meetings the next time I visit the city. There are too many great shows to see! So, if you’re a NYC reader, let me know if ever want to hit one up.

For those of you attending tomorrow’s NSSA Skill Building Session all about PLATFORM, you are going to get a fresh dose of what’s left of “Vacation Sally” along with a heavy emphasis on the existential questions the past week brought up for me.

Good luck to you. And to me.

Like all Skill Building Sessions, the first 60 mins will be a discussion.

We will be workshopping select attendees’ platforms in real time. Bring your questions. Bring curiosity.

The final 30 minutes will then be the facilitated Offer & Ask networking time, which is really just an invitation for community members to lean into self-promotion in a way that might make a meaningful difference to someone else in the room. Come with questions, connections, and an abundance mindset!

This event is reserved exclusively for paying readers to ensure that those most engaged in professional development can engage with each other. I do this to gather people ready to commit, in dollars and time, to the community in the room. Anyone can gain entry though, see below.

The next NSSA Skill Building Session is All About Platform.

When: July 29th from 2-3:30ET

Where: on Zoom (recording provided after)

The deadline to register is Monday July 27 12pm ET! I AM EXTENDING the registration since I was offline yesterday and didn’t send out a reminder. To attend, you must be a paid reader by tomorrow at 7am ET. Paid readers will get the Zoom info emailed to them by Wednesday (the 29th) in the morning (ET). Check your spam if you don’t see it!

You can upgrade your subscription HERE (with 20% off annual subscriptions).

Equity Spots: As always, if you do not have the means to upgrade your subscription, I do not want the $8/month or $64/year to be a barrier. Please contact me for an equity spot, no questions asked. And yes, people take me up on this all the time. Drop me a line (via replying to this email or a DM on Substack) so you can participate in this community conversation!

Happy Pub Day!

Lily Payen, Feeding Tiny Bellies: School Lunches, Over 100 Lunch Boxes and Snacks for Kids is out today! Lily has been an actual heroine in my home, saving us countless time from lunchbox boredom. We are deeeeeep in camp season right now and there are only so many times I can come up with a pb&j replacement without losing my mind. As we gear up for first grade (Maybs just got her teacher assignment, yay!), I will be keeping this book open on my counter. If you have kids in your life or know someone with kids, and they happen to be kids that get hungry in the middle of the day, or ever want a snack…you get the idea…I hope you will pick up this book!

Even with as much improv as I have in my life, it always feels good to have a plan for lunch!

~Sally~