What happens when you land the exact dream job you called out loud as a little girl... and then realize it's not where you're meant to stay? 💜

Hannah sits down with Ally Machate, founder of The Writer's Ally and a former acquiring editor at Simon & Schuster who has been in book publishing since 1999. She was the little girl stapling together construction-paper books and telling everyone she was a publisher, and she grew up to make it real.

But this conversation goes so much deeper than books. Ally and Hannah get real about chasing a childhood dream, walking away from it when your values shift, the fear of betting on yourself, imposter syndrome, and why a book that flops doesn't mean you're not good enough.

In this episode, we cover:

* (00:15) Meet Ally Machate of The Writer's Ally

* (01:34) Teaching herself to read at 3 and her construction-paper "publishing company"

* (04:10) What a mom can do to nurture her child's gifts early

* (06:36) Landing her dream job at Simon & Schuster straight out of college

* (10:38) Free books, Stephen King in the elevator, and a women-led industry

* (14:59) The manuscript that changed everything

* (21:33) From one "no" to deciding to leave

* (24:43) How to navigate the fear of leaving a secure job to start your own thing

* (30:02) Building The Writer's Ally

* (33:39) A good book vs. the right book

* (38:10) The very first step if you have a book in you

* (41:15) Imposter syndrome and "who am I to write this?"

* (45:27) What to do if your book already flopped

* (49:42) How to connect with Ally + her free resource

* (51:16) What legacy means to Ally

A few of our favorite moments:

"A great book is not enough."

"The book isn't the business. It's a tool."

"Every mega best-selling author in the world started out exactly where you are right now."

🎁 Ally's free resource: Don't Write the Wrong Book

https://offers.thewritersally.com/dont-write-the-wrong-book-podcasts/

Connect with Ally:

* Website: https://www.thewritersally.com

* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allymachate/

* Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allysonemachate

* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allysonemachate

* YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thewritersally

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