Unbelievable! How She Secured Her Dream Book Deal (and Went From Unemployed to Published by Penguin)
Veronica Llorca-Smith spills the beans about her journey to become a published author.
I’m jumping out of my skin excited.
My friend
announced her first big publishing deal with… drum roll🥁, please… Penguin Random House.Penguin Random House is the leading publisher in the industry and is one of the 5 largest publishers in the world alongside Hachette, HarperCollins, MacMillan and Simon & Schuster.
If you’ve been following me for a while you might remember my interview with
. She’s a published author by HarperCollins.Sarah is a professional writer and professor. Writing has always been her thing.
Veronica’s story is different.
Although she enjoyed telling stories as a child, she only started writing seriously two years ago, when she was over forty.
She was unemployed, locked up with her two children in Australia (COVID) and fed up with not being able to find work.
One day on the beach of the Gold Coast of Australia she thought to herself:
I can do something about my misery. Sitting here without my husband. No job in sight. I can write a book!
So she put pen to paper and started writing.
This is how “The Lemon Tree Mindset” (a quick and inspiring read; also available via Kindle Unlimited) was born. Veronica self-published it via Amazon KDP in January 2023.
The idea:
🍋When life give you lemons, don’t make lemonade. Use the seeds to plant your own lemon tree. 🍋
She revealed that she felt like an impostor at the time because you could read her book in an hour.
But... within a few weeks, her book became an Amazon bestseller. She couldn't believe her eyes and learned that you shouldn't think too much about it, just write the next book.
Veronica published four books in a year
You won’t believe me but she added three more books to her portfolio in 2023:
“Conquering your Burnout” in May 2023
“From Zero to Amazon Bestseller” in October 2023
“The Flight Home” (first published book!, Earnshaw Books) followed in December 2023
Freaking bonkers, isn’t it?
I mean, I think too much about my first book, and this badass writer publishes four books in one year!
As self-published author marketing is the hardest part
When you self-publish a book, marketing is the hardest and most time-consuming part (and most people aren't cut out for the task).
Here’s what Veronica did:
🍋To keep selling her book and start a movement she also created her Lemon Tree Mindset newsletter on Substack to amplify her message.
🍋She created her website where she listed all her books and media coverage.
🍋She used her LinkedIn account and Medium blog (575 articles, only 20% did well) to hype herself, talk about her books and mindset.
🍋She spoke on over 50 (!) podcasts
🍋She struggled for eight months and failed on X before gaining traction.
For months, she heard crickets
She wrote without an audience, knocked on doors that didn't open, and faced rejections.
But, as an ambitious triathlete, she knew her North Star was to get published by one of the top publishers in the industry.
She didn't know where to start but knew her finish line.
So she reverse-engineered her path to success, brick by brick.
Inspired by Elizabeth Gilbert's "Eat, Pray, Love" journey, Veronica thought:
"Why not pitch before writing?"
She aimed for Penguin. The #1 publisher in the industry.
Knowing they receive around 5,000 unsolicited manuscripts annually, she needed a unique approach.
CLICK here to watch our interview and learn more about her unique approach and strategy:
✅TABLE OF CONTENTS
00:00:00 Intro
00:01:10 Who is Veronica Llorca-Smith?
00:02:09 How Veronica Left the Corporate World
00:05:17 How Veronica Got her Impressive Testimonials
00:05:56 What is Veronica’s Newsletter and How She’s Growing It
00:07:51 Going Over Veronica’s Books
00:13:38 How Veronica’s Books became Amazon Bestsellers
00:15:10 Is Pre-Launching a Book Important?
00:20:40 Veronica Getting Published with Penguin Random House
00:26:26 How Long It Took Veronica to Write Her Book
00:27:07 Day in the Lift of Veronica
00:28:47 Switching Between Being a Writer and Entrepreneur
00:32:00 How Much Does Veronica Make from Her Books?
00:33:59 How Veronica Balances Writing and Traveling
00:37:02 Advice to People Wanting to Publish a Book
00:39:27 The Triangle of LinkedIn, Medium, and Substack
00:41:47 What is Veronica’s Marketing Funnel
00:43:15 Long-Form Content vs Short-Form Content
00:45:58 Does Veronica Read a Lot?
00:47:09 Talking about Veronica’s Public Speaking
00:49:36 How Veronica Got Her Paid Subscribers
00:51:01 Personal Questions for Veronica
If you say:
Kristina I want to READ it…
Here’s the condensed story for you (so you CLICK that video and show some love).
Here’s what my friend shared the other day:
Positive feedback keeps Veronica and me going.
Smart cookie Veronica leveraged LinkedIn to find a Southeast Asia-based representative.
Veronica requested a brief call, not with a pitch, but with a strategy.
On the call, she asked what non-fiction trends and authors Penguin sought.
They brainstormed.
A week later, she sent a proposal: a book on anti-procrastination, focusing on self-awareness over conventional productivity tips. It promised a fresh perspective.
The editor loved it.
They moved forward with an April 30th manuscript deadline.
Veronica had four months to write 60,000 words.
She wrote tirelessly, waking at 4 am, writing throughout the day, and late into the evening.
On April 30th, she sent "The Anti-Procrastinator" manuscript.
They now aim for a January 2025 launch.
Unbelievable!
🍋Your feedback is just a spark but it’s enough to keep me going.🍋
I hope this story inspired you.
Your lemonade-drinking and the growing lemon tree watching🍋,
P.S. Liked it? Please share, like, and let us know what you think 💗 Your feedback is so important and can spark so many ideas.
Thank you for helping me share my message with others.
I hope it inspires many authors and aspiring authors.
You can't wait to be discovered: you must be your best ambassador and #HypeYourself.
I love the active ask for feedback and comments ‘it’s enough to keep me going’. We often think we are alone and everyone else is successful but everyone is on their own path and everyone thrives when they get acknowledged and to be given a tap on the shoulder. Keep going Kristina and Veronica, really loved the story today.