Alysson Bourque and Lori Orlinsky, Founders of Expound Publicity
Name: Alysson Bourque and Lori Orlinsky
Founder: Expound Publicity
Who are Alysson Bourque and Lori Orlinsky?
Lori Orlinsky and Alysson Bourque are the co-founders of Expound Publicity, the premier marketing and publicity firm for authors. In 2020, Lori and Aly filled a void in the marketplace by launching the first publicity firm built by authors, for authors.
In less than three sentences tell us about your company and what you do.
Lori and Aly connected during the pandemic -- as authors were suffering from being out of schools for visits during remote learning, the two created a video podcast to bring authors to classrooms virtually so teachers could take a deep breath and know their students were receiving a quality lesson. Authors began to flood their inboxes about ways to generate publicity and stay relevant, and overnight, the two built their company -- WITHOUT EVER MEETING IN PERSON! Today, over 500 book launches later in books of all genres, Expound Publicity aims to build a platform for an author to succeed and maintain their success as a writer.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
We are both so passionate about what we do. Even though it is 2024, we still feel like we are breaking stigmas and shattering glass ceilings because we have found what most people are missing -- balance and happiness. Being able to put our families first and have our kids watch us run a business is a dream come true. Still, in text books, the stigma is out there -- men should be working, women should do the school lunches, kids pickups, etc. It feels empowering to do both and be well respected for our work.
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
The majority of our clients are female authors trying to get a side hustle (their book) to be a full-time business. We provide the guidance and expertise to help them accomplish that. We also regularly speak to the author community -- particularly in summits and webinars geared towards female authors.
At what point did you make your company a full time gig? How did you know the time was right?
We knew we were on to something when our business inquires came pouring in with no paid advertising. We suddenly found ourselves taking on only a portion of the books that come in to us, as we have the flexibility to be picky and choosy because we established a name for ourselves. We both quit our full time jobs 3 months after starting this 'side hustle.' We've been able to grow organically and now, we not only service children's authors, but all genres of authors in all methods of publishing. Now, publishers come to us to handle marketing for their clients.
What lesson or skill did you take with you from a prior job to help you succeed in your role today?
Don't be afraid to try new and unconventional things! In so many previous jobs, we would do the jobs the way our superiors told us to, the way our predecessors did. These ways were old and stale and time consuming. We realized there is a need to stand up against the way 'things are done' be open to new experiences. Today, we don't have a one size fits all solution to marketing for authors. We treat every author's book as a new project and brainstorm what can be done instead of going to a rulebook of what's always done. This has resulted in organic placements in Grammy swag bags, partnerships with MLB teams and cutting-edge research labs.
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