We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tresa Chambers a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Tresa, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
As far back as I can remember, I wanted to prove to my parents that I was able to keep up, to be self-reliant. I grew up in a working class Black family where a sense of responsibility and doing your best were exemplified by my parents. My father and mother worked to support themselves, me, and my three brothers. My father would awaken every morning before sunrise to either get ready for work at the Army base where he was a civil servant or to go for a run. Getting ready for work included driving to pick up my grandmother who would keep me and my siblings while my parents worked. My mother’s morning routine included getting my brothers ready for school, making breakfast, and getting herself ready for her job at the local doctors’ office. In Newport News, Virginia, we lived in a segregated community, and almost all of our neighbors were two-parent households. Everyone seemed to go to work, provide for their families, and have pride of homeownership. Lawns were mowed weekly, and the family cars were washed and waxed. Before I started school, my grandmother taught me how to read. My dad taught me how to make my bed with military corners he had learned while on active duty. years before I was born. My mom taught me how to dress myself and do my hair. I learned how to cut up whole chickens, scale and de-bone fresh fish, and to scramble eggs. When I started school, I was told that my schoolwork was my job. I was expected to do it consistently and well. and I had to do my part to contribute to the family as well as I could. I wanted to. I wanted to fit in with everyone else. I wanted to prove that I belonged.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I love helping authors, artists and creative entrepreneurs build brands and tell stories that help them find and connect with their target audience. We live in a creative economy, so whether it’s your phone, your food, or your fashion, the potential for application of creative talent in a way that remains true to the brand is possible. I work collaboratively with my clients to ensure that the path they choose is one they can maintain, and I remind them to celebrate their wins along the way. I want to be the muse that amplifies the gifts and talents of all creatives, which is why I named my company Tenth Muse.
My work often means holding up a mirror for my clients, reflecting to them what they are capable of achieving. I enjoy this work because it allows me to lean into my super power which is vision. What do I mean? Well, I have always been curious and adventurous, which has led me on a non-traditional career path. As I have been invited to do work for top global brands, I have learned about business models, revenue streams, publishing and business strategies, and influential people. I have pondered how all these are related, and realized that I am the connection. I am the out-of-the-box thinker who conceives a vision for my clients of how they can achieve success based on their goals not on what they see others doing. My favorite part of our work together is brainstorming ideas, or coming up with a solution to a challenge they have.
I have been leaning in on publishing consulting due to my background, which includes working at top magazines and publishers in editorial, marketing and production, and a M.S. degree in Publishing Strategies. I have also worked with incredibly talented designers and artists, producing events in Miami during Miami Art Week and Art Basel. I loved working with arts organizations and educators while running an arts-based family literacy program in Miami at Florida International University (FIU). Doing that work truly inspired me to want to do work to elevate the voices and talents of Black, Brown, and historically marginalized people because I have been in too many spaces where we have not been present to share our voices or to access the opportunities that are given in those rooms.
I want to get my clients ready for their big show. I want to help them launch their next level project. I want to create a world where there are no more starving artists.
In February, I’ll be launching a 10-week Book Marketing Bootcamp to help emerging authors with their book launches. Each participant will create their own roadmap to a successful launch with me guiding them through the process on live weekly group calls. This is for serious authors who want to build a brand and grow their audience but have limited budgets. I invite hybrid publishers and small presses to join or sponsor a client.
I also offer event marketing services to owners of creative spaces and events and I am available for 1-on-1 coaching for creative entrepreneurs, authors, and artists.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Being a Black woman is the most important quality that I have. It is my ace in the hole that fortifies me. I gain inspiration from my ancestors, esteem from my sisters and brothers, and joy in witnessing the impact of our culture on the world. There are so many examples to emulate as I add to the collective in my own way.
My love of language has given me great skills and knowledge. Language is the way that we create meaning by the way it is organized, translated, interpreted, and represented in stories, music, movies, paintings, sculptures, recipes, etc. I use my understanding of the power of language to help others articulate their vision, to recognize the nuances that allow them understand that they own ideas that are unique. This is why I love doing brand work. I didn’t know that would be my path starting out, but I came to realize that everything I have done is relevant.
The other important quality I have had on my journey is the courage to pivot. I used to think that I was just doing what was necessary to survive as I made choices to change jobs or careers, but after hearing from so many colleagues and friends about how they remained in jobs that mistreated them or where they weren’t happy because they were afraid of change, I came to understand that making life changes takes courage. This is where that work ethic we discussed earlier becomes relevant again because I knew I would not give up at moments when it got difficult or when someone hurt my feelings. I came to understand that I was in charge of my life, and no one else could tell me who I was or what I am meant to do or have.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I would like to collaborate with hybrid and independent publishers and small presses who to launch and build the brands of emerging Black, Brown, and marginalized authors. I’m also seeking collaborators to co-host a winter writing retreat. Contact me at tresa@tenthmuseenterprises.com.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.tenthmuseenterprises.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/musewithme/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tresac/
- Other: Self-published & Solo Book Marketing Bootcamp https://www.eventbrite.com/e/self-published-solo-book-marketing-bootcamp-2024-tickets-802937667177?aff=oddtdtcreator
Image Credits
Image 2 photo credit Tyson Pough
