We’re looking forward to introducing you to LaWanda Lewis Burrell. Check out our conversation below.
Good morning LaWanda Lewis, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
SUSU Entertainment LLC is a book writing and publishing company. It was founded by DeMorris and LaWanda Burrell on January 10, 2021. Together this husband and wife team brings books to life and capture its precious moments through words. We are passionate and uphold a standard of integrity, honesty, fairness and personal responsibility. Our distinction is our quality work, affordable prices, friendly services and timely submissions. Our company is focused on inspiring you to put pen to paper and fulfill your purpose, however, after the book is published, the marketing is often misunderstood. People often feel the following: 1) Books are easy, quick and cheap to create. 2) Once the book is published it will be in every bookstore. 3) Publishing a book will make me famous. 4) A good book will market itself. 5) Writing and publishing a book is the hard part, once it is done, everything else is easy.
The real hard work starts after the book is written and published. Marketing and promotions, building your audience, and navigating networks. The vast majority of published authors don’t get rich from their books alone. Some authors may receive advancements and royalties, but many supplement their incomes with having book events, speaking engagements, teaching, or freelance work.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m LaWanda Lewis Burrell, a published author, ghostwriter, and Co-Founder of SUSU Entertainment LLC, where we help aspiring and established authors turn their stories and expertise into professionally published books that make an impact.
We ghostwrite and publish books for anyone who wants to grow their business, brand, share their knowledge or leave a legacy.
We help writers bring their stories to life, from rough concepts to polished publications through expert writing and full-service publishing.
Some of our slogans:
“Bringing Your Stories to Life”
“Publishing with Purpose. Writing with Impact”
“Books that Build Brands”
“Your Story. Our Words. One Powerful Book”
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who taught you the most about work?
I contribute my strong work ethic to the upbringing I received from my parents. They instilled in my sister and I the importance of education and hard work from a child to adulthood. Their resilience and strength were shown throughout their careers no matter what the job entailed or how much money they made, everything they did was done in excellence. My mom and dad provided a wonderful home filled with love, nurturing, guidance and discipline. We are grateful for the life lessons, sacrifices, and quality time we were blessed to receive.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
When we started focusing on God’s promises and not our problems life got better for us. We all go through challenges and difficulties but it is how you react to the situation, your mindset matters. You can allow your losses to be your lessons. Your tears to be your testimony. Years ago working in corporate America I was mistreated, rejected job opportunities and discriminated against by my former boss. I could have easily let her negativity steal my peace and take me to a place of pain but prayer helped me to move forward. Journaling helped me to release my stress and anxiety and focus on what I enjoyed doing, writing and helping others inspire the world.
We love what we do but having a small, black owned business can be a struggle to market at times. Although our services are very rewarding, and we are blessed with many clients, some potential clients will contact us and ask a thousand questions, using a lot of our time and effort about writing and publishing a book to later find out that the client that we poured knowledge into went with another publisher or just wasted our time to get information and didn’t pursue writing their book.
Some thought if they knew us that they are not expected to pay for our services, or should be entitled to a discount, not having respect for our black owned business. Everything happens for a reason and instead of focusing on those that didn’t support us we work with the many that did. These situations helped us change our strategies to run our business more smoothly. The rejections could have hindered us but we know with our positive mindset and resilience we will continue to thrive higher and allow God to bring clarity instead of confusion into our business.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
No masks. No filters. Just me. What you see is what you get. I don’t know how to be anything other than authentic. At an early age I was taught to love myself and know who I am. It is important to make yourself a priority and don’t compare yourself to others because you will lose sight of your own unique identity. The person you see me as in public is the same person you’d meet in private. I don’t believe in being something that I am not. I’ve built my career on honesty, integrity, and transparency, I don’t know how to be fake or phony. All heart. No pretending. Real words. Real work. Real me.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
When I am no longer here, I want people to say that I lived my truth. I loved my husband, children and family with all my heart. Having a loving and supportive family was my most prized possession. My faith in God was very strong. When you trust him, your life will better. I loved working with people and lived a happy, positive and fulfilled life. I showed up as my real self in every room, every book and every relationship. I blessed others with the confidence to share their own stories and leave their own mark on the world. I wasn’t afraid to stand up and speak up for my beliefs. I understood that life is what you make it. You cannot live a victorious life with a defeated mind. And lastly, that my words mattered not just on paper, but in my heart and how I treated people…with love, kindness and respect.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.susuentertainmentllc.com
- Instagram: @susu_entertainmentllc.com
- Facebook: SUSU Entertainment
Image Credits
DeMorris Burrell Jr., Bro Quinton McCaster, Tanya Rawlins
