Aleen Kuperman is co-founder and CEO at Betches Media. The company has grown from a blog created in a dorm room at Cornell in 2011 to a sprawling media network including nine podcasts, New York Times-bestselling books and millions of Instagram followers. In this episode of the “Ad Block” podcast, Kuperman talks about growing up as the child of Russian immigrants who escaped the Soviet Union in 1988, a year before the Berlin Wall fell. In particular, it was a struggle to explicate what “Betches” was to her parents, who had always had high expectations for her future. “I had to explain to my parents, ‘I’m not going to medical school next year,’” she says. “I was terrified to have that conversation. They were like, ‘What’s a blog? How are you making money? What are you talking about?’” As with many new media startups, the business model evolved quickly, and as soon as she had gotten her parents on board, things would change. “They had just figured out Facebook, now they have to go learn Instagram,” Kuperman says. Tangible successes helped, like the book deal the team landed while still in college. “To my parents, that’s legit. A book, they understand.” Kuperman grew up hearing the stories of the family’s journey out of Russia, living in Vienna and Italy off the personal possessions they could sell before eventually being allowed into the U.S. and settling on Long Island. “Only now, I think back to all the things they instilled,” like her strong work ethic, she says. “It... Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'
[ Advertising Age | 2019-10-18 09:01:00 UTC ]
We’re less than 100 days out from a very consequential election, so before we get to the fun stuff, I ... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-08-01 15:00:00 UTC ]
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On June 21st, Threshold, a conservative imprint of Simon & Schuster, announced a new book deal with New York Times bestselling author and entrepreneur and noted conspiracy theorist Vivek Ramaswamy. Although it’s rumored that Donald Trump passed him over for the role of running mate, Vivek... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-07-09 13:34:08 UTC ]
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‘Long Island,’ Colm Toíbín’s sequel to 2009’s ‘Brooklyn,’ lands at #5 on our hardcover list. Plus Entangled Publishing debuts some deluxe models, and a new cast of celebrity memoirs walk the bestseller carpet. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Lev Rubinstein: Ordinary Life through the Lens of Russian Conceptualism, by Daria Shchukina On Translation [email protected] Tue, 04/16/2024 - 15:38 Photos by Natalia SenatorovaIn the following appreciation, the author compares the poetry of... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2024-04-16 20:38:33 UTC ]
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Brad Weekes was 25 years old and working as a senior associate at public affairs firm Kivvit when Crain's named him to the 2020 class of 20 In Their 20s. The East New York native's goal at the time: Pressure lawmakers to make positive changes.In many ways, Weekes was already doing just that. At... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2024-03-06 20:37:04 UTC ]
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Bestselling author Jennifer Weiner signs a five book deal with William Morrow, Amistad takes a book about a true American power couple, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-03-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A debut author who used fake accounts to “review bomb” other writers on the influential online platform Goodreads has been dropped by her agent and had her book deal cancelled Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2023-12-13 02:46:01 UTC ]
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First-time author Cait Corrain has apologized on X and announced she is going to rehab after losing her book deal and agent for 'review bombing' on Goodreads. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-12-12 22:43:34 UTC ]
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Darrin Bell didn’t set out to write his much anticipated graphic memoir, The Talk. He’d initially sold another project delving into the lives of three generations of men in his family, all descendants of an enslaved man named Addison Bell, in a two book deal to Henry Holt and Co. But as he was... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2023-10-30 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Dann McDorman, the executive producer of “The Beat With Ari Melber,” gave up writing fiction in his 20s. Now, he’s publishing his first novel at age 47. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-10-24 09:02:04 UTC ]
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Serena Williams just announced a book deal with Random House Publishing Group. Here's what we know so far. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-10-19 16:48:02 UTC ]
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Finding Her #ownvoice: A Conversation with Ivy Ngeow, by Susan Blumberg-Kason Interviews [email protected] Tue, 07/18/2023 - 15:46 Ivy Ngeow grew up in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and now makes her home in London. An architect and interior designer by... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2023-07-18 20:46:55 UTC ]
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No, the origins of Tetris didn't involve a high-speed car chase, but the true story behind the game still reads like a spy novel. There's corporate intrigue, nefarious government agencies and an envious amount of globe-trotting. But the reality wasn't enough for the creative minds behind Apple's... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-03-30 12:30:20 UTC ]
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You can no longer buy either print or Kindle Newsstand magazine and newspaper subscriptions from Amazon, as the company appears to implement yet another cost-cutting measure. The e-commerce giant announced that it was halting Newsstand subscriptions on March 9th (via The Verge) and that the... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-03-17 09:28:33 UTC ]
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John Steinbeck’s Sag Harbor home on Long Island may soon secure its place in literary history, thanks to an impassioned coalition of readers, writers, and booksellers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Gone are the days when you could write a book a chapter at a time and hook people in a slow, serial burn. Now, if the internet is to believed, one must amass 100,000 followers on social media before they can even be considered for a book deal (every writer ever: why would anyone follow […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-03-10 17:36:58 UTC ]
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As the winner of the second annual Books Like Us First Novel Prize, Dorabji will receive a $50,000 book deal with Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A welcome revival of a 1980s comedy prophesying the collapse of the Soviet UnionHere is a revival of a 1983 film from the Georgian director Eldar Shengelaia (still alive at 90) and it is revealed as an intriguing, and perhaps even remarkable creation: a dapper, droll satire on Soviet... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-02-06 13:00:00 UTC ]
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The book will cover the actor's “complicated marriage to Will Smith,” her “unconventional upbringing in Baltimore,” and her friendship with late rapper Tupac Shakur, Continue reading at HuffPost
[ HuffPost | 2022-10-06 16:02:46 UTC ]
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Robin Jones Gunn brings a new trilogy to Revell; Katie Davis Majors lands a triple book deal at Multnomah, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-07-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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