Michele Tapp Roseman is the author of Hairlooms: The Untangled Truth About Loving Your Natural Hair and Beauty, which was selected for NBC’s NBCBLK Fall Reading Guide. Michele is a seasoned writer and media placement specialist who has provided editorial services throughout the U.S., on military bases, and in Bangkok, Thailand. The native New Yorker resides in Maryland with her wonderful husband of 10 years, Kyle.
What motivated and inspired you to start your own business?
I was inspired to write Hairlooms after learning how to identify and break free from feelings of self-hatred related to my hair and beauty. Part of my journey included the decision not to chemically straighten my hair. After making that decision, I noticed that women would often ask me about my hair choice and openly share their struggles with feeling beautiful. These experiences prompted me to pen Hairlooms.
Tell us about your business.
“Hairlooms: The Untangled Truth About Loving Your Natural Hair and Beauty” uses my journey to accept my natural hair as a springboard to uncover issues that make it difficult for women to embrace their natural hair and beauty. Hairlooms is rounded-out with highlights from my personal interviews with Dr. Maya Angelou, Hollywood actresses Nicole Ari Parker, Kim Coles and more than 25 equally esteemed thought leaders on this topic.
At the end of each chapter, readers have an opportunity to respond to open-ended questions about their personal beauty beliefs. This non-fiction book also includes a creatively calming coloring page and resources for achieving inside out beauty! The book was heralded by Huffington Post as a, “beauty movement,” Hairlooms esteemed contributors hail from Alabama to Australia.
Are you currently running any promos/contests/giveaways that you would like our readers to know about?
I have launched the #ILoveBeingMe Campaign to help women love themselves from the inside out. I would love for every reader to participate in the #ILoveBeingMe Campaign by completing these easy steps.
Create a 1-3 minute video that will;
- Share your self-love journey with Hairlooms
- Discuss overcoming insecurities about your hair, size or skin
- Tell viewers how you now embrace yourself.
*Make sure your video submissions are well lit with clear audio! Please share your stories by November 17, 2017. Send your submissions to info@hairloomsthebook.com.
List awards/certifications/accomplishments.
Awards/Distinctions
NBC selected Hairlooms for the NBCBLK Fall Reading Guide 2017. Hairlooms ranks among NBCBLK’s reading recommendations that include Pulitzer Prize winner Toni Morrison and Hollywood Actress, “Black-ish” star Jenifer Lewis.
Media Features
- NPR-affiliated Wealthy Radio Broadcast
- Huffington Post
- University of North Carolina TV (PBS Station)
- ABC, CBS, NBC affiliates
International Media Features
- TV Ontario (Canada)
- Black Girls Magazine (Canada)
- Hairpolitan Magazine Feature (Kenya)
- Estetica Magazine (Italy)
- New Growth Hair Magazine (South Africa)
Presentations
- District of Columbia Library Association – Featured Speaker
- Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference – Featured Speaker
Where is your business based?
My husband and I are based in Maryland.
What were the first few steps you took to get your business up and running?
I had to decide whether to self-publish or use a royalty publishing house. After weighing my options, I elected to go after a publishing deal. Based on this decision, I had to pitch my idea to a literary agent. Once accepted, the agent then pitched Hairlooms to prospective publishers. I’m happy to say that I made the right choice given my strengths and the complement that a publishing house offers.
What has been the most effective way of raising awareness of your business and getting new customers?
Press attention, social media, and word of mouth have been the most effective ways to reach my core audience.
What have been your biggest challenges so far?
My biggest challenge was and has been to maintain transparency when sharing my story. In Hairlooms, I share about the challenge of walking through infertility, a disrupted adoption, and sexual assault. It is easy to write in a very surface way, but leaving “blood on the pages” requires a different level of discipline, tenacity, and emotional integrity.
How did you overcome these challenges?
I overcome these challenges through prayer and focusing on the reader/listener experience.
How do you keep motivated through difficult times?
I am motivated to “keep it raw” when readers or a conference attendee share how my story helped them with their own story. The hope they receive helps me remain vulnerable even when honesty is challenging.
How do you distinguish yourself from your competitors?
Unlike other books that discuss issues of hair and beauty, most do not focus on root causes for current perceptions. Hairlooms helps readers systematically identify issues that may color their self-perception. Moreover, my book offers solutions and DIY exercises that will empower the reader to reach a deeper place of self-love after reading Hairlooms.
Hairlooms is also in a class of its own because this non-fiction book includes personal, exclusive interviews with nationally and internationally acclaimed men and women on the topic of hair and beauty. Readers automatically gain a sneak peek into the lives of esteemed thought leaders who are typically only known on a surface level. In turn, the reader can discover personal truths by gleaning from 32 storytellers.
What is the best advice you have received recently?
Your audience exists to be served and not to serve you.
What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs?
Transparency is the “secret sauce” that drives people to your brand. Whether teaching someone to dance or helping professionals unearth grammatical principles, people want to connect with people who are authentic. Perfection drives people away. Transparency draws people to you.
What are your favorite business tools/resources and why?
I’m old school! While online gadgets are great, nothing beats a notepad and a writing instrument. I have had some of my best eureka moments by scribbling a phrase or idea on a nearby pad. I keep several pens, pencils, and pads handy.
What is a good article or book you have read recently?
I highly recommend life coach Valorie Burton’s “Successful Women Think Differently“.
What are you currently learning about for your business or looking for help with?
I’m always looking for ways to more effectively reach my core audience.
What are your goals for the next few months and how are you striving to achieve them?
I am seeking to build a more robust speaking platform. I have joined a speaker’s bureau as a way to accomplish this goal.
What social media outlets do you use? List them below.
Instagram @micheletapproseman
Twitter @MicheleTRoseman
Facebook @micheletapproseman
Website www.hairloomsthebook.com
Email micheletapproseman@gmail.com
Hashtags #HairloomsTheBook #blackauthors #bosschick #bosslady #ilovebeingme #comfortableinmyskin