How Lori G. Melton Landed a Penguin Random House Book Deal Without Social Media
This post was adapted from Writing Off Social: The Podcast, Episode 79. You can listen in here!
When Lori G. Melton received the call that Journey with a Giant (affilate link) would be published by WaterBrook & Multnomah, an imprint of Penguin Random House, she could hardly believe it. She hadn’t built a massive online platform. She didn’t have viral posts, thousands of followers, or a polished social media strategy.
Instead, Lori had something far quieter—and far more powerful: faith, perseverance, and a willingness to follow God’s lead, one small step at a time.
A Life Rooted in Faith
Lori lives in Michigan, where she and her husband of 38 years run a small retreat center dedicated to spiritual formation and direction. Together, they’ve raised six children—five sons and one daughter—and now spend their empty-nest years helping others deepen their relationship with God.
“I’m a retreat leader, a spiritual director, and a writer,” Lori says. “Life looks very different now, but it’s rich and full.”
The Birth of Journey with a Giant
Lori’s debut book, Journey with a Giant: Choose Your Guide, Pursue Your Purpose, and Grow in Your Walk with God, is both a spiritual guidebook and a journal. It invites readers to spend a year walking with a “spiritual giant”—a mentor from Christian history whose faith journey can shape and inspire their own.
The concept grew out of Lori’s spiritual direction training, where she and her classmates were encouraged to choose a historical mentor to accompany them throughout their studies. The experience was transformative.
“I’d been a Christian for over forty years, but this practice opened something new,” Lori explains. “We weren’t just reading about these figures—we were learning from their lives, their faith, and the way God shaped them.”
After completing her training, Lori missed that sense of companionship and formation. She began practicing the exercise again on her own—and when friends heard about it, they asked her to teach them how to do the same. That’s when she realized the practice could become a book.
Choosing Mr. Rogers as a Spiritual Mentor
When it came time to choose her own “giant,” Lori selected an unconventional figure: Fred Rogers.
“Most people choose someone like Elisabeth Elliot or C.S. Lewis,” she says. “But I kept coming back to Mr. Rogers. His gentleness, kindness, and ability to listen were the qualities I most wanted to cultivate as a spiritual director.”
Her decision wasn’t universally supported. One potential publisher advised her to change her subject, arguing that Mr. Rogers wasn’t “spiritual enough.” Lori faced a difficult choice: alter her vision for the sake of a contract, or trust the inspiration she believed came from God.
She chose to trust.
“I decided to stay the course,” she recalls. “If this was really from God, then He would make a way.”
That step of obedience led her to a publishing deal she could never have orchestrated herself—with Penguin Random House, the largest English-language publisher in the world.
The Platform Question
In today’s publishing landscape, aspiring authors are often told that social media presence is essential. Many are advised to build an audience of thousands before even approaching an agent. Lori’s experience tells a different story.
When she submitted her proposal, she had around 800 Facebook followers and just over 150 on Instagram. She wasn’t active online and often had to set a timer to remind herself to log on.
“I knew I couldn’t sustain a big social media presence,” she says. “So instead of trying to force something that didn’t fit, I focused on what I could do well.”
That clarity became the foundation of her marketing plan.
Building a Marketing Plan Without Social Media
Through Hope*Writers, Lori learned how to develop a professional book proposal. When it came to the marketing section—the part most authors dread—she decided to emphasize her strengths rather than her weaknesses.
“I built my plan around the things I love: leading retreats, podcasting, and connecting with people in person,” she explains. “I showed the publisher how those activities could become meaningful touchpoints for readers.”
Her proposal included ideas for podcast interviews, a podcast mini-series tied to the book’s themes, and retreat experiences inspired by Journey with a Giant.
To her surprise, the publisher never once asked about social media numbers. Instead, they praised her creativity and the authentic, relational marketing strategy she had crafted.
“It was such a relief,” Lori says. “They could see I was already connecting with people in ways that aligned with the heart of the book.”
A Balanced Approach
Today, Lori maintains a healthier, more balanced relationship with social media.
“I enjoy it more now,” she says. “I share book updates, podcast appearances, and glimpses of life at the retreat center. My son helps me plan posts, which keeps it fun.”
But even now, she keeps boundaries in place. “If it starts to feel like a drain, I step back. My goal isn’t to feed an algorithm—it’s to stay faithful to what God’s called me to do.”
The Path to Publication
Lori’s publishing journey began quietly during the 2020 lockdown.
“I made a list of things I wanted to do while we were stuck at home,” she recalls. “At the bottom, I wrote: ‘Learn to write.’ The next day, I got an email about free writing workshops.”
One step led to another. The workshops led to a writer’s conference, where she met a book coach named Ann Beil, who later became her agent. Through that connection, Lori was introduced to editors at Penguin Random House’s Ink & Willow imprint.
“If I’d known who I was talking to at the time, I would have been terrified,” she admits. “But God was kind—He let me just be myself.”
Within a year, she had a book contract in hand.
Faith Over Fear
Looking back, Lori can see how every small decision, every quiet act of faith, led her to where she is today.
“We do so many things out of fear,” she says. “Fear that we’ll miss our chance, fear that we’re not doing enough, fear that we’re being left behind. But fear is just the belief that God isn’t watching over us—and that’s not true. He’s our Father. He’s always leading us.”
Her story is a reminder that God’s path for each writer may look different. Success doesn’t always require a viral post or a massive following. Sometimes it simply requires faithfulness to the next right step.
Lessons for Writers
Lori’s journey offers practical wisdom for anyone who wants to pursue publication without sacrificing peace or authenticity:
1. Follow the Open Doors
You don’t need to see the full path before taking the next step. Be attentive to the opportunities God places in front of you and move forward one at a time.
2. Build Around Your Strengths
Rather than mimicking others’ marketing strategies, focus on the spaces where you naturally thrive. For Lori, that meant retreats, personal connection, and podcasting—not social media.
3. Reject Fear-Based Hustling
Whenever you feel driven by anxiety or comparison, pause. Ask whether your actions are rooted in fear or faith. Trust that God’s timing and provision are sufficient.
A Divine Adventure
Lori often describes her journey as a “divine adventure,” a phrase that captures the wonder and unpredictability of her path.
“God has wonderful plans for us,” she says. “We never need to be afraid. Even when the road looks different than we expected, it’s still good.”
Her story stands as an encouragement to every writer who feels unseen or inadequate in the age of algorithms. Faithfulness, not followers, can open doors that only God can unlock.
This post was reformatted from our original transcript by ChatGPT and edited for accuracy by Mary K.
