The curious content marketer who cares ✨ Partnering with purpose-led small businesses, startups, and entrepreneurs to connect through storytelling and collaboration.

My ability to spot a good story is what landed me my first job in journalism. But it was my decade of profiling startups, small businesses, nonprofits and some of San Francisco’s most influential people that taught me how to tell one. 

A move into marketing and another decade dabbling in the creator economy—first with a food blog, then a motherhood magazine—taught me how to use those stories to build communities through content and collaborations.  

Now my mission is to help purpose-driven people and brands build loyal audiences who don't just want what you offer, but love what you stand for.  

Founders and business owners come to me when they need a strategic storyteller and networked creator. 

The results?

1. A clear brand narrative.
2. A simple, sustainable plan and process for consistently sharing that narrative through content across all channels. 
3. A bank of differentiated ideas pulled from stories and experiences to use everywhere. 
4. A shorter sales cycle. 
5. A community of collaborators.
6. An overall less time-consuming (and more enjoyable) way to do content marketing. 

In short: I help you figure out what you need to say and where you need to say it to develop your brand, find a community of collaborators, and connect with the right people.

Because with so much noise and competition, we all need a reason to care—we need to feel a connection. 

If you can do that, not only will you stand out, you will find exactly where you fit in. 

Ready to get started?

Renee Lynn Frojo ✨

I have proof that this is the best (and fastest) way to stand out on LinkedIn. 

First, take a look at all the top accounts. People like:
Justin Welsh
Neil Patel
Lara Acosta

Study them closely. 

Read their advice. Note their content style, structure, and talking points. Create templates from their hooks. 

And then?

Do the complete opposite.



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Now that I (hopefully) have your attention, I'd like you to know that enrollment for the February cohort of my Short-Form Storytelling for Brand Building workshop is now OPEN. 

In 4 weeks, you'll learn how to not just capture attention, but deeply resonate with your target audience and unlock a world of opportunities online, in-person, and anywhere you want to build trust.

Renee Lynn Frojo

They tell you to tell your story. I show you how. | Brand storytelling, strategy, and training to help you get heard or hired. | Ask about my Short-Form Storytelling Workshop for your community or organization.

If the first week of January is any indicator of how the rest of this year is gonna go, then 2026 is shaping up to be a doozy.

On a globals stage, the leader of the free world just kidnapped another country's president for oil.

More locally, a perfect storm created by the moon’s proximity to the Earth, a rising tide and nonstop winter rains released a monsoon of unprecedented flooding in several cities in and around San Francisco, forcing evacuations of dozens of families—including my very own kids who were supposed to be at their dad's house through the weekend.

So instead of a quiet, focused first day back at work I'm playing the role of host and refugee shelter for my ex-husband, his 120-pound Swiss Bernese Mountain dog, and our two kids while grapling with how the world order is about to change.

While there's nothing quite like starting a fresh new year with exciting news and unexpected events, I'm focusing my attention on the light and opportunity in it all.

Bunking with my ex—which benefits my kids above all else—didn't seem possible to me when we were going through our breakup seven years ago.

Lots of things that are reshaping our relationships with each other and the world  as we know it didn't seem possible seven years ago. A lot has changed. 

And while change is scary and confusing, it's coming for us whether we're ready for it or not. Actually, it's here. We're in it. And I can already sense how it's changing people from what seems like a more grounded place.

Something big has shifted in all of us. I can't articulate it just yet, but I think many of us are tired of moving fast, playing the game and ready to rewrite the rules from a greater sense of self awareness. 

I still think it's going to be a doozy. But a good one.

If you write a newsletter, you know you’re doing it right when the same issue gets both the most replies you’ve ever received and the most unsubscribes. 

That’s what happened with the last issue of A Good Reputation. 

I spoke to my people and shed the rest.

...And I’m only just a little bitter about it.

I keep meeting smart, thoughtful, experienced people who want more visibility to grow their business, and yet everything in them resists hitting publish.

And it’s usually because they're:

-Out of practice with writing
-Afraid of being judged, misunderstood, or taken out of context
-Spent years doing great work quietly and behind the scenes for someone else
-Don’t want to sound like everyone else on the internet
-Unsure what they can share (especially with client confidentiality)

These solos, founders and job seekers know visibility matters, but they just don’t know how to make it feel safe or sustainable.

So they comment instead of posting, and draft all this content that never sees the light of day.

If this is you, I see you. You’re telling yourself you’ll get to it eventually. 

But the longer you wait, the longer it takes to build the type of visibility that creates real inbound opportunities—from clients and customers coming directly to you to job offers you get to vet.

This is exactly who my February storytelling for brand building cohort is for.

Over four weeks, we focus on:
-Finding your unique point of view 
-Writing in a way that sounds like you
-Building confidence through practice, feedback, and support
-Leaving every session with something you can actually publish

This is not a content creation program. It’s a small, intimate space to learn storytelling for short form.

We focus on how resonance works, how specificity helps others feel seen, and why being understood is what actually builds trust.

The doors close in 5 days. Learn more and apply here: https://lnkd.in/gv6sVEK5

In the meantime, I’m going to bully all of my friends into commenting on this post so that it gets some reach.

Want to be funnier and faster on your feet? Me too, my friend. Me too.

Not only does being funny make you more likable and relatable, it also helps release the pressure valve during unstable, chaotic times. (Yes, like the one we’re very much living in.)

So that’s why I decided to kick off my community speaker series with an Improv Masterclass taught by the one and only Amanda Austin. And boy, did she deliver.

In an hour(ish), Amanda gave us the upshot on what it takes to be funny. She led us through a handful of unpredictable, ridiculous games to get over ourselves and unlock a buttload of new ideas for turning our personal experiences into story drafts.

One thing I took away is that all humor comes down to surprise. We laugh because:

1. We can see ourselves in you or the thing, or
2. We can’t relate at all, and what you just told us is totally absurd or novel.

Either way, the element of surprise is the mechanism for the funnies. 

So, if you want to be funnier, start by trying these 3 things:

1. Become a better listener and observer so that you can notice that surprising thing that sticks out (known as the “bright, shiny object” in improv), and build on it.
2. Say “yes and” to all of your dumb ideas. Good, funny ideas start with a lot of imperfect volume. 
3. Let go of your ego and trust the process. Related to number 2, we are our biggest blockers to great ideas. Just start writing that draft without getting attached to where it’s going.

The most profound takeaway for me was that instead of trying to “be funny,” you simply need to be more observant and honest.

It’s the same thing that makes you a better storyteller. 

Funny how that works, ey?



-------------------

If you’re looking for an extremely fun and practical workshop for your community, I highly recommend you GO HIRE Amanda RIGHT NOW. (Sorry to yell.)

And if you want to become a better storyteller and learn from a diverse range of speakers like this, you can join my next group in Short-Form Storytelling for Brand Building. 

Next month, we’re hearing from the CIA’s former head of content (!!!) on how to tell stories about top secret or sensitive stuff. It's going to be fascinating. Enrollment for the February cohort closes in 6 days.

Did the Bay Area just survive a real-life Sharknado?

Last weekend, a perfect storm created by the moon’s proximity to the Earth, a rising tide, and nonstop winter rains released a monsoon of unprecedented flooding in several cities in and around San Francisco, forcing evacuations of dozens of families that live on a lagoon.

As drone footage of the flooding circulated on the internet and group chats, so did this image of a spotted leopard shark swimming around the high school parking lot. 

Possible, I guess, since the lagoon backs into the bay.

Some people (myself included) immediately questioned whether the image was generated by AI, while others jumped in to defend the plausibility of a shark in the neighborhood.

While some obsessively dug to find the truth and set the record straight, others didn’t bother to fact-check or care—they just loved the story.

And that's how the story spread. 

Either because it made for fun dinner conversation or justified a feeling that the world is, in fact, coming to an end.

This is the moment we’re all navigating. It's a moment where we have to trust our instincts and intuition more than our eyes.

Ultimately, where we get our information, how we shape our belief system, and how we build our worldview come down to whom we choose to align with and trust.

So, as brands, business leaders, and creators, how do we get anyone to trust us?

A few ideas in this week's issue of A Good Reputation Newsletter.

Now, you tell me: Real or not?

The authors I work with have the experience, the expertise, the stories--all the ingredients they need to write a book that grows their business, changes lives, cements their expert status, and exponentiates their reach. What they lack is time and the skill of book-writing. That's where I come in.

I have over a decade of experience writing books. I've been writing fiction since 2011; I bring this fiction writer’s approach to my work with authors. What's the story? What details will make this 'stick' in the reader's brain? How will I keep the reader turning pages? Those are the questions I'm asking myself as I hear you, the author, tell your experiences. I'm never judging; I'm thinking from a storytelling, brand-building perspective.

I've got a special talent for finding the sweet spot between "head and heart." I work in close collaboration with authors to define their grand visions and dreams for the books; then, we find a pragmatic route to bring that dream to fruition.

Jennifer Locke

No one writes a book alone. Not even close.
Thinking of writing a book? You may meet these folks:


1. Ghostwriter. If you want a book and ALSO know you don’t have time to learn the craft of book-writing.

2. Book coach. If you’re set on writing the book yourself and need guidance.

3. Developmental editor. They look at your completed manuscript and give big picture feedback/guidance on how to make it better.

→If you hired a ghostwriter, you won’t need this person. You may also skip this step if you hired a book coach.

4. Line editor. This person makes sure your sentences flow.

5. Copy editor. This person makes sure your grammar is on point.

→What’s the difference between a line and a copy editor? (I’m not exactly sure. 🫥 ) Editor friends, weigh in. The line gets fuzzy.

6. Book designer. They format the book and may provide a cover and/or book graphics + pictures.

7. Proofreader. The final person to see the book before it goes to print. Makes sure all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed. 

8. Someone to get your book ready for pub (ISBN number, upload to book distribution website, etc.).

9. Book marketer/publicity person.

→WHEW! That’s a lot of people.

A note: some people may serve more than one function. 

Pro tip: Interview people in advance of when you need them! Start from your end goal (the publish date) and work backwards.

Hey–if you’re looking to write your book in 2026, DM me. Let’s see how we can work together.

→Book friends, is there anyone I missed?

USA Today Bestselling Business Book Ghostwriter | Author | Nonfiction Book Coach

Three things I wish will-be (not ‘wanna be’) authors knew:



1. Ideas are a dime a dozen. Your idea is good enough.

→Rather than spending years refining your idea, your time is better spent:

Getting totally clear on your audience and message.
Developing your VOICE. Storytelling.
Just writing the dang thing.

2. There is no right time.

→The people who tell me they’re waiting for a good time to write their books…

Never find it. Because there is no right time.

There’s only the time you get so fed up with NOT having a book, you decide to begin.

3. You should probably self-publish.

→Unless you have a HUGE platform, self or hybrid publishing will be your best bets.

You get to control WHEN and HOW the book releases. 
With traditional publishing, it’s a question of ‘if.’

→Writer folks…what else would you add to this list?

Lin-Manuel Miranda had a writing coach…



His name was Tommy Kail.
You know him as the director of Hamilton.

Lin-Manuel knows him as “the reason I finish songs.”
Several people close to Lin-Manuel say:

‘Lin needs a Tommy in his life.’

To keep him on track. Turning in songs.
Keeping that ball rolling.

→Goes to show: even geniuses don’t go it alone.
In fact, they’re geniuses *because* they don’t go it alone.

Fun fact: I learned this in the book ‘Lin-Manuel Miranda: The Education of an Artist.’

I freaking love it.
If you’re a musical theater fan…it’s a must-read. 

(Also: if you’re a musical theater fan–let’s be best friends!) 🙏 

→I’m curious: when it’s ‘do or die’ for you, who (or what) do you turn to? Who/what is your Tommy Kail?

👋 I’ve got 1:1 coaching spots OPEN for thought leaders who are writing their nonfiction books in 2026. Want to be one? DM me.

One genius does his best writing on the NYC subway:


Lin-Manuel Miranda.
He says: “I do my best writing when I’m ambulatory.”

YES. That’s why I always advise my clients to *move*.

Go for a walk. Have a think. Dance it out. 💃 
Get on a train. Move locations. Go to a coffee shop. ☕ 

Shake up your thoughts! Kick out the ol’ dusties and invite in something fresh!

→Works for Lin-Manuel. Why not you?

→P.S.: I’m reading the book ‘Lin-Manuel Miranda: The Education of An Artist’...and I’m OBSESSED.

Got a favorite read of 2026 *so far*?

👋 I’ve got 1:1 coaching spots OPEN for thought leaders who are writing their nonfiction books in 2026. Want to be one? DM me.

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