Photo by Sweeney Photography
creative,” recalled Adams. “I was like,
what is wrong with me? This is all I’ve
ever wanted … I think the disconnect
was, I wasn’t creating authentically.”
She began her creative freedom
by founding her own production
company, AKA Productions, which
turns 10 this year. Its cornerstone
project was a web series created and
produced by Adams and her friends.
The company has since supported
many film and TV projects. As a
producer, Adams also started oneon
one consulting, which she called
#BYOP (Be Your Own Producer). Then
in February of 2020, she came to her
literary agent with the idea of turning
her #BYOP business into a book.
Then Broadway went dark.
Productions over the world came to
a halt and the entertainment industry
as we knew it was uprooted, leaving
artists desperate for creative outlets.
“If that wasn’t the sign from God,
or the kick in the pants!” Adams
16 MAY 2 0 2 1
recalled with a laugh. “So I made an
outline for the book and within the
week I got an offer from Morgan
James Publishing for me to write my
first book.”
Just like everything else Ashely
Kate has built, “#BYOP” was written
from her kitchen table in Long Island
City. It’s billed as a book for artists
looking for the encouragement
and action steps to live their
most authentically creative lives
— especially during this time of
creative stagnation.
The book “will encourage you that
no matter where you are in your
career, every day you can wake up
and you can make different choices
and your stories are valid,” Adams
said. “Many times in our industry
you’re told you’re only allowed to
do one thing, but I believe artists
are multi-hyphenate beings. It’s not
weird if one day they want to paint,
one day they want to sing, one day
they want to write — and I think that’s
actually a very honest truth of many
artists, and I’m happy with this book
to be able to encourage that.”
Adams’ witty and inviting writing
draws the reader in immediately.
The four-part book includes chapters
titled, “If No One’s Offering You a
Chair, Build Your Own Freakin’ Table,”
“Good Ol’ Imposter Syndrome” and
“Your Work is Your Work,” guiding the
reader through their artistic journey
and giving them the tools to go forth
and create.
She also touches on heavier
subjects such as grief, something
all too familiar to the author. She
lost her father almost five years ago
and has used her experience with
that loss to help artists in similar
situations.
“It prepared me for the pandemic
because I had just gone through this
heavy grieving for so many years and
I’ve used that as a way to reach other
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT