Meet Kyle Driscoll | Author & Barchetta Media Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kyle Driscoll and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kyle, can you share the most important lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
You have to succeed on your own terms. Be willing to adapt to new situations and leave your comfort zone – that is very important – but don’t become someone you’re not in the process. Doing so will set you up for failure, and it’s not necessary. Insert your personality into your work and pursuits, and you will eventually find the path that allows you to succeed without altering that individuality. It won’t be the same path your heroes and role models took, but those paths are theirs, not yours.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The first time my writing was published was by my teenage heroes at Rolling Stone magazine. Okay, it was just a letter-to-the-editor. But that marked the beginning of my “professional” writing journey, which initially included a role as editor-and-chief of Syracuse University’s music magazine, Medium articles with thousands of views, and appearances on Beatles-expert podcasts. Evidently, music inspires me as much as the stories of heroes like George R.R. Martin, J.K. Rowling, Vince Gilligan and Christopher Nolan. The Single Source of Truth was my first attempt at writing longform fiction, period. I used it to wrestle with many of the topics which permeate my own life – technology’s impact on humanity, faith and spirituality, the 21st century workplace, the disenfranchisement of the impoverished, and finding meaning in the modern world. I am most proud of overcoming the challenge posed by my first professional edit, where my amateur fiction-writing abilities were fully exposed. Through many doubt-filled hours, I ended up capturing the essence of the characters and theme in a (hopefully) compelling story in the way I intended while addressing the apt guidance from the edit. As a naturally risk-averse person, I grew immensely from forcing myself to leave my comfort zone on countless occasions.

When I struggled to find an agent with connections to a Big-5 publisher, I decided to revise the manuscript entirely, design the paperback layout, and manage the artistry for the cover and internal elements. Effectively, I controlled all aspects of the creation process – everything but distribution. So, I decided to publish the book myself under the Barchetta Media brand, and that has led us to high-margin sales, availability in physical and online bookstores, and invitations to international book festivals. From there, each new creative product has added another differentiating dimension to the Barchetta brand.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Start the day with a hike in the Flatirons near Boulder, grab a drink at the Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery, and close the night with a Nuggets game.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Everyone who showed appreciation of my writing abilities and encouraged me to pursue that potential is worthy of more recognition than I can give. I was also spurred on through my work at the tremendous nonprofit CIANA, who provide incredible support to the local immigrant community. Volunteer or donate if you can! 

Website: https://www.barchettabooks.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barchetta_books/