Elise Bryant is appreciative of the therapy sessions that led to her publishing five books in five years. The author took to Instagram on Friday (Mar. 28) to celebrate her forthcoming book, The Game Is Afoot.
“Still processing the fact that I can hold my fifth book in my hands,” Bryant told her Instagram fans. “And this one is dedicated to the reason I’ve been able to publish 5 books in 5 years: my therapist,” the author exclaimed.
Elise Bryant went on to give insight into the challenges that come with writing. “Publishing is quite possibly the worst job for an anxious perfectionist people pleaser (hey! 🙋🏾♀️) because there is so much uncertainty and instability and my success is largely determined by other people’s opinions of my deepest truths,” she shared.
“I’ve had my heart broken and hit the glass ceiling and been pushed to burn out quite a few times in these five years,” Bryant admitted. “BUT I’m still here, still writing stories I’m so proud of, because I realized I needed help and reached out to someone from the @therapyforblackgirls database shortly after Happily Ever Afters came out.”
Happily Ever Afters is the story of Tessa, who is young and obsessed with writing romance stories. The plot falls apart, however, when Tessa is accepted to a prestigious creative writing program. Getting her drive back is ultimately a matter of following her friend’s instructions, which include falling for a cute guy.
The Game Is Afoot is a bit different from Happily Ever Afters as Mavis is on a mission to be supermom of the year. She has quit her job and is devoted to being active in her daughter’s school. Wherever she is needed is where Mavis wants to be. What if she is needed to solve another mystery, though? Readers of It’s Elementary can just consider this book as the second installment of Elise Bryant’s hilarious mystery series.
“You know I love to make you laugh (and omg, this one is gonna make you laugh! Truly the funniest book I’ve ever written!!), but I also always hope to make others feel seen by revealing so much of myself in my characters,” Bryant told her Instagram followers. “And that’s what I did with Mavis in this book and It’s Elementary. I can’t wait to share it with you all in July.”
The Game Is Afoot releases on July 8, 2025.