Anissa de Gomery

Anissa de Gomery is the pioneering force behind FairyLoot, co-founding the brand in 2016 at the age of 23. FairyLoot champions diverse fantasy fiction, an objective inspired by Anissa’s desire to see more Asian representation as a young fantasy reader. In 2024, Anissa was named as The Bookseller’s “Shooting Star”.

She has just finished reading Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber, publishing later this year, and found it every bit as magical, romantic and surprising as all of the author’s other books.

"There's always been an appetite for beautiful stories in a beautiful package - I think we've just been able to give them a more visible and collective voice."

Let’s start with your origin story - can you tell us about a few pivotal moments/canon events that got you here today?

I've always been a reader, but discovering the online community through book blogging was the biggest game changer for me. Bookstagram and BookTok changed my entire life - it was amazing to see all these readers around the world come together on so many different platforms to just talk about books that we were all reading separately but loving equally. This community sparked the idea of connecting these readers in a tangible way - a subscription where they would all receive the same book every month and discover that world for the first time, together. Our very first box was critical - we didn’t make many of them but they sold out very quickly, giving us the confidence that there was appetite for this kind of product. Another game-changing moment was the development of customised editions because they have broadened our capacity for flair and creativity, made the reading experience feel that much more special and helped us to forge a closer connection with the reader. 

Looking back on it now, I’ve really come to appreciate how important that first step was, as scary as it was at the time and even though I didn’t feel 100% ready - I think it’s totally okay not to, but I absolutely encourage anyone who is thinking of starting something new to just go for it and to be ready for the lessons you learn by doing along the way. 

The way that FairyLoot works has made many a Sunday Times Bestseller - how does it feel to be able to have this power to shake up the industry? What do you think it says about the way we are or aren't open to innovation?

It's been incredibly humbling but I do think that readers as a whole have always had that power. There's always been an appetite for beautiful stories in a beautiful package - I think we've just been able to give them a more visible and collective voice. People want to be excited and immersed in the books that they read and these experiences have become synonymous with FairyLoot, both in terms of the books themselves and the way that they’re presented. It doesn't always need to be the absolute bells and whistles that we do, but the way that artwork in general has progressed just makes them so much more special. It’s more than readers just wanting a story to transport them and make them feel even more vibrant, it is about how they then stay with them. 

Innovation doesn’t have to mean disruption for disruption's sake. It can come from deeply understanding your audience and reacting to what they want to see. Keeping that in mind whilst you work and adapt means that you can deliver something fresh and exciting. 

"That kind of representation is powerful but it’s also just really fun and special to be able to learn about a different culture through a fantasy world."

What would you say to those who question romantasy’s longevity as a genre, and why do you think it’s become so popular?

Just look at the numbers and look at the passion. Romantasy really taps into something universal: our desires, our identities and our need for escape. It brings readers together, but also gives them an individual sanctuary. It isn’t anything new, but the genre is now being recognised on a much larger scale. I do think it's a movement rather than a trend - romantasy is going to continue to thrive for as long as people crave romance, magic and glorious emotion. 

This movement is also doing incredible things for our industry. It is bringing new people in - perhaps people who read when they were younger then stopped, or even those who didn’t read at all. They’re venturing into the rabbit hole of romantasy but this can lead to many other fiction genres, and even non-fiction too. Romantasy has made reading more accessible - I have friends who would never have considered themselves big readers now devouring books across all genres, and it was a romantasy book that brought them there. It’s funny because when I had to get a reference from my undergrad professor for my MA application, he advised against doing my masters in publishing because “books are a dying industry” - and now I just think he couldn’t have been more wrong. Obviously I'm very biased (as are most of us!) but once you read a fantastic book, nothing quite compares and so you're then always looking for the next brilliant book to fall into. I can never find a TV show or other content that compares to the way a good book makes me feel. That feeling is what gives me confidence that romantasy is here to stay, and I love that for us. 

I hope that with more people reading books, more people will want to write books too - and especially for younger readers. There was a time, especially when I was growing up, when the bridge between middle grade and YA was quite vast, which meant that actually, as a young adult, I was having to dip into novels typically written for ‘grown-ups’. I think that’s something that has really changed, because there are so many more books now that cover a wider range of reading ages and interests. It’s so important to bridge that gap; I believe it will really help to build people’s confidence to be a lifelong reader and to be proud of it. 

What does it mean to you to bring your own experiences as a WOC to the process of reading and sharing books you love with your audience?

At FairyLoot, we're big champions of fantasy that allows readers to learn so much from so many different cultures. Being a woman of colour, I'm always trying to find more stories that are diverse, especially stories that we didn't have much of back in the day. Seeing fantasy inspired by Asian cultures come to prominence has been incredible. Books like The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea by Axie Oh, Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan or Spin The Dawn by Elizabeth Lim have done such an amazing job of weaving cultural heritage into the storytelling. They’re stories that can resonate on a deeper level with readers who finally get to see elements of their own background reflected in magical worlds. That kind of representation is powerful but it’s also just really fun and special to be able to learn about a different culture through a fantasy world.

"my absolute favourite part of what I still do is reading the manuscripts and working on the books."

Talk us through what an average week at FairyLoot looks like - what do you really enjoy doing?

Every week is different, but will usually blend strategy with creativity. I'm always looking at what we're building, where we can do things better and how we can constantly evolve, which I think is what makes it so exciting. 

There are always new things on the go, but my absolute favourite part of what I still do is reading the manuscripts and working on the books - seeing a manuscript come into my inbox as a word doc and falling in love with it then going on a journey with the team, the publisher, the author and the artists to bring the story to life and send the finished edition out into the world. It is so beautiful and still the part of my job I cherish the most. 

It goes without saying that seeing all the positive reactions to our work is a highlight too! I think the beauty of a genre like fantasy is that it allows us to imagine things so differently and so vividly. That means there are always going to be different opinions and different tastes, especially when it comes to artwork - one edition might resonate with one person, but not with another, and that's okay. We always just do the very best that we can based on what we know and what we think makes the book the most special. A big part of FairyLoot is that our ears are always to the ground, listening to what our customers are saying across all social media platforms. We're always learning from their reactions, both positive or negative, and taking their feedback on board. There is never a dull day. Having done this now for quite a while, it was so important for me to learn that there are so many different tastes and opinions and that’s only ever going to increase, which is a good thing.

"Scaling up has meant letting go of a lot of day-to-day detail and trusting the incredible people that I get to work with."

The FairyLoot team has scaled up threefold since you started - how has your role changed, and what has this expansion taught you about leading a team and communicating a vision?

Although my role has changed hugely from the start, we've always stayed true to the original vision and why we went into this. If I were to look at our very first website that we launched before we even worked with web developers, I would say that the website would still be a FairyLoot page and would still represent what we are today as a brand - I can still remember it crystal clear. I’ve always made sure that our vision is woven into everything and that every book feels like a FairyLoot book.

Because we were so young when we first started, it was all built through a feeling. I know that sounds a little strange, but that feeling became a thread tying us to the initial people we brought onto the team - I’d already connected with them within the community and they knew who we were and were passionate about what we were trying to do. Eventually we realised that we needed to start making some changes and put a structure in place - it couldn’t just be a bunch of us grabbing coffee and writing customer service emails! Once we had established that structure, we communicated it across the team so we could work effectively within those areas. We are a small team with a lot of trust in each other - we discuss things openly, especially when it comes to new ideas (all are welcome, good or bad!) and it’s this attitude which has made us successful. We're very fortunate that the nature of our work already brings together like-minded and passionate people, which makes such a huge difference. 

Scaling up has meant letting go of a lot of day-to-day detail and trusting the incredible people that I get to work with - truly, FairyLoot would not be what it is today without the people who are with me now. We all work together as a unit but my role is now a lot more about setting direction and aligning the departments working on the books. I know that my brilliant team will be able to handle things without me, giving me that space to free up my brain and navigate those more strategic elements. I really had to learn to be patient and try to stay as calm as possible, even in a crisis, which is hard as I'm not generally a very calm person. Also, I’ve come to accept that mistakes are always going to happen - they’re just part of business and part of life. I’ve learnt that it's what you do after and how you learn from them  that makes the biggest difference. Not all things are easily fixed and sometimes you have to go through a few cycles before you get to where you want to be. It’s about asking the questions to ensure the mistake doesn’t happen again: ‘Do we have enough people on the team to handle a certain amount of growth? Did this mistake happen due to a systematic error?’ 

I feel my biggest achievement looking back is just never giving up, even on the days where I definitely felt like I wanted to. Those lessons are a natural part of growth for everyone in everything they do, but ultimately for me, what gets me through them is surrounding myself with people who are happy to come together to lean on and support each other when things get difficult. 

"I love being fully remote - it gives us the chance and the time to connect as we see fit because people don't have to commute on a daily or weekly basis."

How do you keep communicating your vision across the team when they’re fully remote - and then to your readers when you work so far in advance? 

It has really changed since we first started. At first, we didn’t really use big chat platforms but now everyone can meet and connect online, and we’ve got a structure in place for weekly meetings amongst different team members and managers. I love being fully remote - it gives us the chance and the time to connect as we see fit because people don't have to commute on a daily or weekly basis. That being said, we do have annual team building sessions. We try to mix them up but usually go to different book festivals, whether it’s YALC or Cheltenham, for 2 or 3 nights and have dinner and spend time together. We also have smaller individual meet ups for different teams and different projects, so we do have moments for  in-person connection as well. Overall, it is a nice mix and I think a lot of people on our team love working remotely - it’s a big part of why they wanted to join. 

As for connecting with readers, I always want to be back on that trail. Because we work so far in advance, sometimes by the time a book is ready for readers, it has been a year or two since I first read it and I’ve completely forgotten what’s happened! This does then give me the opportunity to rediscover the story with fresh eyes when first proofs start landing in the hands of readers. I get swept away all over again now there are more people talking about it and giving it the love it deserves. I am always so thankful that so many team members read the same books at the same time, either when it first comes in or as it goes out into the world, because I can go and fangirl with them, and especially when we get the art coming in, which is always our daily dose of serotonin.

What has the joint partnership between FairyLoot and Transworld taught you about communication and collaboration and what are your hopes for the future of the imprint? 

The partnership has been an absolute masterclass on how a creative collaboration can flourish when there's mutual trust and aligned goals between two parties. When we first came together and started discussing all of what working together might look like, it didn't initially begin as, ‘Hey, let's start an imprint together.’ It was when we sat down and looked at what we could work on more closely together that this felt like the next natural step for us, especially given how closely, and how far in advance of acquisition, we work with authors and agents. Now, we can bring those works to an imprint home that is aligned and adjacent to FairyLoot. 

In terms of the future of the imprint, we want to continue championing bold and unforgettable fantasy, exactly in the way that we do with our subscription box books. I think we have a chance to build something truly unique. We're just getting started with it and we've got some exciting things upcoming, that I'm not allowed to say anymore about! 

Tell us about a woman in publishing who inspires you.

I have to go with Kimberly Young, MD at Transworld, because she's just an absolute force in the industry. She is so incredibly smart and has such a great instinct. She's consistently breaking boundaries with everything that she does, and does so with so much heart and passion, whilst also daring to be different and to try so many brilliant new things. 

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