Community Highlights: Meet Morgan Messing Samantha Dockser of Logue Social, Preoccupied

Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan Messing Samantha Dockser

Hi Morgan Messing, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Samantha and Morgan met in February 2024 at an event that Morgan hosted for the author, Sara Shepard. At the time, Morgan had founded and was running Logue Social, an author exclusive social media and events company, and Samantha was working as a book influencer, content creator, and actor. Samantha was invited to attend the Sara Shepard event in her role as a book influencer.

Samantha and Morgan hit it off and stayed in contact. In August 2024, Samantha and Morgan were having lunch and chatting about the need for a centralized resource for all book/author events happening in Los Angeles. To that end, they created the resource they were missing – @ThePreoccupied, which is available on Instagram and Threads.

@ThePreoccupied quickly grew to more than 8,500 followers across the two platforms. Based on that success, Samantha joined forces with Morgan at Logue Social, where the two of them are hard at work building the company’s uniquely author-focused social media and events business.

In addition to Logue Social and @ThePreoccupied, Samantha and Morgan recently started a “walking book club,” where LA-book lovers can join an author in walking around a Los Angeles neighborhood while discussing the author’s writings. The inaugural event featured Lauren Ling Brown and her book Society of Lies, which was followed by author Rufi Thorpe and Margo’s Got Money Troubles.

Collectively, Samantha and Morgan are highly focused on the amplifying the business and culture of books. They couldn’t be happier to have found a kindred soul in each other.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Like any new idea, we are constantly refining our strategy with new information and evolving technology. There was no model or template for either Logue Social or Preoccupied. Every day, we strive to promote our clients and their work in the most compelling and accessible manner possible. We are also committed to building and servicing the general book-community, which is truly a labor of love.

Operating in the sometimes fickle and capricious social media space creates its own challenges, and we have learned that one-size does NOT fit all. For each client, we must craft unique strategies that highlight his/her stories and connection with his/her audience.

For preoccupied, a challenge is that we are in need of a bigger meeting space for our fast-growing walking book club!

We’ve been impressed with Logue Social, Preoccupied, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Logue Social: An author-exclusive social media marketing company. We work directly with our clients to develop a personal brand, create and curate content, and grow reader engagement across all platforms. At Logue, we see social media as a tool to authentically showcase our clients and grow their reach. Just as each author is different, so are their needs. Whether it is creating and posting all content or helping to provide direction on ways to grow engagement, our mission is to amplify our authors’ reach and sales.

We offer social media strategy, social media takeover, influencer connections, events, and more.

Preoccupied: (launched September 2024) – a space dedicated to sharing Los Angeles author and book events, coffee shop and restaurants, screenings, and hosting their own monthly Walking Book Clubs, which have been cohosted alongside authors including Lauren Ling Brown (Reese’s Book Club October Pick), Rufi Thorpe (author of the soon to be Apple TV+ series, MARGOS GOT MONEY TROUBLES, starring Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning) and (in the new year) Laura Dave (author of the Apple TV+ series, THE LAST THING HE TOLD ME, starring Jennifer Garner.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Our Logue Social clients are our number one priority. We want to make sure they feel comfortable with how they are being represented and how we are marketing their books. We want to take as much of this responsibility off of them so that they can focus on the art of writing. To be successful we have to build trust among our clients and their fans. It’s our job to represent them in the most authentic and compelling way possible and to make sure that their writing – their art – is always the star.

Separately, we also care deeply about the general book community, a community we are grateful to be a part. With the rise of social media, the book community has become more visible and engaged, and we want to contribute to that momentum by bringing services, like @ThePreoccupied, and opportunities, like our author walks, to their attention so that they can get the most out of their love of reading.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://loguesocial.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepreoccupied
• Other: https://www.threads.net/@thepreoccupied

Image Credits
Image one: Lauren Ling brown

Image four: Sara Shepard

Image five: Sara Shepard