Acid to Assets
A premium single-page book sales funnel with a luxury gold design system — custom testimonials carousel, three-tier pricing, Mailchimp lead capture, and a complete 320-page biography written from scratch.
The Story
This project began when Dena Gleason read an advance copy of my book, "Ditch the Drift," and reached out with a unique opportunity — to partner together on telling her own remarkable story. What started as a ghostwriting engagement evolved into a full biography and joint venture between author and subject.
Dena's story is one of radical transformation. Arrested at age 15 for trafficking drugs across state lines, incarcerated and written off by society, she made the decision to refuse to let her past define her future. She built a seven-figure business empire with no resources, no connections, and a criminal record — becoming a successful real estate agent, entrepreneur, and motivational speaker.
The challenge was twofold: write a 320-page biography that captures the raw emotional weight of Dena's journey while weaving in the practical business wisdom she accumulated along the way — and then build a website that sells it. The book needed to move readers. The website needed to convert them. Both needed to feel premium, because Dena's story isn't a cautionary tale — it's a success story told through a luxury lens.
The Process
The manuscript came first. Countless hours of in-depth interviews, each session peeling back another layer of Dena's journey — not just facts and dates, but the emotions, the pivotal moments, the quiet turning points. Only after the interviews were complete did the perfect title emerge: "Acid to Assets." Three words that encapsulate the entire transformation from something destructive to something valuable.
That title became the design system's foundation. The website's entire visual identity is built around a luxury gold palette — Gold Rich (#C9A961) for primary accents, Bronze Deep (#6B4423) for heading authority, Espresso Dark (#2D1810) for contrast. The gold isn't decorative — it's the visual embodiment of the book's central metaphor. The "ACID TO ASSETS" headline uses a CSS gradient text effect flowing from deep bronze through rich gold, visually representing the transformation arc: dark origins dissolving into golden success.
The hero features the book cover with a CSS perspective transform (rotateY -10deg) and a radial gradient glow in matching gold tones, creating a premium physical feel — as if the book is sitting on a display shelf angled toward the viewer. The site follows a single-page sales funnel architecture: Hook, Promise, Credibility, Trust, Social Proof, Offer, Lead Capture. Every section answers the next objection in the visitor's mind.
The testimonials carousel is custom-built from scratch — 9 reader reviews with auto-rotation, touch/swipe support, dot pagination, and responsive card counts (3 desktop, 2 tablet, 1 mobile). The three-tier pricing layout highlights paperback as "Most Popular" while hardcover positions the book as gift-worthy and Kindle provides an accessible entry point. The Mailchimp integration uses a custom JSONP handler with real-time field validation, personalized success messages, and honeypot spam protection.
Three focused JavaScript files keep the codebase modular: email signup logic, mobile menu and navigation, and carousel behavior — each self-contained with its own initialization. All typography uses CSS clamp() for fluid scaling with no breakpoint jumps.
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The Solution
The final deliverable is a complete book-to-market pipeline — a 320-page biography and a hand-coded single-page sales funnel, all created by the same team. The manuscript captures Dena's voice authentically while weaving business wisdom throughout her personal narrative. The website converts that story into readers.
The luxury gold design system visually embodies the book's central metaphor: something corrosive (acid) transformed into something valuable (assets). The CSS gradient headline, 3D book cover with perspective transform, and premium color palette position this as an aspirational success story — not a tragedy. The single-page architecture keeps visitors in a continuous conversion flow from hook through social proof to purchase or email signup.
The custom testimonials carousel showcases 9 verified reader reviews spanning attorneys, entrepreneurs, corrections officers, life coaches, and social workers — reflecting the book's broad appeal. The three-tier pricing guides visitors toward the paperback while the Mailchimp lead capture with personalized confirmation messages converts visitors who aren't ready to buy into warm leads.
This project demonstrates full-stack creative capability: writing the book, designing the brand identity, building the website, integrating the email marketing, and optimizing for conversion — all delivered by the same team, from manuscript to market.
"Matthew didn't just write my story—he understood it. Through our many hours of conversation, he captured not just the events of my life, but the emotions, the lessons, and the heart behind every decision I made. The book cover perfectly represents my journey, and the website has helped me connect with readers before the book even launches!
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