If you have ever wondered what happens when a health-conscious creative, a born entrepreneur, a publishing powerhouse, and a devoted homeschooling mom all live inside the same woman, the answer is simple. You get Maddie Mackey.

She is the founder of Media on the Rise, a full-service marketing agency; the co-owner of Media on the Rise Publishing; the CMO of a commission-free delivery app; and the woman who still runs a tiny cleaning and organizing business because, in her words, “I actually love it and I am really passionate about it.”

She is also the mother of almost-six-year-old Charlotte, a tiny mirror of Maddie’s energy and spirit.

Maddie is equal parts relaxed energy and raw ambition. She does things her own way, with a clarity that makes you think, “Oh, she was born for this.”

A Business Built on Freedom and Roots

Maddie’s story makes more sense when you hear where she comes from. Her dad has always been an entrepreneur. Her mom started as an intern at a public media organization, worked her way through nearly every job there, and is now the CEO.

Maddie grew up around business talk, marketing talk, media talk. She didn’t realize how much it soaked in until she began building her own thing.

In college at Sonoma State, she founded the yoga and wellness club, and that is where her entrepreneurial instincts sharpened. She figured out that if you formed a student organization, the university would actually fund your events. Suddenly she was running a tiny wellness agency without calling it that, planning classes, managing budgets, and hosting events.

“I started to learn how to spend other people’s money. I was wondering how all the sorority girls were getting all these parties.”

Those early experiments turned into a yoga-and-wellness business called Rise Above Yoga. She traveled, taught, experimented, and worked with different communities. Over time, clients asked for more strategic support, and she naturally shifted into brand building, content creation, and marketing.

By the time the pandemic arrived, Maddie was already freelancing under her wellness brand. Making Media on the Rise official simply named what she had already built.

“Media on the Rise started as my freelance work under Rise Above Yoga, and during the pandemic I finally turned it into its own agency.”

Today, Media on the Rise is her anchor. Marketing, strategy, content production, partnerships, and CMO-level work all live under one roof. But her publishing company is the part catching fire.

Publishing With Integrity at the Center

Maddie and her business partner built Media on the Rise Publishing with a clear intention: to make publishing more accessible, transparent, and ethical.

“The best part is we do not take any rights to your book. That is the big thing about us.”

They help authors with editing, design, writing support, book production, and marketing strategy. They publish cookbooks, spiritual works, debut authors, and creative projects.

The model is intentionally author-first.
And it is growing fast.

“We are operating at a scaled level now. The publishing company has rapidly grown with new clients and upcoming book releases.”

Their biggest challenge: finding reliable contractor-based staff.

“I am actively looking for someone to collaborate with because my attention is needed elsewhere.”

Why Maddie Chooses Entrepreneurship Every Time

Most people ease their way into entrepreneurship. Maddie sprinted toward it.

When asked what gave her the confidence to take the leap right out of college, she said something that flips the traditional narrative upside down.

“I think it takes a lot of confidence and craziness to commit to the 401k job and going to the same place every day.”

For Maddie, the “safe” choice felt like the biggest risk.

She’s always needed the ability to cook during the day, structure her own time, homeschool her daughter, and create rhythm on her terms.

“The thought of going to one place all day like that just feels bad in my body, and I don’t do things that feel bad in my body.”

This isn’t freedom in the soft, floating-through-lavender-fields sense.
It’s freedom with structure.
Freedom with purpose.
Freedom anchored in being fully alive in her own life.

The Hardest Part of the Work

Running multiple businesses is not for the faint of heart.

For Maddie, the hardest part is staffing and the constant mental load that comes with making decisions as the final call.

“I do not have one specific mentor. Nobody else can provide the exact answers needed for my business decisions. I have become good at making executive decisions, but it is mentally draining.”

When decisions carry legal or long-term impact, she invests in expert support instead of crowdsourcing opinions. Her clarity is refreshing and her resilience is unmistakable.

What She’s Building Next

Maddie is all-in on expanding Media on the Rise Publishing. She and her partner are supporting new manuscripts, guiding authors, and steadily shaping the company into a creative hub for women writers and storytellers.

Their next chapter includes:

• new books already underway
• expanded author marketing offerings
• educational tools for aspiring writers
• a potential Twine x Media on the Rise Women’s Book Fair

Oh, and she’s writing a cookbook of her own.

“We’ve created templates that are truly user-friendly. You slide in your photos, add your words, and suddenly you’ve got a book.”

Advice to Her Younger Self

When asked what she wishes she knew earlier in life, Maddie delivered one of the sharpest, most practical pieces of founder wisdom:

“Choose a co-parent wisely. Treat long-term partnerships and parenting with the mindset of a business deal.”

It might not sound romantic, but it is deeply real.
And real is Maddie’s superpower.

How You Can Benefit From Maddie’s Expertise

If you are an author, founder, or small business owner who needs clarity, content, or strategic direction, Maddie is your person.

You can work with her through:

• Media on the Rise for marketing, brand strategy, and creative support
• Media on the Rise Publishing for editing, design, writing assistance, and book marketing
• Famished for commission-free restaurant delivery partnerships in the LA area

Maddie brings heart, clarity, and a big vision to everything she touches. She is proof that you can be multi-passionate, strategic, and deeply intentional all at once.