Posts Tagged ‘social media’
Is Your Online Presence Working For You? Upcoming Social Media for Writers Workshop
Posted on: March 4, 2019
Social Media for Writers: 7 Strategies
Saturday, March 23, 10am-3pm, Central Carolina Community College
Hi folks,
It’s March and I have a great workshop, Social Media for Writers: 7 Strategies, coming up in just a few weeks! I’d love for you to attend. At any given time, you can find writers talking, arguing and lamenting about the expectations of social media usage for writers. There’s often not a lot of joy in these conversations. The debates over how to use social media (and what for), also reveal ambivalence about other necessary skills writers most often need to develop–promotion and marketing.
Whether you aspire to be an indie writer, traditionally published or hybrid author, creating an online presence is part of a savvy writer’s toolkit.
Creating an online presence and managing social media helps writers build relationships with other authors, fans and industry professionals. It also can generate leads, provide exposure and advance your professional goals and aspirations.
With the millions of choices out there, potential readers need to know how to find your work, understand your unique perspective and connect with you.
Social Media for Writers is geared for writers interested in creating or beefing up an online presence. It is also geared for those writers who want to know more about how to use social media effectively in getting them closer to their writing goals.
We’ll spend time exploring the challenges and opportunities of various platforms (e.g. Twitter, Instagram, etc.) and learn novel ways that writers have used these platforms to promote their work and engage industry professionals, readers and fans.
We’ll also talk about author websites (what should be on them?), blogging (is it still worth doing?), author newsletters (when should you start one?), and importantly–how not to get overwhelmed in managing your social media.
And, I promise you it will be FUN and of course, there will be door prizes, too! More below…
Social Media for Writers: 7 Strategies
Does the term author platform make you cringe? Are you overwhelmed by conflicting advice about how often and in what ways aspiring (and professional) writers should be engaging in social media? Do you think that talking about an author brand minimizes one’s creativity? Does talk of authors using Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram make you want to stay in bed and pull up the covers?
Find out ways to effectively harness social media to meet your goals and have fun while doing it.
This workshop will help you make informed choices about how you represent yourself online.
Writers of every level, genre, and background welcome.
Register here
Our writing life encompasses so much more than the actual writing. Here are some other important tasks besides writing that will help you sustain and deepen the quality of your writing life. Over this quarter, when you need a short break from writing, try a few items on this list.
-Check on and manage your money and intellectual property: Last year, authors and the mismanagement of their money and intellectual property assets by agents, accountants and publishing houses made the news:
https://www.thebookseller.com/news/palahniuk-795516
These events constituted a wake-up call across the industry. It’s important for writers to both manage our money and our intellectual property. Make it a point this quarter to collect any outstanding monies owed to you. Check your contracts with various venues that you’ve published with (e.g. anthologies, magazines, presses, etc.) and make sure you have received payment in a timely manner. Peruse royalty statements. In 2018, if you brought books to your readings at a local bookstore (often the case for writers with small presses), or made appearances at a conference, and had someone sell books on your behalf, make sure you have received the correct payment owed. I spent a good chunk of last year chasing down such monies. Furthermore, make sure you are keeping track of your intellectual property by knowing what rights you have with various publishers and when they are expiring, etc. I have really enjoyed author and entrepreneur Joanna Penn’s focus on her podcast encouraging writers to become savvy about understanding the value of our intellectual property. She has devoted several podcasts to this issue, here is a recent one.
–Line up beta readers: You are going to finish something this year, right? If so, you will need some beta readers. Beta readers are people who read your work while it is in draft form. They could be people in your writing group, other writers, trusted friends, etc. It’s generally good to have a mix of non-writers and writers as beta readers. Want to know about beta reader etiquette? Check out author K.M. Weiland’s helpful post on this topic.
-Clean up your bio across your social media sites: Read your short bios that live on social media (e.g. FB, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.). Do they still reflect the writer that you are? Are they compelling? Do you need to add, subtract or tighten anything?
-Clean up digital clutter on your desktop: It’s coming to get you if you don’t.
-Volunteer to support and serve a published writer that you know: Several years ago, I was privileged to accompany one of my writing teachers, Marjorie Hudson, to several speaking events and workshops. I learned invaluable things watching a working writer deal with the public aspect of a writing life: speaking, promoting, coaching, and book signing.
Writers always need more support. If you have a friend or an acquaintance who has recently published a book, offer to help them promote it in some way. If you don’t know any published writers, this is a great way to connect with a local writer whose work that you admire.
Be a personal assistant, or driver, for a day. If they are scheduled to give readings, see if you can help carry books, set up a display, sell books, and assist with small tasks that would make their life easier. You can learn a lot from watching how other writers handle being in the public eye. There’s also nothing like the satisfying feeling of helping another writer on their path.
-Toss out old drafts: What do you do with drafts you’ve gotten back from your writing group? How long do you keep them? I have tendency to keep them way too long; they start to form into mountains on my desk. When you have integrated editorial comments into a completed story, toss the draft.
-Check the ergonomics of your writing space: What can be moved and realigned for maximum support of your body?
-Straighten up your submissions file: Update your 2018 submissions file and create the 2019 one. And, of course if you haven’t started a submissions file yet, correct that. Writers write and submit their work. See one of my tips for crafting a helpful submission strategy.
-Go through last year’s journals, classes and conference notes: If you took writing classes, attended conferences or workshops and/or kept a journal last year I bet there are still some nuggets to mine. Take time to honor that work.
-Update your writing accomplishments list and post it where you can see it: Smile at it from time to time. If you don’t have one, now is the time to make one!
- In: creative writing | creativity | writing
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There are lots of discussions about how to use social media as writers, but little discussion about how all our instagramming, tweeting and facebooking impacts our creativity. Come hear me and several other writers discuss this timely topic next Sunday at Quail Ridge Books and add your voice to the mix!
Sorting Out Your Social Media Use During Your Writing Career: Reflections and Tips
Posted on: November 13, 2017
Recently the amazing publicist who works for my publisher, Book Smugglers, asked me to consider using a new social media platform—Instagram. She was putting together a cool campaign on Instagram to promote myself and the other authors with novellas by BSP. Instagram is a social media platform where you can share photos and videos. You can create geotags and hashtags. Instagram is visually driven. The Pew Research Center’s study, conducted a few years ago, notes that it tends to draw in a millennial audience.
And, I should note that the publicist wasn’t adamant that I start using Instagram—she was willing to post my content that I sent her. I’m pretty open to using social media, but I was reticent to add yet one more item on my already densely packed list of social media activities. Still, when your publicist asks you to consider something that they feel will be helpful with developing “organic reach” for your book, it’s wise and courteous to say yes.
In the end, I did join Instagram and it I’m glad I did. But, in doing so, it made me think more about a writer’s relationship to social media and how that relationship evolves over one’s career. It made me reflect on the choices I was making (or not making) related to social media. I thought I would share these musings with you in the hopes that it will spark your own reflections. Some of you may feel really comfortable with social media, and some may feel like it’s a drag and time suck. I find that for many writers (especially newer ones), social media is something they do begrudgingly and it often inspires feelings of guilt, dread and anxiety.
Reflecting on my choices, I can say that I’ve (unconsciously) followed four simple principles:
1) Find out what social media platforms you like and use them.
2) Use social media to serve your audience/community/tribe.
3) Grow your social media (and time learning about social media), in proportion to your goals.
4) Model your social media etiquette after other writers and creatives that you respect and enjoy following.
The first social media platform I started using was Facebook. I read Clay Sharkey’s book Here Comes Everybody which was chock-full of reasons why Facebook was an important tool to develop and enhance social relationships and “get things done”. This changed my thinking about the value of Facebook.
Pros:
Facebook is my favorite social media platform.
There is an ease to Facebook. It’s very simple to use, so my technophobic concerns were immediately quieted.
I found that I had a natural voice and ease in expressing myself in Facebook. I love inspiring people and connecting with them, so Facebook seemed the perfect medium. A big plus of Facebook is that my insights can be shorter than a standard blog post.
For many years, I didn’t have an Author Facebook page, but used my personal page to do ‘writing sprints’ and offer up writing and creative encouragement.
I am always amazed at who finds and likes my posts. It’s a good cross section of creative writer friends and academic friends (who are supportive and/or interested in developing their writing).
I now use my personal page less for discussions of writing and have relied more heavily on my Author Facebook page. I set up an Author Facebook page a few years ago when I started developing more webinars and online trainings.
There are lots of writers that have used Facebook very creatively to keep their community engaged. Facebook is an invaluable place to cultivate your community and ideally, once you have some publications–your super fans. Many writers have closed groups where they offer super fans, first crack at content, and other goodies. Other writers use their Author Page to update folks about upcoming publications and/or events and even solicit beta readers. If you teach writing workshops, you can create closed groups and offer specific resources to participants.
Cons:
Facebook is always changing its algorithms so having an Author Page doesn’t mean that the people you want to see your work will. It used to be that everyone saw every post and that’s not true anymore. I don’t usually “boost” posts which involves paying Facebook so that they will show your post to many more people (inside and outside your network).
Upkeep:
I post at least once a week, often twice a week. I like culling and sharing interesting tidbits of news, advice and inspiration related to creativity from around the web. I often post different kinds of resources there than what I share on the blog. Although Facebook’s algorithms are always changing, the way the platform looks and feels has been relatively stable, another feature I also appreciate.
BTW: Come play with me on my Author Facebook Page here (or click the link on the sidebar to the right)
Twitter is an online social networking service that enables users to send and read short 140-characters (until recently) messages called “tweets”. Some writers use it for community building and getting to know other authors. Others use it to promote their work. I joined Twitter in 2012 and it took me some time to figure out its value and how to manage my time using it.
In 2015 I attended the A Room of Her Own Foundation’s writing residency which was amazing. I took a great workshop called “Twitter for Authors” that was so empowering and helped me to think differently about Twitter. Mary Johnson shared a power packed handout about Twitter. She made the case that women’s voices were often underrepresented on Twitter and that many female authors were trying to change that. We explored how Roxanne Gay and other prominent writers use Twitter. Mary also noted that many writers used Twitter as a tool for self-promotion and that was OK, as long as we weren’t only using it for that end. Like all social media platforms, one’s goal should be to serve the community by providing great content, not just “look at me, I have a book” updates.
This workshop exposed me to a bevy of women writers active on Twitter and gave me some concrete tools in how to connect to the writing community. It’s taken me some time but I’ve grown my community to on Twitter –it now feels like a community, not just a random bunch of strangers I haphazardly followed when I first joined. I’ve also become a fan of tools like Hootsuite to help automate my tweets.
Pros:
There is a quick responsiveness to Twitter which can feel great. It is easy to populate Twitter with information for your community—use Hootsuite to automate. But, you don’t want to automate too much because part of the fun is actually interacting with folks on Twitter in real time. It’s a great medium for getting to know other writers. Another perk is that readers have connected with me on Twitter. Some have tweeted me their reviews of my work. It’s awesome to connect with readers! This rarely happens for me through either Facebook or even my blog.
Cons and Upkeep:
If you aren’t consistent and tweet often, you can fall off of people’s radars. You also have to practice impulse control. You can’t take things back on Twitter. It is very tempting to tweet something without really thinking about the consequences. Don’t!
You should always bring your best self in all social media correspondence. There is Twitter etiquette that should be learned.
BTW: Come play with me on Twitter
Pinterest is a social media site. You create boards and load pictures or anything that already exists somewhere on the web. I have a couple of different boards including one about Pugs, Writing Projects, Petite Fashion, etc.
I got on Pinterest because my curiosity was peaked, especially after I heard author Joanna Penn discuss it in her fantastic podcast called ‘The Creative Penn’ (sorry I don’t remember which one, but you can see her work on social media below).
She used Pinterest as a way to create a placeholder for images of current writing projects and made boards that documented her novel writing process. I loved that idea! With Pinterest, you can signal to others about your passions, interests, hobbies, etc.
Pros and Upkeep:
Pinterest is very easy to use. You begin by naming and creating a board and ‘pinning’ items to it. You can pin when you feel like it—daily, weekly or monthly. Pinterest also suggest items for you to pin, a feature that keeps your imagination stimulated.
How might Pinterest help you as a writer?
Let’s say you are a fantasy author and you write about dragons. You create a board that collects lots of images of cool dragons. If someone loves dragons and they are on Pinterest, they will search for dragons. There’s a good chance that they may find your board, pin some of your images and “follow” your board. They may check out other boards that you have (maybe related to fantasy or not). Over time, they may decide to read one of your dragon themed books. Like Instagram, the idea is that this platform helps attract people based on specific interests and that can lead to interest in what you actually produce. It is thought to help with organic reach—reaching people beyond your networks.
Cons:
Pinterest can be very distracting! I have to be intentional when I go on Pinterest or I go down some beautiful rabbit holes!
BTW: Come play with me on Pinterest
This is the new kid on the block for me. I have just started using Instagram. Even before my publicist asked me to join Instagram, I had heard some buzz about how authors were using it. Authors were posting images that related to their story ideas. I heard a good tip (I think from Joanna Penn), that to get started on Instagram, post one thing once a week or even once a month and before you know it, you’ll have lots of images. And, you’ll have followers without trying too hard. I am finding this observation to be true. I also think that I am in a place in my career that having a presence on Instagram is worthwhile.
Pros:
It’s pretty easy to use. You can literally upload any picture and tag it. It doesn’t have to be related to anything specifically about your work. It could be, ‘I just saw this beautiful flower and I wanted to share it with my community.’ I find it fun to upload photos from recent book events.
Cons:
It’s a bit harder to use on my laptop. Like Pinterest, I have to be focused when I go on Instagram. There’s so much interesting visual material, it’s easy to get lost.
Upkeep:
So far none.
BTW: come and play with me on Instagram
At every stage of your writing career, social media can support your goals. It is worth taking the time to reflect on and identify how social media can amplify your writing interests. What’s important to you? Connecting with potential readers? Pitching to editors? Connecting with local writers?
Social media continues to evolve and change and so will our use of it.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that you don’t have to do anything related to social media that you don’t want to (unless your publisher wants you to). Overall, you have a lot of choice about the kind of social media you want to use, how often and for what purpose.
Additional resources:
Jane Friedman’s excellent overview ‘Social Media for Authors: The Toughest Topic to Advise On’ (thanks to Erika Dreifus for posting)
Joanna Penn’s ‘7 Best Ways to Build an Authentic Author Brand’ and search The Creative Penn for additional social media posts
The Practice of Creativity 