A friend from my South
Jersey Writers group confirmed what I had been hearing in every class and on
every blog. “Your manuscript could be
great,” he said, “but if you’re not socially connected, the publisher’s not
interested in reading it.”
Gone are the days when writers only
had to focus on their writing. Now we
need to be masters of the social media if we want a publisher to look at our
manuscripts.
But how do you become socially
connected? Here are some tips I picked
up. Ideas are welcome.
1.
Become an expert on the topic you write about. Research about the topic. Look for relevant current events and comment on
them.
2.
Visit other blogs in your genre or topic. Follow them.
Leave comments. Tell people who
you are. Guest post on a blog where permissible.
3.
Create your own blog about your genre or topic
and blog often. Set up a consistent
routine so followers know when you are likely to post.
4.
Create an author page on facebook and invite
friends to join it. Announce when you
have posted something new on your blog or website. Ask people to visit and leave comments.
5.
Create a google+ account to connect with other
writers and friends and associations relevant to your topics and become
involved in online conversations.
6.
Join twitter. Tweet. Retweet. And “Like” tweets or comments. Ask for retweets. Thank the person for the retweet. Use hashtags [#] and join online
conversations.
7.
Join LinkedIn and become part of some online conversations
there as well.
8.
Pinterest is a visual media. If you can make visual connections to your
topic or book, do so on pinterest.
These are all free. You can also build a website [.com] and/or
buy your name. You can connect your
blogs and media to your own website and sell your books through a link on your
webpage. I haven’t gotten to this point
as I don’t have anything to sell…yet.
I completed my Write Your Memoir in
6 Months course. My first draft is
65,246 words. Now the real work
begins. Revision. I hope to bolster up my media platform while I
revise. But as most of you realize, social
media takes much time…and patience.
How did you build your social
platform and how long did it take before you started seeing some results? Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a
comment.
I never realized how difficult and time consuming it is to get something published. I wish you all the luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Michelle. Most people don't realize how much work writers do outside of creating stories or essays. Like any career, writing is multi-faceted.
DeleteThanks again for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. Please stop by again.
Excellent post! Building your social media platform is very time-consuming, Victoria. You've got a pretty complete list here, but all these things take a lot of time and effort to build a following. (Another great social networking site is Goodreads...for both authors and readers...) The vast majority of publishers nowadays expect authors to do their own marketing and you are right that they expect authors to already have a platform. I think when newbie authors are writing a book, they think most of the work is done when the book is finished, but that's not true. Marketing takes more time and, in some cases, more effort. I've seen some wonderfully written books be virtually ignored because the author does almost no marketing and I've seen mediocre books gets noticed because the author spends most of her time marketing.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ellen. Building a social media platform is extremely time-consuming, and with limited time, it seems next to impossible.
DeleteThank you for recommending Goodreads. I guess I need to join as a reader until I have something published and ready to sell. I know you review books. Do you review books ON Goodreads or only on your blog?
I realize I have much to learn about marketing and that I need to do this if I am to shop my memoir and then the book itself. About how long did it take you to gather such a following, Ellen?
Thank you so much for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. Please stop by again.
Good stuff, Victoria. I would suggest also joining Indiebound community of independent booksellers once you're published.
ReplyDeleteInstagram is also a very happening place to share photos, and might be more effective than Facebook if you're writing to a YA audience.
But, without question, Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus are the most important outposts a writer can establish to build platform and create community.
By the way, I found this article on G+.
Don, welcome and thank you for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. Thank you for telling me which media you found my blog post.
DeleteI will check out Indiebound community of independent booksellers once I become published. Thanks for recommending it.
I do write YA short stories. If I write a book-length manuscript and publish other than at children's magazines, I'll connect with Instagram. Thank you for that kind bit of information.
I truly appreciate your visiting my Adventures in Writing blog and offering advice, Don. Please stop by again.
I'm so happy you have your manuscript done. Sure, there's work to do, but you've accomplished something huge.
ReplyDeleteI agree having a platform helps, but I think a good story is still a good story.
Thank you, Theresa, for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog and thanks for the good wishes. I'm excited to have the first draft complete.
DeleteTheresa, you have a wonderful blog. How long did it take you to build up your following on your blog?
And I agree with you. Social media aside, a good story is still a good story.
Thanks again, Theresa, for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. Please stop by again.
It doesn't take long to start building a platform, but you do need to be active. In that regard, it takes a while.
ReplyDeleteGreat advice :)
Hi Lynda. Thank you for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. Being active online. That's the hard part. I either have time to create stories, or I have time to visit sites and discussions and leave pithy comments. However, you are 100% correct. I need to make time for both.
ReplyDeleteThanks again, Lynda, for reading my blog post. Please stop by again.
Great tips and advice. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAll the best!
Thank you so much, Nas, for visiting my Adventures in Writing blog. You are quite welcome. Please share any tips you might have to help build a social media platform.
ReplyDelete