Thursday, December 16, 2010

My Little Experiment OR How To Manage an Online Presence as an Author





My experiment? Yup, you probably already guessed it. Do I get more traffic just by putting up pics of hot, shirtless vampires? Well, I'll let you know the results in a week or so. ;) But that does tie in to what I want to talk about today. Platform building for writers. I know, it's been discussed, but let's summarize what I've learned:


1. Is an online presence helpful to a yet-to-be-published author?
I've heard both sides of the argument, and what I take away is this - and I speak from experience folks! I've been blogging for nearly a year now. If you HATE it. I mean have to force yourself to blog or tweet like taking a spoonful of castor oil. Then you shouldn't invest the time it takes. On the other hand, if you like it (and let's face it, most of us writers do because it's another outlet for our creative side), go for it!! You build contacts, yes. But most importantly you connect with your peers. And you will find that those peers are an invaluable resource of support, friendship, and information. And when that book finally comes out? You have a place to market it. A place that is more likely to be visited by the young audience you may be targeting, and a place you are now comfortable navigating.

2. Which platforms are the most useful?
Well, I have personal experience with the "big three." Those being Facebook, Twitter, and Blogging.

Let's start with FB. I find it a little more difficult to use for marketing myself, though some people love it. I think it's a personal choice, but I'll show you why I prefer Twitter and blogging.

Twitter is not only fun and addictive, it's easy to participate. Especially with free programs like Tweetdeck to help keep you organized and up to date. You don't have to spend forever on there, you just check in say a few times a day or go for an online conference like #kidlitchat, #yalitchat, or #scribechat.

Blogging is a great outlet for your muse as a writer. I've used three major platforms. Blogger (obviously), Wordpress (undead poet's society and Scribechat), and Livejournal (Enchanted Inkpot). They all have ups and downs. Personally, I find Blogger the most user friendly, followed by Wordpress. I also like how blogger keeps me connected with so many other's that use Google.

3. What do I say?

Keep your personal life private. That's my biggest advice. Do I mention my kids occasionally? Yes. But you notice I don't give specific names and locals. Nor do you want to hear it. YOU as my guest want something of value in return for visiting with me. And I want you to say, I like that Lisa Gail Green chick! She's funny, uplifting, a little quirky, and I learn things by talking to her. So aim for those things - whatever you want someone to come away with - and give it to them! On Twitter I tweet links of use, tidbits, and (hopefully) funny anecdotes. I also converse with friends, and offer/receive encouragement.

The biggest thing to remember is that you are interacting with real people who are in much the same boat you are. Yes we want to hear about good news and share in disappointments with you, but overall, this is a give and take. Comment on others blogs! I love hearing from you!! I really mean that. I answer just about every time. And I try to reciprocate by going to your blog as well. I love the people I've met here! I enjoy doing this! And apparently I also enjoy exclamation points!

What did I leave out? Tell me what you find helpful online.




31 comments:

  1. Lisa, no idea why but I could actually read your post in my Google reader today - yay! Anyhoo, this is great advice. When I first started blogging, I wasn't really sure what to say. But finally I realized that I just need to blog about the things that interest me, and luckily other people fine those things interesting too. You do a great job of conveying a fun personality through your blog, and that's exactly the kind of thing that brings people back. Oh, and shirtless vampires can't hurt. :-)

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  2. Anna - Yeah!! I think I figured it out. *crosses fingers* Hopefully that will help bring back some friendly faces I haven't seen in a little while. :D I'm really glad it brought you!! And yeah, lots and lots of shirtless vampires. That's my best advice...

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  3. I've resorted to using pictures of cookies to bring readers...probably not as effective shirtless vampires. It's a big internet and I've found combining tools (using twitter to announcing articles on your blog, for example) helps increase traffic. And totally agree on private life. Mentions, okay, details...not so much.

    Thanks for the post!

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  4. Kendra - Oooh yes!! I totally forgot to mention cross-use of the different platforms! Nice catch. He he I just tweeted this like two minutes ago for example. :D

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  5. I love blogging and Twitter because of the relationships I've developed. If someday it happens to help with a someday published book, then that's a side benefit. I'm amazed at the amount of support and information out there for us writers. It's awesome!

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  6. Julie - good thing that annoying friend of yours made you go to that conference, eh? He he he.

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  7. I have cyber-met the coolest people through blogging! I really enjoy visiting others' blogs and learning about them and their writing and reading.

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  8. I think you've captured these very well. When I started writing, I was online as a yet-to-be-published author. Now that a few anthologies are out with my work, I have someplace to discuss them, and a cadre of people who are interested.

    Twitter (with chats, etc.) and my blog are great venues for connection, FB less so.

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  9. Jennifer - totally agree! How much fun can we have and still call it work?

    Tony - Glad to hear it isn't just me (especially the whole FB thing). Congrats on the anthologies! I may have a couple of those to share next year myself.

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  10. I'm fairly new to Twitter and only get on there once or twice a week, but hope to do more in 2011. These are great tips--thanks Lisa!

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  11. Kristi - if you're anything like me you'll become quickly addicted. YW. :D

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  12. I've been blogging exactly a year and it's only been beneficial - for all the reasons you stated! :)

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  13. I'm surprised that you didn't mention your blog's theme. I think that is a really big help for a platform. I'm much more likely to come back to blogs where I know what I'm going to get, versus blogs that (like mine, ha ha) that just meander around anything writing-related. I do have a "theme" - analyzing book for their writing techniques - but I've noticed that those posts are my least popular. Probably because unless I pick a super popular book, chances are only a few of my readers will have read it and can relate to it.

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  14. And, oh yeah, great pictures of shirtless men are definitely a plus. :}

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  15. Margo - a good point as well! But I think it's more about valuable content on a regular basis. I'm actually not convinced my theme doesn't hurt me because some people might look at it and go 'oh I'm not into paranormal so this isn't for me.'
    Plus I like to look at the hot guys too..

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  16. Ok, I like the pics. I'll admit it. :)

    And all good points. And I agree about blogger being more user friendly - although I was trying to figure out how to e-mail reply to comments, but couldn't quite see how to do it. Do you know?

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  17. Susan - Thanks! Unfortunately, no. Ironically, I can only do that on the other two! But overall, I still think Blogger is easier. It's only a matter of one extra click. But that doesn't mean there isn't a way.

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  18. I'm going to have to stalk, er ask, Elana Johnson. I think she knows the Blogger Secret Ways.

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  19. Susan - do share the secret with the rest of us!

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  20. I KNEW she talked about it. Here it is. But, sadly, blogger only allows it if you have your email enabled - which lots of people don't.

    BTW Elana's blog is chock-full-of-awesome. Like Nathan Bransford's all organized. I'm going to have to spend some (more) time there ...

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  21. Susan - thanks for the link! I do believe I follow Elana, but I will double check. Another thing I should've mentioned is that it gets hard to manage all the great blogs out there!

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  22. Another great post Lisa ... even if I don't count the pics! :)

    I've never even been on the Facebook site. Maybe one of these days once I've figured out how to invent more time in the day :) I enjoy blogging and use Twitter a bit too. I'm more of a lurker on Twitter - always feel a bit shy and awkward about participating. But I'm getting better :)

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  23. If you invent that extra time, can I borrow some? LOL! Don't be afraid of Twitter! It's fun, and I always love seeing you on there. ;D

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  24. *starts hyperventilating at sight of hot, shirtless vampires*

    I really need to check out Tweetdeck. I've heard it's great. I love blogging because I've meet some great writer friends, and the support is amazing. :D

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  25. Stina - Agreed! But I really am addicted to Twitter. I'm over there right now, chatting away...

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  26. Yum, huh, what? Oh, there was a post after the pictures?! Kidding, kidding. I agree with you, it's all about how you interact and who you choose to interact with. I think it can be a very positive, beneficial thing to network before a book deal. You end up getting so much more than sales out of it! Like friends, and let's face it, that's even better.

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  27. Heather - awww, exactly!! And you're the perfect example of the awesome people you find when you put yourself out there.

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  28. I use the top three as well, but I mostly use Facebook for my family. Twitter I am still getting used to!

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  29. Great stuff! We do think alike! Great tips. Someday maybe I'll do twitter and all that, but mostly blogging is what I like the best.

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  30. Kelly - I'm telling you, I'm addicted to Twitter now that I'm used to it! And same for me on FB.

    Lydia - Do what you love! That's number one. The other stuff is good too, but your blog is wonderful.

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