Social Media for Authors: The Toughest Topic to Advise On

Yesterday I wrote astir the value of writer websites and their domiciled successful an author’s online presence. However, I’m asked astir societal media acold much often.

Of each nan topics I teach, societal media is nan astir vexed. Even successful a mini people of writers, I find varying accomplishment levels and experience, and a operation of attitudes—and these 2 factors play a beardown domiciled successful what group request to perceive aliases learn. I judge a successful societal media strategy is driven by one’s characteristic and strengths, arsenic good arsenic nan qualities of nan activity produced—leading to a unsocial attack for each writer. And that attack will apt alteration complete clip because arsenic 1 succeeds, one’s level grows and nan assemblage changes; and strategies often person to displacement erstwhile your readership expands. (Not to mention nan devices themselves alteration complete time!)

So, societal media can’t beryllium treated arsenic this fixed thing—you can’t conscionable study a look and you’re done. It’s successful flux and there’s ever much to learn. For me, this is portion of what makes it nosy and prevents boredom. For others it’s what makes it intolerable. Because societal media is wide considered basal to book trading and promotion, yet it’s perpetually changing, it’s go a load and root of worry for beginners and precocious authors alike.

I’m hoping nan pursuing principles—regardless of your accomplishment level aliases experience—will make it consciousness a small little worry inducing.

Your societal media pursuing grows mostly erstwhile you nutrient much work.

It’s a basal norm of writer level development: it grows retired of your assemblage of work. As you nutrient much books (or much stories aliases contented of immoderate kind), you are apt to turn your assemblage aliases scope much readers. And this successful move people leads to much followers connected societal media.

It is exceedingly difficult to create a societal media pursuing erstwhile you’re not publishing activity and being discovered done that work. However, location is simply a workaround—the adjacent point.

Use societal media to micro-publish aliases to stock your work.

This is simply a rule partially from Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work. You tin usage societal media arsenic a imaginative outlet and stock bits and pieces of immoderate you’re moving on—or nan entirety of what you’re moving on. For example, Roxane Gay posted connected Tumblr astir her wellness and fare and soon recovered group wanted more, more, more—which led to her memoir, Hunger. Rupi Kaur shared her poesy connected Instagram, past self-published her book Milk & Honey, and now it’s 1 of nan top-selling books of 2017 from Andrews McMeel. A decade ago, Scott Sigler recorded himself reference chapters from his novel, and distributed a podcast done iTunes, starring to a print/ebook readership and a accepted book deal.

There are hundreds and thousands of examples of authors being playful, creative, and experimental online and connected societal media—of showing aliases sharing their work—which tin lead to scholar maturation and costs for that work. Note that this rule follows consecutive from nan first: you’ll spot societal media maturation erstwhile you nutrient activity for group to acquisition aliases read. But excessively often “serious” writers are trained to spot societal media arsenic a distraction, arsenic meaningless, arsenic a low-class aliases moreover dumb measurement to publish, partially because it seldom involves payment.

As pinch truthful galore things, societal media is immoderate you make of it. Treat it arsenic dumb, and that’s what it’ll beryllium for you.

People break societal media “rules” each nan clip and succeed.

There are countless lawsuit studies and reports astir really often you should post, what networks you ought to use, really to create effective images and titles, wherever and really to schedule for optimal reach, and moreover nan perfect number of words aliases characters successful your updates.

You don’t person to travel aliases study immoderate of it—unless you want to spell activity for a corp and go a societal media manager.

All you person to study is what engages your group and is workable for you. And that takes time, patience, and curiosity.

I admit location are galore ways to undercut yourself (such arsenic posting excessively galore difficult sells that origin group to tune out), and location are a fewer champion practices that thief summation engagement.

But earlier each these champion practices comes thing overmuch much fundamental: being a funny and willing quality being, who tin pass successful an engaging way. Writers are beautiful bully astatine that. But they hide they’re bully astatine it erstwhile they’re filled pinch unit aliases worry astir results, aliases consciousness burdened pinch this point they consciousness isn’t portion of their “real” profession arsenic a writer.

And that I deliberation is nan driving unit down why it’s truthful difficult to thatch societal media. It useful champion erstwhile you tin spot it arsenic play, arsenic a earthy hold of your work. As soon arsenic you carve it retired arsenic nan “marketing and promotion” portion of work/life, your results whitethorn beryllium lackluster. People tin show erstwhile you’re only astir because you’re trying to get thing retired of them. The much you effort to make societal media “pay,” often nan little it does. Demands that it must beryllium utilized aliases mandates for a definite type of usage crushes nan tone and guidance of imaginative and fulfilling activity.

So what tin I perchance opportunity to writers to thief them go amended astatine it? Well, first, don’t return it each truthful seriously. Look for what you enjoy. Have a tone of questioning and discovery. Follow a regular daily that useful for you. Sustainable and meaningful societal media believe isn’t truthful different from getting your “real” penning done.