I Finally Found a Use for Twitter by Alison Henderson

I've never been a fan of Twitter. I joined when I became a published author because I had to and only used it to promote other authors' books as part of a promo group. I've just never gotten it. The brief format didn't appeal to me--I could never understand how people claimed to have developed useful relationships with strangers in 140 characters--and doubling it doesn't make much difference. Too many posts in my feed are brief, cryptic messages with some unidentifiable link attached. I'm not about to open something like that from someone I don't know! And then there's the fact that some of the worst behavior in modern times seems to occur on or because of Twitter. It hasn't been a place I've really wanted to be.

However, I think I've finally found a use for it.

I'm normally a Facebook person. I like the format, the longer posts, and the ability to  converse with friends. And because I try to keep my presence upbeat and positive, I avoid  posting anything political on my page. I have strong feelings, but arguments--especially with strangers--give me hives, and these days I'm working hard to keep myself as calm as possible. At any rate, a few weeks ago, I felt an urgent need to say something political. I didn't need or want to have a conversation with anyone--I just needed to put my thoughts out in the universe. The words appeared in my brain and screamed to be set free. All writers will understand. If I didn't write them down and send them somewhere, they would continue to pester me.

The question was, where?

As I've said, I didn't want to put them on Facebook, although many would have. I considered my blog. I rarely post there and could safely assume no one would read anything I wrote there if I didn't draw attention to it. Then I remembered Twitter. It would be perfect. I may have 1,500 followers, but they don't actually follow me because there's nothing to follow. Most have no idea who I am and would skim past anything I posted. If they did happen to read the tweet and liked or retweeted it, great! I would never know. If they hated my statement and made ugly comments, the same would apply. I could get the idea out of my head and move on. What did I have to lose?

My tweet turned out to have fewer than 140 characters so off it went. Guess what happened. As predicted, almost nothing. One like and two retweets. Except now the thought is no longer munching around in my brain. Now I know what to do with those unimportant little bits of brilliance that pop into my head from time to time. I can post them on Twitter and send them off into the ether like a note inside a balloon. If they reach someone, fine, but that's not important. I'm free of them, and that's what matters.

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com 

Getting Ready to Publish Your Book by Betsy Ashton

I've given a dozen or more classes this year on what it takes to be ready to publish, self or traditionally. I give the attendees my actual release plan, so that they can do as much or as little as they wish. Everyone leaves my class with a game plan and a boggled brain.

Those of us who self publish have to do everything ourselves. Everything. Right now, I'm working with my cover designer. We have a good idea, an image that is close, and  a plan to modify said image. Spooky cover. Hoodie with a pair of eyes following you around. The cover is the fun part. Getting the ISBN, back matter, blurbs all have to be done around the same time. So does asking people to read the ARC, get more blurbs back, and review on Amazon. I think two of the three of the latter points are easy. Getting that darned review up on Amazon, well, a whole different matter.

I talk to the class about housekeeping issues. If they don't have a website, they need a professional-looking site before the book is available. Where else will readers be able to buy a signed copy if they don't live near the author? Goodreads? Wait, I have to be on Goodreads? Sure do, sister. That's where readers hang out. Author Central from Amazon? I thought Amazon did that. Nooo, you, dear author, set it up. How else will you track e-book sales on Amazon and book sales on all other distribution sites?

What about newspaper interviews? Well, you can hire a publicist, or you can develop a press kit with your press release, a brief summary of the book, interview questions, and a list of places where you can be contacted. You do the legwork. No one else will.

What about social media, you ask? Don't sit there and tell me all you have to do is put the book out, and it will sell. That worked in Field of Dreams, but I'm not Kevin Costner and I don't have a multi-million ad budget. How the heck will people other than friends and family know you have a book out if you don't use the tools at hand to spread the word? If you don't want to use all the current apps, pick one or two where you feel comfortable. Also, pick ones where your readers come to share information and play. For example, if you write YA, hang out in Snapchat, Instagram, and several others whose names I can't remember. I don't write YA, but I'm trying to learn how to use Instagram. Pinterest is fun, but it doesn't really drive traffic to my website or Amazon where my books are available.

Did I hear you say you don't want to do all of the work yourself? If you have a kid whose interested, use said kid. If you don't, consider hiring a virtual assistant who can set up posts on your chosen apps.That will cost money, and you might not see a return on your investment immediately. But if you don't want to do the work and you can't afford to hire someone, you should set you mind to selling a few books to friends, colleagues, and family. It will be harder to attract strangers if you hide.

Writing the book is the easy part. Even working with a professional editor is the easy part. Sucking it up and shoving yourself out there in front of readers is not for the faint of heart. We all have to do it. We need to learn to do it well.

Next time, we'll talk about giving a book talk...

When Your Grandson Asks About Your Homework ... by Vonnie Davis

Last month I posted about all I had going on in my writing world. Well, I've made some progress on my list. Believe me, it's not necessary to applaud.  What I've done are small steps we all do during the course of our career.

I've contracted Mr. OH under the name Renae DeVeau and our own Alicia will be my editor. Pray for her, folks. It's my first erotic.

I self-published NIKO: Licensed to Kill on April 25th. JEAN-LUC: Once is Never Enough releases on June 13th. I still have BASTIAN: The Spy Who Loves Me to finish. I'm two-thirds through, maybe more. I'm hoping to release it the end of August or the first half of September.

That only leaves A STRANGER'S DARE, a Kindle World's novella, a novel--A GOLDEN CHARM, and two bear shifter books to finish. Oh...and...two more Kindle World's novellas I've been asked to write. A cowboy romance set in Texas--yee-haa!--WHAT BELONGS TO RYDER. My street team chose the heroic cowboy's name--Ryder Kolins.

The third Kindle World's project is a paranormal tied into my shifters. Title for it is BEARY SASSY. Pink-haired Effie plays a matchmaking role in this story.

See how much progress I've made? Three things done and two things added. That's good. Right?

So I'm doing my Friday texting time with Ryan at MIT. "How's the writing going, G-ma? Are you finished with the one for Amazon?"

"I'm over halfway done."

"That's all?" (I cringed. There's nothing like getting fussed at by your grandson.) "I've got all my required work completed for my Internship on the 2020 Mars Land Rover. I gave a report to representatives from NASA. What I'm doing now is extra." (Show off.)

"That's awesome, sweet boy." My nickname for him since he was an infant.

"G-ma, you really should have more of this project completed. I notice you spend a lot of time on Facebook and Twitter." I could sense the censure in his text. (And how would smarty pants know if he wasn't on Facebook and Twitter, himself, I ask you?)

"You know I hate a smart a$$ scientist."

"Hahaha. See if you can't do better next week." (So much for the Final Exams care package I was going to send him. I'll eat the chocolate, energy bars, and homemade trail mix myself!)

Me thinks I've been put on notice and I'll need the nourishment.

Don't Fall For This!

 @GlenysOConnell

Like most writers, I love the writing part. Making up stories – or, as someone once put it, telling lies for fun and profit, is a great way to earn a living. And you’re never short of (imaginary) friends, so you’re never lonely, either.

But, also like so many writers, I’m not so hot on the side of the profession that involves selling. Not that I haven’t done it – as a freelance writer and as a ghostwriter, I made pitches, bid on work, and generally  pimped myself with the best of them. But selling my novels? Oh, dear, I become the original shrinking violet….

So like so many others, I look for quick fixes. Surely someone out there can help me grab the sales that would make me a best seller? After all, I know my books are good. Readers have, bless their hearts,  told me so. The ones that bought them, that is.
But there are so many other books out there - how to reach the right audience and get them to part with their hard earned dollars?

I worked in real estate in Toronto for a while, and I used to comfort wouldbe vendors with the words: “All you need is one person who falls in love with your house. Then it’s sold!”  And that is true.

There’s another saying we had, too, that applied to overpriced, eccentric, or homes that needed that euphemism: “Tender Loving Care”. We would roll our eyes and say: “Well, there’s one born every minute.’ And it was unfair, because some of those ‘fools’ who bought the homes no-one in their right minds would touch went on to renovate and sell on at a tidy profit.

What does this have to do with writing and selling books, you ask? Lots. Because there are many  sharks out there who will promise you the earth, moon, stars and the New York Times bestseller lists, all at a bargain basement price. There’s a reason why many of them do not deliver: simply, they’re promising the impossible. Besides, what would you do if you had the moon and stars???

Every day, it seems. I get Twitter ‘followers” at @GlenysOConnell who promise me tens of thousands of new followers for my account, for a ‘reasonable’ fee. I don’t follow back. Or open my wallet, either.

You see, there’s no point in buying tens of thousands of followers, even if these people could deliver. Am I crazy? Wouldn’t a gazillion followers look better than the 5000 plus I already have?

Well, no. You see, the folks who chose to follow me – and I follow back – are ones who, for the most part, are interested in  my work. They are writers who happily share tweets with me for my work in exchange for comments about theirs. They are people with similar beliefs who share information. And many of them are, bless their little hearts again, readers who like my books. Who probably will buy my books. Oh, how I love them!

But the secret is that they choose to be on my account. One follower, five, ten, or five thousands, are infinitely preferable to tens of thousands who aren’t interested, just got dumped there, aren’t readers, don’t share a philosophy, don’t even know who I am. And don’t want to buy my books. So why would I pay to have them on my list?

There are many companies out there who make similar promises but aren’t scams. Like the sites that offer to publicise your free kindle book. Sure, there’s a chance you might get readers that way. But have you seen how many other free books yours will be competing against for space on their newsletter pages? And then there are the ‘intermediaries’. The other day I got an email from a company that offered to get my book on another company’s site for $60.00. I went straight to the other company’s site and saw that I could list the service I wanted a $25 – 40 .  Not $60.00. Uhmmm.

So, I guess what I’m saying is, don’t fall for those oh so very logical sounding offers that come your way, whether you’re a writer or in some other line of work where you need customers. . Investigate them. Ask other people in your line of work if they’ve tried them, and what happened. Most of all, think about what they’re offering. Is it worth the money? Is it something you could probably do yourself more effectively if you put your mind to it? Does what they’re offering even fulfill your need (like the tens of thousands of disinterested followers mentioned previously).

There will always be legitimate companies selling stuff you might not really need. That’s what sales are all about: “Gee, look at that! I never knew I needed it until they told me so!” And there are lots of scammers out there who talk a good talk and leave you out the price of their ‘miracle’ solution.

Think about what you need, and if what they’re offering is a) plausible and b) and this is a big one – does it fit with what you need, with your philosophy, and with the image you want to project?

As they used to say on NYPD Blue, Be careful out there!

*****My romantic suspense with a touch of the paranormal, Saving Maggie, is now one of ten books in a bundle from Crimson Romance, on sale at the 'steal' of a price - 99c for the bundle! It's titled Running to Love! Click here to take a look, or here for the free first chapter of Saving Maggie!

 

Controlling the Beast of Social Media by Betsy Ashton

Writers face a daily dilemma: how much time to spend on social media marketing books and how much time in writing new ones. Our agents press us for new manuscripts which have to be written, edited and re-edited before we submit to the agent. Once the agent passes the multi-edited manuscript to the publisher, the writer faces additional edits and proof reads. At the same time as we are preparing the current WIP for publication, we are expected to be working on the next manuscript. The juggling act is worthy of the Ringling Bros center ring.

We are expected to have a presence on social media. Facebook. Twitter. LinkedIn. The next social media fad. Publishers tell us we need a platform we can exploit for book sales. No platform seems good enough. They pressure us to expand, spend more time in social media. Out on speaking engagements we set up. Out on book tours we set up. Out in signing events we set up. Tweet all the time. Post all the time. Blog all the time.

Some writers hit the daily slide into the social media sand trap and emerge hours later or not at all. If I don't set limits, I'll "check my mail and posts on FB" before I begin writing. I'll answer only critical messages, look at the most important posts on my timeline. Oh, look, how cute is that kitten. I love kitties. I respond. Before I know it, I need more coffee. What? Two hours flew by? It can't be.

I decide I'll watch the clock in the corner of the computer screen. Right next to that wonderfully snarky post from one of my favorite FB friends. Someone is following me on Twitter? I have to check out this intelligent person who finds me worthy of a follow. I tweet back, receive a response and trip lightly into conversation that goes nowhere but takes time.

I don't suffer from writer's block. I don't have ADD or ADHD. I love writing, but those snarky Maxine comics must be read.

I put my foot down. No more wasting time. Watching the clock was a failure. I asked my husband for a special present two Christmases ago. I wanted a special egg timer. Mine has blue sand and flows for 15 minutes. When the sand of time runs out, I switch off my wi-fi and get back to work.

Oops. Time's up. What works for you?

##

Betsy Ashton is the author of Mad Max Unintended Consequences published in March 2013 by Koehler Books.

How Grandmas Show Love

By Vonnie Davis ~

Our Brenda is anxiously waiting the arrival of her first grandchild--and we are all eager for her birth announcement. I'm the grandmother of six, ranging in age from thirteen to twenty-four--a wonderment since I'm only twenty-nine.

Mention the word "grandma" and a stereotypical grey-haired lady often comes to mind. But we all know this is not necessarily so. Many grandmas are young, vibrant and active. Yes, we still bake cookies. We still play wordgames late into the night when the grandkids are over. My grandkids expect all-night James Bond marathons when they come to visit, complete with homemade pizzas and popcorn. But in today's world grandmas also text and tweet and post on facebook.

My grandchildren live in Indiana and Maryland, while Calvin and I reside in southern Virginia. I keep in touch via social media and the grandkids think it's cool I know this stuff. Of course, they also use it to their advantage from time-to-time. Take my fifteen-year-old grandson who sent me a text Monday evening: I love u, G-ma. I mean I rlly love u, BTW I got all A's this marking pd. How's that for being "hit up" for his reward? You see, I started the tradition years ago: A straight "A" report card is worth a hundred dollars. Kids, they never forget.

One of my granddaughters is a college freshman. She posts a gazillion pictures on facebook. Here's one of her "studying" with her friends. She's the one in yellow. If she sees I'm online, she instant messages. The night she had her heart broken, we texted for hours as she poured out her heart in teenage angst. "But grandma, I loooooove him soooooo much!!!!!!!!" I'm thinking she has a heavy-duty exclaimation point on the laptop I bought her. Of course I was concerned, texting and IM'ing her everyday for several weeks. I sent her care packages and a big cuddly baboon with a sign hanging around his neck: "Mr. Right".

 

They know I'm a sucker for books and often email me with a book wish list. Yup, like most grandmas, I'm a softie where they're concerned. They know a few days after they hit SEND on that email, a package from Amazon will arrive.

 

I miss them. I've missed a lot of their lives living as far away as we do. Still, like most grandparents, we travel to see them in many of their activities--dance recitals, baseball and football games, bowling tournaments and wrestling meets. Graduations from high school and Army Basic Training. Sure there are the traditional letters and goofy cards, but more and more we rely on social media to keep in touch. And, surprisingly, it seems more personal. Who would have thought? When my grandson was in Afghanistan, we emailed and texted almost daily. Josh needed a few words from me and I needed to know he was okay. When two of his buddies were killed in front of him, I was the one of the first people he contacted with a long, rambling email.

 

Every grandma has her own way of showing love. The important thing is that we DO. We add an extra layer of security and unconditional love to their lives.

Three Simple Promotional Goals for 2013 by Vonnie Davis

Some experts say blogging is passé. Gone with the wind. Old hat. I don't know that I agree. Or maybe it’s just that I don't want to think the method I love of connecting with others is going out of style. Especially since I've joined two group blogs this month--Tempting Romance and Chick Swagger. Wouldn’t that be just my luck? It would be like saving to buy a new pair of sexy red stilettos only to find pink flats were all the rage. Nonetheless, I plan on blogging my little heart out for as long as I can. I've met many lovely ladies via blogging, and I cherish them all.

I try to keep up with all the latest media trends. Well, to a degree. I learn a good teaspoonful of knowledge about every social media form. Too bad you  need a strong pint to make it all productive—and I’m talking knowledge here, ladies, not a pint of booze. My problem is I don't utilize things to their full potential. You see, beyond blogging, I dabble.

Take Facebook for example. I dabble at posting when I think of it, not on a regular basis like so many. I try to adhere to posting in thirds. One third of the time I promote other writers or their books. Another third is about me as a person, a grandma, a woman less than over-joyed about turning sixty-five in May. The last third is self-promotion. Sounds easy enough. Right? If only I could schedule it better, rather than doing it in fits and starts. I  have a page for my debut book with a handlflul of followers. I forget to post on it. I also have an author's page and, yeah, I forget about it, too. I invested in sticky "to do list" pads to slap onto my monitor. And I've forgotten where I put them. So all my posts seem to land on my personal Facebook account. Not the best, huh?

Twitter is like a racing, roaring beast to me. It goes too darn fast. Reminds me of a recurring dream where I'm on rollerblades going downhill the wrong way in one-way traffic. I can't seem to slow things down. I've been blessed by many invitations to join tribes on Triberr, so I'm 80% faithful in retweeting to promote other peoples' blogs, but I rarely take the time to go to Twitter to tweat in a personal manner. The whole twitter thing makes my facial tic do bizarre things to my vision. I can't quite grasp Twitter. I mean, who reads tweets? I can't. They fly into the stream too fast. Do I know the nearly thousand people on my stream? No. So why would anything they have to say interst me? I can't see how it all helps. I know. I know. I'm showing my age here. I'll have to learn this beast.

 

So, these three forms of social media--blogging, Facebook and Twitter--are on my "learn to live-by routine" for 2013. I'm going to continue to enjoy my blogging. I'm also going to try to post to my Facebook pages at least twice a day. And, by golly, I'm going to tackle that Twitter Beast. No matter how it makes that tic in my face twitch until my eye waters.

 

What about you? What promotional tools are you planning on using in 2013?

 

Vonnie Davis blogs at http://www.vintagevonnie.blogspot.com. Her website is http://www.vonniedavis.com. Follow her on Facebook at Vonnie Davis, Author or tweet her @VonnieWrites. Maybe the Indianapolis Speedway Twitterverse will allow her addled mind to see it.