Do you have a social platform?

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Do you consider your writing a business? If so do you have a social platform to go with it? Is it important to you to start one?

I feel it is. Why this topic for the week? I have quite a few writer friends who don’t have one, feel they should but haven’t started or feel it is not needed. For years I would harp to them about social media and why I felt it was important for us as writers. It fell on deaf ears. I even offered to show them for free what I had learned and that also fell on deaf ears.

When I first started my platform I had just finished the first draft of my first book. I had read an article in Writer’s Digest where the author stated the importance of a platform. She left her Twitter handle for us to follow. I did. That was the bread crumb that got me on my way.

Since then I have given a couple of workshops on creating an author’s platform and I am due to give another one in a couple of months. Thanks to my platform I met my two current publishers, editor and graphic artist. Through my platform I have had submission editors helped me with my query letter to submit to publishers. When you have a sea of people in these groups it can be scary to reach out or know where to reach out.

All of these came through due to my platform I started. By the way it was all free. My brand is what I work on and what better way then social media? Use what works for you, there are enough different outlets to choose from just toss what doesn’t.

It took you a long time to write your book, edit and revise it and get it in tip-top shape. Don’t you want to help it move alone or would you rather it just sit on your computer?

Finding content for your social platform

 

Social-DraftWhere do you find content to talk about for your blog and or social media platform? For some people it’s no problem as they talk about their business and the different aspects of it regardless of what their chosen field is.

To others they may pause in front of their computer looking at the sky hoping something will fall that they can use. As writers do we solely talk about the business and our books or do we do a few articles on things that shows our readers who we are or even more so do we do a balance of both?

personally for me I try to do a bit of both so an overview can be seen. Does that effect me opposite of what I am trying to accomplish I do not know. When I am looking at other author’s pages and I read their content that is useful I appreciate it. When I learn a bit about them I appreciate it more.

Finding content can be difficult if one blogs or post on their platform frequently causing the need to find content on a regular basis. At one point I started making a list of things to talk about so that way I would have topics to look over when the time came. That has helped me. Also reading other people’s blogs can give you ideas of what might work or not work for yourself.

Content. A topic that can deter people from branding themselves, and if one can’t over come that who knows what we might be missing from that person who can make a difference in their lives as well as our own.

Happy New Year: 2017

 

fairaThe year is ending soon. It seems each new year goes faster than the year before.

Last year at this time instead of making resolutions I decided to go a different route. I started collected a journal of good joys. Instead of making a list on how to change or do better I decided to focus on the good that came my way. Everyday I wrote something that was awesome whether it was big or small. Going over it showed me how truly blessed and fortunate I am. I didn’t think I would follow through the whole year but happily I did. It was a change of pace and I am glad I did it. I am not sure if I will do it again in January, still pondering over that. But to see 365, or 366 not sure of the total count for 2016, entries of goodness makes one feel really good inside.

Still I want to wish everyone a great 2017. May it be full of good health, happiness and good times with loved ones whether that be family, friends or both.

I offer good cheer and well wishes from my home to yours. May 2017 be better than 2016.

Happy New Year!

The Musings of A New Englander