The World Of Social Media For Writers

By Bonnie Harris

I’ve been thinking a lot about this topic as of late. I’ve also been reluctant to join the social media sites for years, partly because I don’t like to “jump on the bandwagon.” The decision to join in on the craze happened when I realized that most of the authors I liked had profiles on things like MySpace and Facebook. As an aspiring author, it only made sense that if I wanted to be a successful author, I should be doing what other successful authors do.

So I’ve slowly gotten my feet wet and set up a profile on MySpace and Facebook. I didn’t spend too much time on either site, but I did post book reviews. Then a friend of mine, Tanya Parker Mills, encouraged me to set up a blog and post my reviews there. I followed her advice and that’s how I got my start in the social media world.

From there, I’ve taken classes on networking, creating platforms, and had another realization. The social media websites, i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, and all the other sites out there, are all ways of creating an author platform as well as networking with other writers and readers around the world. And let me tell you, it works.

Here are a few tips that I’ve learned, mostly from Kristen Lamb’s WE ARE NOT ALONE—which I highly recommend to anyone who is wanting to make a name for themselves in the cyberspace world, which really is any author out there, self-published or traditionally published. Stay tuned for my review. :)

One—you have to be online. You can’t just have profiles and update them once in awhile. Be consistent. If you have a blog, make sure you blog at least once a week. Try to make it on the same day so followers will know when to come visit you. As Elana Johnson said in one of her classes, the internet world is very forgiving, but also very forgetful.

Two—return the favor. I’m working on this one. If someone follows you, follow them back. (Twitter, FB, Blogs) If someone comments on something you said, return the favor. I had someone ask me how I keep getting Twitter followers. My answer: follow people. I go out and find people with similar interests and follow them, and if someone follows me, I be sure to follow them back.

Three—choose a few social media sites to participate in. It seems like every few months a new media site pops up. My head spins just thinking about all of them, and if I tried to keep up with all of them, I wouldn’t have time to write. So don’t feel like you have to be on all of them. Pick a couple that work for you and stick to them. Personally, I’m on Facebook, Twitter, my blog, LinkedIn, and Goodreads. Am I active on all of them all the time? No. I keep FB and my blog regularly updated. I’ve also linked my blog posts to FB and Twitter. There are ways to do that and it makes life much easier.

Four—create a brand name. As authors, we want people to recognize our names, not just the title of our books. When at all possible, use your name. For example, my Twitter account is @bonnieharrisaz. My blog is www.bonnieharris.blogspot.com. You can find me on FB under harris.bonnie. When I get my website going, it will have Bonnie Harris in there. That way, people will know my name and when I am published, they will recognize it when they are looking for a good book to read. :)

These are just a few things I’m trying to implement to help build my author platform. I’ve had a few author friends ask if having an online presence really does any good. My answer to that is a resounding YES. I know it takes time and I know it can be a time waster, but if you allot a few minutes a day, you’ll be amazed at the results. We live in an internet world and our readers are closer than ever. I know, as a reader, I get really frustrated when I go to an authors website and the information there is years old. As fickle as this sounds, it makes me not want to read there stuff anymore. If I feel that way and I’m more lenient toward authors, how does a reader feel that wants the information, but can’t find it?

In the end, we want to share what we do. In a world that has everything at their fingertips, we need to be willing to share it by letting people know what we do. Take a look at Kristen Lamb’s blog. It has tons of help on it. Her book helps authors navigate the social media world. And here’s another article by Aimee L Slater about some do’s and don’t’s for authors. In the meantime, Happy Writing!

Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hop (INT) 3 winners

Welcome to this stop on the Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hop, hosted by I Am A Reader Not A Writer. There will be 3 winners on my blog. Each winner will receive an ecopy of Victoria Simcox's THE MAGIC WARBLE. Check out my buzz here.

Dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals, and an evil queen all these and more can be found in The Magic Warble, an enchanting tale of adventure and friendship.

Twelve-year-old Kristina Kingsly feels like the most unpopular girl in her school. The kids all tease her, and she never seems to fit in. But when Kristina receives an unusual Christmas gift, she suddenly finds herself magically transported to the land of Bernovem, home of dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals and the evil Queen Sentiz.

In Bernovem, Kristina not only fits in, she's honored as ''the chosen one'', the only one who can release the land from Queen Sentiz's control. But it s not as simple as it seems. To save Bernovem, she must place the gift she was given, the famous ''Magic Warble,'' in its final resting place. And she must travel through the deep forest, climb a treacherous mountain, and risk capture by the queen s ''zelbocks'' before she reaches her destination. Guided by her new fairy friends, Clover and Looper and by Prince Werrien, a teenage boy, as well as an assortment of other characters, Kristina sets off on a perilous journey that not only tests her strength but her heart.

Entering is easy. All you have to do is

• Follow my blog via GFC and/or Networked Blogs (on the left sidebar). Leave me a comment telling me you've done so, with a way to contact you if you win.

Optional enteries

• Follow Victoria's blog. Leave a comment, telling me you've done it.
• "Like" THE MAGIC WARBLE FB page. Leave a comment.
• Follow Vicotria on twitter. Leave a comment.

It is in your best interest to leave SEPERATE comments, as random.org will choose the winners. The winners will be notified and will have 72 hours to respond. Please, have your enteries in by midnight on the 20th. Thanks for stopping by! Happy Reading!

Be sure to stop by other participating blogs.

Garden of the Lost Souls by Erik Olsen--Book Review & Blog Tour

GARDEN OF THE LOST SOULS by Erik Olsen.

Welcome to this stop on the Blog Tour for Erik Olsen's GARDEN OF THE LOST SOULS, hosted by Cedar Fort. Like this first book in this series, it has so much potential. I loved the idea and the characters. The setting is incredible. It's a great, fun read that anyone who likes adventures will love. I would have liked a little bit more conflict, but Erik has a great series on his hands. Take a look an interview he gave us earlier, here.

:):):)

Flin climbed to the top of the Cathedral and was now pinned against the anemone’s ceiling while dozens of enraged Snazzards scaled up after him.
I can’t climb any higher he thought, desperately looking around for any last options. There’s no place left to go! They’re going to get me! Panicked, he jumped and fell hundreds of feet through the air as the ground raced toward him.
“NOOooo…!” he screamed.

After all he’s been through, it seems Flin’s life is finally getting back to normal—well, as normal as you can get when you’re stuck hundreds of miles under the earth’s surface. But in Cobble Cavern, nothing stays normal for long. 

And when Flin and the rest of his classmates are sucked into another adventure, they’ll need more than a little magic to make it out alive. Especially since this time Flin will have to choose between saving an entire village from destruction or rescuing his own best friend! (taken from Goodreads.)

The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox--Book Buzzin'

THE MAGIC WARBLE by Victoria Simcox. Take a look at this one. Sounds fun. Stay tuned for a giveaway beginning on June 15th. They'll be 3 winners. You'll want to stop by.

Dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals, and an evil queen all these and more can be found in The Magic Warble, an enchanting tale of adventure and friendship.

Twelve-year-old Kristina Kingsly feels like the most unpopular girl in her school. The kids all tease her, and she never seems to fit in. But when Kristina receives an unusual Christmas gift, she suddenly finds herself magically transported to the land of Bernovem, home of dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals and the evil Queen Sentiz.

In Bernovem, Kristina not only fits in, she's honored as ''the chosen one'', the only one who can release the land from Queen Sentiz's control. But it s not as simple as it seems. To save Bernovem, she must place the gift she was given, the famous ''Magic Warble,'' in its final resting place. And she must travel through the deep forest, climb a treacherous mountain, and risk capture by the queen s ''zelbocks'' before she reaches her destination. Guided by her new fairy friends, Clover and Looper and by Prince Werrien, a teenage boy, as well as an assortment of other characters, Kristina sets off on a perilous journey that not only tests her strength but her heart.

Have you ever gotten an idea for a book or part of one of your novels from something or somewhere unexpected? 

I would have to say that most of my ideas are unexpected. I rarely plan too far in advance what I'm going to write. My ideas come to me as I write.

Did you always know you would write a novel? Why did you finally decide to write one and when? 

Though I've always been creative, mostly in painting watercolors, I didn't think I would be a writer. It was actually a vision I had while sitting in a movie theater watching a flick the inspired me to start. I only saw the first scene of my story, probably half a page of writing.  Then when I started writing the story, it just started flowing to me.

Is there anything you’d like to go back one year to tell yourself? 

I don't think so. Part of life is to learn from my past mistakes, also I challenge myself to walk by faith and trust that what is to come is meant to be. I believe there is purpose to all I go through whether good or bad, and in the long run it will be to my benefit and make me a stronger person.

Who are the writers who've inspired you the most?

 C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling, Lemony Snicket. There are more but these are the first that come to mind.

Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you? 

Sure. There are times when fear tries to creep into my mind and tell me that all I have written and will write in the future is in vain, but the joy of writing, inner inspiration, and fan letters letting me know that they love my story, out weigh the fear.

Who is one person in the past or present who you felt was truly visionary? 

J.K. Rowling: Her mind is labyrinth of creative ideas.

When you were growing up, what did you want to be? 

A zoo keeper; I actually took one of those aptitude tests as an adolescent and zoo keeper is what it suggested I become.  I was like "YES!" this is a sign from God, lol. I've always been a big animal lover. But then when I became a teenager, my passionate love for animals some how mellowed and like most teenybopper girls of the 80s, boys became the main focus.

And the winners are . . .

Thank you so much for all of you that stopped by for the My Favorite Reads Giveaway Hop. One of these times I'll have something for everyone. Random.org has chosen the following two winners. Both have been notified. Thanks again and I hope to see you all again soon!

Amber Garcia--TANGLED TIDES
Shauna Buck--GRASPING AT ETERNITY

Another Way To Look At World Building

What is world building?

This may show my naiveté with literary terms, but if I had the misconception, then maybe others have too. What the first thing you think of when I say (or write) the word world building?

Now, let’s see if we’re thinking along the same lines. To me, world building is something that’s done in a fantasy or science fiction novel. The writer gets to create a world where they make the rules. Pigs really could fly, people have magical powers, aliens run the government, you know things like that.

Well . . .

In my writing group, one of the gals commented on my world building. That stopped me, and I had to think about it. World building? Really? I’m writing a YA mystery. That doesn’t have world building in it? Does it?

My ‘aha’ moment came one day while walking with the dog and my son. I guess you could say I had a “world building” moment, because what I was doing that very second could be considered world building. The things our characters do on a daily basis creates the world they live in. Not everyone goes on walks with their dog and baby. Then again if they do, maybe they have two dogs and three kids. That creates a whole different image for me than one dog and one kid. It makes me wonder, what kind of dogs are they? How old are the kids? Are the dogs crazy wild or calm on the leash? Do the kids tease the dogs or chase them?

Anyway, it got my mind whirling with several different books and figuring out how the authors created the world for their characters. After going through those books, I returned to mine, and looked at it from a readers perspective. I created a world where a teenager has to reset a tripwire before closing the fridge and sits on a couch with a weapon hidden in the cushions. I guess that’s not a normal, everyday thing for most people, and in that sense, I just created a different world. It was an amazing moment for me and I appreciate the guidance to the insight.

So, have fun with building your world this week, whether in real life or with your WIP. Either way, Happy Writing!

The List by Melanie Jacobson--Book Review

THE LIST by Melanie Jacobson.

I am not a huge fan of LDS chick lit. Melanie converted me. She is one of my new favorite authors. THE LIST had such wonderful characters, humor, twists, highs, and lows that I couldn't read it fast enough. It had me smiling from the first page to the last. I loved it and can recommend it to any and everyone who loves a good laugh with some romance and fun in the mix. It should definitely be on everyone's "To Read" list.

:) :) :) :) :)

Ashley Barrett doesn’t want to get married. At least, not anytime soon. She doesn’t care how many of her friends and family members and fellow churchgoers had weddings before they finished college — the last thing she needs in her fun-loving twenties is the dead-weight of some guy. And that’s why she created The List. By the time she completes all twenty-five goals — from learning a language to skydiving to perfecting the art of making sushi — she’ll be more ready to settle down. Maybe.

This summer in California is a prime time for Ashley to cross two items off the list: learn to surf (#13) and have a summer romance (#17). And Matt Gibson, the best surf instructor in Huntington Beach and the most wanted guy in the singles ward, is the perfect man for the job. Ashley hatches a plan to love him and leave him before heading off to grad school in the fall (#4, get a master’s degree). But when Matt decides he doesn’t like the “leaving” part, Ashley’s carefully laid plans are turned sideways. Now Ashley faces an unexpected dilemma: should she stick to the safety of The List, or risk everything for a love that may tie her down — or might set her free?

What made you decide to become a writer?

I didn't really decide to become a writer. I've just always been one. Even before I knew how to write, I would stand by my dad's typewriter and dictate stories for him to type up for me. I still have a file of that stuff.

Who inspires you?

I'm inspired by a range of writers. I'd love to emulate Janette Rallison's career.

What would you like your readers to get out of your writing?

I'd love for readers to get some good old-fashioned escapism out of my writing, and I hope a lot of laughs.

Where did this idea come from?

The idea for The List came from my husband. He said, "You know what would be funny? A bucket list, only for someone who wants to do a bunch of stuff before they get married." So I turned it into a book.

Who was your favorite character to develop?

My favorite character in this story to develop was Lauren because she's based on my mom.

Any advice for aspiring authors?

My advice to aspiring writers is to read in your genre and to go to as many workshops and conferences as you can get to. Also, find great critique partners. You aren't limited by geographic. 

What can we expect next from you?

My next book comes out in the fall. It's called SMART MOVE and picks up everyone's favorite character from my third book, TWITTERPATED. 

Where can we purchase your book?

My books are available on Kindle for $9.99 at Amazon or at all Deseret and Seagull bookstores.