The Social Media Conundrum by Marianne Evans

Marianne Evans

For the record, I’m kind of a social media junkie. Facebook most, Twitter next, with Instagram running a distant third. I love connecting with readers. I love connecting with friends. I love connecting with family and work colleagues from my nine-to-five life. For better or worse, the reach of social media outlets is far and wide, and it can enrich personal relationships as well as garner exposure for writers.

But this edition of Encouraging Monday’s isn’t about the discipline of pushing away from the siren call of FB and Twitter when you should be writing and chasing deadlines. Rather, I’m looking at social media through a different lens. Like most visitors to Seriously Write, I function within the cyber realm in both a personal and professional sense, so I wanted to share a few observations about what I love and what I…well…don’t so much love about authors using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as a publicity platform.

First, the love. I treasure the reading and writing relationships that I’ve discovered in cyberspace. Some have even transformed to friendships IRL (in real life). I’ve been blessed to be able to meet a number of fantastic reader friends and fellow authors who are now vital ribbons within the tapestry of my life and heart. (I’ve included a few pix of those precious ‘connection’ moments!) I also love the way social media allows me to remain connected to extended family and helped me maintain strong bonds despite logistical distance.

Now, on to the…not so love. Being honest, I have to say, I’ve seen way too many authors forsake balance, and friendship versus salesmanship to become ‘hawkers’ of their wares, pushing for sales and exposure at every single click of the mouse and tap of the keys. They tie their books, stories and characters to every post. I’m not saying we shouldn’t advertise and promote our work. Far from it. I do so frequently, and have been rewarded by support, encouragement, and those friendships I mentioned just a bit ago. But, for example, when a reader friend (non-author) remarks that they’re taking a vacation to New York City to celebrate a birthday, and an author friend replies, “You should take my book ‘Love Beyond The Empire State Building’ – you’ll just love it.” And in a second post a few minutes later, adds, “BTW, happy birthday…”

Um…NO. Sorry, but, just NO.

I changed the details, of course, but I’ve seen varying episodes like this play out repeatedly. There’s a fine line—a balance—that I believe must be established between friendly posts and hitting readers over the head with 24/7 promotional efforts. I watch over-eager authors push and prod and I think, ‘Breathe…and let your reader friends breathe.’

The social media conundrum makes me realize I shouldn’t be all about the next sale. Instead I’m all about sharing, ministering, and communicating with the people who connect to me as a person and connect to the books I write. One embellishes the other; one honors the other. And, for me, the friends I make in relationship to the personal, and the God-driven far outweighs the idea of shamelessly and constantly promoting book after book after book.

What are your thoughts? I’m eager to hear your take on the social media/promotion craze!

~~~~~

Marianne Evans is an award-winning author of Christian romance and fiction. Her hope is to spread the faith-affirming message of God’s love through the stories He prompts her to create. Devotion, earned the Bookseller’s Best Award as well as the Heart of Excellence Award. Hearts Communion earned a win for Best Romance from the Christian Small Publisher's Association. Finding Home won the Selah award for Best Novella. Marianne is a lifelong resident of Michigan and an active member of Romance Writers of America, most notably the Greater Detroit Chapter where she served two terms as President.

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Forgiveness

Country music bad boy Chase Bradington is on the comeback trail. Fresh from rehab for alcohol addiction, and transformed by the power of Christ, Chase is battling to rediscover the music he loves and a career he nearly ruined. Then he meets up and comer, Pyper Brock, and instantly sparks ignite.

Pyper knows of Chase’s reputation, so despite a rampant attraction to the handsome and talented icon, she soundly dismisses his romantic overtures. Decades ago, her father, in a drunken rage, tossed her and her mother onto the streets. No way will Pyper make the mistake of falling for a man whose done battle with the bottle.

What happens when Chase’s quest to win Pyper’s love breaks down chains of resentment and eases the long buried wounds of her childhood? And what happens when Pypers father shows up in Nashville, clean, sober and seeking a chance to apologize?

Can Pyper follow a pathway to peace when it comes to her father? Can she fully trust Chase? Above all, can a sin damaged past be released in favor of forgiveness?

Releasing 11/1/2016 ~ Available for pre-order now at Amazon.com in PRINT and E-BOOK formats

Twitter 101 by Dora Hiers

Dora Hiers

Last month, I shared WhatHappened to All My Peoples?, and a friend suggested that I offer a brief introduction to Twitter. While I definitely don’t claim to be a Twitter expert, my experience might help someone find value in the social media site that I use most, even over Facebook and Pinterest. Twitter doesn't absorb much time and has the potential to be far reaching.

Image courtesy of Pixabay

Keep it short. Twitter embraces brevity with tweets limited to 140 characters or less. Less, if you'd like people to share your posts or retweet (RT). 

Sharing = happy Tweeters. To share, just click RT (the two arrows that form a square). You have the option of just RT'ing or adding your thoughts with Quote Tweet. Generally, if someone RT’s something of mine, I pay it forward and RT something of theirs versus replying with a" thanks.” A favorite (star) means someone likes your tweet or they're saving it to read later.

RT = Retweet

Star = Favorite

Make every character count. So that you're not wasting valuable real estate, you can shorten links by using tools like bitly or ow.ly. Programs like Hootsuite allow you to schedule your tweets, but the original tweet needs to be even shorter than 140 characters or you'll get an error message.

Include visuals. Just like with every other social media site, pictures play a big role here as well. 

Hashtags rule. Much like Instagram, hashtags are popular on Twitter. I joke around that I think in #hashtags. See? lol. A hashtag is just a conversation, topic or phrase such as #amwriting or #amediting. Google to find hashtags, check to see what’s trending, or jump right in with something fun and unique!

Be strategic for maximum return on investment. Include names/tags and hashtags. For example, for a workshop at a local library, I tagged the library system who then retweeted along with a reader’s group. That day 61k+ tweeters saw my name and profile. Not a bad return for the one minute it took to compose the tweet, right?

Follow = friends. Twitter users follow other tweeters, rather than friend them. Following someone doesn't obligate them to follow you back. Twitter also prompts you with suggestions of who to follow. You might want to click on a profile first and check their tweets. Do you want to follow someone who tweets the daily max of 2400? (I can’t even imagine!) Do you want to follow someone whose only interaction is through Facebook or whose tweets are all “buy my product?” 

Be aware of spammers. Potential spammers include eggheads (no profile picture) and tweets by someone with no followers. If you get a message like “somebody’s spreading nasty rumors about you,” don’t open the link.

Lists save time. As your Twitter account grows, lists are helpful to manage the people you follow, and lists can be public or private. Some ideas for lists might include friends, family, news, celebrities, etc. If you pull those special people into a list, you will always catch their updates.

Sound off. Did I miss a topic you’d like to see covered?

Did this post give you the courage to give Twitter a try?

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Deputy City Manager Burk Harmon has always been the strong one for his family, but recently those responsibilities have dwindled. When Lacie Heatherton, Assistant Director for Parks and Recreation, ropes him into a city-sponsored trip to the mountains with fifty seniors, Burk has two things on his mind: considering a possible promotion and wooing Lacie past friendship and into a future. Lacie has emotional scars and a thirteen-year-old daughter to remind her that men can be cruel and unforgiving. Can Burk convince Lacie to relax her "no dating" policy or will he surrender his dreams of family and love?

Dora Hiers is a multi-published author of Heart Racing, God-Gracing romances. She’s a member of RWA and her local chapter, Carolina Romance Writers. Connect with her on Seriously Write, Fiction Faith & Foodies, Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.

Pinterest…Love it or leave it? By Dora Hiers

I’m about to let you in on a little secret.

I’m addicted to Pinterest. Shhh! Don’t tell anybody! 

But how’s a person supposed to resist those delectable cookies and savory soups filling the screen? Or how about those comfy looking spaces that just cry out to a reader to curl up with a great book? And, oh, those delightful rustic cabins with the rocking chairs on the back decks overlooking mountains and sunsets and towering trees …imagine the inspiration for a writer!

Have you investigated Pinterest? What do you think? Do you agree with me?

If you have never visited Pinterest (really? How is that possible?), essentially Pinterest is a virtual bulletin board or scrapbook… a place to collect ideas. Maybe you enjoy collecting creative recipes for your culinary pleasure, scoping out the perfect vacation destination, or hunting down DIY instructions. Whatever your interests, you’ll find inspiration along with plenty of pictures there.

Just to give you a basic rundown, a “pin” is essentially a picture that bookmarks and references the original source. You can upload your own pictures, pin from websites or blogs, or “repin” other pins. A “board” is where you organize your pins.

Take a moment and pop over to my “bulletin board” and see what the rave is all about. While you're there, if you already have an account, you might want to click the red "follow" board on some of the boards that excite you, but make sure you come back and let me know what you think, OK? Click to visit Pinterest here > http://www.pinterest.com/dorahiers/

With the holidays now behind us, I bet you can see how Pinterest might have been a gold mine for ideas. Decorating, gifts, recipes…sheesh, I never buy cookbooks anymore. For the most part, I pin and print all my recipes, and then organize them in a binder. Did you see any recipes you couldn’t wait to try? Salivate over any desserts? 

What about for writers? Can you see why Pinterest might be a place to hang out? Join us next month when we'll dig deeper into Pinterest. If you're not sold just yet, you might be after our next discussion.

Some people unwind by watching TV. Others by scrolling Instagram pictures or Facebook statuses. Next to reading, browsing Pinterest is my favorite hobby.

What about you? Love it or leave it? What’s your favorite hobby?
I'll be in and out of Internet service this week, but will check back and respond to all comments next week. Wishing you a glorious weekend!

****

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Five years ago, Emily Mannerson escaped small town living and moved to the big city where nobody knew "poor little Emily" and her miserable background. Now an attorney, Emily longs for what she left behind…her adopted mother and high-school sweetheart. Fire captain Matthew Westerly treasures his small town of Journey Creek and values faith, family, and friendships. When he rescues Emily from a horrific car accident, he's determined to win her back and make up for the lost years. Can a big city girl and a small town boy discover their true treasure? Will they trust God to work a miracle?

Dora Hiers is a multi-published author of Heart Racing, God-Gracing romances. She’s a member of RWA, ACFW, and the Treasurer for ACFW-Charlotte Chapter. Connect with her here on Seriously Write, her personal blog, Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.

Writing for the Young Adult Market By Krista McGee

Krista McGee

Know your audience.
Young adult writers need to spend time with teens, get to know them. Writers can’t assume their adolescent experiences will translate into comparable experiences for 21st century teens. The reality of life as a teenager today is radically different from what it was twenty – or even ten -- years ago. Though the pressures are similar, the pace at which kids are exposed to those pressures has increased dramatically. The avenues through which those pressures come are far more varied, subtle, and dangerous. Teens today develop friendships over Facebook, Twitter, Instragram, Path…They rarely pick up a home phone and think a PC is an ancient artifact. Their computers are handheld, and much of their self-image can be found within the slim confines of their iPod Touch. The stories that will resonate with them acknowledge all that – and more. Even if the story is set in the past (or future), current realities must be considered.

Write for a specific audience.
No matter what you write, you won’t be able to appeal to all teens everywhere. Teens, like adults, have varied interests, are at different places socially, spiritually, and emotionally. Some writers in the Christian market cover pretty heavy subjects  – drugs, sex, suicide. They address those themes, not because they are seeking to push the envelope, but because their audience faces those issues at school and at home, and those writers want their readers to see those issues handled from a Christian perspective. On the other hand, the audience I write for are predominantly Christian kids who are truly seeking to live the Christ-life. I don’t discuss sex, drugs, and suicide, not because I want to avoid those topics, but because my audience wants to hear more about how to deal with apathy, how to grow in their faith, how to find their self-worth in Christ and not in the opinions of others. My books do not appeal to all audiences, but I never intended them to. I write for a specific audience, and I am overjoyed when I get emails from readers thanking me for speaking to them through my stories.

Keep it moving.
Teens today don’t like to wait. Thanks to DVRs and Youtube, there is little need to watch commercials – at least not for more than 5 seconds. They can complete research for their term papers online in one night – no scouring books after finding them with the card catalogue. Food is fast, and opinions expressed in 120 characters or less. As much as some of us want to spend several pages developing our exposition, we just can’t. Descriptions have to come between dialogue, a sentence at a time. And dialogue has to be fast, moving the plot along.  Less summary, more action. Cliffhangers at the end of each chapter. Keep the kids turning pages or you lose them – after all, they have a group chat and an Instagram daily challenge they could be doing right now.

Dora here. Do you write for the YA market?

What are some of the challenges you've faced and how did you overcome them?

About Krista McGee

When Krista McGee isn't living in fictional worlds of her own creation, she lives in Tampa and spends her days as a wife, mom, teacher, and coffee snob. 

Right Where I Belong
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Natalia’s about to discover her place in the world . . . and it’s not following in her father’s footsteps.

After watching her father jump from one marriage to the next, Natalia has completely written off love. And when her father divorces his third wife—the only one who has been a mother to her—Natalia is ready to write him off too.

Needing a change of scenery, Natalia leaves her home in Spain and relocates with her stepmother to sun-soaked Florida. But she didn’t realize just how far a new school, a new culture, and a new lifestyle would push her out of her comfort zone.

One of her biggest surprises comes from Brian, a pastor’s son with an adorable smile, who loves God with a sincerity that astounds Natalia. She doesn’t want to fall for him, but she can’t seem to avoid him long enough to get him out of her mind.

Love is the last thing Natalia wants. Even so, God has her right where she belongs.