Introvert and Insecure about Networking - No More!

Time for another Insecure Writers Support Group post. To join up, simply click on the badge:

Drawing a topic from my long list of insecurities, today I thought I'd tackle 'networking'.

Networking is a great buzz word in business, but for me, it simply means connecting with peers. Sounds less intimidating that way, doesn't it? And yet, it still scares me.

It's important to connect with others in your industry, especially for writers, as we are not conditioned to interact with the humans on a daily basis. Networking allows you to benefit from the wisdom of colleagues who have been through the trial and errors you're about to embark on. You can also meet industry professionals who can give you a helping hand to achieve your career goals. But I think, most importantly, it allows you to help emerging writers on their journey to publication -- that can be so rewarding.

And yet. I attend conferences, workshops, seminars, and I simply can not go up and speak to someone unless they speak to me first. I always convince myself I'm just bothering people.

Lucky for me I have the internet. You can approach people you don't know at all, converse, ask for favours, joke around, and all without ever having to look them in the eye!

But I would like to improve my networking skills, so, I've decided to create a networking opportunity to encourage introverts to connect with other writers, face to face, without the need for even a tiny bit of courage! I'm coordinating the Rainforest Writing Retreat - a two day retreat set in the beautiful Gold Coast hinterland (for our Aussie writers). We'll have writing masterclasses with expert presenters and publishing advice. But more than that, we'll be taking part in planned networking activities.

Ever purchase hundreds of contact cards, but were too afraid to hand them out? One of our activities will have everyone swapping cards, you'll actually have a list of names that you must tick off as you collect their card. We'll also have 'get to know you' games, chat sessions and everyone teams up with a roomie for the twin-share accommodation.

So, if you've wanted to attend an event that meets your dreams--don't wait for it to appear, create your own!

My retreat:

https://www.facebook.com/RainforestWritingRetreat

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Google+ - Why can't I love thee?

Conceptually, Google+ is my favoured platform for writers. It's easy to accumulate followers and has many bonuses, such as grouping those you follow into 'circles', links to your YouTube channel and the ability to 'hang out'.

So why can't I fall in love Google+? 

In social media I look for useful advice/information and personal interactions (please, no more random pics of LOL cats). Twitter often shares useful links, but with so many people scheduling their tweets, I often wonder how many are actually reading them.

Facebook killed MySpace, and it seemed for a while there Google+ would repay the favour. It was all the talk, it was the new wave (pun intended). There's a lot to lure me in, I have 5,000+ followers on Google+ compared to my Twitter's 1,500+ and Facebooks 500+. I've also started up a community for writers with blogs: Writer's Blogs

And yet, I only visit my Google+ page about once per week. Most of my close friends are on Facebook, and lately I've been having some whimsical fun on Twitter. So why not Google+? Perhaps it's the layout? 

I'm going have another try, for the next week I'll focus interacting with members on the Google+ platform (this plan conveniently overrides my need to finish editing my current manuscript). How about you? Are you on Google+? Like it, hate it, indifferent?

Speaking of distractions, the family and I headed out this weekend to see Doctor Who on the big screen! We watched Angels take Manhatten and Asylum of the Daleks, and it was a blast. There were loads of great costumes.

KINDLE FIRE GIVEAWAY

To celebrate the release of my new mystery novel for girls, I'm giving away a Kindle Fire and a $25 Amazon gift voucher! Simply download Dognapped? A Dog Show Detective Mystery or blog about the book to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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6 Ways to hook up with other writers -- even if you're insecure

Writing can be a solitary task, but it doesn't need to be. There's lots of support for writers if they know where to find it. Get to know other writers, form alliances, give each other feedback, encouragement and advice. The writing community is one of the most generous with sharing of information. So where can you hook up with other writers?

1. Join a Writers Group -- Best thing I've ever done. We meet once a week and take part in writing exercises, share our work and discuss the industry. This is an intimate, safe environment to share your writing with people you trust for an honest critique.
2. Blog -- I never realised there were so many writing communities until I started blogging. Start your blog on whatever you like. I enjoy blogging about the craft of writing, but also love reading marketing, education and reading blogs. It's a way to interact. Turn off 'captcha' or 'word verification' in your settings. These are horrible torturous tests visitors must endure just so they can leave you an encouraging comment. It's not polite. If you are worried about spam (yes, I'm rolling my eyes), then use comment moderation instead.
3. Sign up to Blog Groups and Challenges -- Such as Alex Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group. You put your link on a list and everyone posts on an agreed topic or event. You'll meet lots of blog friends very quickly.
4. Pick your Favourite Social Media Platform -- You don't have to do them all, so don't be overwhelmed. Best to pick the one that suites your style and use it effectively, than to flounder on half a dozen different sites. The top ones seem to be Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn, but there's also Instagram if you're more of a photo person, and Pinterest if you like sharing websites and online photos. Browse through and read posts to see which platform suites your lifestyle. 
5. Visit your Writer's Centre -- There may be one not too far from you. Writer's centres have plenty of advice and contacts to get you on your way and most charge a reasonable yearly membership fee.
6. Attend Writing Festivals/Seminars -- You'll be educated, entertained and get to network with other professionals in the writing industry.

Most of all, it's important to get out there with a positive attitude. Be thoughtful and reciprocate. If you want followers for your blog, then go follow other blogs. Don't hide in a corner and expect all the introverts to come to you.

By offering a place where followers can comment without obstacles,
you'll increase the number of people who stay long enough to say hello.

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Why, How and Where of Social Media

This week I was honoured to be invited to speak at a Strathpine Library to a writers group on the topic of social media. It was a fun night and the group was very welcoming and participated enthusiastically.

Here are some of the points we covered:

Why use social media?

1. Connect with your peers - Writers share a supportive and encouraging community. You'll find other writers who are learning the craft and willing to share their findings as well as professional authors offering tips and advice online. My online writing buddies have helped me by sharing links, bringing competitions to my attention, guiding my marketing plans, and making recommendations for service providers.
2. Keep up with industry news - You can follow agents, publishers and other industry experts to learn of opportunities and guidelines for submissions.
3. Reach an audience. Readers use social media too and they love making a personal connection with the authors they read. Social media is a great way to make readers aware of your books.

Marketing yourself:

1. Be consistent. Most writers will spread themselves over more than one social platform. Have one suitable profile picture, preferably of yourself and not your dog/cat/kids/favourite cartoon character. When people connect with you, they want to feel it's really you. Using the same profile pic on all platforms means follower won't be confused by your identity. 
2. Entertain, educate or engage. This is the only reason you post. If you can be humorous, go ahead, share a joke (appropriate to your target audience). Followers will also appreciate tips and advice. Plus don't forget to respond to other people's posts, make a connection.
3. Some people believe you must follow everyone who follows you. I feel you should follow the people who's posts interest you, don't worry if they follow you back.
4. Stand by your own standards and ethics, don't criticise other peoples decisions online. For example, there's a lot of criticism about certain authors paying for reviews lately. I choose not to pay for review, but those authors who do have the right to make their own choices. 

Where to go?

There's many options for social media, here's my choices:

1. Blogger. I tried Wordpress and looked at others, but for me Blogger was a nice simple and clear platform. It's very easy to update and to follow through Google friends. I also like that Blogger links to my Google+ account.
2. Facebook. This is not my favourite platform, but it's where my friends are. I don't like the way you have to request a friend acceptance from people you want to follow. It is handy though for creating fan or group pages.
3. Google+. I like the way this platform flows. The circles are a great idea, you place people into the groups you want to use. My circles include writers, marketing, internet experts, artists and friends/family.
4. Twitter. This is great for finding and sharing links. You're limited to short posts, so sometimes it can feel a bit like everyone is posting at you rather than interacting, but it is the platform that has generated the most sales for my ebook My Zombie Dog.
5. Goodreads. A good site for gaining reviews.
6. Amazon. You can create your own author page.
7. YouTube. I follow some wonderful authors who offer vlogs (video blogs) on this platform. It's also good for hosting your book trailer. YouTube does attract trolls (people who leave nasty comments just for the sake of upsetting you) so don't post vlogs unless you're thick-skinned.

In this digital age the culture of writers has evolved to include social media, it's important that we evolve to fit within this emerging culture.

And for some online fun, why not take part in this blog challenge: Write a short story for halloween with a romantic spin and post your link on Romantic Friday Writers:

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Google + Writing Circles

Are you Google +ing yet?

I was sceptical. I still remember the wasted moments wandering through an empty Google Wave. I questioned Google's approach of limiting the sign ups for Google + - after all, social networking only works if everyone's there.

BUT. I love the ease of adding people to your circles. Now instead of bombarding my friends and family with the endless links I find on the craft of writing, I can target those posts directly to other writers. I also feel more comfortable adding people, knowing I don't need their permission to follow them (like Twitter - you can block someone if necessary).

People will migrate from Facebook and Twitter to converge in Google +. I don't expect it to be quick, others will be wary and many will be nostalgic about the platform they've spent so much time building (remember the die-hard Myspace enthusiasts?). I'll stay in Facebook while I've still got Friends there - I'm not attached to particular platforms, but I'll go where the people are - I like the people.

If you're not in Google + but would like to start building your profile there, drop me an email and I'll try to send you an invite (I'm not sure how many I can give out, so first in first serve). If you've already started and want to add a widget to your blog to promote your Google + check out:

www.widgetsplus.com

Now, I'm thinking... BLOGFEST TIME! I've never held a Blogfest before, exciting times.

On the 31st July I'll post up details of the 'Imagination Sparks Blogfest' and how to sign up. For the blogfest we'll all share a creativity exercise that helps get our Muse revved up to write. To get you started, I'll blog about a great exercise Tom Evans, author of The Art and Science of Light Bulb Moments generously shared with us.

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Writer's Platform - is it worth the hassle?

I tend to blog a fair bit about ways to promote yourself as a writer. I see a lot of writers dip their foot into building their online platform, only to lose interest after a time or become disheartened because they've sat at 13 followers for 3 months.

It's a phase that takes time. I won't say there are no short cuts, but frankly you need to organise your time to allow building your profile, by blogging, Facebooking and Tweeting (I can't recommend MySpace, but there are some that say it has value) and to keep up with your actual writing (no point building a great platform if you never finish that novel). Writing and editing will take up most of your time, and most of us find it hard enough to squeeze that in. So why spend time online? Isn't that what your publisher is for? 

Even if you are able to land a publisher, or if you even want one, you will still need to promote your work. You can market directly to your audience (romance readers, children, etc) and I've some posts you can check out with links to help you with that:

Writer's Networking Advice

Build Your Author Marketing Plan

However, if you've started out by networking with other writers, you needn't think that was a wasted target. Us writers, I've come to discover, are a very supportive bunch. Whenever I come across one of my blogging friends who has published their novel I buy it. I'm just so proud of them. I also purchase novels from any writers who have run workshops for me. Curiosity and gratitude. Those that can't run up a big bill on Amazon, may not make the purchase but will often promote your book online. I think it comes down to the fact that we all enjoy feeling like we're helping. So do reach out to other writers and blog and tweet. We learn a lot from each other and we're a reliable market.

Now, I'm off to Canberra to attend Nicole Murphy's book launch (in a pub! Yay!). AND extra yay! for school holidays, I can finally spend some time reading everyone's blogposts.

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Games for Writers

Alex J Cavanaugh is hosting a blogfest today about our favourite games. Here are my top three that I think writers will like:

Cluedo - hands down, my absolute favourite. Of course I forget to actually try and win and just have a wonderful time throwing red herrings and making accusations. Every time one of my opponents even flinches, I quickly jot down their suspicious activity. These notes do not help me win at all, but they do give me some fun new ideas for stories.

Sims Pets - Okay, I don't actually play the game, but I do love creating the dogs :) Sims is great for creating your characters, you really need to think about their features and dress sense.

Charades - Hey, it's cool. Yes it is. I just think this can be so much fun, and it makes you really think about words and their meaning.

I would have included Scrabble, but I have a wonderful friend who is zany and fun, but when it comes to Scrabble - she's turns it into a deadly extreme sport. Check out the blogfest, maybe there's a game you'd like to play with your family?

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Writer's Networking Advice

I've just finished reading We Are Not Alone - The writer's guide to social media by Kristen  Lamb. I wasn't sure I'd pick up anything from this book. I already blog, twitter and mildly Facebook. I know what I'm doing, right? Hah.

I believe EVERY writer should have a copy of this book (or the ebook). I downloaded the Kindle version and found myself reading it on my daughter's iPad, on my Kindle and when I was sneaking a minute or two at work (I'm a teacher) on my iPhone (and I had to be reminded by student's in the playground about our 'off and away' code).

This book is accessible (that's one of my big measurements for a nonfiction text - get too tech jargon on me and I switch off) and detailed in its advice. Lamb lets you know what you need to be doing to build your market online, why you need it, and how to do it. Here are just a few tips I picked up - there are so many more, you really do need to read it yourself:

• When Tweeting about your new book, use positive language that lets the reader know what you want them to do. Never say 'don't forget to check out my new book', instead use active verbs, 'make sure you check out my new book' or 'buy my new book here'.
• You are not just connecting with people online, you are building a brand. Make sure your author name is linked to all your content. In all social media you should be using the name you plan to publish with. (When I first started tweeting, I was 'hotdoggy' because this is the name I had when I was a dog groomer - some people thought I was some weird sex spam, so I changed it to charmaineclancy) You can even link your field with your name, I regret not setting my blog name as Charmaine Clancy Writer, but it started out as Wagging Tales, so that has stuck. Also adding to the confusion is the fact that my URL address is clancytales.blogspot - time over, I'd use charmaineclancy.blogspot. So if you are calling yourself writerchick451 - rethink that.
• Don't brand the title of your novel before it is published. If you set up your Facebook, blog and Twitter all to say 'Death in the Shallows' - you might find your title changes once it's published, then you need to rebuild the name - best to work on the author name.
• Are you using Twitter to its best advantage? Have you searched for publishers, agents and well-known writers? You can let their tweets guide your web browsing and you can gain relevant followers from their follower list.

Lamb will show you exactly how to set up a Facebook page, and explain when you need a Fan page. I've only just started my writing Facebook page (I did have a family/friends one) - so feel free to friend me! All the way through this book I kept thinking, oh, that's clever! My only question was Lamb's interest in MySpace - is anyone using this platform, or perhaps it has shrivelled since the publication of this text?

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3 Essential Network Markets for Writers

Do you network? I've always found that a funny word - almost predatory, even though my background was in marketing and networking was an intrinsic part of that. I love that Google calls it following (as does Twitter) and Facebook is even better calling it friending.

Regardless of what you call it, we've talked before about the need to build an online platform (to make connections and promote yourself as a writer). I find there are three separate areas for a writer to network in, this is my take:

1. Readers/Potential Customers - This is obvious. Identify your market. Are your books for tweens or teens? Mystery lovers or die-hard Sci-fiers? Find where they hang out and join their groups (this is a step I need to start taking). E.g. All of my books have dogs in them, some in a small way and some, well, like DOG SHOW DETECTIVE and MY ZOMBIE DOG. So, I could start following people on twitter in dog groups, animal rights and dog showing.
2. Publishers/Agents - When you query your dream agent or publisher, you want to know if they Google you, they'll get lots of hits about what a great writer you are - not old family Christmas photos where you're drunk and kissing Santa, who turns out to be your Uncle Gary (not a true story - I promise!).
3. Writers - This is the area I started with when I looked at reaching out and connecting with others on the Internet. It may not be the market that purchases my books, but this has been the networks that have informed, guided and motivated me so that my books will be out there for my reader market. The advice you gather from other writers is invaluable. I've taken writing courses through TAFE and completed a BA in Creative and Professional Writing, but my writing has progressed the most since I started blogging and reading writer blogs.

And because I've been attending a few workshops lately, and I want to keep building my circle of writers, I ordered these contact cards. It's a lot simpler than trying to scrawl out your blog address every time you meet someone. And on a budget? I got mine through Vista Print, delivered to my door for about $30. My only tip if you do this, is the card is slightly smaller than a business card and the set text size is a bit small to read, so I enlarged mine by a couple of points. Glad I did.

Have you started networking amongst your reader market yet? Where does your market hang out?

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8 Reasons To Attend Writers Festivals

Promotion from Previous Melbourne Writers Festival

Writers Festivals - what's the appeal? Hate crowds and not much of a mingler, plus, time is such a valuable commodity in our society, I'm very frugal with mine. This is why my form of socialising and undertaking courses is usually done online. But...

Writers Festivals. I want to attend. I've never been and it seems a mysteriously creative and joyful event. There are workshops, seminars and festivities (otherwise it wouldn't be called a festival - right?). As mentioned in, A Writer's To Do List, I've decided to go to the Brisbane Writers Festival. It's going to be a bit costy with the workshops and travel expenses, but I think the festival will get me writing more productively.

Festivals provide:

1. Deadlines - The date of the festival is set, so, I'll want to have my WIP edits done and as much written for my next MS as possible. I always work better with deadlines (as you can see from No Time To Finish That Novel?)
2. Enthusiasm - This is so exciting for me (my first festival)..
3. Professionalism - I'll feel like a real writer (maybe I'll get a name tag!), I like tricks that make me feel like a writer - see my post Getting in the Mood.
4. Contacts - Festivals provide a great opportunity to network with authors, agents and publishers.
5. Industry Knowledge - I'll learn how the querying process and publishing business works. I'm almost up to the query process, and found some great links: Q is for Query
6. Role Models - Speakers provide examples of how they overcame the common obstacles to become published. I often look to established authors for great examples, see Effective Websites for Authors
7. Marketing Advice - Writers need to do more than just write their books now, so I'll learn a lot of tips on how to market myself as an author and my work. For more on marketing see earlier posts: Give Readers Something More and Niche Markets = Loyal Readers.
8. Socialising - I'm sure to meet other writers and bloggers and form life-long friendships.

Have you attended a writers festival, and if so, what did you get out of it? Have a link to a festival you want to share? Mine is The Brisbane Writers Festival.

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