This week I have a guest post up over at BookLifeNow: So You Want to Start a Blog. I go over different points to think about when you are either starting up a blog or trying to give your current blog a face lift. So if you enjoy reading me talking about social media, you might want to check it out.
And speaking of me talking about social media… I have a new project! And it’s way exciting! (Well, at least if you’re me.) I have started work on a nonfiction book about social media strategies for fiction writers.
Yes, there are already a few books on this subject out there. But not as many as you’d think. And the few I’ve seen start at a really basic level, geared towards people who don’t know how to or are uncomfortable using the internet. (For example: Here’s how you sign up for a Twitter account.) That’s great and definitely needed, but it’s not necessary reading for all fiction writers. I also don’t agree with all the strategies that are presented. And much of the material you can find on the internet is either geared towards companies or nonfiction writers, or is also fairly basic.
So many options!
So what I’m writing is the book on social media strategy that I wanted to read. A book that is targeted for writers who already have basic internet skills. A book that is lean and not stuffed with extra padding so that you’re not wasting time. A book that goes into depth on the fundamental principles behind social media strategy and content creation as well as giving strategies for specific platforms. And while I am going to be specifically targeting fiction writers, I think much of what I’ll be talking about can also be applied to other creative professionals.
As you know, I write a fair amount about social media on this blog, and I’ve been thinking of writing this book since last year. What pushed me over the edge, however, was working on my guest post for BookLifeNow. I was originally writing an article on the different types of writer blogs, and it kept getting longer…and longer…and then I thought, this would be so much better if I could add a few case studies…. That’s when I realized that first off, what I was writing was not a blog post, and second off, I could no longer put off writing this book about social media.
My plans are still fairly fluid right now. I’m working on this book at the same time as I revise The Academy of Forgetting, which is taking priority (since otherwise I might just not do it). I don’t have a target release date yet, although you’ll all be the first to know when I do. I expect that I’ll be self publishing this book when I am finished with it, to get it out into the world in an efficient manner. My other option is Kickstarter, but I’m not confident I have enough of a base to make that work (feel free to tell me your thoughts about this!)
I’ve been avidly studying all things social media for the past few years, and I’m really looking forward to sharing what I’ve learned. My hope is that I can help fiction writers at all stages of their careers craft personal strategies that are both effective and enjoyable.
If you have any thoughts or ideas about what you’d like to see in such a book, please leave me a comment or drop me a line. I’d love to hear from you!
The Practical Free Spirit 
I LOVE this idea. There’s so much BAD information out there, even from well-meaning sources. And given what I see people regularly doing, a lot of the self-taught folks are doing it all wrong too. I do a lot of social media research for work, so let me know if you need help/research/info/trends =)
Oh, yes, I’d love to talk to you about this! Don’t suppose you’re coming up here anytime soon? Maybe we can video chat or something.
I don’t have any Norcal plans at the moment, but we can definitely chat sometime!
Please write this. I will buy and read and highlight and then reread this book. I’m trying to figure out the whole social media thing and doing okay at it, but am definitely not where I want to be.
Excellent. It’s good to hear that there’s demand (besides just myself!). I’ll be posting about it occasionally here as I write, I expect.
What a fantastic idea, Amy! I’m so excited for you, and I can’t think of anyone who would be better-suited to write this book. I will be cheering you along.
Thanks! It is wonderful to be writing a book about a subject I’m so passionate about. 🙂
The biggest thing that perplexes me from a general blogging perspective is how to choose between WordPress, Blogspot, Blogger, LiveJournal, Blog.com, Tumblr.
I miss the old days of LJ where I could just subscribe to posts by everyone who I wanted to read; even the webcomics and non-LJ blogs usually had some kind of LJ RSS feed or such I could subscribe to so everything went to one place (my LJ friends feed). Nowadays I have a dozen blogs on my Firefox toolbar and some vblogs I have to check YouTube periodically. At least this blog I get delivered to my email address when you post something.
Almost every blog out there (on every service) has an RSS feed. You can set up an RSS reader to check them all – it’s very similar to LJ’s friends page. It saves you from having to individually check blogs.
Yeah, I recently (within the last year) finally switched to Google Reader as my RSS reader. Before that I’d been using LJ as my reader, but the long outages made me switch and now I adore using Google Reader instead. But I remember the good old (and simple) days.
I can’t imagine starting out on LJ these days. The main reason to be there is if you already have a community there. Even the diehards are beginning to pull away from the site. So really it’s a question of WordPress vs. Blogger…vs. Tumblr, since you can use Tumblr like a normal blog if you feel like it. I’ll definitely be going into that in the book.
What a great idea! … write on.
Thanks!
Amy, I can’t wait to see the book. 🙂 I already know you have some great ideas on the subject of social media. Good luck!
Thanks! I am having a lot of fun developing my ideas further. 🙂
I’m reading your story at Buzzy right now, and would love to see you write this book you’re talking about too. (And I have a story coming out at Buzzy tomorrow!)
Ooh, happy story birthday!