Tag: Blogs

Posted in Blogs

November…WOOSH!!!! And Links from the Blogosphere

Posted on by beckylevine

What I learned this past month is the futility of predicting what’s coming. Way back here, I talked about everything I was going to blog about in November.

Let’s just say, “Yeah, right,” NOT talk about the flu or pneumonia anymore, and move on. Okay? Okay!

Looking ahead, with zero predictions, I am so looking forward to opening up my writing projects again and seeing who’s doing what and how they’ve been keeping themselves busy without me. Hopefully, at least their creative juices have been flowing, and they’ll all be happy to share some output with me–their friend and author.

Meanwhile, I have at least been checking in at other blogs, and I thought–just to get the posting fingers warmed up again and wave a happy hand at all of you again, I’d post some links to what they’re talking about.

  • I always love Jama Rattigan’s Hawaii posts. Yes, you get some pictures of beautiful beaches and skies, but it’s the family and food that keeps me coming back for more. Okay, and the bears. And moose.
  • Sabrina at YA Bliss shares some great titles from her winter TBR list.
  • Jennifer Laughran addresses yet another writer fear with her usual and always welcome common sense.
  • Jennifer R. Hubbard reviews Colleen Mondor’sThe Map of My Dead Pilots,  a nonfiction book that intrigues me, both for itself and for the feeling that it might be like reading more about characters from one of Dana Stabenow’s Kate Shugak mysteries.
  • Rebecca Schiller talks about using a mind-mapping program, SimpleMind, to work with Scrivener. I have never been able to get those circle-brainstorming map thingies to work for me, but I felt that way about index cards until Scrivener came along. Now I’m wondering if I just need computers to help me along–I’ll be taking a look at SimpleMind myself.
  • Julia Churchill posts at Greenhouse Literary about what happens after you sign with an agent. You know, besides the ultimate happy dance and celebratory dinner at that restaurant you really can’t afford.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and wishing you a peaceful and HEALTHY December! Oh, that for us, too, thanks very much!

Posted in Social Networking

Does Social Networking Sell Books: One Tally Mark for the YES Column

Posted on by beckylevine

One of the big discussion topics around the net is whether or not social-networking actually sells books. For me, knowing that I’ve had discussions with writers, on Facebook & Twitter or blogs, who have then gone out and bought my book, the answer is a no-brainer…yes. The corollary question–perhaps the one that publishers care more about–is how many books?

I don’t know.

As far as I can tell, it’s still about word of mouth, about getting interested in a book someone is writing because I know them–whether in person or online–and then, yes, buying their book. Sure, yes, I guess in the old days, these people could have reached me with a mailer–a flyer or pamphlet, and I think they could, theoretically, have reached the same quantity of people in that way. The difference is, a flyer doesn’t mean KNOW that person. And, yes, on Facebook and Twitter, I do know them. Maybe not enough to bare my soul to (like they’d want that, anyway!), but definitely enough to be curious about their book.

I want to talk, today, about a specific case in point. Yesterday, I bought my first self-published novel.

I know. It’s 2011. Where have I been? Well, I’ve been where I think–if we’re being honest–a lot of us are. I am interested in the possibilities that online publishing is creating. I’m intrigued with looking at what’s happening now and with wondering where it’s going to take us in the next year, five years, decade. I’m watching friends and acquaintances experiment (aka letting them be the guinea pigs!) and hoping that the work they’re doing brings them at least a piece of dream-come-true.

I’ve also, I admit, been cautious/hesitant/reluctant to just grab a self-published novel off the shelf and dive into reading it. In this post, I talked about how we, as readers, can know that our work is ready to put out there. Flip the coin and, as a reader, I do wonder how the author decided their book was ready for me to fall in love with. Yes, as hard and challenging and painful as traditional publishing has been, some agent and/or editor has had their eyes and pencil on those books, has said…Go!

Anyway, yesterday I took the leap. I bought a copy of Anathema, written AND self-published by Megg Jensen.

Why? Because I know Megg from the blogosphere and from Facebook. We’ve talked back and forth, she’s been more than encouraging about my book, and I’ve followed her thoughts about her story and her decision to self-publish this book. I know it’s a YA fantasy, a genre I love, and I am seriously hooked by the cover. Because of these interactions, I know that Megg is smart and funny and thoughtful and creative. Yes, I do. Does that mean I know she can write a good book? Of course not. If I meet an author who has traditionally published their first book, do I know that THAT book is good? Of course not, again. But I make my buying decision on the same basis I made this one–my impression of the writer, as I get to know them. Unless you’ve read more books from an author, you take a risk with every book you buy. And even then, we all know there’s no guarantee that Book 5 will get us the same way Books 1-4 did.

Megg does not live in California. I could not have met her through a local writing club, in the YA section of a bookstore, or at a party. I could only have met her online. Through social networking. Which, yes, does sell books.

Will Megg (or I) ever get on the NYT bestseller list? Who knows. (Of course, if it ever DOES happen, you can bet YOU WILL ALL KNOW!) Will she sell more of her books by being “out there” on the Internet. Yeah. I really believe so.

Megg is running a contest through March 11 at her blog. You can win lots of cool things, including copies of Anathema AND an e-reader.  Megg has also offered to give away a copy of Anathema here (paperback OR e-book, your choice) to a commenter.

So…drop a thought into the comments.  Remember, this is not a post about self-publishing; this is a post about the sales effectiveness of social-networking. Any comment will enter you, but I’d love to hear about a book you bought because you knew the author online, or because you heard some online buzz. Also, if you’re published in any way, what do you think social networking has done for you and your books?

Megg’s contest is going until March 11, but I think I’ll wrap mine up sooner than that. Let’s make it a week–I’ll announce the winner Wednesday, March 2nd.

Enter away!

Posted in Social Networking

Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Etc…a Semi-Often Assessment

Posted on by beckylevine

I’ve been blogging for several years now. I’ve been on Facebook over a year, I’m sure, and Twitter not quite so long. Every now and then, I stop and just look at what’s going on out there, at the conversations I’m taking part in, at the people I’ve met. And I’m pretty much amazed.

I’ve talked about social networking a couple of times here, discussing its value and its distractions. Since my books been out a few months now, it seemed like a good time for another check-in.

I have to tell you, I’m convinced.

I don’t really know how well my book is selling. I know that it is selling, if only from watching the stats on Amazon go up and down, and down and up. The most that tells me is that every now and then, someone heads over there & buys a copy. I know from my own blog stats that people do head over to the other links I’ve got up (IndieBound, Writer’s Digest, etc.) but I can’t tell you what they’re doing when they get there–browsing or buying.

What I do know is that people I have never met or talked to in person, people I would have been hard-pressed to even find out about without social networking, have bought my book. How? Well, frankly, because they’re nice enough to tell me. Or blog about it. Or recommend it on a discussion forum. Which, every time it happens, honestly makes me say, “Whee!”

Does this mean you’ll see me on the NY Times Bestseller List next week? Um, no. Does this mean I’ll be getting that butler anytime soon. Not so much. Does it mean that social networking has expanded my word-of-mouth capability, so that I have better chances of a second printing, sooner rather than later? I believe so. There are people talking about my book in Virginia, in parts of New England, in Texas. I’m in California. Yes, it helps incredibly to have Writer’s Digest behind this book–you could hide my mailing list in a teensy-weensy corner of theirs and never find it! I also believe, though, that by being out there on the Internet, I’m doing my part.

Honestly, I’d be out there even if I didn’t have a book to talk about. The Internet is an incredible place, or maybe it’s just the writers’ corner that’s so warm and welcoming. I get support, I hear about books, and I listen to jokes. Yes, I get overloaded; yes, I take breaks. It’s a party, though, that I want to come back to. For whatever reason, this in-person introvert is a happily extroverted social-networker.

If I was doing this JUST for the marketing & sales benefits, I think I’d go nuts. I have to remind myself to type in the title of my book the times I do mention it! I think if all I used social-networking for was sales and marketing, I’d need a Dorian Gray painting in my office, to collect all the bad feelings I’d be carrying around and hide them under a happy facade. I can’t work that way, and I don’t want to.

That’s the thing. Once you step out here, you’ll be handed plenty of “shoulds.” You should be on Facebook. You should be on Twitter. Get into a chat. Blog daily.

Sit back and watch your head explode. 🙂

You have to do it your way. And start slow. The one thing I’m learning lately is that baby steps work. Pick one thing and do it gently. Set up a Facebook page and add a dozen people. Sit with that for a while–read their updates, leave a comment if you want, post your own update every few days. Ready for more? Great! Add a few more friends. Or if you like a bit more craziness in your feed, go for Twitter. Post a few times in the mornings before you start work. Skim what’s happening in the updates, and don’t feel like you have to keep up. (I’ll tell you a secret…you can’t!) Play.

Is social-networking worth it? This month’s assessment says a definite yes. It’s worth it because it helps a writer connect up with other writers and readers around the world, to hear what’s happening with them in England or Egypt or Southern California, and to share what’s happening with you.

Sometimes this turns into a sale. Sometimes it turns into a smile, a laugh, or a new friend.

Okay by me.

Posted in Blog Contest, Blogging, Blogs, Marketing, Promotion, The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide

Marketing Monday: Setting Up a Blog Tour & Adding a New Blog Feature

Posted on by beckylevine

Before I get down to business today, I want to show you a few of my favorite books.

Wait, what’s that one out in front? Is it…? It is! Yes, two copies of The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide showed up at my house this weekend. Did I mind the rain and gray skies? Not after that delivery, I didn’t!

Okay, so if the book is here, this means I should get back to my marketing to-do list and get some things checked off. The book is due out January 15th, but I’ll have some copies before then that I can, and want to, use for marketing. I’d like to set up a blog tour for January…with giveaways! I’m keeping this simple, just hoping to visit a few blogs and let people know about my book, share some thoughts about critiquing and critique groups. If you’d like your blog to be a stop on the tour, I’d love to come by. I think interviews are fun, because I can talk about what you and your blog readers want to hear, but I can also do a guest post if that’s easier for you.

If you’d like to host me at your blog, please send me an email at beckylevine@ymail.com

The other thing I’m looking to do is add a new, probably monthly, feature to my blog in 2010. I’d like to host you, if you’ve got a story about a critique group or experience to share. (Obviously, I don’t want posts that are just rants or vents, but I’m definitely open to learning-experience stories as well as the more positive kind!) And if you’ve got a book out or coming out that you’d like to promote, I’ll include pictures and links to let people know about it. You can also donate a copy of an ARC or published book, if you’d like me to run a contest.

Again, if you’d like to guest blog here with your critique story, please email me at beckylevine@ymail.com

Next post, back to our regular, random programming.

Posted in Blogging

Friday Five: Blog Shuffling

Posted on by beckylevine

The times, they are a-changing. Well, a little bit. For me and my blogs. 🙂

Yes, I said blogs. Plural. Some/most of you may know that I’ve had another blog, over at LiveJournal for a few years. I started that site when I first got into blogging and met such wonderful writers that I couldn’t bear to shut it down, when I started up here. Well, I’ve changed my mind. Not about the wonderful writers (and I’m really hoping they’ll come hang out over here!), but about closing down that blog. For a few months now, I’ve been feeling a bit too split-brain trying to keep up with both blogs, and by trying to track what/how I was blogging there versus here. No more. It’s all going to be coming together in one place now–right here.

One of the LiveJournal “things” is to post a Friday Five. The five things can be related, or random, depending on your mood. So, in celebration, I thought I’d bring that format over here today, to tell you what you’ll now be seeing at this blog.

1. More of ME. Hopefully, this is a good thing.

My LJ blog has always been more personal. I tend to blog more about life, family, and my own writing ups and downs. So now, here, you’ll get to hear me fret. Lucky you.

2. A (subtle?) slant toward kids and YA writing/books.

This is what, for my fiction (and dipping into nonfiction), I write. And read. Hopefully, most of the writing ideas and tips I’ll post will apply to lots of genres, across the board, but you’ll get many examples from the “younger” world. You’ll also see me passing on links about books and events in the kidlit world. Let’s just call it my Add-to-Your-Reading-Pile effort.

3. Perhaps more photos.

Okay, definitely more photos. Especially in a couple of weeks. One of the impetuses (impeti?) for making this shift was when I realized I wanted to blog, with pics, about my research trip to Chicago, and I couldn’t figure out WHICH blog to post them at. Sheesh. So you all will get to come along and see Hull-House and Macy’s (formerly Marshall Field’s) and maybe even the house my grandmother lived in when she was a little girl.

You know you can’t wait.

4. Meat.

That’s what I call the hopefully helpful, instructive blogs I’ve tried to post here. My other blog has always been looser, more chatty and casual. I want to add that here, but I also intend to keep playing out theories and processes and tips about writing and, of course, critiquing. So if you’ve been liking that stuff, don’t worry. It’s not going away.

5. More frequent posts.

I’ve been posting here once or twice a week. And I’ve been posting at the LJ blog once or twice a week. That’s too much math for me, but you can do the addition. You’re going to see me here more often, probably with some shorter-than-usual posts. I won’t be putting up links on Twitter, Facebook, or Writer’s Market for all the posts–I don’t want to drown people with updates, you know. I’ll still link to anything I think may be really interesting or helpful, but if you check in on your own, you’ll be more likely to see something new. And hopefully fun.

So, it’s basically in with the new, but not out with the old. Stick around & see what you think!

Posted in Blogging, Promotion, Social Networking

Our Time Online: Where Do You Think We’re Headed?

Posted on by beckylevine

Okay, guys, I know I’m spending a lot of time on this lately, but I had an in-person conversation today with some other writers, and the questions we raised are churning away. And I’d really like to hear what you all think.

Basically, we started out talking about Facebook fan pages. Which I have not really explored. We took a look at some and talked about what they seemed to be doing, and here’s where my brain went:

“Blogs are going away. Webpages are going away.”

I know, huge leap. And obviously none of this is happening overnight. But I am wondering if we’re in another of those transition times, when the online world–and how people use it–is shifting. Yet again.

Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. A few years ago, webpages were the main place readers went to connect with a writer. They were the primary tool that writers used to get to know their circle, whether it be other writers, agents & editors, or potential readers.

Then blogs came along. And blogs became cool, primarily, I think, because they were less static than a webpage. You could go to someone’s blog every few days (some, every day) and read something new, find out something “fresh.” Newer blogs, like this one, are basically a blog with a webpage attached. It means I can have the “static” info up there for people who don’t know anything about me, along with changing content every few days.

And now?

I’ve talked about the people I’m “meeting” on Facebook and Twitter. I’ve also “met” people on blogs, and I definitely still go to someone’s blog FROM FB and Twitter if I think their updates are fun or interesting.

But I don’t spend a lot of time at those blogs. I add all I can to my LiveJournal feed, and I check in with them as often as possible, and I try to leave comments. And I try to keep my own blogs at least semi-interesting and informative.

After looking at these Facebook fan pages, though, I’m feeling like they have an awful lot of the same features that my blog/website do.

Are these FB pages the replacement? And how long will it be before Twitter has the equivalent. (Frankly, that might already exist without me knowing!) Are we moving, again, away from one use of the Internet and onto another?

So, I have a few specific questions that I’m hoping you’ll help me with. I’m not a Yes or No kind of person, so I’d love it if you just dumped your thoughts in a comment, random or otherwise. And I hope everybody who stops by will look at the comments, for the info everybody is leaving there.

  • Where do you make your first online “acquaintance” with an author or reader these days?
  • Do you spend as much time reading and commenting on blogs as you used to? How do you think your blog-reading pattern has changed.
  • Where do you go to find information about an author?
  • What do you enjoy about blog reading?
  • What do you enjoy about Twitter and/or Facebook?
  • Have you played with following any author Fan pages. What do you think of the process/experience?
  • Where do you think your online community has its strongest base?

Comments are OPEN!