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Writer's Digest Handbook of Magazine Article Writing
by Writers Digest (Editor)
Write Great Fiction - Plot & Structure
by James Scott BellThis is my favorite writing book. I once had a mentor who said reading my practice novel wore her out. I read a lot of books on structure, but none really worked until I read this one. Now I know why I wore her out and how to fix it.
Google + for Authors
My new favorite social media hangout is Google +. It's public now, so get started. It's a much more educational place than Facebook, if you really want to learn new things--and what writer doesn't?
Google + is a great tool for authors and aspiring authors. Unlike Facebook, you don't have to have permission to follow someone. It's more like Twitter in that way. So you can follow famous people without feeling like you're intruding. There are plenty of authors and editors on Facebook--and plenty of readers, too.
How Google + works
Google + combines all the best features of Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. There is no word limit for Google + posts. Some people are using it like a blog for that reason. The posts are longer and more intelligent, so I find it a much more educational social media site at the moment. It's so much better than Facebook or Twitter for self-promotion or for learning. Some authors post about writing and without the word limit, they can really teach you something useful. For me, Facebook is small talk, and Google + is deep conversation....most of the time.
Google requires you to put each person you follow into a circle--a group, basically. This simplifies posting, since you quickly choose which group would be interested in your posts. If you're promoting yourself, most of your posts should be public. To be an author, you have to get over your need for total privacy. The circles also speed up the reading process. You can choose to read the posts of only one circle if you're in a hurry or focused. I have two groups for writers (LDS and general) and I can post my writing posts to both groups, just to the LDS group if it's religiously-oriented, or to the general public.
Preparing Your Google + for Social Media Marketing
Your bio page is critical to your success on Google +. I won't recipricate a follow unless someone has a real picture of himself (unless I actually know him), has a good bio, and has some posts already up. Let's start with the bio.
You must use your real, legal name on Google +. It is about promotion and it's serious stuff. In the place for other names or nicknames, you can put the names you go by on the internet or among friends, as well as a maiden name. But don't put Suzy691 as your official name or Google will ban you and serious followers won't follow. Your real name is probably going to be on your books, so it's the one you need.
Your bio tells people whether or not you are worth following. Write well, since it also tells potential readers (or publishers) if you can write. Include your credentials as a writer if you have any. If not, call yourself a writer who especially enjoys writing (fill in genre). List your hobbies and interests and a little about your family or background. Paint yourself as a well-rounded and interesting person--but stick to the truth.
People are appreciative when you tell them what kinds of circles to put you in. I find most of my people to follow because they followed me first. I don't add everyone because I don't want my streams too crowded, but if I do, I want to know where to put you. I also want to know if you and I have any interests in common. This is how I cover that in my bio:
"If you're adding me to a circle, I'm interested in all things pro-LDS, writing, genealogy, moderate and civil politics (I'm non-partisan), tech stuff, history, books, and authors. I'm also interested in learning about the religions of others, but not interested in attacks on anyone's religion. I have a circle called "Teach me something new." It's for anyone who appears to know and post a lot on a subject I don't know but might get talked into being interested in. (I'm especially interested in finding some good science posters who aren't over my head.) If you know something not listed here, and it's appropriate for a grandma who is picky about morality to learn, follow me and I'll see if you have something to teach me. I also have one called "Doing Good in the World" for people posting about non-profits or volunteer work."
By telling people what I'm interested in, I help them learn who I am. They also learn what I won't be interested in, such as nasty politics. Without this, most people, seeing I'm LDS, won't guess I want to learn about other religions as well. They also learn to leave me off if they like to make fun of other religions. It broadens the range of pepole who follow me and usually keeps people from adding me that I won't follow back.
Use a real picture of yourself, something you'd use as the headshot on the back cover of your first book.
Promoting Yourself on Google +
This is a little tricky. Unlike others, you have to think about your posts. What image do you want out there? One way to figure this out is to figure out what you want to write. If you plan to write clean children's books, clean cozy mysteries, or religious fiction, you probably want your posts G-rated. If your books have a bit of attitude in them, your posts should, too.
The main thing to remember is that nothing is really private on the Internet. You might share something only to a select group, but someone in that group might share it to another group, broadening the reach. There have also been times when private posts are accidentally made public. No matter how limited your post, simply assume the entire world might read it.
You can, of course, just be yourself and take the consequences. This is pretty much what I've decided to do. It's not the wisest choice, but my attempts to tailor myself don't work--someone posts something I don't like and I'm in there with an opinion, in spite of promises not to. So I am just me and you get what you get when you follow me. I've ignored advice to hide my religion for the good of my career and I've expressed opinions that are unpopular with my current type of reader...if you follow me, you'll get a mixture of all sorts of things. However, if you're a saavy marketer, and more self-controlled, you will probably choose the ways you're willing to irritate people carefully. However you choose, make sure it is a choice because you'll have to live with the results.
What Kind of Google+ posts should I make?
Most of the popular Google + people (of which I am not one) seem to have a mixture of posts. If you post nothing but links to your blog or website, or advertisements for your books, followers will quickly uncircle you. Offer some real advice or information they can use about your chosen subject. For instance, if you write Civil War novels, try posting some brief articles about the war or reviews of other Civil War books.
Intersperse those with more personal posts, posts about other hobbies, things that make you seem well-rounded to your visitors. One reason people follow famous people--which is probably what you want to be someday--is to feel like they "know" the celebrity. Little personal (but not too personal) tidbits make them feel like insiders. I have seen one well-known Google employee posting about his twins and his religion. Marie Osmond, who isn't on Google + yet, uses Twitter and Facebook to post little stories about her kids, food cravings, or daily life events. Then she mixes in promos for her work with those. People see the promos and respond, but they are following her for those insider friend-of-the-family stories.
Most people praise Google + for its educational value, so think about the things your followers are interested in that you know something about. Be sure to post on whatever it is you plan to become famous for. Sprinkle links to your blog or website, announce new acceptance letters or publications, but don't make those all you do. This is your chance to become a real person to your future or current readers.
Oh, and give back. Respond to the posts of others, plus one their comments (this is like the "like" button on Facebook) and offer help when asked.
Once you have a bio and some public posts, add me to your circle and tell me you found me here. However, you should know I don't like swearing or non-G-rated pictures, so I tend not to follow people whose posts I'll have to hide.
Google+ For Dummies
by Jesse Stay
Needless to say, you can find the author of this book on Google +. He's intelligent, so I am guessing the book will be good.