Writers and Social Media

We hear the term Social Media a lot. Do you know the official definition of the word?

Webopedia Definition
A term used to describe a variety of Web-based platforms, applications, and technologies that enable people to socially interact with one another online. Some examples of social media sites and applications include Facebook, YouTube, Del.icio.us, Twitter, Digg, blogs and other sites that have content ...
https://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/social_media.html

I'm guessing that a great many writers use some form of social media. The question I ask is to what

purpose? I'm not putting it down. I use it and am a proponent of writers becoming involved with various outlets of social media. I ask the question to let you give thought to your reasons for using it. 

Do you pop onto Facebook daily for some sociability with friends and family? That's fine, but do you also use Facebook to promote your latest publication, speaking engagement or conference attendance? If not, you should. Many writers have two facebook pages--one for personal life and one for their writing life. I have both, but I use the personal one to let friends and family know what goes on in my writing life, too. 

One of the suggestions for branding yourself as a writer is to use social media. Get your name spread often enough that you gain some recognition. We're fortunate to live and write in a time where reaching others and informing them of your writing life is so very easy. 

Did you notice in the definition that 'blogs' are included? That surprised me, although it probably shouldn't as a blog fits the definition quite well. Instagram was not mentioned, but it seems to me you could share a photo there of you and your latest publication. Have you tried using YouTube to promote your writing? Here's an article that might help. Twitter seems to be a big part of our world today. We see 'tweets' on the news on a daily basis. If you haven't already, you should consider signing on at www.twitter.com. Every time something of interest in your writing life occurs, hop on over and tweet. 

If you haven't used a lot of social media, there's no time like the present to begin. It may all seem like Greek or nonsense to you at first, but stay with it and soon you'll be an old hand. 

I put links to my blog posts on several writing-related facebook pages plus my own writer's page and my personal page. I tweet each post on twitter, too. I've gained many new readers by doing this. Does it take time? Yes, but not a large amount. When you do it five days a week, it becomes routine and goes fairly fast. 

I also have many Friends on facebook who are writers. and they promote themselves there as writers. I enjoy seeing what new publication they might have or an award won. It's a chance to congratulate or commiserate when rejection happens. Writers sometimes put questions on facebook and get numerous answers. Their Facebook Friends occasionally help choose a book cover with a poll the writer uses. 

If you never use Social Media, consider giving it a try. If you're an occasional user, up the amount a bit. The more you put into it, the more benefit you receive. You've probably heard that people spend far too much time on Social Media sites. That can happen, no doubt about it. The solution to that is entirely up to you. Put a limit on the time you spend there.