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Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Archives for Karen Ball » Page 5

Karen Ball

Keys for Effective Social Media Use

By Karen Ballon July 20, 2016
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Okay, I don’t pretend to be a pro on social media use. Honestly, I use it because I enjoy it. (Yeah, off-the-scale extrovert here.) But I’ve done some research lately for this blog, and found that the following tips I wanted to share were also mentioned in several of the “How To” sites I read. So here are a few collectively suggested “keys” to making sure your social media involvement is as effective as it can be.

First, in answer to the “How do I get started on social media?” question, the consensus seems to be:

  1. Have a quality website. That means a website that looks and acts professional. Which generally means don’t do it yourself unless you really and truly know what you’re doing on every front, including design SEO, and other things about which yours truly knows very little.
  2. Choose one or two social media sites to engage your readers. Base that choice on researching where your specific audience seems to show up most often.
  3. Learn how to use that/those site/s well, and be consistent in using it/them.

And here are three keys to being effective on whatever social media you choose:

Be Authentic. It’s a good thing to keep in mind: God knows your heart. He’s given a task to write, yes, but odds are very good that He’s done so to use you to minister to and help others. If your only reason for using social media is to sell something, don’t bother. You need to care about your audience, to remember that these are real people with real lives and real feelings. And trust me on this, they can tell if you’re there because you care–or if you’re just being a salesman.

Get Engaged! As exciting as it is when something you’ve put out there goes viral, virality (no, I didn’t say virility…sheesh!) doesn’t last. Trying to go viral is, basically, impossible. I hear it over and over when someone has a post or blog or whatever go viral: “I had no idea people would react the way they did.” So a far better focus is on actively engaging your audience. In other words, make your communications about them, not about you. About helping them. About getting to know them and helping them get to know you. Post pictures you think they’ll enjoy. Share what you’re doing and ask them what they’re up to. Invite their participation. Create a place where they feel welcome and part of a community. Where they care about each other.

Be Appealing! Yes, it’s about caring, but you need to know what you’re doing if you’re going to serve your audience well. So are you posting/pinning/tweeting in a way that is appealing to your chosen audience? I learned this principle I the early Christmases of my marriage. Don and I gave each other gifts based on what we thought were cool gifts: I gave him pens, he gave me tools. But friends, my husband couldn’t care less about writing utensils. As for the tools? Um…no. After several less than successful Christmases, we realized what we were doing wrong and changed the focus of our gift giving from ourselves to the other person. And let me tell you, that made all the difference. So make your communication about your audience. If you’re geared to a younger audience, have you refined your skill in using emojis? If your audience is primarily seniors, have you learned what appeals to them most and on which platform? Know your audience, and know which social media best appeals to them.

Stay Mobile! Whatever social media you use, keep in mind that you want it to be mobile friendly, meaning it needs to work well not just on a computer, but on mobile devices as well. That impacts how you build a website, the way you post, even the length of your posts, and so much more.

So there are a few things to keep in mind as you jump in. Now take a deep breath…and get out there and be social!

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Category: Career, Marketing, Social MediaTag: Career, Social Media

When You Must *Not* Wait

By Karen Ballon July 13, 2016
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I shared, in a previous blog (“The Hardest Part of Being a Writer“), about the difficulty of waiting during the writing journey. Well, I’m happy to report that there is an area where you not only don’t have to wait, but you shouldn’t, and that’s building your audience through social media. I can’t tell you how many of the proposals we’ve seen in recent weeks that say something along …

Read moreWhen You Must *Not* Wait
Category: Get Published, Social MediaTag: Get Published, Social Media

The Dark Side of Silence

By Karen Ballon July 6, 2016
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It took me a long time to be comfortable with silence. I am, in essence, a Golden Retriever crossed with an otter, so I’m all about fun, fun, fun! I gotta play, gotta move, gotta be in the middle of whatever is happening. Whee! Ain’t life a barrel of puppies?? But plunk me down to sit still and be silent? AAAHHHHH! I used to think I was alone in fidgeting when it got too quiet.  As for flat-out …

Read moreThe Dark Side of Silence
Category: Creativity, The Writing LifeTag: Silence, The Writing Life

What Editors Wish You Knew about Meeting with Them at Conferences

By Karen Ballon June 29, 2016
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Thanks to Becky McCoy for requesting advice for conference meetings with agents and editors at conferences. You can find a lot of counsel for meeting with agents on the different agency blogs, but I thought I’d supplement those posts with advice from some of the in-house editors you’ll find at this years’ conferences. So I emailed said editors and asked them to share their wishes with you. Here …

Read moreWhat Editors Wish You Knew about Meeting with Them at Conferences
Category: ConferencesTag: Pitching

Show Off Your Emotions!

By Karen Ballon June 22, 2016
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You’ve heard it over and over: Show, don’t tell. Well, I agree with that sentiment when it comes to important emotional scenes. Fiction, nonfiction, doesn’t matter. If you want to stir your readers, learn to show powerful emotions. As I thought about this blog, though, I figured you all don’t need yet another how to. Instead, I want to challenge you to share the most powerful emotion you felt this …

Read moreShow Off Your Emotions!
Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Emotions, show don't tell, Writing Craft

Writing in the Night

By Karen Ballon June 15, 2016
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Does it seem to any of you that things the last few months or so have been really hard? That there are more people struggling and hurting? As I’ve gone through my dad’s continued health struggles (2 more hospitalizations in the last 3 ½ weeks), my own health frustrations (bursitis on my knee after starting an exercise program of walking on the treadmill. I mean, seriously? I start exercising and …

Read moreWriting in the Night
Category: The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Discouragement, The Writing Life

The Hardest Part of Being a Writer

By Karen Ballon June 8, 2016
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If there’s anything I hate to do, it’s wait. At the gas station, at the grocery store, at the doctor’s office…it’s wait, wait, wait! Drives me nuts. I want to get going, get things done, move, do something! Not just stand or sit there. If you’ve been at this writing gig for long, you’ve faced that most difficult aspect of writing. The Waiting. You scramble to refine your craft, make your …

Read moreThe Hardest Part of Being a Writer
Category: Book Proposals, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: book proposals, The Writing Life, waiting

How To Make Agents’ Blogs Work for You

By Karen Ballon June 1, 2016
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We at the agency love it that so many of you come here every day and read what we share with you. And we do everything we can to ensure that what we share here informs, enlightens, and uplifts you brave souls navigating the publishing world. So last week, when I read some of the questions you’d like addressed, I thought I’d give you a tip on using this blog to its best advantage. And that tip is: …

Read moreHow To Make Agents’ Blogs Work for You
Category: Agency, ConferencesTag: Agency, Blog, questions, Research

Speak Up! Ask a Question!

By Karen Ballon May 25, 2016
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Every week, we at the agency craft blogs to give you insights, counsel, and even a laugh or two in relation to the mercurial world of publishing. Sometimes, though, I wonder if there are questions you have for which you can’t find answers or guidance. So a couple of times a year I pass the mic, so to speak, to you. As I’m doing now. Do you have a question to which you can’t find …

Read moreSpeak Up! Ask a Question!
Category: Get PublishedTag: Get Published, questions

What’s My (Last) Line?

By Karen Ballon May 18, 2016
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Here are the sources of the last lines I shared last week: “Maybe loving dogs… “A Big Little Life, Dean Koontz’s book about his Golden retriever, Trixie. Actually, the ending “The sign now includes…:” comes from the afterword of that same book. Yeah, I cheated. But I thought they both were perfect, in their own ways. “But the good part is …” Shiloh, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. …

Read moreWhat’s My (Last) Line?
Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Craft, Endings, Writing Craft
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