You can hardly swing a computer keyboard around (well, okay, I don’t recommend swinging a computer keyboard around, but anyway…) without seeing a chance to take a workshop on how to utilize social media. Taking a workshop on social media is a great idea. I’m a huge advocate of using social media for fun, to connect, and, while you’re at it, to let people know you’re a great writer.
But I was hardly the first one to the gate, or even out of the gate. Many were blogging, tweeting, on Facebook, and doing Google searches (and by the way, you perform a Google search — you don’t Google anything) long before I did.
And, like hanging on to an old pair of shoes way too long (It may be time to relegate those reliable running shoes to “yard work” status?) some columnists have outgrown the outlets where they are contributing.
If you are still writing for and about a genre you are no longer involved in, I’m talking to you. Or a topic that no longer has any meaning or place in your life, I’m talking to you. Sure, you may not want to disappoint your friends. But if you stop, you aren’t cutting them out of your life. Just their blog. And if they quit talking to you because you stop writing for their blog, they’re not your friends. (Yes, I sound like your mother. Call her. But only after you finish reading this blog.)
Why should you stop? Because by writing about topics and genres that don’t have anything to do with books you aren’t writing today, you are giving your current readers the wrong impression. Say you used to write Regencies. Now you’re writing sassy contemporaries. You need to ditch the Darling Mr. Darcy blog and write all about Saucy Suzy. Capture the readers you’re currently pursuing. Because your writing has changed. And so must your image.
But what about your backlist? It’s still online.
Fine. Your old blogs are likely to be online, too. But your primary focus should be on your current publisher and your current work. The present is a gift. Open it.
Your turn:
Have you evaluated your online presence lately? Is it up to date?
How is your electronic housekeeping going?
What do you need to add to stay up to date?
