Thursday 27 August 2009

WRITING TIP: Use on-line time wisely

What can an author do to use his/her limited on-line time wisely?

He/she can adopt an on-line strategy based on three questions:

(a) Who do you want to connect with?
(b) What do you want your audience for ?
(c) Where is the best place to connect with them?

Before you commit any time to a social network in an effort to connect with an audience, first make sure the people you want to reach are there.

Click here for the full article by Eoin Purcell on the Writers and Artists website.

About Eoin: Eoin Purcell has worked as a commissioning editor for Mercier Press and Nonsuch Ireland. He contributes columns to The Bookseller magazine and writes a blog at www.eoinpurcellsblog.com.

14 comments:

Lady Glamis said...

These questions are why I've recently cut many blogs from my following list. I still get a feed from them, but I can only look at them if the post is immediately interesting. Great questions!

Chiron said...

When I joined Twitter (along with Facebook and MySpace) I discovered exactly how much writing it was possible to do without finishing one actual page on my WIP.

Great post!

--Chiron

Marilyn Brant said...

Oh, Ann... I think I need to read the article you link to right now :). Thank you...

lotusgirl said...

Great advice. It's easy to waste a lot of time online. Sometimes we end up just spinning our wheels and getting nowhere.

septembermom said...

Ann, thanks for the link. I am exclusively blogging right now. It seems the right on-line fit for me. I don't know if I could get into the whole Twitter experience. I look forward to reading the article.

Rebecca said...

Hi Ann,

I hope all is well, if you would please head over to my blog, I do have something special for you there, which I hope you'll enjoy!

Rebecca

Nancy J. Parra said...

Hi Ann, this is a great post! Really important advice. Now I must get off line and go write some on my wip.

Cheers!!

Ann Victor said...

LADY GLAMIS: This was also the reasoning behind my change in blogging habits. (I now only comment on the blogs of people who comment on my blog) It seems callous, but it's a question of on-line survival and strategy.

CHIRON: Hahahaha! That's so true, Chiron. I'm always complaining to my husband that I never have enough time to write and he replies "But you're always on the computer! So what do you *do* there?"

MARILYN: Hope you enjoyed the article. I found it very pertinent.

LOTUSGIRL: I agree. On-line time is great fun but can be a tremendous time waster!

SEPTEMBERMOM: I considered Twitter but, in addition to the time constraints, the thought of being limited to 140 characters (or whatever) was daunting. I also feel blogging is a good on-line fit for me, although I do have to be very disciplined about limiting my on-line time otherwise I'd never get any serious writing done.

REBECCA: Thanks so much for the lovely award. I do appreciate it and will load it for everyone to see when it's my next blog post day!

NANCY: Hope you managed a good amount of writing on your WIP - how you do it with your daily and weekly blog I just don't know!! :)

Anita said...

You know, I'm not sure social networking is as important as people make it out to be. I don't think authors need to Twitter or Facebook, they just need other people Twittering, Facebooking ABOUT them. How to get that? Write a really great book.

Ann Victor said...

ANITA: I agree!! I've come to the conclusion that, as enjoyable as blogging, facebooking and twittering are, they're not essential to being An Author. The danger lies in their seductiveness: as an unpubleished author, I *feel* so much more like a "real writer" when I'm on-line, that I forget that the only thing that makes me a "real writer" is, well, writing the actual novels! :)

Anita said...

Hah! If I weren't blogging, I probably could've written 10 novels (though they might all be about my hair and family).

Ann Victor said...

LOL Anita! :):)

Anita said...

Oops...hadn't thought of these questions...have just been asking myself things like, "What will I make for dinner and how will get four kids to four places at the same time by myself?" I'm writing/marketing blindly, Ann. I hope something I'm doing works!

Ann Victor said...

ANITA: I'm sure you're doing many things correctly !! :)