Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of talking about book marketing and social media to a group of writers in Nanaimo as part of The Book Project. My fellow speakers included Crystal Stranaghan, Jared Hunt, Kim Plumley as well as Cathy Aniceto and Michelle Bigg from Aniceto & Bigg.
What a treat to talk to 55 writers at various stages of their careers. The questions and interaction during the formal part of the course were wonderful with lots of great questions about copyright, costs and authenticity. While I always enjoy teaching, for this group of students it was the informal connections that I enjoyed the most. I was asked great questions about social media for writers.
- How do I present myself online as a serious writer?
- What about privacy issues?
- Why should I promote my book online?
- How does traditional marketing work with social media marketing?
- How do you find inspiration for your blog?
- What’s a hashtag? (We used #thebookproject for this day.)
- How do you find the time to Facebook or tweet or blog?
- Why are you so adamant about authenticity?
One highlight for me was when YA novelist C.J. Gosling dubbed me the “Blog Doctor” and I’m looking forward to working with her to reenergize her blog.
The Book Project’s next steps include a teleseminar and further real-world workshop days. I hope to meet more participants in the near future.
