I hesitated to begin writing this post. I seems like far too much self-aggrandizement for me to continue talking about winning awards for my writing. I actually did win an award, but shouldn’t someone else be trumpeting the news?
Then it dawned on me it had been a week and no one was exactly wearing ruts in the lawn seeking an interview (not that I expected them to … but I thought a little bit of interest would have been nice, in a kind of self-important, narcissistic way).
After ten days I realized it was useless to leave the porch light on … no one was coming except the postman (bringing sale papers and bills); and he comes in the afternoon with no need to light his way.
So, I’ll spend one more moment trying to toot this horn myself … but only a moment. I’ve got writing to do.
On Saturday, November 17, 2012, at the Regency Hotel in Miami, I accepted my 2012 Readers Favorite Gold Medal for Reichold Street. Along with two of my three sons and an enchanting young lady named Kiira Leess, my lovely bride of forty-two years was there beside me.
There, that’s done!
I don’t know about you, but I certainly feel better.
I’m sitting in Lake Worth, Florida tonight, getting ready to attend the Readers Favorite Awards in Miami this weekend. At the risk of sounding like I’m tooting my own horn (I am), I’m here because I won a Gold Medal for my novel Reichold Street.
I’m a little nervous, so I thought I’d try to calm my nerves by updating my blog … but I wasn’t sure what to write about. I was thinking about it late this afternoon when I took the picture above. Then it hit me.
I’ll blog about blogging.
Every writer seems to be blogging these days, from unknown authors to literary legends. If you’re a writer or want to be, you should be, too. But since blogging has become ubiquitous as a book-promotion tool, it’s important to do things right.
Here are ways to make sure your blog has a positive impact on your writing career.
1. Look Professional
The design of your blog is really important. It’s how you lure visitors and direct them to the places you’d like them to go, no matter how good your content. Remember business-speak about an elevator pitch? Consider your blog the same way.
If you’re not certain about that term, think of it this way: Does your site pass the “Three-Second Test”? We constantly pass judgment on people and things; often, in less time than it takes to take a deep breath. It’s how most human beings are wired.
The elevator door opens, a stranger enters and your brain instantly starts gathering data: Age:50-ish. Build:Athletic. Tan:Real. Clothes:Expensive. Demeanor:Confident. Briefcase:Leather. Occupation:Trial Lawyer?
Of course, first impressions are sometimes wrong. Perhaps this fellow isn’t a lawyer at all, but a rich tennis player who also sits on the Board of a large sports equipment conglomerate. Regardless, your first impression of him was formed in those first seconds.
The same is true for websites and blogs. It’s important your site makes the right impression, because within those crucial seconds your visitors will know whether they’re going to dive deeper into your content, or hit the back button and forget about you.
Don’t let readers fall off the pier. At a glance, your website should instill confidence.
How many followers do you already have? What are your credentials? If you’re blogging about writing, why should the visitor trust you? Is your content well written, believable and relevant?
Visitors will often judge your quality and trustworthiness based on that first brief visual impression, so make sure your site sings in perfect pitch right from the start.
2. Convey an Emotion
Beyond simple quality and trust, visitors are looking for something more … something they might not even be able to put their fingers on, but will know immediately when it’s there. It’s an emotion; a feeling; an intangible resonance that gives them faith in their connection with you. Make sure your website conveys your personality, your aesthetic and your reason for writing.
3. Imagine the Whole World is Reading
Before you post anything on your blog, ask yourself two questions: (1) would I be embarrassed if anyone I know reads this, and (2) is this content WORTH sharing? In other words, you should be sure that your blog posts will interest your readers, that they’re share-worthy and, most importantly, that you won’t regret them later.
4. Keep It Simple, Stupid
There’s a lot out there in the blogosphere competing for those few moments of your readers’ time. People have short attention spans. Feed them tiny meals. The shorter and punchier your posts, the better they’ll perform in terms of engagement and sharing. Plus, shorter posts are easier to create.
5. Let Your Personality Shine
If someone is visiting your site, they’re there for YOU – so give them what they want. Make sure your personality is on display. You don’t have to be an authority all the time, and you certainly don’t want to come across as pompous or arrogant, but be sure readers can tell from the content you post why you’re unique, or at least worth listening to.
6. Post Photos and Videos
Social media thrives on the sharing of photos and videos. So post your own. Post others, if you need to. Create a book trailer for your books, or link to one for a book you like. The three most important rules are: Post, post and post. You can even try an on-camera interview.
When Stephen King released Full Dark, No Stars he also did a live UStream video interview. King sat in front of the camera for 25 minutes and answered questions as they popped up in real-time. If you’re so inclined you can watch it here.
But you don’t have to do it live. Put it on Facebook and Twitter you’re going to be recording a video interview and you’re soliciting questions. Then, when people have responded to you in those places, compile your favorites and tape yourself responding. Record your answers off-the-cuff so they don’t sound stiff and contrived.
Once you like what you see and what you hear, upload the video to YouTube, embed it on your blog and link to your blog from Twitter and Facebook. Your readers will be excited to get a glimpse into your creative mind. The good thing about this kind of interview is you can always do it over, if it doesn’t come out great the first time.
7. Be Part of a Blogging Community
Be sure to network with other authors through their blogs and social media profiles. Share content and introduce your readers to other peoples’ works that you admire. Let other writers introduce your work to their fans. Remember, there is strength in numbers.
8. Tag, Tag, Tag
Finally, tag every post with relevant names and keywords that people might use in a search engine (think Google) to find your post. Tagging posts is one way to ensure that search engines (and more importantly, readers) find the content they’re looking for.
————— If you have a moment to spare, please check out the book trailer below for my novel, “Reichold Street.” It’s the book for which I’ll be accepting the award on Saturday.
I know a lot of people are enthralled with political trash-talking (and an occasional good debate), but I’ve become bored silly by it all. I’m also worn out with all the robo-calls political PACs have paid for this year. I can’t begin to recall how many I’ve hung-up on already.
Their calls are wasted on me. I decided long ago which side was credible and which was on the side of big-money special interests. Don’t worry, I won’t go into it here. That’s not what this about.
I’m not what you would call a television person anyway, so the 24/7 political babble has given me a lot of time to write … and when I’m not writing, I read. I just finished re-reading the very interesting Stephen King book, “On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft.”
For those of you who might not have picked it up, it’s not your typical King book. It’s not about monsters and horrors and other strange things … other than the ones he writes about in his own life.
He gives a fairly straightforward accounting of his life from a young age, and how he came to the craft of writing. He also talks candidly about some of his own demons.
Then he dives into the heart of the book. How to convincingly write … anything. It’s one of the most interesting books about the craft I’ve ever read.
Reading it again (this must be the third time), I started thinking of my own reading and writing history. I don’t have the same demons, thank goodness, but we all have them in some form or another, don’t we?
Even if they’re all a little different, as King points out, it’s those universal memories we draw upon when we write.
A good writer is honest with himself first and writes to show human emotions, not just describe them. If we’re good (and sometimes very lucky), we can portray those emotions; happy times as well as the sorrow, doubt, fear and angst, well enough within our fiction to make someone else nod in comprehension.
I’d like to write like that.
As I get ready to attend the 2012 Readers Favorite Awards during the International Book Fair in Miami later this month, I’m hoping to meet some new authors who will enchant me with their abilities to write like that, too.
I’ve always been an avid reader. In my memory it seems I was about the age of the toddler above when I started, although I know well enough that memory can’t be true.
Still, I know I started early … and long before I graduated from comic books I was writing stories of my own. They weren’t particularly good; that memory is clear, unfortunately, but it seems I’ve been writing as long as I’ve been reading.
In fact, I was trying to remember when I first learned to read, when I came across the image above … and it made me smile.
———– If you have a moment to spare, please check out the book trailer below for my third book, “Tinker and Other Stories.”
Then, if you have another minute, please tell me what you think of this one! It’s not what it appears to be.
Painting With Light 