Seeing as I am now officially on Facebook as an Author (you can check out the page I made here!), I have now completed my collection of major social media platforms . . . that is, until they come up with another one. Social media doesn’t come to to me naturally, so it’s been a rocky road! In honor of my Facebook debut, I thought I’d share what I’ve learned so far. In no particular order, and with tongue in cheek:
Pros: very short. also, twitter “chats” are surprisingly fun, speaking as someone who rarely puts a word in edgewise in a group setting!
Cons: other people’s tweets. Really though! Do I need to see all the spammy “lifts” and attention-needing super-random questions and Very Important Arguments?
Thoughts while using it: “oh I want to respond but I need to say something witty and it has to be short oh dear well no one else is saying anything witty so I guess I should just go for it, wait is it too late to reply now?”
Pros: pretty pictures! and writing advice.
Cons: ads. Supposedly, though, they’re good for selling books . . . *evil musing*
Thoughts: “Oh that’s so cute!! But of course if I made it, it would never turn out like that. Who has that many popsicle sticks on hand? Where did they get that fabric?? Well, I’m going to pin it anyway, for inspiration.”
Pros: more pretty pictures! And people doing fun things!
Cons: feeling very silly because making a “story” isn’t as intuitive as you hoped, and the app doesn’t come with directions because really, who hasn’t figured out Instagram yet? *awkward chuckle*
Thoughts: “Cool beach photo! Oh, nice looking book! Neat author post! Look, I made a new friend and they tagged me in a quiz! Oh no, how do I do the quiz and repost it? . . . Will just ‘liking’ it count?”
Pros: linked to Instagram.
Cons: everything else, except maybe groups and ad potential (. . . Okay, maybe I’m being harsh! I’m not a big fan of Facebook in my personal life, but maybe with an author page it will be different 🙂 )
Thoughts: “Oh look, another group to join! And another! And another . . . Wait, what was I supposed to be doing?”
Bonus: Goodreads
Pros: is in fact a virtual library masquerading as a social media network
Cons: SO MANY EMAILS. And if I unsubscribe from them, I miss out on hearing about books!
Thoughts: “Wait, people actually comment on other people’s reviews?”
All in all, I’ve found Instagram to be the most intuitive and useful for me personally. But all the best advice out there suggests trying out different platforms and seeing what works for you; some people are great in one area, and endlessly frustrated by “spam” in another (*ahem*). The way I look at it, trying out social media is a little like scattering wildflower seeds. Who knows what will take root and bloom? In a world (and an industry) which increasingly relies on the internet to get things done, it’s worth it to find out. 🙂
If you’re on Facebook, go like and follow my new page! 🙂 https://www.facebook.com/ElleHartfordAuthor
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