Would You Be Less Impressed?

Okay, so today I'm talking about a touchy subject--at least for me. It's something I've been thinking about a lot lately, and I'm interested to see/hear your reactions.

I swear this isn't a brag-fest, but I've done a lot online over the past few years. I co-founded the QueryTracker blog, where I contributed for over a year and a half. I co-founded WriteOnCon, a free online writer's conference. I wrote an ebook that is a guide to anyone who wants to query literary agents, and I offer it for free. I have critiqued hundreds of query letters for free. I co-founded the League of Extraordinary Writers, where I've contributed for over a year and a half. I co-founded the Bookanistas, an online support system and book recommendation group.

I've blogged five days a week for over two years. I commented on literally thousands of blogs. I tweet. I facebook. Heck, I think I even have a MySpace account.

Impressive, no?

I also write novels. Things have been becoming clearer and clearer to me over the past few months. And it's this: What I love most is what I do least.

Sure, I quit blogging for QT over a year ago. I cut back my blogging to three days a week. I don't comment on blogs the way I used to/should. I gave up critting query letters for free a long time ago. And right now, I'm considering some radical changes that will further free up my time to do more of what matters.

More time with my family. More time for myself. More time for my novels.

The pressing question is this: Would you be less impressed?

I honestly want to know. In this wide world of blogging, have we allowed ourselves to get carried away? Have we somehow deluded ourselves that our blog matters? That we can't write good books without blogging? That people will be disappointed in an author if they don't have a blog/Facebook/twitter?

Are we less impressed by the author who doesn't have an online presence?

Be honest, now. This is me. I can take it.

Your Jerry Seinfeld Skin

So an alternate title for this post could be "Fake it Till You Make it" but I'm a huge Seinfeld fan, so yeah.

Today we're going to talk pretend. I'm not sure, and I didn't spend time looking online (I am just that lazy, or maybe I'm drafting a novel...), but I believe it was comedian Jerry Seinfeld who once said that when he steps on stage, he pretends.

He has to. People are expecting him to be funny. Even if he's had a bad day, gotten in a fight, etc.

I sometimes feel like this is what we have to do online. We want to put our best foot forward. We should want to be on our best behavior.

And, we have to fake it until we make it. You want more followers? Think like Jerry Seinfeld. More comments? Jerry Seinfeld.

He puts on his best act every time he steps on stage. Your blog is your stage. Are you putting on your best act? If you do, people will come.

Getting Yourself Out There in 30 Minutes or Less

Dude, so this week of BLLuRT-ing has been super fun, yeah? I've enjoyed seeing your posts and reading what you love about books. It's been fun for me to see the enthusiasm we readers have. On Wednesday we talked a little bit about publicity, and what the average reader can do for authors.

Today, I'm going to touch on a few things authors can do to promote themselves in just a few minutes each day. (And we're talking authors like me, not say, authors like Scott Westerfeld, or someone equally as huge.)

1. Respond. I know this seems like a no-brainer, but it's not. I know that you're busy. So am I. So is everyone. IF POSSIBLE, respond to the emails you get, the blog comments, the tweets, the Facebook messages.

Everyone drops the ball sometimes, but no one wants to feel like they're talking into a vacuum. I can usually respond to every blog comment I get via email in about 30 minutes/night. (Whether I do it or not is entirely another matter...)

2. Blog regularly. That way, when you do have something to say about your book (or an event, a cover reveal, a deal, etc.) it won't be THE ONLY thing you say. I'm not saying you have to blog everyday. You'll have to analyze your schedule and see what works for you.

I typically write all my blog posts for a week on the weekend. It takes me about an hour. (Short posts, FTW!) Then all I have to do is respond to comments, try to get to as many blogs as I can, etc.

3. Repay the favor. If someone comments on your blog, comment on theirs. Remember that every time you do something like this, you're leaving your name and link behind.

Something else that goes here is: celebrate the success of others. Retweet their amazing news. RT-ing takes virtually no time.

Those are the big genralities. Let's zone in a little bit:

Twitter:
Twitter is designed to be fast and easy (140 characters or less! You don't have time to talk forever!). Make it so. Organize your lists if that's what it takes. Respond to those who tweet to you. Seek out other people in your genre.

All of this can be done in 15 minutes/day. (Of course, I spend a lot more time than that on twitter, mostly as a procrastination technique. Ha!) How?
1. Tweet during "dead time" from your phone.
2. Take one day per week, and use those 15 minutes to find people to follow.
3. Target one of your lists, tweet to those people for your allotted time.
4. Tweet something interesting, and then field replies for 15 minutes.
5. Join one of the many hashtag chats. Participate for the hour. Follow those in the chat.

Facebook:
Facebook is a plethora of different things. Photos. Videos. Links. Blog posts. Status Updates. For me, I choose to participate only in the status update realm. This helps me get through many hours of updates in only 15 minutes.

Other tips:
1. Like stuff. This is a one-click wonder that lets the person know you came, read, liked.
2. Type a quick comment. It's way easier than blogging, because there's no word verification. And everyone likes comments.
3. Set the timer for 15 minutes. Comment/like status updates until it goes off. Move on with your life.

Social networking doesn't have to be all-consuming. Publicity doesn't have to always be about shoving your book down someone's throat. Simply interacting--genuinely--online with people is publicity.

Because, remember, everything you do, you're leaving your name behind. The trick is to make it abundantly clear who you are and what you wrote when someone clicks on your name. That's where the real publicity happens--and you won't even know it.

What do you think? Is this the kind of publicity you can do?

My Social Networking Rules

I suppose that title could be interpreted in two different ways. I'll leave it up to the reader to determine. Ha!

Recently I've been attending conferences, and I have a few more sprinkled throughout the spring/early summer months. I also participate in the WriteOnCon monthly chats. I see a question come up all the time: What social networking sites should I be on? Will you take on clients who don't have a blog/who don't tweet?

I sat on a marketing and publicity panel at one of the conferences. I've been stewing over my social networking efforts and I've realized that I have rules for myself. I'm going to pass them along in the hopes that it will help someone who has questions about social networking.

Agents and editors WILL take you on if you don't A) blog B) tweet or C) Facebook. They may ask you to do something, but they're looking for great stories, not the best blog on the planet. (Though, in my personal opinion, I think having a good blog/website is beneficial. It won't secure an agent or a book deal--only good writing/storytelling can do that--but I think it's beneficial on the marketing/publicity side of publishing.)

Self-promotion. It's like a beast with fifteen heads, and when you chop one off, two more grow back. My policy? If I say something on my blog/Facebook/twitter about POSSESSION, I have to talk about/promote another book and/or another author before I can say anything else about my book.

I cannot take credit for this. I stole this policy from Lisa and Laura Roecker, who are fexcellent marketers. (See what I did there? Ha!)

Twitter. Everyone likes to say stuff about themselves. Humans are pretty self-centered. To avoid what I believe is a pitfall on Twitter about talking about ourselves/our books too much, I've adopted a tweeting policy. When someone does something amazing for me, I tweet about how amazing they are.

If I say something about what's going on in my life, I have to scroll through my twitter feed and @-message three other people who've said something about theirs. This creates a new conversation between me and them, and only takes me a few minutes. Then I don't feel like I'm hogging the twitter feed.

These are not the be-all, end-all rules of social networking. In fact, they're only "rules" in Elana-land. But I think it gets very tiresome to read someone's blog where ALL they do is promote their book. Same with the twitter feed. I mean, how many of you had no idea I have a book coming out?

So yeah. Some social networking rules that hopefully make self-promotion non-annoying.

What do you think? What annoys you re: social networking? What do you wish more authors would do? What do you wish they'd STOP doing? Lay it on me.

Self-promotion is such a fine line, sometimes I think it's hard for authors to know which side they're on.

Dear Self: Social Media

Okay, so with this month being NaNo and all (17,834 words, baby!), I've been giving a lot of thought to the social media in my life. I'm going to give you some things I wish I knew when I first entered this crazy social networking arena.

What I Wish My Past-Self Knew About Social Media:
1. Pick what works for you. Don't try to be everywhere, doing everything. It's impossible, and you'll just end up feeling like a raging loser.

You like blogging. Focus on that. You like Facebook. Do that. You hated twitter, remember? But now you like it, because it's quick, it's painless, it's fun. So don't judge your social media so harshly--or so quickly.

2. Remember that the Internet is a public battlefied. All online posts, tweets, and statuses should pass this question before being posted: "If I Google myself next week, will I be embarrassed by this post/tweet/status update?"

Only proceed if the answer is "No."

3. Be yourself. No one can be you the way you can. You can't imitate someone else and expect results. And BTW and FYI, most people can sniff a fake out of a garbage dump. So yeah.

4. Along with acting authentically, be genuine. Bambi's advice really applies here. If you can't say something nice, maybe you shouldn't say it. (See #2 above.) Of course, things are different for those in your Inner Sanctum of Trust. And everyone knows that IST's only communicate behind the scenes.

5. Respond/Repay/Interact as much as possible for you, your life, your schedule, your family, your writing time, etc. Everybody loves email as much as you do. Everyone wants a comment on their post. Everyone (even adults, heck, ESPECIALLY adults) wants to know they're valuable, appreciated, loved.

Do what you can. Hope that who you miss, someone else will pick up.

These are my big five. What do you have to add re: Social Media? Do you have rules for yourself? What are they?

And, oh my flippin' heck! You can preorder POSSESSION now! It came up on Amazon and Barnes & Noble yesterday. Trust me when I say I freaked out, complete with tears and everything. I just felt deeply how truly lucky/blessed I am.

The Book? Or the Author?

So I've been doing some thinking lately. I know that's always a scary thought. But whatever. You guys get to spend some time in the pink folds of my brain today.

And the great debate I want to bring up is this: Do we promote books? Or authors?

I've been wondering how much of a book's success is dependent on how good the book actually is, and how much author influence weighs. And I don't want anyone to bring up Suzanne Collins. I'm not talking about established authors. I'm talking debuts.

I'm sure we can all think of "big buzz" books. These are the ones we hear about on twitter, facebook, and blogs. These are the ones being talked about at book shows. It seems everyone is buying them, reading them, raving about them.

So is it a coincidence that these books also have authors that are accessible online? Likeable? Funny? Friendly?

Do we feel like we have to like the book because we like the author? How much does an author influence you in your decision to purchase a book? And after you read the book, how much does knowing the author/the author's personality influence your opinion of the book/the rating you give said book?

Are we promoting good books? Or nice/friendly/accessible authors? Can they be separated?

And...does it matter?

And dude! Go check out the WriteOnCon site today! Major announcement!

Time-Bound

So I'm a teacher. We set goals and stuff for the progress of our students. I'm a huge goal-setter. I've blogged about setting goals for your blog, your audience, etc.

Today, we're going to add something to that goal. A time limit.

In teaching, all of our goals are time-bound (it's what the T stands for in S.M.A.R.T. goals). So you should have a time limit on your goals as well -- real-life or writing.

For example, I made a goal to get published. I set a time limit of 5 years. Now I'm not saying that if you've been trying longer than 5 years, you should quit. But you should set a limit and work toward it. Readjust if necessary.

The same goes for blogging and social networking. Set a time frame, and then let go of the guilt.

Let me repeat that: Set a time frame and then let go of the guilt.

For me, I've decided that it's nigh to impossible that I can get to everyone's blog every time they post. It just isn't happening. So what have I done? Spiraled into summering, not reading anything. Then what happens?

Guilt.

So, here's my solution to that. If you're struggling with this, please join me.

I'm setting a time limit. I will devote 1 or 2 hours a day (depending on my schedule) to social networking. This includes reading blogs, commenting on facebook status, and updating twitter.

That's it. Once my time is up, I'm done.

And I refuse to feel guilty about it. If I miss you one day, I'll try to get you the next.

So who's with me? If you feel like you'll never get it done, you're right. You won't. But set a goal to do as much as you can for that one hour. And then let the guilt go.

Are you ready? How much time will you devote to social networking this summer? And how will you push that guilt away? I definitely need some tips for that.

Wearing Many Hats

This past week I've been preparing for the presentations I'll be doing at a conference in April. Spending so much time and energy on this made me realize something.

I'm wearing more than just the writer hat. So I decided to keep track of what I do in a given week. Now, don't freak out (Jonathan) because I didn't do any math. I just took a good, hard look at my writing time and wrote down how I spent it.

Because I wasn't writing. I wasn't working on my MS. (We're having issues again. We need literary therapy.)

I've hung up my "Writer/Reviser" hat.

Instead I've been wearing my Critique Partner hat. My Friend hat. Query Ninja. PowerPoint Presentation Maker. Reader. Outliner (shudder). Copier. Google Image Searcher. Blogger. Commenter. Social Networker.

And that doesn't even go into my personal life hats. That's just what I did during my alloted writing time.

How many hats do you have? Which one are you wearing the most right now? I really need to get back to the Writer one. I'm the happiest in that hat. I miss that hat.

How I Do It

Many of you have asked me how I do everything I do. You know, the farming and virtual cooking. The blogging. The blog reading. The query lettering. The reading. The working. The family stuff. Sleeping. And, oh yeah, don't forget the writing.

Well, strap yourselves in for a math lesson. Hey, I gotta put that math minor to use somehow. I'll be sprinkling in a few things I do along the way.

7 days a week x 24 hours in a day = 168 hours/week.

Sleep: 8 hours x 7 days = 56 hours.

Contrary to popular belief, I sleep 8 hours every night. I'm nothing if not scheduled. And schedules are not broken.

Hours remaining: 112.

Work (including travel time): 6 hours x 4 days = 24 hours.

Special Note: I work a job in front of a computer. I check forums, blogs, etc. and get paid to do it. In fact, I only read blogs while at work. (I blogged about Speed Blogging here.) Thus blogging hours: <24.

And yes, I only work 4 days a week. Don't throw rotten fruit.

Hours remaining: 88.

Writing: 2 hours x 7 days = 14 hours.

I do 95% of my writing between 9 - 11 PM. That's a lot of time if you think about it. Even without my endless three-day weekends, and full summers without employment, I spend a lot of time writing. (And when I say "writing" I mean in all it's forms, i.e. revising.)

My youngest kidlet is 5. She's been potty trained for years. Goes to bed at 8:30 no. matter. what.

My oldest kidlet is 11. He can do almost everything adults can do. Goes to bed at 9:00 no. matter. what. (Take that, super nanny!)

Hours remaining: 74.

Blogging: Posts read at work (see above). I write all my blog posts on the weekend. Sure, I double check the night before, but it's a five-minute thing.

So 5 minutes x 5 days a week = 25 minutes.
Post writing on the weekend: 2 hours. Since I do the once-a-week method for blog writing, I only have to think about blogging once, instead of five separate times. This works for me.

Hours remaining: 71 hours, 35 minutes.

Other kewl facts: I can type 89 words a minute. That's 91.5% faster than everyone else on Facebook, just so you know. *wink*

Twitter/Facebook/Forums: maybe 1-2 hours x 6 days = 6 - 12 hours.

I only tweet at night (or while at work). Here, there, whenever. I try to update Facebook once a day. My FB is organized into "family" "publishing people" and "everyone else". I go through each list, liking and commenting. Time? About 20 minutes. Since FB is blocked by the firewall at work, I do this upon arriving home.

Hours remaining: 60+. 

So there you have it. Some of the things I do in order to get it all done. And even then, I always feel helplessly behind.

What do you do? Schedule your blog reading time? Write while your kids are asleep? Duck into a writing forum during lunch? How do you fit it all in? Whatever "it" may be. Got any tips for me?

Catching Up...Or Not

Just when you think you've caught up, life has a way of throwing you back down on the mat and laughing at you.

I can't catch up with the social networking racehorse.

There will always be one more blog I should be reading. Usually one that everyone else in the known universe knows about, but somehow, I don't.

There will always be one more person to follow on twitter or friend on Facebook. Just when I think I've stalked all the writing lists and added everyone there is, I find more.

There will always be one more amazing book to read. Another author to follow/read about/know.

Always. One. More.

I have to know her, and her, and him, and hey she's amazing! And oh my heck, she sold her book to HarperCollins! And I need to follow her and tweet to him and and and--

I feel like I'm not doing enough. Yet at the same time, I feel like I'm doing so freaking much.

It's enough to make you explode.

And another thing: I don't have one yet, but today is Editor Appreciation Day, and I just wanna say "Yay!" to editors. Happy Editor Appreciation Day! If you want to read all the amazing love for editors, I believe Gretchen McNeil is hosting the official list on her blog.

And one more thing: Suzette Saxton is going to be unveiling a pretty cool feature on QueryTracker.net on Monday. It's totally related to social networking and hopefully will make finding other authors on Facebook, twitter, blogs and websites easier and faster. QT isn't just for queries anymore, my friends. So go to the main site (it's free!) and update your profiles with all your social networking sites--and your genre preferences. Then watch the QT blog on Monday, December 21 (kissing day! Visit Katie Ganshert's blog for that info.).

How about you? How are you feeling about life right now? Totally overwhelmed? Ready for the holidays? The new year? Need a vacay from your life? We can pack together. Mentally, I'm already there.

Social Networking is Killing Me

Because I was gone all last week, I wasn't able to do any of my facebooking, twittering, blogging, commenting, forum posting, etc.

And you know what? I didn't miss it. In fact, now that I'm back, the weight of social networking is so heavy, I'm considering scaling back. Like way back.

Because I'm tired of social networking. Are any of you? What are your best social networking stories? Met anyone amazing? Crit buddies? Agent convos? Basically, I need you to sell me on this whole thing again, because I really didn't miss it and just thinking about starting up again has me shaking.

Thoughts?

The Official Elana Johnson Website

So I finally bit the bullet and signed up for a website. I've been thinking about it for a while, but I kept telling myself that I didn't need one. After all, I have my fabulous blog. And I'm not a published author--yet.

But it was so cheap...and so easy...and there was all this stuff with ABNA...

And so here it is, my official website: www.elanajohnson.com

Go. Now. Go check it out!

And then, because my husband is constantly reminding me that he's the decorator at our house, come back here and tell me what you think. Cuz that website is all me, baby. My DH is chortling right now...somewhere. And he's right, I really don't have a good eye for design. Unless you count florals meshing with plaids. They do, right?

Anyway, let me know what you think!