How to Ignore Your Mother's Warning

by Brinda Berry

A few years ago, I only socially interacted with people I'd known for years. Even then it was sporadic. I'm not the party type, and I didn't really do Facebook. Then, I signed my first publishing contract and discovered I was expected to engage. I needed to ignore my mother's warning: don't talk to strangers.

I've always loved technology, so it wasn't difficult for me to pick up how different sites worked. Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads are all fun platforms to use "technically". The more difficult task was to actually talk to complete strangers. What do I have to say that would be of any interest at all?

I'd like to share what I've learned about talking to strangers.

1. Share topics that you are interested in and someone else will chime in on the conversation.

2. I like books and reading, so I talk about my current reads or discoveries.

3. Learn to poke fun at yourself. Others will laugh with you.

4. Ask questions. If you need help with anything from finding a good movie over the weekend to solving a computer issue, there are experts who love to help.

5. Be consistent. Don't be the friend who only visits every ten years. Show up on a regular basis and others will feel comfortable knowing that you are a presence.

6. Respond to others when they post. This is a two-way street. Don't expect others to be interested in you if you ignore the opportunity to respond to them.

7. Build relationships in a community. I've made lists in Twitter where I can view posts from people I've learned about and know. I have writer lists, editors lists, reader lists, etc.

8. Introduce others. If you have friends who need a boost up in this social media world, introduce them. It's exactly what you would do in person, so do it online as well.

9. If you're not funny, borrow someone else's humor. I'm not talking about stealing anything. I only suggest that you quote or share humor from others and give them credit. We all like to laugh. Smile!

Do you find it easy to engage with others on social media? What's your favorite or least favorite platform. Why?

You can find Brinda online here:

Website  | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube

About Brinda: Brinda Berry lives in the southern US with her family and two spunky cairn terriers. She is the author of the Whispering Woods YA series published by Etopia Press. She's terribly fond of chocolate, coffee, and books that take her away from reality. Brinda doesn't mind being called a geek or "crazy dog lady". When she's not working the day job or writing a novel, she's guilty of surfing the internet for no good reason.

Q & A with Social Media Expert, Beth Barany

I'm so excited to have you here today, Beth. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?

Rebecca, thanks for having me. I'm a fantasy author, teacher and speaker, and a creativity coach for writers. I live in Oakland, California, with my husband, also a writer, and our two cats. My newest book is Twitter for Authors: Social Media Book Marketing Strategies for Shy Writers, available on Amazon, iTunes, and Nook.

Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?

 

I do consider myself an introverted person, though not necessarily shy, since I have lots of extroverted qualities, too. I do like networking and meeting new people; I just need to be in the mood for that.

In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?

I've had a hard time calling attention to my fiction writing, in other words, marketing it, because of my introverted nature. I could probably take more risks than I have. Just knowing this helps me take baby steps out of my comfort zone, little by little. 

In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?

Being introverted has helped me spend a lot of time by myself writing, putting in the time to make my books as excellent as I can. Being introverted has also helped reach out via social media and communicate with lots of people that way. Social media has allowed me to be social and chatty in ways I never expected I could.

 

What’s the hardest part of this business for you?

Marketing my fiction and nonfiction books is hard for me, though I am getting better at it. I also have the challenge of comparing my marketing actions, or non actions, with other people. A bad habit, I know.

 

Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

Taking acting and improv class and teaching/speaking classes definitely were outside my comfort zone and helped me get more comfortable being myself in front of people. Now, I actually like presenting to groups.

 

What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?

I think taking improv is a wonderful tool that has really helped me. Also what's helped me has been triathlon training with a group of like-minded women. So I'd recommend sports training or a workout class that you love. It helps to get out of the mind and into the body.

 

Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?

Sure!

Twitter for Authors: Social Media Book Marketing Strategies for Shy Writers by Beth Barany

Social media book marketing is key to building your author platform and to selling more books. For many authors, the idea of sharing themselves with the world through Twitter and other social media platforms can be petrifying.  But in Twitter for Authors: Social Media Book Marketing Strategies for Shy Writers, you will discover simple ways to connect with your audience and potential readers. 

In this easy-to-read guide, written by a shy writer, novelist and teacher, Beth Barany, you'll find the confidence and encouragement to step into social media and the how-to steps on what to say, how to find your followers, and how to present yourself in 140 characters or less.

Amazon (http://bit.ly/TwitterForAuthorsBarany)

 

Where can my readers find you on the web?

Here's a list of my social media locations and sites. Thanks for having me on your site, and for helping me take a step outside my comfort zone! :-)

FACEBOOK 
https://www.facebook.com/HenriettaTheDragonSlayer

TWITTER      

http://www.twitter.com/beth_barany

PINTEREST  

http://pinterest.com/bethbarany/

GOODREADS          
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4169630.Beth_Barany

WEBSITE      

http://www.bethbarany.com/

WRITING BLOG     

http://www.writersfunzone.com/blog

Q & A with author Sarah Grimm

Thanks for being here today, Sarah. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?

As a young girl, Sarah Grimm always had a story to tell. At times they were funny, other times scary, but they were always happily-ever-after.

Sarah spent years scribbling in notebooks, filling the pages with partial chapters and the margins with titles and story ideas. She told friends that the characters spoke to her, and she was compelled to get their stories on paper. Eventually, she sat down at a computer and wrote her first tale of dangerously sexy suspense. That book, Not Without Risk, is a 2011 Readers Favorite Award Winner.

Sarah lives in West Michigan with her husband, two sons and three miniature schnauzers. Between mom's taxi service, parts runs, and answering the phone for the family marine repair business, Sarah can be found curled in her favorite chair, crafting her next novel.

Q Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?
A I have to laugh at this question because my older sister was just telling me the other day how envious she’s always been of my outgoing personality. We moved a lot while I was growing up, and she claims within 24 hours of arriving in a new town, I always had a new best friend. LOL I don’t really recall that, but I do know I’ve never allowed fear or being the “new kid” to stand in my way. Take, for example, my first RWA National Conference.

The year I joined Romance Writer’s of America their national conference was held in Chicago, IL. Since Chicago is only a three-hour drive from my home, I knew I had to go, even though the idea of going solo frightened me. I knew no one. I was a young mother who managed to eke out enough time to complete a manuscript. But meeting other writers? That hadn’t happened. Instead of letting the idea stop me, I got my sister and mother to share a hotel room with me. While they shopped Michigan Avenue, I cruised around the conference, attending workshop after workshop, making certain to talk to as many people as I could.

Q What’s the hardest part of this business for you?
A Promotion. It’s exhausting! I thought the hardest part would be writing the book, getting the story out of my head and onto paper (or the computer screen as the case may be). But after the book is completed and contracted with a publisher, that’s when the real work begins. When I decided to do a blog tour for my current release, I didn’t think too much about it, I just scheduled my appearances. Then I counted up how many blog posts I had to write. YIKES! I panicked a bit at first, and then I pulled on my big girl panties and got down to business. Promotion isn’t easy for me, but it’s a necessary evil.

Q Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?
A At the same RWA conference I mentioned earlier, I attended an editor’s panel. This is where editors from a specific house get together and explain what they’re looking for in manuscript submissions, followed by a question and answer session. At the time, I wanted to be published by this house more than my next breath, so I sat in on the panel, absorbing everything that was said. One editor in particular held my attention. She was looking for romantic suspense, specifically featuring heroes in law enforcement, which was exactly the story I wrote. I desperately wanted to talk to her, but was terrified. I sat in my chair, silently watching as writers approached her at the end of the workshop. I waited and I watched, finally gathered my courage and approached her. And you know what? I survived. She didn’t laugh too much when I stuttered my introduction, and in the end, she invited me to submit. I didn’t sell that book, at least not to that particular publisher, but I was happy I conquered my fear. Especially because when I left the workshop, I passed a woman in the hallway who was in tears because she allowed her own fear to stop her from approaching the editor she was interested in. I’ve always wondered what happened to that woman. If she ever conquered her fear and reached her dream of being published, or if she allowed fear to cripple her?

Q What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?
A Never give up.

Q Would you please share a blurb of your book and let my readers know where they can buy it?
A Here's the blurb:

She wants to forget her past.
He wants to reclaim his.
Sometimes the moment that changes everything comes After Midnight.

Thirteen years—that's how long Isabeau Montgomery has been living a lie. After an automobile accident took her mother's life, Izzy hid herself away, surviving the only way she knew how. Now she is happy in her carefully reconstructed life. That is until he walks through the door of her bar...

Black Phoenix singer/front man Noah Clark came to Long Island City with a goal--one that doesn't include an instant, electric attraction to the dark-haired beauty behind the bar. Coaxing her into his bed won't be easy, but he can't get her pale, haunted eyes nor her skill on the piano out of his head.

Can Noah help Isabeau overcome the past? Or will her need to protect her secret force her back into hiding and destroy their chance at happiness?

AFTER MIDNIGHT is available from The Wild Rose Press:
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=640&zenid=cac8f250e9c9d2f91424ee8492f70370

Q Where can my readers find you on the web?
A Website: http://www.sarahgrimm.com

Personal Blog: http://www.authorsarahgrimm.blogspot.com/
Group Blog: http://www.smutwriterssoapbox.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SarahGrimm.Author
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/SGrimmAuthor