Where Am I: trapped in the pale glow of my laptop screen
What Am I Listening To: the sounds of My Sims Racing which is incongruous at best
So, the Writer's Platform, huh? It was inevitable that this should come up, really. I'm a new writer, after all, and like nearly all writers, I'd like to be published in the not-so-distant future. I say 'nearly all' because I do know a handful of delightful but sometimes incomprehensible people who write like mad without ever intending to show their work to anyone. I love them even when I boggle at them.
At any rate, here I am without so much as a plank, let alone a platform, to stand on. Obviously, this blog and my associated website (http://www.sjgordononline.com) are my attempts to build. However, I am aware that simply having a blog, a site, a Twitter account, and a Facebook page to not a platform make. Someone has to look at all this stuff, you know? Not only that, I have to provide frequent updates that are actually of interest to more than myself.
But, hey! No pressure! Right? Oy.
I have to admit, I'm still largely baffled by the whole idea of building a platform. I'm not clear on precisely what I'm after here. I know I should have lovely readers for my blog. I know people should be visiting my site. But I have so many other questions yet to be addressed. If you Google my name, should it be the very first thing that pops up on the results page? How do I get it to be the very first thing that pops up on the results page? Am I supposed to be posting samples of my work? How in the world do I determine what is interesting content for my readers? How do I get the following of readers I pretty obviously should have? When, in the midst of all this self-promotion, am I supposed to write the darned books? Do I worry about this platform building after I've begun to query (which doesn't really sound right to me)? Do I hold off on queries until the platform is fairly solid?
ACK!
I guess I'll seek out answers to these mysteries when I need a break from the rather wearying process of editing the heck out of my manuscript. Any and all advice from my readers (are you out there?) would be much appreciated.
*smooch*
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Hi S.J. I've written a book for writer's digest on platform building. I think people are getting a little carried away with the platform push, to be honest. There are four parts for any writer to master: writing, selling/querying/professional development, and self-promotion (also known as platform development).
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if that makes you feel better or worse. But I'd work on all four, with the greatest weight going to writing well.
Hope this is helpful...
Christina, it is very helpful and I thank you! I'm going to go have a look at your book, as well. I understand the need for solid writing (I mean, DUH) and I understand the importance of a really well-crafted query. The selling, I suppose, fits in with the query but at this point, I'm starting to wander into the boggy wilderness. By the time we get to professional development and self-promotion, I'm not only in the bog, I'm sinking into the mire. Time for some research, I'm thinking!
ReplyDeleteThank you, again!
You're welcome. Hope you like the book. :)
ReplyDelete