The Slippery Slope of Social Media
Monday, August 9, 2010 So some writer friends and I were recently emailing about, among other things, Twitter and Facebook and social media in general, and more than a few of them were throwing up their hands (well, not literally, since they were typing), and saying, "I've had enough. Enough with tweeting, with frantically posting my every thought, of blurring that line between personal and professional," and, to be honest, even though I didn't entirely agree, it's something that I've given a lot of thought to as of late.
Right now, these past few weeks, I am deep into my revision of The Memory of Us, and something funny has happened: I have lost my instinct to tweet, to post FB updates, and yes, even to blog a bit. I click over to Tweetdeck when I need to give my brain a break and try to come up with something to say, and well, there's just not much that's coming out.
Which started me thinking. And which has evidently starting my friends thinking too.
I used to think that all of this outside writing and creating and whatnot didn't affect my writing, but now, I'm wondering otherwise. Actually, that's not true. Given that I have indeed, been able to steer myself away from these mediums while writing, I don't think that my writing has been affected, but I can really see how it can be. How you can spend your days training your brain to speak in 140 character lines rather than thinking about meaty dialogue or vivid, lush description. Some of my friends feel like they've fallen into this trap, so they're slowly shifting away from tweeting or FB-ing or however they send their messages out into the world.
The tricky side of making this shift is that as authors, we also know how important it is TO send these messages out into the world. There is NO DOUBT that social media sells books, that readers like to communicate with authors, and that platform is king right now. Publishers don't just want you to tweet and FB, they expect it. Readers seek you out, and if you don't make the effort, they may very well move onto another author who does. But authors also do wonder about where we have the power to draw the line: how much of our lives do we have to expose - share pictures of our families, offer details on our weekends out?
So what is a writer to do? For me, I feel lucky that I naturally pulled back from Twitter, etc, when my work needed it most: I have a deadline, and to be honest, I just can't compromise the time that I do when I'm not knee-deep in a manuscript. And once you step away for a few days (or even a few hours), it's easier to stay away the next day and the day after that. (I should say, I don't go full turkey- anyone who follows my twitter feed knows that! But trust me, I am spending a lot less time, and more importantly, MENTAL energy, on it right now). I'm also pretty comfortable talking about my pop culture loves and life observations, but I, too, draw the line that many of my friends are debating. I LOVE tweeting with readers and interacting with my FB readers, but I also can't reply to everyone (which I think people understand), and I also limit my personal FB page to people I know in real life. It's the only way that I can control this line that social media blurs. I'm not trying to be rude or anything like that, I'm simply trying to make sense and order of the SM platform.
It's a tricky thing - this brave new world. We're all navigating it together. For some of my writer friends, they've had enough for now. Too much tweeting about their personal lives, too much tweeting in general, maybe, not enough ACTUAL writing...which, after all, is what we're here for, what we're paid to do, and the only reason anyone has heard of us or read us in the first place. Anyway, I thought it was an interesting discussion: this balance and the push-pull and the combination of both dread and joy that social media brings. I, for one, wouldn't give it up entirely for anything. It makes me feel like part of a community, takes me out of that isolating bubble that is writing. But still...it's a slippery slope, no?
I'd love to hear how you guys navigate this brave new world, and if you've found that social media affects how you write, as well.
Reader Comments (15)
I agree that social media is an excellent tool for authors, but like everything in life, you have to be okay with the ebbs and flows. As usual, moderation is the name of the game.
Related to what you asked, I think this is why it is so important to engage in "platform building" activities that you actually enjoy. If you "force" yourself to do something, it quickly becomes a dreaded chore. Partaking in the social media stuff that you actually enjoy will go a long way towards helping that whole balance thing.
Sometimes I get really overwhelmed with social media. As someone writing her first book and having no other published work, I know that my blog is really my only platform. So I try to focus on increasing readership to the blog and that involves a lot of reading and commenting on other blogs, and reading up on techniques that recommend participating in contests and grabbing people's buttons and all this stuff I don't fully understand. So I try to set rules for myself like "comment on a new blog every day", "re-tweet someone's blog post once a day", etc. But then I also have to work a full-time job, maintain relationships and (oh yeah) write the actual book.
So I would say that social media does affect my writing, but only because it takes away from the time I actually get to write. Also I would have to admit that it's hard for me to do both in a short period of time, because I have to entirely shift creative gears. I finally decided that right now I should only do one post per week (decreasing from three). Because ultimately, while I realize that I need more readers to have my blog be considered any kind of platform, it's probably more important that I write a really good book!
My participation with social media has much to do w/where I'm at in the writing process. When I'm deep into writing/editing, I steer away from Twitter and FB. When I'm on a "break" waiting for notes from my agent, for example, I have more fun playing and being a part of the amazing writing community out there. You have to enjoy it. Building platform is important, but if you're out there just to drum up followers in order to sell books, it shows. I greatly enjoy the "getting to know people" aspect of things, and have no interest in authors who only use social media to plug their books.
I, too, have mixed feelings. Social media has definitely been a key factor in my book sales success this year, and most days it's a lot of fun. I've met some fantastic people as a result. But it is also time consuming, and there are days when I just don't have anything to say. (I've been experiencing this with my blog, especially.) It definitely takes time away from my novel-writing, and can be very distracting Likewise, I worry about the blurred boundaries between virtual friends and real friends. .
And although it has worked wonders for me, the whole issue of "platform" and social media works against the introverted writer who is not interested in that kind of contact or constant promotion (because we're promoting even when we're not promoting), and just wants to write and publish. I know very talented writers who are being hurt by this, rejected by publishers because they've refused to jump on the platform bandwagon (and not out of mere stubborness, but because it's just not comfortable), and that's too bad.
And now, I have to get offline and back to my manuscript!
I find that Social Media is alternately the worst and best thing I do as a writer. I love the direct connection with readers and allowing new readers to find me. I love that I can have immediacy for what I write, since books can take 1-3 years from my brain to someone's hands.
But I hate how easy it is to get sucked into it, to the detriment of my other writing....because it is so easy, and regular writing is hard. And I hate the guilt of not posting blogs often enough, or updating the FB fan page, or now, making sure I am Tweeting enough.
Slippery slope.
This is a very interesting topic and I can approach it as a newbie. I've written on and off all my life but have only recently decided to dedicate some serious time to it. As such, in the last week I have joined twitter and started a blog as somewhere to show my writing - rather than just letting it crumble away in a drawer - and to hopefully generate some comments and tips.
However, after just a week, I am now mildy terrified by the whole endeavor!
I am stunned, a brave new world indeed. I think I have written less this week as I've spent most of my time trying to get to grips with the what/how/why of online social media. I feel old and more than a little out of touch!
On the otherhand, I've come across some great sites and people! Very inspiring.
I can see how it can get out of hand though, so I'll heed the warning and make sure I keep focused on my writing rather than tweeting!
Ditto what Rebecca said 100%.
Also, I think this is a key: "I am spending a lot less time, and more importantly, MENTAL energy, on it right now."
If you're going to participate in SM, you gotta learn to do it smart. That means figuring out how to be meaningful without it detracting too much from your time and energy. No easy feat, of course. But then, it's just one of the many challenges facing modern authors.
I am a writer as well as artist and designer, so I regularly switch tasks throughout the day and social media is definitely the thread of distraction throughout. However, I consistently find that clicking on links, sharing with others, and receiving feedback is both a motivator and eye opener for me. I see opinions I wouldn't otherwise, I hear of new opportunities, and I pass these things along which people are grateful for. It is definitely about the community you create around you, what you feel you take away from it as well as what you contribute. To me, this is an entirely different task than writing and it's difficult to place them in the same ring so that they are competing with one another.
Another thing that hasn't been mentioned is social media as a creative endeavor. I recently started a Twitter feed for 140 character stories and while I can understand the fear of training your brain to write in short bursts, once you get into the thick of it, the actual variety and possibilities for this kind of work is astounding! The 140 character limit is brilliant in my opinion because it challenges you to think in another way. And it exists throughout all genres.
I see this kind of challenge, or tweeting in 6 words only for example, similar to how if you are a painter, you might try writing music, or if you are a sculptor, you might try sketching, because forcing your brain to look at a problem differently encourages new connections, new paths for firing neurons, and new creative bursts (I am not a scientist, but I like to imagine it this way, and it certainly feels this way to me).
I agree you have to enjoy it for a social media platform to be truly effective. But if you aren't enjoying it because you don't set your own boundaries etc., I'd challenge you to try using it differently than you are used to or differently than you've been told to use it. It's a wonderful medium for experimentation and the best way to learn it, like writing, is to just do it – put yourself up for public embarrassment and see what happens.
I'm struggling with the concept. I've learned SM can be a powerful reward for me. I'm also easily distracted and tend to bounce between projects, so I've stopped fighting the distractions. When I'm blogging, I bank a few posts and set them to auto-post and would love to see a Twitter option....but I suppose that defeats the point.
The trick is figuring out what's quality, and what's pushing the line into TMI....sometimes I really struggle for something to say when there's so much pressure to be witty, smart, and clever.
Fascinating. For the record, though, I know when you -- Allison -- or authors are MIA on Twitter and FB you're at work!
Randayle – you can preschedule tweets using applications like Hoot Suite. Check it out – http://hootsuite.com/
What an interesting post!
As a reader and blogger, I can only offer one persepctive on the whole thing, but I can say that I greatly appreciate the time that authors take to Facebook or e-mail. For me, it's like putting a personality with a what would otherwise be just a name, and when authors who network socially come out with a new book, I'm far more likely to choose to buy that one, than one by an author whom I've had no "personal" contact with. Then again, a presence (in my opinion) doesn't need to be daily tweets/Facebook/blogging whatever. Just here and there makes me sit up and take notice!
Wow, what interesting perspectives you guys have all added. Thank you! Very insightful for me to read as I assess how much time (and mental energy - yup, Kris, that's what it's ALL about!) to devote to SM. I have a follow-up tomorrow on how much an author should/shouldn't reveal about herself on SM too.
This is such a timely piece for me. I swear, I am standing on the edge ready to jump onto the Twitter wagon. I've been pushing it off for so many reasons, but the main one is my time is so stretched as it is, I can't imagine adding ANOTHER way to network socially.
I've been trying to create balance between my blog universe, my Facebook and my writing for a while now. I get frustrated because my novel should always have first priority, but I am still working on creating an audience of (hopefully) future book buyers and so, balance has been a hard thing to achieve. And yes, I do think it sucks some of those creative juices dry.
Perhaps after reading this, I'll postpone Twitter for a little while more. Maybe this was my big red light of a sign!
I remember once reading someone's tweet about the fact that they were stuck in a long line at the bank. And the first thought that popped into my mind was, 'does anyone, especially those who barely know this person, really need to know this?'
I believe that social media is a wonderful way to promote, connect, and share information. I think it can become an instrument of the banal and a terrific time waster (or ego stroker) when every moment of one's life is shared. I suspect that is also when it loses its effectiveness as a tool to sell one's books.