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Social Media Reflections

Apr 04 2014

With the forthcoming release of my second book, Necropolis (a humorous work of dark fiction ~~– Release Date: April 24th~~), I have found myself reflecting on my place in the ever-growing medium that is social media. This week’s blog post is dedicated to social media.

Anyone familiar with my Twitter Species blog posts will be aware that my interest in Twitter is now an obsession. I like to consider myself a member of the Amica Garrulus (Convivial Communicator) species. We are social Tweeters, who like to engage with all other Twitter species (with the exception of members of the Vexo Tertius & Molestus Confuse species), who we avoid like the plague.

Here are a few of my Twitter observations.

Engagement – This is crucial (if your Tweets are never part of a conversation you are merely talking to yourself – and we all know what the first sign of madness is don’t we).
Endorsement – It is imperative that other Twitter specimens (regardless of species, well, almost) endorse us. This validates our efforts.
Discernible Tweeting Call – To be heard above the relentless clamour of the Twittersphere, a distinctive/unique Tweeting call is a necessity.
Pictures – The good news is users can finally effectively upload pictures. The bad news is Twitter is seeing an influx of pictures of kitties (c.f. @EmrgencyKittens – for when you need a kitten to cheer you up).

With over 1.23 billion monthly active users, Facebook remains the behemoth of social media platforms. However all is not well in the home of countless millions of cute kitties. Facebook has started to resemble a police state in recent times, with the major change to its timeline update a little over a year ago, which resulted in less of one’s Likers getting to see one’s posts. Under the current draconian measures, Facebook seemingly arbitrarily decides what percentage of your Likers/Endorsers get to view your posts

Not all Likes are equal – Seeking random Likes is counter productive, unless your sole objective is to make your page appear popular. But as we all know appearances can be deceptive.
>200 Likes – If you have a page with >200 Likes it is not currently possible to change the name of that page. Instead you have to start a new page. This is something to consider when starting a page.

I had the >200 Like issue yesterday with my Charles Middleworth (my first book) page, and was forced to start a new page for my forthcoming book, Necropolis. My Necropolis page currently has no Likes, and is feeling lonely and isolated. Feel free to Like it and I might Like yours back, unless your page is full of pictures of kitties, in which case I won’t.

We are currently witnessing something akin to the mass migration from the countryside to the cities of yesteryear, as Facebook users increasingly disillusioned with the draconian measures, and/or influx of kitties on Facebook, seek a new home on Google+. Google+ is supposedly geared towards businesses and professionals, but as a cursory glance at my homepage reveals, there is a disturbing influx of kitties, in addition to pictures of home baked cookies; which leaves me wondering whether this is still the case.

Google Rank – There is considerable evidence to suggest that effective use of Google+ (SEO optimisation, +1s etc.) leads to preferential treatment on the Google search engine.
Innovation – As one can expect from the creators of the Google search engine, Google+ is constantly innovating and is quite complex. New users need to be prepared to spend considerable time becoming familiar with it.

goodreads is a haven for readers and writers alike to liaise in a kitty free environment (earlier this week I did receive a message from an author who has just written a book about his relationship with his three kitties, but that is the exception rather than the rule).

Giveaways – Are an effective way for authors in a congested marketplace to gain some exposure for their book/s. In January I had a giveaway for my first book Charles Middleworth, a humorous tale of the unexpected (entries: 800, added to to-read list: 294). I will be having another for Necropolis (starting soon).
Groups – Some of the groups provide a great way to meet readers and authors, as well as to share our universal love for books (not Romance & Christian Fiction in my case).

My second book, Necropolis ~~(April 24th)~~, is a humorous work of dark Fiction about a sociopath, who works for the Burials and Cemeteries department in his local council.

‘A black comedy of true distinction’

Next week I will be sharing the blurb.

Earlier this week author and Hollywood actor, Eric Barry, interviewed me for his new website, CHUNKBOOK. Click here to see the interview.

Social Media Reflections

Sep 06 2013

Prior to the publication last year of my novel, Charles Middleworth, an insightful and humorous tale of the unexpected, my social media presence consisted of merely a Facebook profile with a couple of pictures (not of cats). Shortly before the book’s release I made a foray into Twitter and have since embraced a range of social media platforms. In this post I reflect on my social media observations to date:

Twitter – A little over seven years ago a Tweet was the sound emitted by a variety of small birds. Today Tweets are synonymous with only one bird, the blue Twitter bird; a bird that tweets incessantly 24/7. To date approximately 170 billion Tweets have been sent by 500 million Twitter users.

As my blog followers know I have become somewhat obsessed with Twitter and have devoted numerous posts to Twitter related subjects, ranging from studying the species that inhabit Twitter, to Twitter grievances including Justin Bieber and the ways in which authors sell books on Twitter.

Observation: The value of Twitter lies in the personal connections one makes, not in intrusive and counterproductive blanket promotional Tweeting.

Facebook – Facebook remains the behemoth of social media with over a billion users each month. Much of the promotional efforts on Facebook revolve around getting Likes for your given page/s. However the value of these Likes is more often than not derisory. Research suggests 99% of Facebook fans are worthless.

It is worth noting that Facebook only displays your posts to a small percentage of the people that have Liked your page. Facebook also charges users to promote their posts after reaching the 500+ Like threshold.

Observation: Not all Likes are equal. The value of a given Like is derived from its origin (i.e. authors require Likes from their target-readership not other authors).

Linked-in – The site’s 238m users take their jobs seriously and turn up smartly dressed and ready to network. They do not appreciate the ruckus of some other social media sites (i.e. Twitter) and expect decorum at all times. Self-promotion needs to be conducted with restraint. Some have argued that the platform’s obsession with stamping down on self-promotion has become overly aggressive of late (see this Forbes article). Personally I do not use the site a great deal but can occasionally be found at one its numerous groups dedicated to writers.

Observation: A great place to get advice and network with others, but remember that the party hat people might find amusing on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest will probably not go down well here. Oh and there is no need for those pictures of your cat – I don’t care if it is cute.

Goodreads – With 20 million members and 2.5 million reviews, goodreads is the place to be to network with readers. I find myself relishing this Bieberless enclave every time I visit. Goodreads is a place where one is able to concentrate on book related matters without being interrupted by scantily clad South-East Asian jail-bait promising to love you long time whilst trying to sell you thousands of Followers for $10.

Goodreads is an ideal place for authors to meet readers; readers being the key word. If one only socialises with one’s author friends on the site, then the whole dog chasing its own tail scenario starts all over again.

Observation: Etiquette is the key word with goodreads. Its users are fastidious in embracing social norms and will more often than not meet unsolicited friend requests and self-promotion with contempt.

Google+ – There is much evidence to suggest that the Google search engine matches search results with Google+. This is reason enough to join the 500m users in calling the place home. It was only recently that I turned up at Google+, bunch of flowers in hand. However I received no love, so I came back with a box of chocolates, but my efforts still went ignored. I am determined that one day in the not too distant future I will be viewed as a valued member of this increasingly influential community.

Observation: Backed by its big brother Google, Google+ is set to grow exponentially over the forthcoming years and may well be where the party will be at.

What happens when Adrian, an actuary, has his banal and predictable existence turned upside down by sinister forces that he can neither understand nor control? How will he react to a revelation that leaves his life in turmoil? Will he surrender or strive for redemption in an altered world, where rationality, scientific logic and algorithms no longer provide the answers?

‘An insightful and humorous tale of the unexpected’ – Reader

‘A sardonic delight. If Thackeray had lived in the 21st century, then he might have written Charles Middleworth.’ – Reader

Charles Middleworth is available through most regional Amazons on Kindle (£1.96/$3.17) and in paperback.

United Kingdom – www.amazon.co.uk

USA – www.amazon.com

Facebook Likes

May 10 2013

Until last year I didn’t use Facebook much, but shortly after my book, Charles Middleworth was released, I set up an Author Page and begun exploring with enthusiasm, this, the behemoth of Social Media platforms (901m users approx). I realised that I Liked Facebook. In fact as I was soon to discover Facebook is all about Liking. One can Like everything from pages to posts, pictures and comments. All you have to do is click Like and I duly did. I Liked author pages, product pages and lots of pictures, including plenty of cats, dogs and people at parties.

In no time at all I was clicking Like repetitively time and time again. I Like this picture of a cat and that one and that one too and yes I Like that author page and that one, that one and that product page and that product page too and that picture of a tractor. But not you, I don’t Like you, I don’t know why I just don’t. So I bypass that one and I’m Liking again, incessantly now, Liking multiple pages, pictures and posts. On one page I see a comment that says ‘Phone me tomorrow Emma’. I don’t know Emma or who sent it but I click Like anyway. But then I asked myself if that is something you can even Like. However I had no time to dwell on this because I was back Liking again. Product pages, fan pages, pictures, remarks and the list goes on. But then I came across a Facebook profile page with a photograph across the top of a line of pooches dressed in uniforms, with the owner’s beaming face in the middle and this I don’t Like, so I look for the Dislike button. But there is no Dislike button anywhere on the page and there is no Dislike button on any other Facebook page either. So I go onto Google and search for ‘Facebook + Dislike button’, only to discover that there is no Dislike feature. And I find myself asking what is the value of a world without comparison and what does Like even mean in the absence of Dislike. Not much one might argue.

Research on the subject certainly suggests this. Performerinsider.com claims 99% of Facebook fans are useless. Yet companies marketing departments continue to court Likes. The world’s largest brands have many Likes. When I visited Coca Cola’s Facebook page I saw they had 64,357,439 Likes. Make that 64,357,440 Likes. I Like Coca Cola, I really do. So much so that I drink it regularly. McDonald’s had 28,451,803 Likes and I Liked it too, but only because there was no Quite Like button. Next up was Oreos, who had 33,234,940 Likes and I clicked Like again, though I’ve only had an Oreo once and can’t remember what it tasted Like. But we all Like cookies don’t we and 33,234,940 people can’t be wrong.

Whatever the value of a Like the fact remains that if we take the trouble to build a nice looking Facebook page that we want people to visit, it is going to look better with a lot of Likes than with hardly any or worse still none. So we too court Likes and the circle goes one. My Facebook Fan Page is Charles Middleworth. Feel free to Like it and I will probably reciprocate, although there may be rare instances when I cannot bring myself to press the Like button.

If you’re an author on Facebook and want more Likes you might be interested in the Facebook Like Literary Cafe.

‘An insightful and humorous tale of the unexpected’ – Reader

‘A sardonic delight. If Thackeray had lived in the 21st century, then he might have written Charles Middleworth.’ – Reader

Charles Middleworth is available through most regional Amazons on Kindle (£1.96/$3.17) and in paperback.

United Kingdom – www.amazon.co.uk

USA – www.amazon.com

Twitter post

Jan 30 2013

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Meet @Collis – the man behind Microlancer. [INTERVIEW] http://t.co/9VZ7bTZ9YL— Microlancer (@MicrolancerBeta) January 28, 2014

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