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Young Writers Society


Working Writers: Don't Underestimate Networking



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Wed Jan 22, 2014 2:48 pm
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BenFranks says...



WORKING WRITERS
Don't Underestimate Networking


In an environment where the entire scope of journalism and writing is rapidly changing, the internet is now where people go for news, stories, opinions and communication. Just think how many hours you spend on Facebook, or scrolling down the pages of lovely YWS material.

Therefore it is becoming more important than ever to have an online profile. In these series of posts, entitled Working Writers, I shall be guiding you on how to make it in the modern world.

It's about WHO you know

As much as it's important to have good quality writing - and it is important - getting somewhere in the writerly world more often than not depends on who you know. Whether you're looking to get published as a journalist or poet or fiction writer, you still need to know people - people are publishers, editors, interviewees, etc.

The same happens with self-publishing too. Sure, you can publish something, print something, maybe even sell a few copies on self-publishing websites or global distribution with a good description and lots of hope, but you're not going to get anything more. If you want to make it big in self-publishing then it all falls down to Public Relations (abb. PR), social media networking, online profile, reputation, and more. All of these things require you relating to and communicating with the people around you.

Where do I start?

The best place to start is to be brave and talk to people. Do a little research into the field you're interested in and send a couple of emails to individuals who interest you - ask about what they do, if they have any advice for a fellow writer, etc. There's no harm in curiosity and, more often than not, they'll see it as quite flattering that you've come to them for advice. This is where you can get started.

It helps to create a document where you can keep note of who all your contacts are - otherwise things can get very confusing later on!

Once you've entered into conversation you may start feeling comfortable enough to send them copy (copy is the term used to describe creative written work pre-edit and publication). Make sure they're in the position to accept copy first if you're intending to get published, unless you're just looking for some friendly advice on your writing.

If you can, also try to attend events around your area and meet people. You can learn stories from them or assess characters that inspire your fiction, or meet potential interviewees for journalism features. The phrase, "It's good to get out", is a true one.

Online - Social Media

Twitter - Twitter is a great open social media environment for building connections and an online profile. As long as you remember to behave on it (as anyone can see your profile), you can use it to interact with hundreds of people and find opportunities in your field.

Recommended age to join: 16.

LinkedIn - A bit like a "business Facebook", LinkedIn is a place where you can put your online CV and build business connections. It is a great way to keep track of all the contacts you've met through your casual emails and it helps you get noticed in media job interviews if they recognise you. LinkedIn is also a good place to find and build contacts with publishers and editors you can send copy to.

Recommended age to join: 18-20*.
*It's best you join when you begin getting contacts, otherwise it is quite a ghostly non-happening environment. It is also no place to mess around!

Facebook - Not much to say on this front, apart from to behave yourself! It's said that if your photo privacy settings are set to "friends of friends" and you have 200 friends, that means around 150,000 FB members cans see your photos. That means if you publish drunk or risque photos, your employer may well see!

You can expand your online profile by creating a page about yourself that users can like. This way you can keep your profile personal (but well-behaved!) and use your page for writing means. Make sure to post content often to attract new likes and interest. This will get you more publicity on your blog, published work, or self-published stuff.

Recommended age to join: 16.

Any questions? Do ask!
  





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Fri Jan 24, 2014 2:07 am
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Tenyo says...



Questions! =D

1. There are a *lot* of writers on these sites. Do you have any ideas on how to stand out from the crowd?

2. I've heard that some people post snippets of their works online as teasers, but then it would be crazy to stick a full, unpublished novel on Facebook, because like you said so many people can see it and there are nasty fishies swimming about looking for that kind of opportunity to steal.

In your opinion, what kind of stuff do you think would be alright to post on social networking sites and are there any things to be cautious of? (Apart from the obvious drunken selfie.)
We were born to be amazing.
  





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Gender: Male
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Reviews: 411
Mon Feb 03, 2014 11:22 pm
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BenFranks says...



Hi @Tenyo,

I'll try to answer your questions best I can.

1) How do you stand out? That is a long battle.

You should not invest in publicity companies as they tend to have your money in mind and not your interests, so only work with PR people if you completely trust them.

Do not invest in Facebook adverts unless you're willing to throw money away. Most of these will get you likes for likes' sake, and that's not going to do anything for your writing or help your ego. Just work on getting real likes from people who truly want to follow you.

To stand out you need to make a scene. Take part in LinkedIn discussions, regularly post to social networking sites things that are intriguing, perhaps controversial. Share your work often. Tag followers who keep popping up and know like your work. Share often across your platforms the posts you make.

It's also key to have your own site that you can direct people to all these outlets and visa versa back to your site.

Like I say, it's a battle. You're going to have to put the time and investment in to see some return, so like anything you do really. Just trust yourself and build the image you want.

2) My advice would certainly be to NEVER publish FULL work to social networking sites or even online if you ever intend to publish it or sell it. In the EU and USA there are copyright laws by default that protect your work but do always check the privacy settings and policies of social networking sites anyway as they may class what you post as "public domain", meaning anyone can use it.

It does help to keep separate your work and your personal life, so while you may have a FB or Twitter page for you, make separate accounts or pages for your writing - invest professionally in these with your time. Also, always keep LinkedIn professional, that site is not a playground.

Hope that helps.
  





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Points: 30438
Reviews: 560
Tue Feb 04, 2014 2:03 am
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Tenyo says...



=D Thankyou!
We were born to be amazing.
  








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