virtualDavis

I agonized over lines, phrases, even single word choices. Chapters were shifted, characters reworked. I climbed into dark places that hit me so hard I took showers after writing certain chapters. But it was only afterward that I realized that what I was doing was getting the manuscript in the shape it needed to be in. While it was happening, I was simply in pursuit of authenticity—a story that only I could tell and tell it in a way that only I could do it.(guidetoliteraryagents.com)

Heath Gibson’s guest blog post is titled, “If it hurts, you’re doing something right“, and he focuses on his personal experience getting his debut novel, Gigged, out of the gate on onto shelves. I’m especially drawn to the last assertion above: a great story is an authentic story, a story that can and will ONLY be told by you.

Read the full post at guidetoliteraryagents.com

Once you find time for social media and move from social chatter to using social media for a purpose, you’ll see firsthand how difficult it can be to get noticed… How do you cut through all the social media noise and get people to notice what you have to say? Fact is, it’s not always easy.  To help you, here are 10 ways to make your message more likely to get noticed:

1. Simplify Your Message
2. Find Your Space
3. Use Appropriate Channels
4. Spread Your Message
5. Get Help
6. Appeal to Ego
7. Cut the Clutter
8. Appeal to Primitive Instincts
9. Use Keywords
10. Stick to One Point

Getting your message out there is not always about what you say but as much how you say it. Don’t just shovel your messages out into your social media channels. Think carefully about your audience, what they like and react to, and what else is going on within those services and networks.

Most of all… It’s not what you say that matters, but what your readers hear!

It’s your job to keep crafting and honing your message until you get it right. If people don’t “get it,” keep working until they do!

Chris Garrett‘s post is a good reminder to everyone using social networking for anything more than mere entertainment. If you have a message that you’re trying to spread, these ten steps are a good starting point! Read the full post on via Social Media Examiner.

I’ve discovered that the top thought leaders on the web will bend over backwards to help a true fan. Let’s talk about how to become one… (PushingSocial.com)

Despite the goofy Michael Jackson admission/reflection, Stanford’s three tips for how to get your blog noticed and promoted by super influencers is on target:

1. Help influencers create, curate and promote their content
2. Become a “true fan” by learning, following and recruiting
3. Act now; don’t get derailed asking, begging and waiting

As Seth Godin explains: “Change isn’t made by asking permission. Change is made by asking forgiveness later.” Seems germane here, no? You’re hoping to change an influencer’s opinion of you (notice you, respect you, refer you, etc.) and there’s no better way to do this than to contribute your own influence. So long as it’s authentic endorsement. Keep it real! Life’s too short to pose or pander, and your integrity’s all that you’ve got!

Your story is the price of admission to the campfire discussion that is happening around your products and services every day. Without a Story – you are just an annoying salesman. ~ PushingSocial.com

We tend to get hung up on the “bells and whistles” when we talk about digital storytelling. Substance? Oh, we’ll get to that later. Later? Why bother telling a story at all if you haven’t covered the basics. It doesn’t matter how spiffy the wrapper if the gift is overlooked. Stanford’s posting is a reminder that you must build a good brand story if you want admission at the digital campfire. He offers three tips:

1. Tell your brand story from your customer’s POV
2. Create mini-stories about the benefits of your product/service
3. Adapt you brand story for use on multiple social media platforms

“Let me tell you a story…” It’s almost always a winner. No doubt you’ve tapped the interest of you listener/reader/viewer, especially if the context/relationship promises relevance. But even when it doesn’t, it’s human nature to be curious, to enjoy storytelling, to make time for a short narrative adventure before plunging back into the quotidian.

Stanford is spot on when he observes, “In our zeal to evangelize Social Media – we forgot to tell you about WHAT you should be talking about!” Bingo. The abundance of powerful digital storytelling tools available today is enchanting. And sometimes we become so enchanted with the “how” that we forget the “what”. Summer marks the much anticipated season of dazzling special effects blockbuster movies, and yet audiences often complain that a movie fell on its face because it had no story. Snazzy visuals, sound effects and superstar actors can’t redeem an ill-crafted story. Thanks for bringing the focus back to the basics!

Read the full posting at PushingSocial.com.

Users Focus on Faces:

People instinctively notice other people right away when they come into view. On Web pages, we tend to focus on people’s faces and eyes, which gives marketers a good technique for attracting attention. But our attraction to people’s faces and eyes is only the beginning; it turns out we actually glance in the direction the person in the image is looking in.

via smashingmagazine.com

This post over at Smashing Magazine shares insightful website usability guidelines for designers and developers.

“I always like to stress the following rather obvious point. The paper book is a marvelous combination of two quite distinct products: a story (or body of information), and a crafted, physical object. Once you can separate these two things in your mind, it becomes much easier to see how stories can be shared and sold distinct from their traditional, physical bodies. And, comfortingly, it’s easier to see how printed books will always be highly valued for their physical beauty. In consequence, the digital world both enables a rapid increase in story-telling, free from the costs of physical production, and increases the value of well-crafted physical books. Any successful publisher will find a way to make the most of this.” (digitalbookworld)

Arthur Attwell, co-founder and CEO of Electric Book Works, offers seven tips for small publishers adding digital titles to their inventory:

1. Don’t think ebooks are only for technical folk
2. Don’t worry about digital rights management (DRM)
3. Convert books to ebooks with free online services
4. Distribute and sell ebooks with free online services
5. Don’t limit yourself to ebooks; get more from their content
6. Think of your print books as a value-added version of your ebooks
7. Read and learn about digital publishing

Read Arthur Attwell’s full post at digitalbookworld…

Seth Godin (author of Tribes which is captivating me at present) offers an epic list as “a partial answer” to the question, “How can I drive more traffic to my blog?” Here are my “Top 10” favorites from his list:

1. Share your expertise generously so people recognize it and depend on you.
2. Encourage your readers to help you manipulate the technorati top blog list.
3. Tag your posts. Use del.ico.us.
4. Do email interviews with the well-known.
5. Encourage your readers to digg your posts. (and to use furl and reddit). Do it with every post.
6. Post your photos on flickr.
7. Highlight your best posts on your Squidoo lens.
8. Point to useful but little-known resources.
9. Ping technorati. Or have someone smarter than me tell you how to do it automatically.
10. Write stuff that people want to read and share.

Posted by Seth Godin on June 03, 2006 | Permalink

Read the full post here: sethgodin.typepad.com

“Publishers can complain and wistfully wish for the good old days of blog links and Google juice, or they can adapt to the new reality Twitter represents. Getting your content “ReTweeted” on Twitter (i.e. getting people to repeat what you’ve said, usually along with a link) can drive significant quality traffic to your site, which in turn can boost your subscriber numbers… So, how does ReTweeting happen, anyway? Well, here are the 5 factors you need to take into account when trying to get your content to spread virally on Twitter”:

1. Call to Action
2. Timing
3. Links
4. Social Proof
5. Value

Read the post at Copyblogger.

Can you be “just an author” these days, pecking away at a typewriter in a basement somewhere but otherwise completely eschewing publicity and remaining out of the public eye, Salinger- and Pynchon-style, writing in a bubble-like Platonic ideal of authordom?

I think a few authors can probably pull it off, particularly those who are already established. But it’s increasingly rare for authors breaking into the business…

We live in a networked time. The Internet is quickly organizing itself into tribes of far-flung, plugged-in, like-minded individuals and shaping how we learn about the stories we consume… The authors who engage their audience and inspire devoted clans of fans have a leg up over those who sit back and let the publisher take care of that whole promotional thing or who hope lightning will strike on its own.

via blog.nathanbransford.com

Literary agent Nathan Bransford seems to echo what I’m reading all over: no more poet in a garret… Write and write well, but don’t neglect your platform.

A killer proposal isn’t good enough for wannabe nonfiction authors. Lay the groundwork and build your credibility through these strategic efforts.

via writersdigest.com

According to Dianne Jacob, here’s how to build your reputation most effectively:

#1. GET ARTICLES ON THE SUBJECT PUBLISHED
#2. INTERVIEW EXPERTS
#3. CO-AUTHOR A BOOK WITH AN EXPERT
#4. SPEAK ON THE SUBJECT
#5. FIND RELEVANT BACKGROUND FOR YOUR BIO

Read the article here…