Posts
Jane
Friedman is the web editor for the national-award winning Virginia Quarterly
Review (VQR), where she oversees online content strategy and marketing.
Before joining VQR, Jane was a full-time assistant professor of e-media at the
University of Cincinnati and the former publisher of Writer's Digest.Jane's Keynote speach at lunch on Saturday will be on "The Future of Authorship." Jane will also be teaching two Saturday sessions on Platform, and two preconference workshop on publishing--Traditional Publishing on Friday morning, and Independent E-Publishing on Friday afternoon.
GLVWG member Jerry Waxler got in touch with Jane to ask her some questions about her sessions, workshops, and her view on the industry in general, including using social media to promote your writing.
Jerry: Seeking soothing reassurance
Not only are publishing strategies changing all the time, but they seem to be increasingly urgent, making many of us feel that if we don’t catch the latest wave we’ll fall behind. This might be why I enjoy reading things you write. You seem to be able to convey information without an out-of-breath sense of urgency. How do you feel about keeping up with all the changes? Are you constantly frantic or have you found a way to stay balanced in the midst of radical change?
What I recommend is this:
Find the 1 or 2 advanced, professional sources with perspective on this change
whom you trust—the people who have the same values or goals as you, or have a
voice that has always resonated. Keep yourself updated on the change through
them. It’s good to have a filter so that you limit your exposure to the daily
ups and downs of the industry. Check in with these trusted sources to stay
current. While you don’t want to stick your head in the sand about the
industry, or become ignorant of business concerns, at some point you have to
put career productivity first.
On my own blog, journalist
Porter Anderson writes a weekly round-up called Writing on the Ether, which
recaps the most important news, opinions, and developments in the book
publishing and media industry. If you have no place to start, you might start
there for a weekly education. I also do a monthly round-up of Best Business Advice
for Writers, which links to about 10 articles from various sources. I keep it
very practical, but it’s also trend driven (e.g., how to use GoodReads
effectively).
Jerry: Are social skills learnable?
In the
modern publishing world, authors must come out of hiding in order to find
readers. However, not every writer starts out loving to reach to the public.
Here’s my two part question: a) Is it true that to succeed, writers must make
the effort to reach readers, and b) if we are by nature, introverted, how do
you recommend we overcome our inward turning tendencies and extend toward our
future readers?
Jane: It depends on your
definition of success, but I believe you do need some level of reader engagement
to see your career grow. One example of an author who has done this
successfully, and on her own terms, is CJ Lyons. Another
is Bob Tarte.
When reader interaction did
physically involve “getting out there,” e.g., going to events, it probably was
limiting to be an introvert. And if that’s what reader interaction were
actually about—today—I myself would be the most terrible marketer on the
planet.
So, speaking as an
introvert myself, we should be over the moon at how lucky we are to live in an
age when we can effectively reach readers by:
· staying at home
· using whatever tools suit our communication style best
(e-mail, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
(e-mail, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
· crafting and controlling messages to our own satisfaction
· limiting interaction when needed
But these tendencies of introverts …
· bad at small talk (but not necessarily shy)
· preference for small group conversation
· avoidance of huge social gatherings—or being drained
by them
by them
… these tendencies don’t
significantly impact our ability to be effective at reader interaction, not
when we can control where, how, and when we communicate.
Furthermore, when you
consider that a true introvert dislikes talking about himself, you have the
makings of an author who is wonderful at reader engagement! These days, there’s
far too much bad marketing and
self-promotion (that amounts to talking, in a very uninteresting way, about
oneself), and not enough good
marketing and self-promotion, which is about serving readers. Knowing your readers
and engaging with them is more about listening, understanding, curiosity, and
good communication skills—not “extroversion” or “introversion.”
Jerry: Famous? Careful what you wish
You are
one of the most famous people I’ve ever talked to. (At least you’re famous to
me.) This is a strange thing about being a writer. We are all striving to be
known by potential readers. But few if any of us knows what that would feel
like. Could you tell us if it’s weird being “known” – what should we do to
prepare for the “problem” of becoming known, ourselves?
Jane: The biggest problem of
being known is probably the demand on one’s time. Usually, you have to protect
yourself from a steady and growing stream of requests—whether from friends,
fans, or strangers—who make both reasonable and unmanageable demands of you. A
lot of people whom you’ve never met want to pick your brain, get your feedback,
or meet for coffee. Or they just have this one simple question they want
answered, not realizing that dozens of other people also have one simple
question, too.
But I put myself in this
position, and I wouldn’t be who I am now, or where I am now, if people didn’t
value and seek my advice. So I try to help as much as time allows, and I try to
create clear paths for people to find the answers themselves. (See my writing advice archive.) And
sometimes I do meet strangers for coffee because I think wonderful and
unexpected things can happen when you say “yes.”
Jerry: Your Two Publishing Workshops
Thank you
for offering two pre-conference workshops, one for traditional and one for
e-publishing. I suspect that many of our attendees could benefit from both.
What do you think? Why might an author aspiring to ePublishing want to take the
traditional publishing workshop? Why might an author aspiring to traditional
publication want to take the ePublishing one?
Jane: I agree. Every author
should be educated about both traditional
publishing and e-publishing. That’s because your choice is no longer either/or.
It’s both/and. Some of the most successful authors, like CJ Lyons who I
mentioned above, have a hybrid approach. They partner with traditional
publishers for some books, but self-publish (e-publish) others. More than ever
it’s imperative that authors learn the basic framework of the industry so they’re
making informed decisions over the course of their career. You have to learn to
call the shots.
Jerry: How can social media help readers find good writers?
In the
“old days,” to build platform, we were told to spend years developing a thick
file of publication credits. To do so, we needed to impress magazine editors
with our writing skills. Nowadays, platform building requires a following on
Facebook and twitter. So help me understand how this change in entry
requirements affects readers. How can readers find great writers, and how can
writers use the quality of their writing to help build platform?
Jane: Readers are finding
great writers in many ways, including
(but not limited to):
· Amazon bestseller lists (print and e-book)
· Other Amazon features (e.g., readers who bought X also
bought Y)
· Goodreads and other reading community sites
· Social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc)
· Physical bookstores
· Book clubs (offline and online)
· Traditional media coverage (public radio, magazines,
newspapers)
· Old-fashioned word of mouth
· Other Amazon features (e.g., readers who bought X also
bought Y)
· Goodreads and other reading community sites
· Social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc)
· Physical bookstores
· Book clubs (offline and online)
· Traditional media coverage (public radio, magazines,
newspapers)
· Old-fashioned word of mouth
Everyone knows that the best way to sell your second book is by thrilling readers with your first. It’s almost become a cliché (at least in the online publishing community) that you should focus on building platform by writing your next fabulous story that gets people talking.
However, and I’ll use CJ Lyons as an example again, there’s nothing wrong with nurturing that word of mouth and giving readers more tools to help spread the word. In the Q&A I did with her at my website, she shares some of her most essential strategies for engaging readers. I also think it’s interesting that while she puts story quality front and center, she also took time to train herself in online marketing and promotion. (She reveals her sources in the Q&A).
Jerry: The New Social Pleasures of Writers Sticking Together
Recently, writing seems to have caught on in a big way. So many of us seem to be flocking together in groups, in the region and online. Since I began to apply myself in earnest to this activity, writing has turned into a groundswell of collective enthusiasm. As a writing popularize, you are in the epicenter of this wave. How is it affecting you? What sort of changes have you seen in the ethos of the writing community since you first became involved with it? Where do you think it’s heading?
Jane: The biggest change by far is the growing voice and footprint of the self-publishing and e-publishing community, and the associated explosion of services for the independent author. While some of these services are much needed and welcome, it’s difficult for a new writer, without a history of experience, to distinguish between a service that’s worth her time or money, and one that is not. When in doubt, look carefully at the background and qualifications of the people who provide the service, and avoid those that don’t clearly identify who you’re working with.
Also, there’s been a greater polarization of attitudes—or more strident attitudes—associated with the revolution mentioned at the very beginning of this interview. This creates the confusion for any writer walking into the current environment. Should you self-publish or traditionally publish? Do you need an agent or not? Should you blog or not? Do you really need a platform? Should you focus more on writing or more on platform? Does an e-book really have to be polished, or can it be just good enough to pass muster with a 99-cent price tag? Do the traditional publishers really offer value? Do bookstores really matter?
I could probably continue for several paragraphs about the many questions that divide writers, as well as people inside the publishing industry. My advice is to take the long view and seek those who avoid going to extremes in their pronouncements. Discussing the gray areas within an issue—parsing through all the intricacies—shows more wisdom given the times we live in.
