Tag Archives: writing tips

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The Life of a Distracted Reader

I’ll admit it—I’m a distracted reader. One minute, I’m engrossed in a novel’s intricate plot; the next, I’m scrolling through social media or daydreaming about dinner plans. It’s a constant tug-of-war between my love for reading and the myriad distractions that modern life offers. Smartphones buzz with notifications, and even the book itself can send my thoughts spiraling into a hundred different directions.

I used to beat myself up over it, thinking I lacked discipline or a true passion for reading. But I’ve come to accept that it’s just how my brain is wired in this fast-paced digital age. Instead of fighting it, I’ve found ways to make it work for me. Short stories, articles, and chapters become bite-sized pieces that fit into my fractured attention span. Though it’s not ideal, it keeps the pages turning and my love for reading alive. And that’s good enough for me.

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On Leaving Twitter

I mentioned a few weeks ago I had deleted the Twitter / X app off my phone. I haven’t logged in or checked it much since. It’s kind of sad to be honest. I opened my twitter account in 08, and at one time had well over 7K followers. However, like so many other social media spaces things change.

iphone displaying social media application
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

My reasoning for leaving Twitter has nothing to do with Musk. To be honest, it has to do with my philosophy of social media. My philosophy of social media is to be authentic, connect with others, share my story, and have fun. I have a personal policy that I don’t discuss or comment on politics, culture wars, social justice, and / or controversial discussions. I’m of the belief that social media is not the place for those topics to be chatted about. Many probably disagree with that line of thinking, that’s fine. I’m okay with that. But for me I’m in a much happier mood when I steer clear of it online.

Lately Twitter has been less fun. None of the authors I once connected with seem to be there. None of the community that I once goofed off with are around. And the only thing showing up in my feed are topics I could care less about. Even the hashtag search seems to be irrelevant anymore.

The fact of the matter is Twitter is dying and it’s not because of Musk. It’s the same reason authors who use to get 40k advances from big publishers as a mid-list author in the 80’s and early 90’s now only gets about a 5k to 10k advances from those same publishers. The world changes and so does competition.

Back in the day you had Facebook, Twitter, and if you were lucky a slow dying My Space (because of all the tech gurus Tom seems to have been the only smart one.) Today, you have Facebook, twitter, Instagram, TikTok, BlueSky, Mastodon, Threads, YouTube, and about 10k others.

The problem is the internet is no longer independent. In the early days we as authors had our own website, our own blogs, all interconnected to RS feeds, with multiple forums. Today, we must choose which sandbox to play in and hope our audience shows up and our stories make it past the algorithm.  

But that begs the question- If not twitter: Where?

Author marketing is changing. And if I’m being truthful it’s going to get tighter and harder to reach readers. As TikTok gets banned for national security purposes (and it most likely will happen in the next year) and Twitter drains itself of any usefulness whatsoever, different groups will gravitate to different places. Heck, it’s happening now.

For me the question I need to answer is: Where will my readers be? Or better, as a Middle-Grade author: Where will those that have influence power over my readers be?

My online strategy for the time being is simple.

One: For Marketing I’m planning on using Instagram and Facebook online. I’m marketing to parents, and primarily to mothers and this is where they are at.  

Two: For connecting with other writers- I’ll be on Threads and in Facebook groups. I enjoy Threads, but the initial hype seems to be waning. There are a few things I don’t like about it but I’m having fun there. (And yes- I know all about their terms and conditions. I just don’t really care and don’t post anything there that would affect me in that way). I would personally love it if the RealmSphere for realm makers became more active with both readers and writers!

Three: I will be utilizing my website and blogging more. This year alone I have had 7k hits on my website and 1K on my online store. So, traffic comes when I blog. Therefore I plan to keep the content up.

The thing is- Just like some book’s stores collapsed, along with the Mass Market Paperback market, so there will be changes in social media for authors. My advice to authors is if you want to reach readers, stop thinking about what you enjoy or the places you enjoy being, and start asking where your readers are. Because you might need to shift your mindset and step into a new realm.

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Don’t Feed the Trolls

Writing at times is like navigating a jungle full of keyboard warriors. You guessed it! We’re talking about Trolls. You know the ones. They’re like the colorful parrots squawking in the trees singing trying to gain attention.

Here is some facts about trolls. First they come in different shapes, and with different tactics. Sometimes they try to seem like they’re being nice and helpful, but in reality they’re belittling and condescending. Their words sting often. Other times they don’t even try to hide who they are. They want you to get upset, and that’s their goal. To knock you off your game.

Here are four quick points I want to make about trolls.

  1. Trolls gotta troll, it’s their cardio workout! It’s all they got. Trolling is what they live for.
  2. They try often to disguise themselves as Critics? Sometimes you’ll discover they’re artists too—in the fine art of NOT creating anything.
  3. They live in a virtual treehouse, attended to only by other trolls, cranking up their own echo.
  4. You, the dashing adventurer, get paid in gold coins to simply walk past them, ears plugged.

Remember, “Can’t please everyone” isn’t just some dusty saying in grandma’s cross-stitch. It’s the secret recipe to being the Indiana Jones of your field!

So write for that small niche audience and ignore the rest.

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The Weekly Five: 7/28

I’m going to try a new thing here on the blog every Friday. In the old days of Social Media I would have tweeted or posted these via Facebook. But I still have a desire to keep this place active and two: I want to provide weekly updates outside of my newsletter. So each Friday I’ll be putting these out… We’ll see how it goes.

close up photography of bicycle chain
Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán on Pexels.com

1. My Social Media Presence

Social media comes, and it goes. Heck remember XANGA, MySpace, and AOL Chat? Twitter and Facebook have been the dominate forces the last few years with Instagram and TikTok quickly growing. The problem is TikTok is probably going to be banned in the interest of national security, and Twitter is a complete disaster right now in my opinion. Personally, I miss the old days of twitter. The truth is I have to think about where my audience is at. So for author related things I’ll be on both Instagram and Threads. For friendships I’ll be on Facebook. If I do post on twitter it’s only going to be occasionally and for updates. I’ll decide at the end of August if it’s worth my time staying or leaving completely. Who really knows. But at the moment I don’t enjoy being there anymore.

2. Podcast Break

The podcast is taking a break. I try to take a break every 20 to 25 episodes. And since I just posted episode 47 I’ve decided to take that break now. I have a lot going on in August and it’s a brutal month to try and post and edit. It will be back in September with episode 48 and we’ll run until sometime in December. I love the podcast and it keeps me active in the pop culture world. So it’s not going away. I may even explore the possibility of turning things over to a guest host once or twice just to get some different content. So if you think you might be interested in hosting, let me know.

3. Kickstarter Fulfillment

The main reason I’m taking a break from the podcast is I’m about to shift into Kickstarter fulfillment mode on Aug 1st. I have a lot to get done and need to stay focused. The Kickstarter was definitely the hardest and most challenging marketing I have ever done. It was a learning experience. I’ll be dropping a blog post soon on the top five mistakes I feel I made.

4. Dusting Off Some Old Stories

Since I won’t be writing much in August other than on the collaboration project I’m doing with Steve Rzasa and Jason Joyner, I’ve decided to dust off some old stories and touch them up over the next month. I’ll be looking for beta readers, so if you are interested in reading a political thriller set in a VR world where gamers compete on behalf of politicians to see which party dominates certain campaign ad space- let me know.

5. What I’m Reading & Watching this Week

Right now I’m reading Star Wars: Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn. I haven’t read this series since the early 2000’s. There is so much I had forgotten so I’m glad for the chance to reexplore this trilogy. I’ve also started a reread of the Wheel of Time on Audible. I’m currently about 25% through the Eye of the World. This will be my fourth time through the Wheel of Time and I learn something new each time.

Since Ashoka is kicking off soon I’m doing a binge watch of Star Wars Rebels! I’ve stoked about this one. Thrawn is hands down my favorite Star Wars character so with Heir, Rebels, and Ashoka I’m pretty much Star Wars geeked out for the month.

That’s all I have for this week! I’ll be back next week to provide some updates on writing plans etc. heading into the fall.

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The Okie BookCast

Last week I had the chance to sit down with J Hall from the Okie Book Cast. We chatted about my love for reading, and writing for Middle-Grade boys! You can listen right here.

Podcast Link

The Okie Bookcast is dedicated to helping curious readers like you find your next great read by connecting you to Oklahoma authors and stories. Each episode includes an interview with a contributor to the reading life of Oklahoma – it might be an author, publisher, librarian, reader, bookseller, or other figure. In addition to the interview, each episode includes a review from an Oklahoma author about a book they love. New episodes drop on the first and third Tuesdays of the month. Connect with Okie Bookcast on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok – @okiebookcast.