Hi, my name is Christopher Gronlund and I have a confession: I am not at my best when it comes to online self promotion.
In person, sure! I’ll get up and speak before a large group, approach any agent or editor, or give my time to people who have read what I’ve written. All with enthusiasm and confidence.
But there’s something about the act of typing promotional things online that makes me feel like I’m a salesman in a cheap suit on a used car lot, standing in the shadow of a giant, blue inflatable gorilla in an effort to cool down before targeting my next mark.
Listening to Others
While I feel awkward promoting what I’m doing, I’m fine when others tell me what they’re up to. I love hearing what kinds of things people paint, the kinds of music they play, and the types of stories they tell. If you do nothing really creative but want to talk about your job, a hobby, or something else — sure, I’ll listen. Hell, I once listened to a fan of my writing at a comic book convention talk [in great detail] about how his cat woke him up by licking his nipples and how he licked the cat back to see how it liked being licked!
Unless you’re one of those people who are always on (the online marketing version of the used car salesman), I will listen to you promote the things in your life that you love.
But for some reason, the moment I type, “Hey, check this out,” on Twitter, I feel like I’m a mouth breather who’s just eaten an onion sandwich and has decided to crowd your personal space.
These Things I Know
I’ve read about all the ways I’m supposed to promote myself online as a writer. I’ve looked at how others outside of writing have promoted themselves online. I’m a member of the Dallas/Ft. Worth WordPress Meetup group, where more than a few members make a comfortable living by promoting themselves online. So I know what I’m supposed to do.
But many of those “supposed to” rules and suggestions run counter to my personality.
What works for some may not work for others.
A Different Way
I’m fine with taking my time with things. Instead of being like the mighty Shawn Kupfer — who is a much better juggling writer than I’ll ever be — I tend to work on one thing at a time. More than that, I’m fine taking my time with that one thing.
I know I’d make more money if I actually did something with a genre series I started, cranking books out and getting them online as quickly as I can. But I grew up looking to writers like John Irving as the ideal; not Jonathan Kellerman. (Please do not take this as a slam against those who work with genre fiction. I am quite fond of genre fiction as a medium. Genre fiction has served more than a few good friends well, and I’m incredibly happy for them all. They are my inspiration for sticking to what I love in the hope I will one day achieve their levels of success.)
This is a blog about writing, work, and life. I look to each facet to improve the other. In the jobs I’ve had, I come in quiet and slow and end up appreciated far more than those who believe the louder they are, the quicker they will climb the ladder. In life, I am shy when meeting new people, but that slow pace in getting to really know people has left me a very happy person, with more than a few friendships going back to first grade.
I don’t mind taking a different way to get there — even if it takes a bit longer than many of those around me.
The One Rule I Know
In all the lists I’ve read about online promotion is a recurring rule I agree with: be yourself.
Shawn Kupfer is Shawn Kupfer, just like Mark Finn is Mark Finn. Read either of their blogs, and you’ll get a damn good feeling for who they are. They are different people than Paul Lamb, who is different than Lisa Eckstein.
You are you; I am who I am.
As long as we’re true to who we are and let that come out in the things we write, we stand a chance at something more — even if it takes a bit longer to get there for some of us.
Hi, my name is Cynthia Stewart and I have a confession: I am a mouth breather who eats onions. Literally. And garlic- raw. Just about every day. Mercifully, I work from home. I probably wouldn’t do well at face-to-face public self-promos. I’m way too stinky. Just as well, that kind of thing gives me the heebie-jeebies anyway. 🙂
CMS: I used to lie on my belly in the front yard, eating the tops off wild garlic like a goat-child. I STILL love raw garlic. Onions? Love them too, although I think I might be allergic to them. But hey, what’s a minor headache and a bit of a red, puffy face for the glory of raw onions?!
LOL I used to eat the wild garlic straight out of a friend’s yard. It gave me super-powers (super-stinky breath).
And allergies? I’m allergic to cats (and about 20 other things), but can’t live without my 2 kitties. 🙂 They super-charge my sneezes.
I’m trying to get better at it, but like you, I feel conspicuous and awkward. Also a bit creepy, like the clown hired by that same car dealership to inexplicably paint children’s faces in the shadow of the huge gorilla.
I’m not allergic to onions or garlic, but I think I am to self promotion. Whenever I try to do it, I get short of breath and feel panic rising.
@Shawn: From the other side of things, I’m far more likely to respond to writers who are a bit more reserved — even humble — in their promotion. I’ve recently mentioned Alex George on the blog, and I’ve followed his blog for awhile, not. I’ve always liked that he’s more a, “This is what I’m up to,” kind of writer and not, “BUY MY STUFF!!!” When he promotes himself, it’s often sharing what others say about him — not things he says about himself. (I’ll be running a cool interview with Alex on February 7, the release date of his latest book.)
I like your blog because sometimes you don’t even discuss writing. While I’ll always keep The Juggling Writer mostly about writing, work, and life, I plan to do more with christophergronlund.com because as a consumer, I like seeing a genuine glimpse into the lives of the writers I support. Not that I’m a crusader in the way I support the writers I like, but it feels nice knowing I’m giving money to writers who really need it, or who are genuinely nice people, even after a flood of success. (Example: Neil Gaiman. He is just as nice and humble as he was almost 20 years ago when he took the time to sign a big pile of Sandman and some graphic novels like Violent Cases for me.)
Oh! And as one who’s never been fond of clowns, despite a brief detour into the violent and sticky subculture that is clowning, trust me: you are nothing like that clown, even when saying the equivalent of, “Hey, my name’s Shawn Kupfer and I have this book called 47 Echo that you can buy for less than four dollars!”
At some point, just being yourself makes others want to share links to your books and spread the word 😉
@Paul: Yours is one of a handful of writer blogs I follow because even when you’re promoting upcoming stories in literary journals, it’s not-at-all smarmy. I expect writers to let people know what’s up — it doesn’t bother me unless that’s all they do. So I don’t know why I feel strange talking about my own writing when it’s not something that bothers me in other writers. In fact, I want to know when you have a story coming out, and I like hearing about how you’re progressing with novels and other things.
I’ll go as far as saying that in many ways, I’m almost more likely to pick up a book by a humble writer than somebody heavily into always being in promotion mode. Once I know a writer feels a bit strange saying, “Hey, buy my stuff!” I know they are genuine and I feel more compelled to not only pick up what they are doing, but settle in for the long haul as a fan.
While it’s not a style of promotion that would work with anything I do, I like following the YouTube videos of John Green and his brother, Hank. John’s currently on tour, so he’s in promotion mode. And I suppose in a way, he’s almost always in promotion mode, but it’s all done in such a manner that you know the guy appreciates every single bit of success that’s come his way, and you see how hard he’s worked for it. So you want him to win — it’s like you can’t help but root for the guy. I rarely pick up young adult fiction, but I’m currently reading his latest book because I felt almost compelled to pre-order his latest book.
I’ve pre-ordered Alex George’s A Good American and Chuck Wendig’s Blackbirds. Of the three books I’ve recently pre-ordered, only George’s A Good American is the kind of book I’m most likely to pick up. All three authors are totally different in the way they promote themselves. Alex George is very subtle — almost quiet at times in the way he does things. John Green makes funny and sometimes touching videos and tosses them up on YouTube. And Chuck Wendig has an attitude about him that’s usually not my thing, but it’s all tempered by kindness; he’s just a damn nice guy and I WANT to give him my money.
All three authors have been at it awhile, slowly building the kind of following that compels others to speak up for them.
I hope for a day you sell a novel and I can help spread the word.