See Jane Write

Four Lessons I’ve Learned About Social Media

social media tips for writers

Social media can offer wonderful ways to build buzz for your blog, book, or brand. And that’s why See Jane Write hosted a social media workshop for writers and bloggers on Saturday, March 21.

The workshop kicked off with Bertha Hidalgo of the fashion blog Chic In Academia sharing her tips on how to grow your Instagram following. Bertha has over 14,000 followers on Instagram and has been very successful at using this platform to build her brand. In fact, she was recently invited to speak at a conference in Los Angeles because of her Instagram popularity. Visit Bertha’s blog for a recap of the tips she shared Saturday.

Next, Heather Brown of the popular lifestyle blog My Life Well Loved shared tips on how to use Pinterest and Facebook to build your blog’s readership. Heather has over 13,000 Facebook fans and nearly 27,000 followers on Pinterest. Yesterday, Heather started at series on social media tips on her blog. Visit My Life Well Loved today to check out her tips on how bloggers can get the most out of Facebook.

I ended the workshop by offering attendees four lessons I’ve learned about social media as a writer, blogger, and entrepreneur.

  1. You don’t have to be everywhere all the time.

Pinterest is not my jam. Twitter might not be yours and that’s OK. Instead of trying to be everywhere all the time, choose two or three social media platforms and crush ‘em! How do you choose? Pick the platforms your ideal reader frequents and the platforms you actually enjoy. It’s OK to have an account on all platforms, but you only need to focus on a few and you can use the other platforms to direct people to where you spend most of your time. For example, Hilary Rushford, the style and business coach behind DeanStreetSociety.com is an Instagram guru. And so her Twitter bio includes this statement: “My party is on Instagram @HilaryRushford.” And her Twitter feed has a pinned tweet that reads: “Twitter, you’re nice. But I go steady with Instagram. Come join the daily party: Instagram.com/hilaryrushford.”

That said, I do urge writers to not be afraid of image-focused platforms. You can easily turn your favorite quotes or even words of wisdom from your own writing into an image for Instagram or Pinterest. Use tools like Canva, Pinterest, or Word Swag to create beautiful backdrops for your words.

Take for example BossBabe Inc., an online network for millennial businesswomen. BossBabe’s Instagram account only shares snarky, witty and inspiring sayings for girlbosses and has a over 81,000 followers.

BossBabe

  1. Get into the group thing.

Participating in Facebook groups is a great way to network with potential readers and even find friends who understand the creative work that you do. The Southern Girl Blog Building Group is a good one to join as is, of course, the See Jane Write Birmingham Facebook group. Starting a group of your own could be a great way to build your brand. Interest in See Jane Write grew exponentially after I started the Facebook group. One way to cultivate community is by offering the group a challenge. When I launched the annual #bloglikecrazy challenge group members were eager to share their daily posts in the group and read the posts of others. And they used the Facebook forum as a space to cheer on their fellow Janes and even form friendships.

  1. You can tweet your way to your next writing gig.

I landed a paid freelance gig with one of my favorite online publications through Twitter. Twitter is a great place to build relationships with editors or agents you want to work with. But be genuine. The first communication you have with them shouldn’t be asking for information or a favor. Chat about common interests and build a rapport. When the time is right for you to bring up business, you’ll know.

  1. Writers need to get “LinkedIn.”

I’ve been fortunate enough to have many editors approach me about freelance writing opportunities and, believe it or not, most of those editors have found me through LinkedIn. The first time this happened I was shocked. Back then I posted updates on LinkedIn so infrequently I’d forgotten I had an account! But once an editor said she had learned of my work through that platform I began to wonder how many editors had stumbled upon my LinkedIn account and decided – due to my lame profile – that I wasn’t the right woman for the job. I then decided to make sure that my profile was current, complete, and fresh. I also try to post updates more. All users can now post articles to the LinkedIn network as well. For more on LinkedIn check out the post You Need to Get “LinkedIn.”

Do you need one-on-one help with social media, blogging, freelance writing or building a brand? Then you need Java with Javacia — a one hour session with me, See Jane Write founder Javacia Harris Bowser. Email me at javacia@seejanewritebham.com for more details. 

The Results Are In!

results
Image by League of Women Voters via Flickr/Creative Commons

Earlier this month I created a two-question survey and offered a pretty sweet incentive to complete it: Those who completed the survey would have a chance at winning free admission to See Jane Write events held February – December 2015 (excluding events for members only).

And the winner is….

Emily G. 

Congratulations, Emily!

And thanks to all of you who completed the survey.

The results revealed three things — 1) you all love live events 2) you all are ready to blog like a boss and 3) you’re having trouble finding time to make your writing dreams come true.

Live educational vents will continue to be the bread and butter of See Jane Write. Future events will offer information on how to monetize blogging properly use business tools like MailChimp, PayPal, etc. In fact, I’ve decided that the theme for this year’s Bloganista Mini-Conference will be Blog Like a Boss!

how to write and have a life

As for time management — I’ve got you covered there, too. My e-course How to Write and Have a Life is all about how to make time for your dreams. Over the course of a dozen lessons you will learn how to set goals that will help you better manage your time, how to get rid of bad habits that are wasting your time, how to adopt healthy habits that will make you more peaceful and productive, how to rekindle your romance for your blog, how to write more, read more, and stress less, how exercise can make you a better writer, and how to give yourself a break. Enroll today!

Win free admission to 2015 See Jane Write events!

nametags I’m always brainstorming different ways to help the women of See Jane Write.

Last week, for example, I hosted a goal-setting workshop to help See Jane Write members kick off the year motivated and inspired. (Check out this recap from Heather of My Life Well Loved and this one from Katherine of Rodney’s Saga.)

And next week’s event with Carrie Rollwagen is designed to help women looking to transform their blog idea into a book idea, women looking to self-publish, and women who just want to get better at self-promotion. (Get your tickets here! Only a few tickets are left!)

But I know the best way to figure out what the women of See Jane Write need and want is to simply ask. So this month I’m doing just that. I’ve composed a two-question survey to help me determine what changes I should make to See Jane Write this year.

And I’m offering an incentive for completing the survey: You could win free admission to all ticketed See Jane Write events held between Feb. 1 to Dec. 31. This includes our annual Bloganista conference!

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Click here to complete the two-question survey.

2. After you have completed the survey, comment on this blog post. In your comment, let me know that you’ve completed the survey and tell me one event or program you’d like See Jane Write to offer this year.

3. Enter the contest using the widget below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
  The winner will be announced January 30, 2015.

5 Mistakes You’re Making When Setting Goals

goal digger

Most  people love setting goals and resolutions in January and I’m certainly in that number. At the start of a new year I always commit to pursuing lofty aspirations. But for years these goals would often be abandoned by April! Finally, I figured out what I was doing wrong. Chances are, you’re making many of the same mistakes.

On Wednesday, January 6, I hosted a goal-setting workshop for members of See Jane Write. I walked the women in attendance through my own goal-setting process and shared anecdotes about some of the mistakes I’ve made when goal-setting in the past.

goal digger 3

 

Here are five mistakes you may be making when setting goals:

1. You’re setting too many goals. When I was a teenager every December I would make a list of 99 things I wanted to do the following year — 99 things! Obviously, I never accomplished all of these. In fact, by spring I’d completely forgotten about most of the things on my list! I recommend setting about 3 to 5 major goals for the year. If you need help culling your list, remember that your goals should always be a reflection of your values. Don’t take on a goal just because someone told you it would be a good idea. Do what’s best for you and the life you want to create.

2. Your goals aren’t big and bold enough. Yes, your goals should be realistic. If your aspirations are too outlandish you might feel defeated from the start. But this doesn’t mean your goals should be small. They should ruffle feathers and raise eyebrows. Challenge yourself! Otherwise, you won’t be very motivated.

3. Your goals aren’t measurable and specific. Don’t simply say you want to be a more successful blogger or get in shape. What do these things look like? Do you want to earn a certain amount of money from your blog? Do you want to run a half marathon? Specificity will give you the direction you need.

4. You’re only setting long-term goals. One reason I didn’t accomplish many of goals of the past was simply because I got bored with them. If you know me well, you know I get bored with things VERY easily. But I realized that by breaking my 3 to 5 one-year goals into several 90-day goals I stayed excited about my pursuits. At the end of each quarter I could set new 90-day goals so I felt like I was taking on a shiny new project, but I was actually still working on the same one-year goals I set on January 1. These 90-day goals will also keep you from feeling overwhelmed.

5.  You’re not sweating the small stuff. While 90-day goals are great, you need to break down things even further. You need what I like to call momentum moves. These are things you do on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis to help you accomplish the 90-day goals. So if you want to earn more money from your blog you’ll probably need to blog more. Your momentum move could be to take devote four hours each Sunday  to writing three blog posts for the week.

goal digger 2 goal digger 4 goal digger 6

 

goal digger 7

 

goal digger 5

 

If you need more help with goal-setting this year, consider enrolling in my new time management e-course How to Write and Have a Life. In this course, I will walk you through my goal-setting process and show you how setting goals in such a way will save you time and make you more productive.

 

*Cross-posted at WriteousBabe.com

 

Start the New Year Off “Write”

Princess Jai

It’s finally here — my favorite day of the year: New Year’s Eve.

If you caught me on WBHM 90.3 FM last week then you know that I’m not much of a fan of Christmas. But New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are my favorites! On these days I am full of excitement about the future.

I hope you’re feeling that way today, too.

Last week a lovely local lady emailed me after ordering her ticket to next month’s event with Carrie Rollwagen and said she was eager to attend the event because she wanted to “start the year off write.”

I love that!

If you want to start the year off “write” too, here are a few things you can do to help you do just that:

1) Buy your tickets for From Blog to Book. At this event, set for January 20, Carrie Rollwagen, author of the book The Localist, will give tips on how to transform your blog idea into a book idea, how to rock your Kickstarter campaign, and how to self-publish the right way. Carrie will also give tips on how to better support local businesses. Order your tickets here.

2) Twenty lucky official See Jane Write members will have the chance to attend a free goal-setting workshop with me in early January.

3) If you don’t want to miss out on events like this in the future become an official member today. Basic membership will increase to $50 starting tomorrow and premium membership will no longer be available. Learn more here.

4) If you have a host of dreams for 2015 but you think you don’t have the time to go after them, think again! My new e-course How to Write and Have a Life will help you find the time to pursue your passion. The course opens tomorrow! More details coming soon!