How to Make Social Media Work for Writers

I’ve had an exciting offer – to chair a panel discussion called Making Social Media Work for You, as part of Waterford Writer’s Weekend. If you’re in the Waterford area, it’s on Friday 22^nd Marchl at 1pm in Greyfriars Gallery, Waterford City. It’s worth mentioning that people in any field of the arts, or who have a small arts-based business, are also welcome to attend.

My co-panellists are all writers who’ve cut a swathe in the world of social media. Catherine Ryan Howard has built an impressive social media profile to promote her self-published books. Twitter inspired singer-songwriter Derek Flynn (@derekfo3) to launch two albums. Orla Shanaghy showcases her writing through her blog, Wait Till I Tell You. And then there’s moi, who used Facebook and this blog to flog copies of my book, The Pink Cage.

Value of Social Media

We don’t want this panel discussion to be a talking shop. We want to spread the word that social media is a valuable tool for writers. It helps them to get in touch with the audience, generate publicity for their books and most importantly of all, sell them. No wonder so many writers are finding a home on social media.

We’ll start off by sharing our own experiences on social media and the lessons we’ve learned. Then we’ll talk about the role of social media, how to use it to gain an audience, make connections and conduct valuable research.

Using Social Media

Social media feeds on top-quality content, so as a writer, you’re at an advantage. Social media gives you the chance to showcase your writing style. We’ll talk about what to post, so you’ll create content that engages your followers and converts them to your writing style.

Writers can be wary of social media, which is understandable. There are issues of privacy and copyright and it can be quite the time-suck. We’ll talk about how to overcome those pitfalls and make sure you get the maximum benefit from social media.

We’ll make sure that the audience is involved throughout the discussion. That way, they’ll be more likely to learn from the experience. We’ll be feeding off what they tell us, so the discussion could go in any direction. But we’ll make sure we don’t stray far from the central point; how to use social media effectively.

We’ll round off the discussion with each of the panellists giving a top tip for using social media that you’ll be able to put into practise straight away. If you want to come, you can book on the Waterford Writer’s Weekend website;