Category Archives: Writings about Writing

Thoughts and tips about the craft

Mastering Social Media: Have Fun!

Posted in Writings about Writing by

While I don’t claim to be a social media expert or “guru,” I’ve been around the social media scene for a few years (since the days of MySpace, actually.) I work for a social media company, and I coach writers about how to manage their social media and build a brand for themselves online. I keep on top of the social media industry, and I’m constantly reading blogs and articles by people far more expert than me.

But there’s one thing I’ve noticed that man of the real social media experts and gurus neglect in their blogs, articles, and branding courses: social media should be fun.

You can have all the best branding techniques in the world, all the most streamlined scheduling tools, all the sharpest graphics – and all of those are great. But for the novice first getting their feet wet with trying to grow a following on Twitter or Facebook, this can be overwhelming.

If you’re just getting started with social media – or even if you’ve mastered the basics and you’re trying to grow to the next level – then my advice is first and foremost to have fun.  Continue reading →

Writing Is…Seeing the Details

Posted in Travel Writings, Writings about Writing by

Writers are observers. We need to observe life in all its grand scope and small detail—places, things, people, events, words, emotions.

A couple of weeks ago, I moved from one state to another one—literally across the country. Since everything about my new home is new, I’m in major observation mode right now. There are so many details that may or may not ever make it into a story. But whether a certain detail actually makes it into a book or not isn’t really the point. Every detail observed and pondered is another wrinkle on the brain, another thought or sound or smell added to the richness of experience.

Details like the dirt road I drive on every day that leads up to the house where I’m staying. I’m learning the spots along the road where the rain has eroded the dirt into a washboard surface, and the spot that looks smooth but the dirt makes the car fishtail ever so slightly whether the road is wet or dry.

Details like the lichen that grows in abundance on the trees. So many different kinds and colors:

Continue reading →