Wanted: Community Leaders to Help Manage My Blog

The volume of my blog comments has increased dramatically in the past year. I am so grateful for the robust community that has developed here. People often tell me that they find the comments as helpful as the posts. I agree.

A Crowd of People Interacting - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/Photomorphic, Image #17146139

As a result, I read every comment and respond to as many as I can. However, this is currently taking me about ten hours a week.

Three Keys to Marketing Fiction in the Current Environment

This is a guest post by Eric Mullet, Marketing Director for Thomas Nelson’s fiction division. You can follow him on Twitter or connect with him on Facebook. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

Fiction marketing in the current publishing environment is an evolving art. Some have described it as the “Wild West,” where anyone can win big. Others have hailed it as the “end of publishing” as we know it.

Man with a Megaphone - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/lisegagne, Image #651734

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/lisegagne

But for those willing to take a chance—and responsibility—it’s an environment that is full of opportunity. The question for authors is this: How can you best leverage your stories and your brand for the long haul in a quickly evolving market?

5 Steps to Building a Platform When You Hate Selling Yourself

This is a guest post by Robin Sullivan, a small press publisher, publicist, and public speaker. She blogs at Write to Publish. You can also follow her on Twitter. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

I hear the following from authors all the time, “All I want to do is write. I hate promoting myself. I’m no good at it.” The result is they don’t work on their platform, hoping somehow that the whole notion will somehow just go away.

A Man with His Head in the Stand - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/tap10, Image #10656911

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/tap10

Putting your head in the sand is not the answer. It’s no longer a question of if an author needs a program, it’s now part of the writing business and can mean the difference between success and failure.

3 Benefits of Building Your Own Platform

Successful creatives—authors, speakers, musicians, and even comedians—must possess two strategic assets: a compelling product and a meaningful platform. While the former is essential, it is not enough. Without a meaningful platform, you simply can’t get the attention your product, your brand, or your cause needs to succeed.

Microphone On a Stage with Lights - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/Nikada, Image #7683095

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/Nikada

Think of it like this: If content is king, platform is queen. You can not build a personal media empire without the help of both monarchs.

Why I Won’t Retweet You

I recognize that all that I have—including my platform—is a gift. I am a steward not an owner. As a result, I enjoy using what I have for the benefit of others. I want to be helpful and generous.

A Man Begging for a Retweet - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/tap10, Image #13835308

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/tap10

But, no, I won’t retweet you.

How to Keep the Conversations on Your Blog Civil

If the mid-term elections in the U.S. are any indication, the lack of civility in public discourse has sunk to a new level. No one seems to listen to their opponents. Pundits (and politicians) routinely talk over one another. Volume appears to be more important than logic.

Networking Group - Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/jgroup, Image #5649910

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/jgroup

You might not be able to solve this cultural problem, but you don’t have to put up with it on your blog. Yesterday, Publishers Lunch Deluxe, commented on my blog post, “Why Do eBooks Cost So Much? (A Publisher’s Perspective).” After noting the high number of comments, the editor said,

Do You Make These 8 Mistakes When You Twitter?

Twitter is a great tool for extending your influence. You can engage your “tribe” in real time, offering leadership and assistance in a way that would have been impossible just a couple of years ago.

7 Strategies for Increasing Your Blog Comments

There’s nothing worse than writing something you think is important, posting it on your blog, and then waiting for comments … and waiting … and waiting. Conversely, there are few things more rewarding than having people comment on your post and engaging directly with your readers. More than any single factor, I think it is the one thing that has kept me blogging for all these years.

Photo courtesy of ©iStockphoto.com/Kronick, Image #6428830

But how do you get more comments? How do you get your readers more engaged? I am definitely not an expert, but I get a fair amount of comments. Here are seven strategies that I have found helpful.

Leadership 2.0

I started blogging in 1998—before it was called blogging. I simply posted new articles to my web site, because I noticed that people would come back if the content kept changing. But it was a hassle. It wasn’t easy to change the content or structure of your site. Everything was fairly static.

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