Friday Musings 12/1/2017

Is Twitter a huge circle of cliques? Is it even necessary?

Perhaps, but not for what you may think.

It can mean different things for different folks at different points in their career. To a beginning writer it can be good for networking and meeting like-minded individuals. Or to create a group that helps each other.

To a seasoned writer with some credits to their name, it can mean the same thing, but on a bigger scale. Now they aren’t really worried about following others, thought it is still important in the social scheme of things.

Then there are the successful writers who make a living off of this and are only using it as a venue for fans. They can follow back, as I’ve seen some do, or just post things about themselves. At this point they’ve already built up the fan base and don’t need to worry too much about building up as they are widely known. But again, you can always keep growing. 

Of course one always wants their fan base to keep building, but Twitter is not necessarily the place to do that. Though it can happen. But if you're not known it seems to be a very slow process. 

The people you follow are mostly writers and other artists. Some will buy something, if you do likewise. Or if you are buds, they’ll snag a few copies of your latest story. But is that enough to live off of?

No. It isn’t.

Perhaps it’s all just in the name of getting your name out there. A blog is like a resume of sorts, agents and publishers you query may read over it to see how much you know of the industry, or how well you write and get your thoughts across. 

So all the work you’re doing isn’t wasted on grinding in the hallways of Twitter University. But you won’t be making anything just yet.

That all depends on how well you build your platform.

As you get into more publications and make new contacts, you build your base little by little. You submit to the pro paying magazines and get seen more. Then, when you’re ready, you submit to an agent, or publisher, and that’s when the real fun begins.

You can also go in an alternative direction and self publish, but that’s a different story for another post.

So grab some like-minded individuals and gather in a circle. Don’t forget to start collecting your tools, because you’re gonna need them later on. Make sure your base is solid. And have fun. There you go. Now get to grinding!

WCM

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