Building a Platform

https://www.pinterest.com/feed140/more-reasons-to-get-social-today/

Conferences mean agents. Agents mean pitches and platforms. Recently our conversations revolve around how to build our marketability.

Here is a breakdown of sources we feel might help us build our author relevance.

Attending Conferences:

Tupelo Press Writing Conference-Austin

Writer's League of Texas Agents and Editors Conference-Austin

Social Media:

Twitter

Linked-In

Facebook

Canva.com (memes for media)

Gaining Publishing Credits: (add to this list of magazines/publishers/anthologies...)

New York Time-Modern Love

NYT Lives

Psychology Today

Self

Cosmopolitan

Salon

Marie Claire

Kenyon Review

Matter Journal

Tin House

The Southern Review

Draft Publishing

Highlight for Children

Home Education Magazine

Glimmer Train Stories

DAW Book (Penguin Group)

Sumbittable.com seems worth looking into...

Competitions:

The WLT 2015 Manuscript Contest

Writer's Digest

Yellow Bird Editors + Writing Coaches

A few notes from an article about writing personal essays:

• Focus on the magazine's themes/need, read samples of published work in the magazine
• Tell your juiciest story, think drama
• Be timely, can you tell a personal story relatable to current trend/news
• Take an unusual/provocative/controversial angle
• Have an unexpected ending

Building Your Platform

Thank you to writersdigest.com for the following article. You can find their link to the right under favorite links.
A major buzzword floating around the publishing world these days is “platform.” There’s a lot of question about what it means and whether or not authors really need to have one. Writer’s Digest publisher Phil Sexton says theimportance of having a platform ultimately depends on your goals for your book.

If you’re a writer who strives for commercial success and a wide audience of readers, then, yes, platform most certainly matters. It makes no difference whether your ultimate goal is indie or traditional publishing; if you want your book to be competitive in the marketplace, you must consider how you can reach out and generate excitement among readers. Having a platform will help you do just that.

Essentially, your author platform is the means through which you are able to spread your message. It’s based on your connections and influence. Therefore, building your platform involves fostering relationships, establishing your expertise, and building an effective means of communicating with your target audience.

There are many ways to go about this. And the path you take should depend on your own set of skills, the message you want to share and the specific audience you want to reach. Here are a few ideas to consider:

• Build a Website and Blog: Carve out a space online that’s all your own. Use your author website and blog as a place to post articles that establish your expertise in your field. Share news about your book, speaking schedule, upcoming interviews, etc.
• Be Active on Social Media: Developing a social media network is critical to establishing an ongoing method for communicating with your target audience. Whether you choose to use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or all of the above and more, just be sure you’re taking full advantage of at least one of these incredible online relationship-building tools.
• Network at Industry Events: Try hosting a book signing or putting your title on display at book fairs and other events. By giving yourself the opportunity to get your book circulating and to interact directly with new readers, you can start to gather a network of fans.