To Facebook or Not To Facebook?

Our society now is very social-media centered. From what I've learned on my blogging journey so far, social media is a big part of blogging. It's what helps get your name and content out to the masses. I have a Twitter, a neglected Tumblr (I seriously can't figure that thing out), a neglected Tsu (I forget about it), a Pinterest page, a Goodreads page, and a Bloglovin' profile. I feel like I'm "out there" but I still feel like I'm missing something. And thus, the question, to Facebook or not to Facebook? 

I have a personal Facebook profile and in the last few months I've noticed that I hardly use it unless it's to share news articles, funny stories, or inappropriate pictures that I'm sure my grandmother frowns at. So I'm wondering how effective having a Facebook page for my blog would be? I feel a little burned out on my personal page and get somewhat exhausted reading the newsfeed. And I also know that not every page I "like" even shows up on my newsfeed which makes me wonder how many people would actually see my page if I were to make one? 
Is Facebook a valuable tool for you? Has it helped you gain exposure and/or followers? To Facebook or Not To Facebook? 

31 Days of Better Blogging: Day 31 - Test Your Blog!

Today is the FINAL day of 31 Days of Better Blogging!! 

YAY!!!  

The last challenge is all about testing your blog. 

These are some really good sites to test your blog's speed, SEO, ranking, and how it looks on different browsers: 

• Alexa
• BrowserShots
• Pingdom
• PluginSEO

Thanks for hanging around and following along with me to see if I actually finished the challenge!! 

31 Days of Better Blogging: Day 30 - Brainstorming

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Day 30 is all about brainstorming!! 

As a writer, brainstorming is very important to me. Some of the best ideas I've had in my writing and in other areas of my life have come from brainstorming sessions. I've also wondered about my sanity during brainstorming situations. There are some scary things floating around in this head! 

I have five tips for brainstorming. These are things that I use to help me come up with ideas: 

• Listen to music that fits the mood or theme of whatever you're trying to come up with. For example, I listen to a lot of jazz music when I'm trying to develop characters. I like characters who have soft and hard edges like some jazz music so sometimes I grab my headphones, turn up the volume, and lay back on the couch until something comes to me. (Or I fall asleep. Don't do this if you're sleepy.) 
• Write down everything. Dump it all out on a piece of paper, a Word document, a note app on your phone, or even a cocktail napkin. Whatever you have on hand, write everything in your brain on that. When I was working in retail and I came across a brilliant idea, I'd write it down on receipt paper. I ended up with stacks and stacks of little notes but it helped me keep from forgetting my ideas. 
• Phone a friend. Or text. Bounce ideas off of someone you trust who will not judge you if you send them a message at 3 A.M. Especially if that message says something like , "I created a fictional cat in this story because I want a cat and the hubs says we can't have one." (Not that I've sent something like that to anyone.) 
• Get a hobby. I've had some "lightbulb" moments while I was immersed in one of my favorite hobbies. There are several times I've been working on a piece of jewelry and think about what it would look like on a character. Usually a dead character but beggars can't be choosers, right? 
• Have a good sense of humor. Allow yourself to be silly, even more so when you're getting frustrated with yourself or the situation. Find something funny in your brainstorming process and give yourself a good laugh. Don't be so serious! 

I hope some of my tips help with your brainstorming process. What are some things you do to help brainstorm? 

#Feature & Follow Friday - Hard Print or Kindle/Nook?

 

This is my second Feature and Follow  Friday! I would do more but I always seem to forget until it's Sunday and then it's too late. I love reading the Feature and Follow posts because they always feature cool bloggers and I love the questions because, let's just be honest, I'm nosey and I like to know what other people are thinking and doing with their life. 

You can check out the featured blogger, find out how FF works, and read up on the rules here. 

This Weeks Question: 

Hard print (real thing) or Kindle/Nook, which is your favorite? 

I will always choose the real thing over an e-book any day! Before I started blogging I wouldn't even touch an e-reader. I like being able to hold the book in my hand and thumb the pages while I read. BUT I have grown quite fond of the Kindle app on my phone. I love being able to pick up my phone at any time and have a book right there at my fingers. Especially when I'm somewhere I don't want to be or my social anxiety is kicking in. I can sit and read and calm myself down. Not too mention I have become addicted to free books on Kindle. I have as much trouble saying "NO" to the free Kindle books as I do the review books from NetGalley and Edelweiss. I guess I'm a bit of a book slut, I'll take it anyway I can get it. 

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31 Days of Better Blogging: Day 29 - User Friendly

Today is about making sure your website is user friendly! 

In order to make sure your website is user friendly you should: 

• Make sure your menus work
• Make sure your links work
• Your contact info should be placed somewhere that will be easily seen 
• Your layout should be streamlined and easy to navigate
• Your font should be easy to read
• Sidebars should free of clutter and only filled with things that are of vital importance to you and your readers 

Is your site user friendly?

We Need To Talk....Snobs In the Bookish Community

You guys, we need to talk....

What about I'm about to talk about it isn't necessarily news. 

Snobs. 

More specifically snobs in the book community. Listen, I get it. I really do. I understand that you have spent the majority of your life getting degree after degree after degree and you've been featured in at least four literary magazines before you were potty-trained and blah blah blah blah....

STOP. 

I do not care how many books you have published. I do not care how many magazines, journals, radio interviews, or TV spots you have done. I don't. Don't get me wrong, those are all great accomplishments and you should be proud of yourself. However, you should not treat people, more specifically people who might read your work, as if you are better than them. If you are an author and you're walking around with your nose up so high in the air that if rained you would drown then you should probably check yo self before you wrickey-wrickety-wreck yo self. 

(I'm sorry, I saw an opening and I had to use it.) 

Since writing and publishing my book I've been perusing a lot of book blogger blogs and author blogs to find people to approach for reviews and for ideas of how to market my blog. I've noticed some authors, usually bigger name authors or authors who at least have a few books under their belt, are not very polite to their readers. In a world where social media makes everyone reachable, this is really a shame. You don't have to become best friends and swap Snapchats with every one of your fans. A simple and POLITE "thank you for reading my book" or "thank you for supporting me" would suffice. Don't be a jerk or just completely ignore people who are reaching out to you. If you didn't have fans reading your books, you would not be selling books. You would just be writing for yourself. 

This goes for book bloggers, too. Don't think I forgot about you! It's great that blog has taken off and has thousands of readers checking your pages every day. That's AWESOME! I hope to have that kind of success with my blog one day. I know it took a lot of hard work to get there but that doesn't mean you should be butt-holes to your readers and/or other bloggers. Be respectful of people who took the time to not only read your blog but to also take the time to comment. Just like authors, if you didn't have readers reading your blog, you'd just be writing posts for yourself to read. 

I get so tired of seeing authors and bloggers treating other people in the industry like they are better than them because they've sold more books, have 58 doctorates in writing, or have a larger fan base. Don't be a douche canoe. 

There are already so many other problems in this world. Instead of treating the very people who support you like they don't matter, show a little appreciation. Even if you're a high-class fancy pants and think that only other high-class fancy pants people should be reading your stories you should still be nice and polite when Delta Dawn from the trailer park in Woodstock, Alabama decides to praise your work. I promise you, as a reader, if I try to approach you about something on your blog or about your book and you are rude to me, I will no longer support your work. I will not bad mouth you or your work but I definitely will not spend any more of my hard earned money supporting your writing. And I'll probably throw your books in the burn pile next to 50 Shades of Grey and Twilight....

I feel like this all boils down to manners. If you are guilty of treating people like this then obviously you have misplaced your manners. It's really simple. When someone compliments you, you say "thank you". When someone insults you, you turn the other cheek and move on about your business. Be the bigger person and do not embarrass yourself by lashing out at someone else. If they simply say they didn't like your work, just thank them for taking their time to at least read your work and for their opinion. Use whatever criticism they gave you and make yourself better instead of taking everything so personally. 

If you can't be nice to people, well then....