Rob Bignell's Blog, page 379

Increasingly
we interact through social media, a catch-all term for various web-based and mobile technologies that allow the user to generate content (such as text, photos or video). You already probably use a variety of social media, such as Facebook, YouTube or blogs. Rather than rely solely on traditional media, such as newspapers and television, to get the word out about your book, consider also utilizing these alternative outlets. Indeed, the advantage of social media is that it allows people with similar interests to connect, share information, and discuss topics, meaning you can directly reach those potential readers who are most likely to buy your book.



Among the most popular social media platforms that you should exploit are:

n Blogs – These are a sort of personal journal published on the worldwide web. They can be on any subject with posts as frequent as daily to once every few weeks.

n YouTube – This is a website in which users can upload, view and share videos. The user uploading the video typically made it.

n Facebook – This social networking service allows members to post updates and photos about their lives and to carry on conversations in real time.

n Twitter – This networking service allows users to “microblog” or send out blog-like entries that are only 140 characters long. Often the “tweets” users send include links to longer entries.

n LinkedIn – Similar to Facebook, LinkedIn focus more on one’s profession and career rather than pure socializing.



As with our entire technological world, social media platforms constantly are rising and falling in popularity as new ones are developed. If this book is still around in a decade, most likely the above list of the most popular social platforms will be different. Still, these are the big shots for now, and in the steps ahead, we’ll examine how you can utilize these significant social media platforms to get out the word about your book.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

An editing
client of my mine from this past autumn has published her first novel. Jana Meador’s “Edward Hewitt’s Story” takes us through the life of the title’s namesake and the legacies of a silver lighter and a vintage ring that have been in his family for more than a century. After young Edward meets the smart and beautiful Dorothy Harris, who forever captures his heart, World War II interrupts their lives. When Edward’s plane is shot down, and the love letters stop arriving from him, Dorothy refuses to accept that he may have died. Her strong love for Edward and her sixth sense keep her believing that her husband will come home. Will he? “Edward Hewitt’s Story” is available online at Amazon.com.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

I’ll be
reading from and singing my novel, Windmill on Saturday, Feb. 23, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Chapter 2 bookstore in historic downtown Hudson, Wis. An independently owned bookstore, Chapter 2 sells a number of locally authored books and regularly hosts book readings and signings. Windmill tells the story of Carl Steinar and his sons, Peter and Lyle, have maintained a tenuous balance, keeping together their family and farm on the western plains of Nebraska. Like blades in a well-oiled windmill, each works in harmony with the other. But when Abbie Blaire, the new reporter in town comes to write a story about them, a monkey wrench is thrown into their perfect machine: She is the spitting image of the wife and mother the Steinar men lost years ago. They soon find themselves on new trajectories in which their needs and goals can only collide. You can purchase copies of “Windmill” in advance of the book reading/signing (or on that day!) at Chapter 2.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

An editing
client of mine from this winter, Pat Mallon, has published his first novel, “Seefer Elliot and the World Aside Ours”. The book tells the story of Seefer Elliot, a twelve-year-old boy who thinks his life stinks. He’s at constant odds with his mother. The kids at school relentlessly tease him. And not a day goes by where something near him doesn’t break or burst into flames. Just when he thought things couldn't get any worse, his school is overtaken by an otherworldly foe. Now the kid nobody wanted around is the most wanted one in this existence. He faces the decision to flee for his own safety, or use his burgeoning superpower to battle the enemy who seeks control over it. The book is available at Amazon.com.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

An editing
client of mine from last year, Freddy Howard, had published his first novel, “Luke 11:24 (The Dark Obsession of a Killer Clergy)”. When a woman’s body is found in Otay Lake with a crucifix around her neck, a trail of mutilated victims, a dead policeman, and a mysterious pregnancy leads Jack Dunn, a retiring San Diego homicide detective, to believe his long-time friend, Father Antonio Florentino, is a serial killer. Dunn is determined to bring him to justice, but there is a deeper, dark secret for which none can escape – a force born in the purgatory between good and evil. “Luke 11:24” can be purchased at Amazon.com.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Each of
the three books in my 7 Minutes a Day… writing guide series are now on sale at the Volume One store in downtown Eau Claire. Volume One, the premier news guide to entertainment and the arts in the Chippewa Valley, boasts an art gallery and store that sells all things “Eau Claire." The three books on sale include:

g 7 Minutes a Day to Your Bestseller

g 7 Minutes a Day to Self-Publishing a Book

g 7 Minutes a Day to Promoting Your Book

Volume One carries a large collection of other Chippewa Valley writers’ books as well. It is located at 205 N. Dewey St.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

An editing

client of client from last year, Stacy May Meppen, has published her first novel. “Embers of Adam: In the Beginning” tells the story of Gloria, a teen girl struggling with finishing her senior year, her alcoholic mother, and whatever boyfriend-of-the-month she has at the time. As if this isn’t enough, she unknowingly finds herself the pawn between the two warring nations of the Mörkrai on the Isle of Nammu. Gloria must decide if what she is dreaming and feeling are real or simply imagined. If Gloria fails to see the truth, the Mörkrai will perish, along with her chance at true love. “Embers of Adam” is available at Amazon.com.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Women’s Adventure magazine

featured my book Hikes with Tykes: Games and Activities in its latest edition. Of the book, the article said, “If you have school-aged kids, you’ll find tons of amazing ideas for that age group in Rob’s book...Remember, it will be summer again before we know it! Grab the book now, read through it over the next few months, and you’ll be ready to hit the trails as soon as the snow melts with fresh vigor, energy – AND new games!” Based in Boulder, Colo., Women’s Adventure is the only sports, travel, fitness and lifestyle magazine published specifically for active women. Listing more than 100 diversions, Hikes with Tykes: Games and Activities provides anyone taking kids on a day hike with loads of tried and true amusements to keep children from getting unruly or bored. The book can be ordered online.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

My latest
books, the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks are now available at Bookends on Main bookstore in downtown Menomonie, Wis. An independently owned bookstore, Bookends on Main sells a number of locally authored books and often hosts book readings and signings. The series offers step-by-step guides to writing, self-publishing and marketing your book. Simply set aside seven minutes a day – between classes, in the morning before your family gets up, or during lunch at work. In that time, take a minute or two to read one “step.” Then for another five minutes write as instructed in the You Do It section that follows. Bookends on Main is located at 214 Main St E.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

My latest
books, the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks are now available at Chapter 2 bookstore in historic downtown Hudson, Wis. An independently owned bookstore, Chapter 2 sells a number of locally authored books and regularly hosts book readings and signings. The series offers step-by-step guides to writing, self-publishing and marketing your book. Simply set aside seven minutes a day – between classes, in the morning before your family gets up, or during lunch at work. In that time, take a minute or two to read one “step.” Then for another five minutes write as instructed in the You Do It section that follows.



Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.