If you’re an author reluctant to use social media, this series is for you.
I can’t give you advice to make you go viral and gain 10k followers overnight, but I can offer tips and tricks to manage your social media without giving your whole life over to it. Over the coming weeks, we will work together to create manageable ways to engage online that will increase your reach without stealing your peace. I’m so glad you’re here with us.
“Threads. You have to be on Threads.” This was the advice offered to me, free of charge, from an enthusiastic indie author during her signing at our store. I blinked at her, trying to return a smile, but honestly, that advice made me want to topple a bookshelf.
Listen, I love an opportunity to expand my reach, but I cannot, I absolutely cannot take on another social media app right now.
She, a queen in online spaces, was offering me a bone. I, on the other hand, am more of a hobbit when it comes to the internet. I like to stay in my own little hobbit-hole, adventures be damned. Unfortunately, we all know how this story goes. Adventures certainly do not be damned in this one.
No, I didn’t download Threads… not yet at least, but I have been tasked with the weighty and perilous journey of building an online presence. Dragons to be slayed, princesses to be saved, rings to be thrown into a volcano, posts to be made and so forth.
If you’re like me, you’re reluctant to play around with social media. Unfortunately, your writing requires it of you, and so, like me, you are slaying dragons every time you post a reel, saving princesses in your captions, and considering throwing yourself into an active volcano (please don’t).
Hopefully, I can help you survive this epic journey by offering tips and tricks from one reluctant author to another (reluctant to use social media, that is).
So, where do we begin?
Platform: Where do I need to be?
The good news is that you have options. The bad news is you have options.
There are dozens of social media outlets, from Threads to Discord to YouTube to Facebook to TikTok to X to Bluesky… are you exhausted already? I am.
When beginning to build your online presence, just remember: the internet is a playground.
We’re going to be returning to this refrain over and over again throughout these emails. Yes, you need a social media presence, but really, it is not that serious. You don’t need to be a master at every one to make a difference for your business. You just need to play around with a few.
When selecting which social media you want to be on, think about what you enjoy. Do you prefer engaging with written content? Consider Threads, X, Bluesky, or Substack. Do you prefer reels? TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook are going to be your bread and butter. Is long form video essay more your thing? Get on YouTube, stat.
For the sake of these emails, I’m going to focus my attention on only four platforms: Substack, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. You can apply and adapt this advice to any platform, but I find that these platforms are generally the most common and can offer you the largest reach with a small learning curve.
Don’t feel like you have to hop on all four! Starting out, pick one or two social media1 platforms you want to start with. Facebook and Instagram are a really neat pair because they are both owned by Meta and can be managed through the same account.
A quick overview of our top four platforms
Substack
Best for long form content like essays and newsletters. I will shout from the rooftops about the necessity of an email newsletter, and Substack makes that possible without charging the author ridiculous fees. Downside is that Substack desperately wants you to monetize your content, which is helpful if you have a strategy for that, but isn’t so helpful if you’re just trying to build your platform. However, Substack is a great tool for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). I have a personal website and a Substack, but when I google my name, Substack comes up first.
Best for reaching Millennials, this platform is designed for visual content. Instagram is ideal for short form videos and photographic content. It is a powerful tool in pushing your content to new viewers in order to build a following. You’ll want to set up a business account for optimal analytics.
Instagram’s older cousin, Facebook is best for reaching Gen X and Boomers. It is designed around visual content but offers room for short term text content as well. If you’re an author, you will need a personal account to set up an author page. You can link your author page to your Instagram account using Meta, which allows you to post to both simultaneously.
TikTok
TikTok reaches from gen X to gen alpha and features short form video content. It is possibly the best at pushing your content to new viewers, the easiest to go viral on, and the hardest to build boundaries around.
Do Now:
Pick two social media platforms you want to start with and make an account. Pick platforms you can stomach. Do not make a TikTok just because all the kids are on it. If it makes you miserable, you won’t use it.
Picking a username
When picking a username, you want something clear and easy for your readers to remember. My username is always sarinarmichel. I’m lucky that my name is uncommon enough that I can use just that, but if I drop that middle initial, I’m out of luck. I’ve seen a lot of indie authors include “writes” or “author” or “books” to help readers identify their account as an author account immediately. The clear benefit is that people watching your content will understand you are an author from your username alone. The negative? It’s kind of bulky. You can decide what you want to do and what best meets your needs.
What you should absolutely not do is have your username different across platforms. If I were sarinarmichel on Facebook and sarinawrites on Instagram, I risk missing connections because it is harder to find me. Also, it takes up a lot of room on a business card.
What’s next?
Absolutely nothing. You’ve made an account! Congrats! Get yourself a specialty latte or throw your phone across the room in anguish, whatever makes you happy. If you have the energy, you can upload a photo and write a bio, but really, you don’t have to do anything right now. The internet will wait for you, I promise.
Next time, we’ll jump into building a cohesive brand across platforms, suggest some apps that will make your life easier, and set up the bare bones of a content calendar. In the meantime, don’t forget, the internet is a playground.
Some professionals advise making accounts on multiple platforms with the exact same username, whether or not you are going to use it. This ensures that if you ever venture into Tumblr, you already have your username locked in.
Leave a Reply