How To Talk About Your Good News Without Annoying Everyone
I try not to post much on decor8 about my books or press stuff because I think it can get super annoying super fast. Bloggers who write books (guilty) then constantly push them (guilty again) and travel all over the planet to promote them (still guilty) annoy me sometimes, too because a blog you once read and loved suddenly turns into an infomercial where every post seems to drop yet another link to their book. Why do they do it then? Are bloggers bad people?
Oh my gosh, of course not! Quite the opposite really, most bloggers I know are absolute sweethearts. But being an author has become a huge numbers game, a popularity contest - something I never imagined authors even dealt with until I became one. I never thought about Amazon rankings and bestsellers lists or print runs or book tours... I never imagined any of it. I became an author to just write stuff and reach more people with my ideas with hopes of inspiring them and myself at the same time. I guess I was naive when I started writing books. I thought you just submitted your text to your editor and poof! the publisher did the rest and you just sat back and watched as you began pulling together another concept to pitch for your next title.
This is not the case. Anyone who writes books nowadays knows exactly what I'm talking about. You really have to work for your success as an author like anything else in life. I LOVE writing and feel tremendously honored to currently be working on my third book. So how do I talk about this stuff on my blog without making you guys feel annoyed, or jealous, or like you want to run away?
Well, I have a solution and I hope this helps bloggers everywhere who struggle with this.
But first, I want to mention that bloggers who write books and talk about them in every other post mean no harm. I mean no harm. I sit through it while reading my favorite blogs because I know they mean well, it's a big accomplishment, and they're just doing it because they are excited and want their book to do well. It makes you feel good when you spend a year of your life writing a book that sells well upon release. No wants their book to flop! Plus, it means you can write more books and if you happen to love to write, then that is great. Promoting books is not what bloggers want to do, trust me, it's super uncomfortable! This is coming from me, a total extrovert... Talking about my accomplishments like press mentions, books, and anything else that turns me into a business woman and not just a nice lady who enjoys writing stuff on my blog, makes me feel kind of awkward. But the truth is, I really am happy when people write about me and I want to talk about this stuff on my blog.
So I was thinking, how do I still shout out those who are writing reviews and talking about me in magazines, etc. ? In a really casual "by the way" kind of post . That's how! I want to feel good about this and I want you to feel good about this. I want to promote what I am proud of doing, after all... So I've decided that once a week, if I have some good work-related news to share, I'll bundle all of it into one lovely post called, "Really Good News". I like that title because everyday we hear really bad news so something good is welcome and positive. Plus, with a dedicated column for this stuff, I don't have to feel weird of guilty posting about my happy news and you don't have to feel annoyed and bored. Great compromise!
Stay tuned for the first I Really Like This News post. Coming up soon! And Bloggers - if you battle with this too, I invite you to copy my column idea and make your own regular column with a cool name where you can really open up about your work accomplishments, press mentions, etc. It's a good blog tip, right?
xo, Holly