Writers & Social Media

November 3, 2014 - colinashby 2 Comments

Social media is kind of like this mysterious black hole. Besides seeing the constant #pretty or #blessed photos and posts, you aren’t exactly sure what you’re getting out of it. You can put things into it but you’re not exactly sure what you’re going to get out of it. Plus there is the bad habit of social media eating into your writing time.

We all know how important writing time is (especially with NaNoWriMo upon us). Never fear, there are measurable ways and tactics manage your social media.

Moving to the beat of those metrics

Gone are the days of just blindly posting updates/posts and never really knowing how much they were seen. There are ways to see how much exposure your Facebook update, tweet, or Instagram picture got. Facebook Insights, Inconosquare for Instagram, and Analytics for Twitter are great (and free) ways to measure the impact of your social media updates.

With these tools, you can see which weeks were better than some, days that had higher exposure than others, and so forth. No longer do you have to post a super excited tweet with your novel details on a blind eye!

Don’t stop till you hit the post

Posting only at certain times isn’t something you have to religiously follow but it is helpful to know. Whenever you have exciting details about your novel, revealing your cover, or just want to post an update, post during peak hours so as many people can see it as possible.

This helpful infographic from Hub Spot shows the best times to post and even what to include. Isn’t that nifty?

Hootsuite is your kinda sorta awesome best friend that tells you everything

I’m suprised at how many people still don’t know about Hootsuite. I use it all the time for my PRSSA organization and plan to use it even more once I start hardcore promotion for my novel next year.

With Hootsuite, you can schedule messages for future publish. You can also schedule things to post at the same time across all of your social media channels.

This feature is a hugely beneficial way of taking the constant thought of needing to update, logging into all of your channels and posting to each individually.

Once I start using this to post updates, I can set aside a designated time to craft posts. Then for the rest of my time, I can work on what really matters: finishing my novel!

Thoughts

Self-publishing is a lot of work…and a lot of money. You’re having to do nearly all of the marketing and engagement yourself. It takes a lot away from you. It takes a lot away from writing time. Using the right tools can make using social media a little bit more insightful so you know what you’re getting out of it.

I don’t want to promote my novel and engage with other authors without having a little insight into how much exposure I’m getting and how to maximize it. Or maybe I can just post saying I’m Colin Ashby, buy my novel!!! (note: probably wouldn’t work).

Go ahead and check the sources out and see what works for you. Happy writing!

Young Adult Novels Adhere to the Unconventional

October 20, 2014 - colinashby Leave a comment

Young adult novels…they’ve seem to have gotten repetitive. Fascinating worlds and wonderful tales fill them but many of the main characters across the book have a common shared theme: they’re socially awkward hipsters who take off beaten paths.

I’m not saying that all young adult books are like this. There are several books to choose from that do not take this well-worn path: The Hunger Games, Maze Runner, Divergent. It is worth pointing out why many young adult books are diving in this theme of embracing the unconventional individual. Several young adult books with nerdy/awkward protagonists have become bestsellers. Young adult author John Green’s books including Paper Towns, The Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska all include having a main protagonist who isn’t very outgoing and believes in staying quiet.

Two young adult genre breakout hits of 2013 were Eleanor & Park and Fangirl. Both books (written by the same author: Rainbow Rowell) deal with introverted characters who surround themselves in their own world. This Song Will Save Your Life, a novel by Leila Sales, deals with a quiet teen girl who has trouble making friends. Notice a similar theme/trend with the other books mentioned?

Perhaps this is just a trend that in the coming years will start to slow down. It’s good that many young adult authors are helping teens embrace their quirky traits and awkwardness in a world of weight pressure, body image critics, and bullying. There is room for change however. Sometimes it needs to be known when to move on and describe other types of characters. Embrace the person who likes to speak up, make things, and/or is overly vain. It would be a welcomed change.

Carnival: Book Review

June 23, 2014 - colinashby 1 Comment

This summer is running through with great novels coming out. Several binge-reading, addicting books are coming out…and a lot of them are self-published ones. The novel I’m reviewing in this post is Carnival, a new adult romance novel chronicling the life ahead for the protagonist, 18-year-old Charlie.

Things are a bit bumpy for Charlie at the beginning of the book. She lives in a small town that doesn’t have much. College plans loom on the horizon. Despite the exciting prospect of going somewhere new, Charlie decides not to go to college. She isn’t exactly sure what she wants to do. She’s up for anything. This carefree attitude leads to her sleeping with a carnie stranger named Blue, at the town carnival.

Blue has been living his whole life on the carnival circuit. He likes the nature of it, traveling around and not staying in one place to long. Things hit a halt when he meets Charlie. For the first time in his life, he isn’t really sure exactly what he wants to do.

Charlie and Blue come together, two people living reckless lives, wondering what choices need to be made. They start to form a bond that most wouldn’t understand. They become an outlet for one another to trust.

Now here’s the thing that might trouble some people about this novel. It isn’t some sugar-coated cliche romance story that ends with a “happily ever after” line. It’s an honest look into two types of people that are still trying to figure themselves out. They experiment with things along the way. Swearing happens throughout the novel. Bad things are done.

The novel is commendable in it’s surprising twists and turns. This isn’t some light soap opera-ish reading. It gives depth to the otherwise ordinary lives that people seem like they’re living on the surface. Nelson is good in crafting the conflict that Charlie faces, wondering what to do with her life. The characterization is very distinct.

4/5 stars: Great, gritty read. Good start to a promising series by author K.B. Nelson. Carnival releases to book retailers July 7th.

To get a taste of carnival, read the first and second teasers that the author had released so far.

Finished Netflix List? Summer Books to Check Out

June 15, 2014 - colinashby Leave a comment

Making a list of book recommendations can be pesky task to do. Thinking about books so subjective. Although film reviews are also subjective and I post those on this blog. Books are different. People get really defensive and think highly about what makes for a good read.

I try to read books with a wide perspective to see who would like them. Below I give a list of books to check out this summer. Happy reading!

Young Adult

Eleanor & Park (Rainbow Rowell): Set in 1986, the book is about two teens from vastly different upbringings that connect over a love of comic books and 80’s alternative music. Eleanor, age 15, is the new kid at school who is bullied for wearing “weird” clothes and being overweight. She has a bad homelife and stays quiet. Park is a boy who, despite coming from a loving household, feels like an outsider in the world.

Reason for its acclaim? The themes of not fitting in and finding oneself are universal. The story is about teens but can be enjoyed by anyone with less-than-stellar high school memories. Even John Green (author of The Fault in Our Stars) loved the book!

Looking for Alaska (John Green): Everyone has read The Fault in Our Stars by now. Looking for more Green in your life? (sorry, I couldn’t resist saying that). Looking for Alaska was John Green’s debut novel. It follows 16-year-old Miles Halter as he attends a preparatory high school for his junior year. He is going to seek “a great perhaps.” Starting his classes, he meets a unique group of friends who go by a variety of nicknames: The Colonel, Takumi. Alaska Young is the pretty but emotionally unstable girl he meets after being introduced by The Colonel.

Alaska is smart, adventurous and attracts all the boys at the school with her looks. Through a series of late night conversations, Alaska’s story of sadness, depression and unhappiness start to come to light.

Reason to read: The book is unique in that it’s told in a series of “before” and “after” intervals rather than the traditional chapters. The book goes through the struggles of growing up, dealing with painful memories and figuring out ways to move foward even in the wake of sadness. Even with its sad nature, it somehow is able to have bits of humor and leave the reader with a rediscovered sense of dealing with painful circumstances.

Other books

Attachments (Rainbow Rowell): Rowell does dialogue between characters very well. Hence the reason for giving out recommendations of two books by her.

Attachments is about love in the workplace. Lincoln O’Neill gets a job as an “internet security officer.” His job? To read people’s emails at the company and write up a report if he see anything bad/suspicious in nature. He comes across two workers emails, Beth and Jennifer. Reading the emails, he know he should turn them in but the emails are just so entertaining to him. He is drawn to the stories they tell in the emails.

Lincoln falls in love with Beth from the emails he reads that are hers. He knows so much about her. It’s a little late to introduce himself to her without coming off as a creep for knowing so much about her.

Reason to read: This is one of the few books about love in the workplace that heartfelt and touching to read. Most books about love in the workplace usually have a bunch of sex in them and have a soap-opera-ish vibe to them. Attachments is different. The characters are fully carved out and realistic to read. It’s one of those books (for girls and guys) that will have you biting your lip and waiting to turn to the next page.

Gone Girl (Gillian Flynn): Read it before the movie comes out in October! If you want a novel full of suspense that will keep you wondering as you read, Gone Girl is the book to read. Flynn is a genius with her words and crafting of a great suspense story.

The novel centers on the uncertainty surrounding main character, Nick Dunne, and whether he killed his wife, Amy Dunne.

Reason to read: To read something new and refreshing. Are you tired of reading young adult/new adult novels about cliche romances and/or the typical quirky hipster? Gone Girl is a novel that will keep your eyes wide and wondering throughout the chapters. Great thriller novel full of twists and turns.

Review of Ken Ilguna’s Walden on Wheels: From Debt to Freedom

September 14, 2013 - colinashby 1 Comment

Every so often, one can see the news articles talking about student debt. It is a hot topic right now. The average student debt continues to rise in America. People try to concoct a range of different ways in order to minimize it. One guy, Ken Ilgunas, took it to the extreme: he lived in his van to stay debt free.

Ken Ilguna’s book, Walden on Wheels: On the Open Road from Debt to Freedom, details his experiences in tackling his $32,000 in debt, vowing to take out student loans again, and eventually living in a 1994 Ford E-150 Econoline. The book is divided into three parts: Debtor, Living a free life in spite of debt, and the eventual van dwelling part three.

The book starts off with Ilguna graduating from college, no job offers, and 32,000 in debt. He explores what his college degree (in english) is really worth and what it could do for him. No job leads on the horizon, he travels up to Coldfoot, Alaska to work a $9 dollar/hour job as a cook at a truck stop (Coldfoot has the northern most truck stop in the U.S.). The book chronicles the two and a half years after graduation of him working one low paying job to the next. Despite the low pay, through his extreme frugal living he is able to pay off the $32,000 in just two and a half years (hence the title: Walden on Wheels). After paying off the debt, he buys a van off craigslist and lives in it while going to graduate school.

There is something special about this book. It’s a coming-of-age memoir that is more than just chronicling the author’s personal self. In the book, the Ilguna raises questions about his education. Was his degree worth it? Should he have majored in something more “marketable”? He learns by the end of the book that his broad liberal studies degrees (BA in English, MA Liberal Studies) allowed him to dabble and learn in everything. From his frugal living and newfound master’s degree he sees that he is still a student, a lifelong learner. He breaks from the traditional masses view of a college degree and life. College allows him to form his own way of thinking that lead him to have some amazing life experiences.

So yes, even a liberal arts degree has some value. :

To learn more about Ken Ilguna’s book, check it out on Amazon.