Welcome back my devoted followers and fellow writers of the word. How was your weekend? Restful I hope. Well, shall we begin?
How is your platform coming along? Platform, what platform??? I hear you saying it across the country. Do you even have a platform? Do you know what a platform is?
A writing platform is, for lack of a better definition, how well you are known as a writer, and how you promote your writing. It is the accumulation of your marketing efforts and your selling tools.
Of course, if you have no desire to sell your writing then a platform is unnecessary. If, however, you have visions of one day publishing a book or selling magazine articles, then you really need to get with the marketing program and start selling.
And what are you selling? Make no mistake about this….you are selling you! The author is the product and as such the author must sell…the author.
So, I repeat….how is your platform coming along?
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Pop culture is not about depth. It’s about marketing, supply and demand, consumerism.”
Trevor Dunn
Think about that quote for a second….okay, times up. J Pop culture is about marketing….true? I think so, and I think, to a certain degree, it is true for writing as well. There are few “truly great” books published today. You know, like one of the classics that we all read in high school….and in all honesty some of the classics were not truly great. They reached that status because of marketing, hard work, reputation and consumerism.
How many bestsellers have we seen over the years by self-help gurus who burst onto the scene with the latest message of self-esteem and self-love? Have you noticed that they all say the same thing but just word the message differently? So if they all say the same thing, how did they become bestselling authors?
Marketing!
TIP OF THE DAY
Give a business card to everyone you meet, and if people ask you what you do, tell them that you are a writer.
Business cards are cheap….the message they deliver is vitally important. If you are a writer then present yourself as a writer. It is time to come out of the closet and announce to the world that you are a writer and a damn good one.
Build your platform….go to VistaPrint and order some business cards today.
SITE OF THE DAY
And that brings us to VistaPrint, a site I have used often. I got my business cards from them, my flyers, my magnetic car door signs….I love them and they have great specials running most of the year. You can find them here.
BOOK OF THE DAY
“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey is one of those self-help books I mentioned earlier, and as such it is a rehash of many other books that have been written. However, it is written well and it delivers some interesting insight into people who have succeeded and what they all have in common.
And so I ask you again…..how is your platform coming along?
PROMPT OF THE DAY
Take a look…what do you see? My friend Joe wrote a great article today about picture prompts…see it here.
THAT’S MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR TODAY
I’ve given you a few things to think about, so now get out there and build that platform. I want to see each and every one of you successful in this writing dream….but it will only happen if you are the driving force behind your product. J
Have a great day and thanks for stopping by.
Bill
Billybuc
Artistry With Words 
I am learning to be more forceful and even today I decided to do a bit more selling for my other talents of Web Design and advertise for me. I have a hard time trying to talk myself up, because I was always taught not to brag, but I am trying to overcome that a bit to at least let people know what my talents are. So true though and thank you for the reminder again!! 🙂
I was raised the same way, Janine, and it’s like pulling teeth for me to talk about myself….but unless I want to remain unknown my entire writing career, it is up to me. 🙂
That’s an interesting fact that there are many people who send out the same message, yet still become bestselling authors because they are successful marketers. This is true of musicians, too. How often do you hear a song on the radio and think, really? Out of all the talent around the country, this is what you picked to record? The artists had to be determined and passionate, which led them to be avid marketers of themselves. It’s also true that we may hear the same message over and over, but only one writer is successful in getting through to a certain group of people because of her voice and method. Thanks, Billybuckaroo.
Lizzy, my mom used to call me that. LOL You aren’t a reincarnation of my mother, are you?????
Yep, marketing my friend….we gotta do it….we gotta do it. 🙂
Thank you Dunedin!
LOL She’s keeping an eye on you!
I have no doubt, Lizzy. :0
That’s something I learned long ago: all the self-help people say the same thing and word it differently. Kind of like world religions, too. This is why I don’t have a “religion” – lead a good life and do the right thing and you’ll find your path to enlightenment (to borrow a Buddhist term, lol). But that’s way too philosophical for this Monday morning. haha.
In other news: ya know, it’s funny how life works. I published that blog post yesterday and landed a big writing gig this morning – article writing galore!
And now…I really want to do more with my Spanish teaching. I was reluctant to write much about that because I had been burnt out on it, but now I’m all fired up! (Funny…fired up and burnt out…two relatively close terms of usage, but with completely different meanings…lol)
In any case, I’m ALL FIRED UP AND FEELING WONDERFUL! And now back to your regular Monday routine. 😉
Congrats on your new writing gig…fantastic news! Good things happen to good people…I have always believe that and always will. 🙂 I’m always fired up on Mondays….this is by far my most productive day of the week, so I’d best get busy. 🙂 Thanks Cyndi.
I am so inconsistent that it makes writing and promotion difficult–part of that is my teaching and performing schedule–but I must confess that a big part of that is laziness–there I have admitted it–I am a lazy writer–sad face today–
Audry, there is great joy in knowing what we are. At least we can then take steps to correct that which needs correcting. I suspect there are a great many people out there who have no clue what makes them tick.
I have found my niche but still gotta hit a jack pot…lol
Gotta wait and watch before I get a bunch of business cards 🙂
Happy Monday, Bill
Happy Monday to you, too, Ruchira.
I have never even thought about a writer’s platform.
I’m glad you reminded me to read Joe’s article. It sounds interesting, and I am trying to keep up with his hubs this month!
I hope your weekend went well. Andy and I went to Cape Cod for 1 /12 days, and it was a nice treat.
Have a great evening, Bill, and thank you for sharing your insight with us.
I’m glad you follow Joe, Kathryn. I think he is an exceptional writer and as fine a man as I know on HP.
Thanks for stopping by. What I wouldn’t give for a day and a half on Cape Cod. I’m glad you had a nice time.
I recognise that book! I read it while working at my previous job. what an eye opener…very wise words in there. As for my platform, well – I’m still working on that. I wish someone would just sit next to me and explain in detail what would work for me and how often I should market what I do, and where, and when. But alas, this is something we need to figure out for ourselves. I’ll let you know once I’ve hit the nail on the head. For now, I’m just trying not to over or under promote!
Mel, if you ever want to chat about your platform via email I’d be glad to help if I can…..two minds might be better than one, especially since you are so close….email me if you want and I’m more than happy to discuss this.
Hey Billy…suddenly – i’ve become interested in this stuffs..i’ve heard the term ‘writers platform’ more than once and now feel i’m ready to investigate further.
Great, um, prompt! lol
Hey Leslie….welcome on board! Read the hub today for a little more on platform…actually, I think I have a hub already completely explaining the importance of platforms.
Hi Bill,
It’s Availiasvision (Jen Arnett) from HP. I spy a tiny house!
I love the idea of this site and your platform of helping and inspiring other writers. I especially like how you’ve broken each day up into bite sized topics. You’ve already answered some of the questions I’ve been asking on HP. It looks like this site will help me on my journey.
I really like your post on June 4th about having a voice as a writer, and keeping that voice simple. I’ll be checking back for more inspiration and advice.
Hi Jen, and welcome to my world. 🙂
If these ideas help you in any way then I’m quite pleased. Make yourself at home and kick off your shoes. We are pretty casual around here. 🙂
bill