Sunday, July 21, 2013

Is Google+ A Good Place For Writers?

My answer is a resounding "yes". I joined Google+ before it opened to the public, thanks to a friend who sent me an invitation. I liked it from the start, and I like it even more, now.

The thing I like best, and have found most useful (since this is a post about utility, not just enjoyability) are Communities.

If you aren't on G+ yet, or if you've just registered, you may not know what Communities are. They're like Groups on Facebook or like clubs in real life. Someone sets up a Community based on, say, Schnauzers or Crafts for Kids. They can invite people to join the Community. People who join can invite other people to join. People can search within G+ for Schnauzers or Crafts or Kids and find the Community that way.

There are too many Communities for Writers to join them all! My two favorites are Readers Meet Authors and Bloggers, and Literary Agents Hate Kittens. I've met some wonderful authors, bloggers, and just folks in both of those Communities. I've made promotional connections, made connections through those connections, drawn readers to my blog and my books and picked up valuable information through those two Communities alone. This, in addition to the personal satisfaction of "meeting" a lot of people I like and enjoy "hanging around" with.

Interaction is encouraged. Hopping in to drop a link and never doing anything else is frowned upon. That means getting the most out of Google+ may be a little more time-consuming than Twitter, but it's time well spent, professionally and personally. When I publicized a KDP free offering of The Fall of Onagros, Book 1 of my SAGE fantasy, people I didn't even know grabbed it because they saw it in their G+ timestream, and they took the time to comment on the offering: "Thanks!" "Looks intriguing." "Sweet!"

I like that. Maybe you will, too. If you add me to your circles, let me know you followed me over from this post so I'll know to add you back. See you on Google+!

MA
Fantasies, mysteries, comedies, recipes

2 comments:

Debra Purdy Kong said...

Thanks for this, Marian. I haven't joined because I wasn't sure it was helpful, but you're changing my opinion. Also, with so many other social media things, I keep wondering if I can take on one more!

Marian Allen said...

I know what you mean about lack of time -- it's rather frustrating! I find myself just jumping on for a few minutes a day, paying special attention to my two favorite Communities, and giving pretty short shrift to the rest. It's frustrating because I know there is so much there to explore and enjoy, and I'm just not getting the full value of it. Still, I'm enjoying what I can, and it HAS been beneficial in numerous ways. Come on over and play! :)