The vast variety of social media platforms makes it easier than ever to get your message in front of people. It’s essentially the perfect advertising option a writer can use to promote their works. Put yourself out there, press a button and, voila, interested readers will come running, throwing their money at you and demanding more books!

Self-promotion is hard.

Alright, let’s wake up from that dream and face reality. Self-promotion is hard. Say that a few times, take a moment, and then say it a few more times. Okay, now we can proceed.

You published something, and that’s fabulous! You should be proud! Obviously, you want to let everybody know about it because, as we all know, you can’t expect people to simply somehow find your book and buy it. Yes, social media is a fantastic tool for self-promotion, but it’s not a magic wand to wave and assume great things will happen.

I would wager, without social media, there would be a bunch of writers who would just give up. The different platforms are prolific, they are widely-used, and they are free.

But they are also easy to mishandle and abuse. And you definitely don’t want to misuse your best, free marketing resource. As I preface everything: I am no expert. Advice I give is based off my personal experiences and observations.

The first thing to remember is connecting, interacting, and participating.

The first thing to remember is connecting, interacting, and participating. Yes, you can hop on Twitter and shout into the void about your book over and over. You can, but you shouldn’t. Most users don’t wish to see constant sales pitches, no matter how good you think your book is. You’ll get ignored, muted or, worse, blocked.

I am on social media for interaction. I meet new friends and learn all kinds of neat things about writing. I would be far behind where I currently am were it not for the writing communities across different platforms. And, yes, I goof off quite a bit.

But a lot of people are also happy to hear about your cat or that awesome piece of cheese you just ate.

It’s true, you can definitely keep people informed about how your current project is going, a piece of cover art, or your new release, but a lot of people are also happy to hear about your cat or that awesome piece of cheese you just ate.

My point is, you are one of millions of voices on social media. Yes, social. It’s not just a marketing platform, and you shouldn’t look at users as merely customers. Interact, make friends, and participate! Be a part of the community! You will both learn new things as well as have opportunities to help others!

If you enjoyed this piece, please follow Sean R. Frazier on Twitter @TheCleftonTwain.