Twitter Hashtags for Writers: Turning Strangers into Friends

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software, Online communities

Follow my blog with Bloglovin If Twitter is one of the social media platforms you’re using to let the world know about your debut novel, hashtags could make all the difference in whether people discover you or pass by without taking a second look. Imagine walking  walked into Chicago’s McCormick Place, the largest convention center in […]

Does Your Author Website Comply with GDPR Regulations?

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software

A month ago I’d never heard the acronym GDPR, and frankly, I wish I still had never heard of it. Like most authors I’m not a programmer, and I especially resent every task that falls under the rubric of “marketing.” I resent doing it, and I resent having to completely reconfigure every single thing about […]

Talk Your Book: I’ll Show You How

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software

Would it be easier to “talk your book” or to slave away for years trying to write it? A few months back my friend Gail Howard Gibson invited me to attend her book group. Although I was there to discuss my short story collection, Bond’s of Love & Blood, one thing led to another, and […]

7 Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Writing Files

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software, Scoop.it

Picture this: a bear has been hibernating all winter, sleeping a lot, eating everything within reach, and staying close to its den. March comes. The air warms. Flowers bloom. The bear wakes up, shakes itself off, looks around its cave, and realizes what a freaking mess it’s made. There are bones and food scraps stacked in the corners, loose bear fur clustered everywhere, piles of crap, and the whole place reeks.

Twist: this is a metaphor. Writers, you’re the bear. The cave is your computer. And the piles of crap? Well, those are your mangy old writing files scattered hither and yon.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: litreactor.com

Now this is an article I wish I’d written! Apart from the writing itself, one of the biggest challenges I face as a writer is simply staying on top of the various drafts of novels, stories, and blog posts. While I’ve never lost anything permanently, I have spent too much time rooting around trying to find things.

Now that it’s spring, I feel inspired to clean up my hard drive. This article provides an A#1 system for doing that.

In my case it’s not just the fiction files that proliferate. It’s the marketing files and tips on how to effectively use social media. Not that I’m good at online networking. I’m completely insecure, and I keep downloading new stuff.

When Facebook and Twitter change picture sizes, I scramble around and look for new templates. When I see a marketing expert recommend a way to connect with readers, I can’t pass that up!

My “marketing and PR” folder balloons.

The only way I can keep the plates spinning is by staying organized, and this week I’m doing just that.

I hope you enjoy the article and that you feel inspired to tackle your own spring cleaning.

New Categories for YA Authors | How to Rank on Amazon

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software, For Writers Doing Revisions

What are categories and how does your book’s metadata determine them? Well, if you’re going to write one book and put it online yourself, categories and metadata may not matter very much. But if you plan on publishing several books and you want to have a career as an author, those terms matter a great […]

Twitter Marketing for New Authors

Twitter marketing won’t suit everyone, but if you’d like to cast a net beyond your circle of family  and friends, Twitter marketing can help. Please welcome Decima Blake, author of the crime mystery novel, Hingston’s Box. Decima and I met each other on Twitter, and she kindly agreed to write about how she’s using Twitter to […]

Mindmap Your Memoir | Part II

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software, For Memoir Writers

If you create a mindmap to brainstorm scenes and episodes that might go into your memoir, you’ll move yourself one step closer to your goal. While mindmaps can help fiction authors, having a roadmap for your journey down Memory Lane can bring focus to what might otherwise turn into a rambling tale.   A mindmap […]

Mindmapping Your Memoir | Part 1

by Marylee MacDonald in Apps & Software, For Memoir Writers

Mindmapping software can help writers untangle the knots in a memoir’s storyline. A mindmap is a brainstorming tool that can help you in the following scenarios: before writing your first draft, or when revising. When you’re writing your first draft, you can use mindmaps to play around with focus. Even on your first pass through […]

Web Tools | A New Author’s Guide To 3 Simple Book-Launch Apps

Web tools are a huge help to new authors, especially those who are late-life writers. We seniors didn’t grow up with the internet and social media, and frankly, it can all be a bit daunting. You say you’d rather be writing than dealing with marketing issues? Well, me, too! But, you can’t expect readers to […]