Social Media for Writers
Do you need social media as a writer? Why might you want to use it, and why might you want to avoid it?
I made three videos on just that topic!
Video script:
Hi, I’m Jess, a writer and careers advisor, and this is careers advice for writers. This video is about social media...
...and in this one I’m making the case AGAINST writers being on social media.
So like, first things first – if I wanted to be famous, I’d have tried to become an actor or a musician – or an influencer – instead of a writer. I don’t think I’m alone – the common conception of a writer is someone who sort of squirrels themselves away in a writerly cave, and I think that kind of creative life appeals to a huge number of people. We might want people to know our words, but not necessarily our faces.
And for that kind of person – who is perhaps more likely to be introverted, maybe who feels a bit socially awkward... (that’s me, by the way), the idea of having to build a massive social media platform to market our own books can be wildly unappealing.
So you’ll be pleased to know, I don’t think it’s necessary. Here’s why:
There are plenty of authors who don’t do social media. Zadie Smith doesn’t have social media. Haruki Murakami doesn’t have social media. And, ask yourself – how often have you bought a book because you saw a post from the author on your socials? Maybe once in a while, but for many, many authors, social media is not the big book seller they would want, especially not compared to the level of effort they put into their posts. (This obviously doesn’t apply to me, because as you can tell from the sloppy editing, I don’t put a lot of effort into my posts, I just open my mouth and yap.)
There is also obviously the argument that – if you’re going to be traditionally published – the marketing professionals in the room come from your publisher in most cases. Unless you already know how to market yourself well, many authors feel a bit like... well, I wrote the book. I took your edits on board. That is the extent of my remit. Now, I don’t 100% agree with this take for reasons I’ll cover in the next video, but there is some definite truth to it. Unless you’re starting out with a huge social media platform or fame of another kind, you’re starting from scratch, and if you’re not sure what you’re doing, that’s going to be a hard slog and lots of effort that could perhaps more usefully be put towards... y’know, writing?
Also – social media is a great way to say something controversial to a massive group of people who might then get very cross with you. And if you don’t have social media, there’s less chance of that happening.
None of these even mentions the big question: which social media would you even prioritise? We all know what’s happened to Twitter recently, and let’s face it, this platform has massive pros and cons to it.
So, I don’t necessarily think you need a big social media platform. Which is just as well, because I’ve never had one. Having said that, there is of course a flipside to this argument, which I will cover next time.
So, those are some of the reasons it’s probably fine to not bother with social media if that’s not natural for you.
But why might you want to think about it?
Video script:
Hi, I’m Jess, a writer and careers advisor, and this is careers advice for writers. This video is about social media...
...and in this one I’m making the case FOR writers being on social media.
Okay, first of all – most of us aren’t Zadie Smith or Haruki Murakami. Maybe they can get away with not having social media because they’re already so well known. I’m certainly not, so having some kind of social media means when people maybe search for my book online, they could find me, and maybe choose to follow me if they want to see what I write next. It’s not necessarily about selling the book that’s out already, it’s more about connecting with people who are interested in my longer-term career.
Social media posts also show my publisher, my agent, and perhaps future publishers who might be interested in my work, that I am engaged in the promotion of my own book. Sometimes it’s as simple as commenting or sharing something the publisher’s put out, but also doing my own posts and videos (examples of this for my book are on my profile) shows that I am trying to do my bit. It ties into the overall professional image I want to demonstrate to publishing colleagues: I will be involved in this process with you. We’re a team.
Also, the social media promotion I did for my debut novel gave me a level of control over my own brand. Basically, I was me in those posts, and that in itself gives a bit of insight into the lens through with the book was written.
And those terms I've used there: brand, professional image, that all matters if you think about the long game. How do you want people to talk about you when you’re not in the room? Your social media is a great way to help build that reputation over time. And it’s free, which I also like very much – there are plenty of marketing options that aren’t (I’ve never been so popular with people wanting to do paid collaborations now that my book’s out, for example).
Also on the long-term end of things, social media is a fantastic way to build a writing community that is right where you are. I am part of a Twitter/X group of fellow children’s book authors who have debuted across 2024, and that group has been amazing. We go to each other's launches, we share each other's posts, we celebrate and commiserate with each other – and we’re all at the same stage, so it’s exactly what I’ve needed. I wouldn’t have had that if I’d refused to use social media.
Obviously, I am on social media as an author, and I don’t claim to be any kind of expert because I’m not swimming with views or followers or anything like that, but I still think my social media presence has been largely valuable. It might be for you, as well.
In the next video, I’m going to sum up some miscellaneous thoughts I have on this topic, as well as offering some potential, low-stakes tips.
The below video is about some other things you might want to consider when it comes to social media.
Video script:
Hi, I’m Jess, a writer and careers advisor, and this is careers advice for writers. This video is about social media...
...and this one is basically miscellaneous thoughts about writers on social media that didn’t fit into the other two videos. I suppse here I'm advocating for a middle ground when it comes to writers and social media – because the answer is no, there’s no law stating you have to be a social media megastar, but it would be naive not to consider resources that could be incredibly useful to you.
First of all, who is looking at your social media? There are a couple of ways to think about this – number one, who are you aiming your social media at? Is it potential readers, in which case you need to think about what information they’ll be interested in, e.g. information about your books, maybe sneak peeks behind the curtain of what author life is like... or is it aimed at other writers, like this series?
But there’s another factor here as well: what will publishing professionals think when they see your social media? This might be where it’s worth splitting your socials for personal and professional use, because for example, commiserating that you keep receiving rejections with other writers is completely acceptable, but if that’s all you ever post, is that shining a positive light on your work? Even though your need to vent would be entirely valid, you might inadvertently be giving off the impression that all you do is talk negatively and that wouldn’t be fair to you. You’re building a brand, ultimately.
Next to consider: what social media are you most comfortable with? Do you want to be part of Booktok; do you find Instagram more familiar and therefore in your comfort zone? Do you feel like most of your audience are likely to be found on Facebook? Feel free to experiment, but you don’t have to have a presence everywhere; don’t burn yourself out on it and play to your strengths!
Lean into who you are – for example, you might have noticed I’m quite awkward. I’m not great at video editing, I just sort of... say things. And do you know what? I think that works for me. I’m not trying to set up a long form video channel with gorgeous production values, and therefore TikTok works for me, because a lot of the content I engage with is a little more free-flowing and off the cuff. I’ve never had a flawless Instagram grid, so although I use Instagram, personally I kind of prefer Twitter/X, which is more text based.
When I was doing more marketing for my debut novel, I ended up making a ton of silly memes and posting those, because although they weren’t “aesthetic”, they matched my humour and some of the humour in the book – and I think the people who like those kind of memes will also kind of like my book.
So, for social media: consider it, don’t stretch yourself too thin, and lean into who you are. Oh, and try not to obsess over views, likes, etc – because that way lies madness.