Social Media: It Really is about Relationships

At first, I was a not-so-enthralled social media participant. I already had enough to do, thank you very much. Writing. Editing. Shampooing my hair. Rinse. Repeat.
But the almighty "they" tell me that to succeed as a writer I need to engage in social media. Facebook. Blog. Tweet. Comment on others' blogs. Google+. I know the list goes on, but, hey, I have a word count.
What made me embrace the concept of social media? When my friend and social media guru, Edie Melson called writers and social media a "match made in heaven," I listened. Edie believes "Writing is all about building relationships--with readers, editors, agents, other writers--and what better vehicle than social media?"
When a package arrived in my mailbox today, I had proof positive that social media builds relationships. The package came from author Keli Gwyn, a writing friend I've yet to meet face-to-face. (But the ACFW conference is only a few weeks away!) So how have Keli and I become friends? You guessed it: social media.
We've retweeted each others' blog links, left comments on our blogs, and we also both participate in the WordServe Water Cooler blog.
So what did Keli send me? Two boxes of Atomic Fireballs. Why? On a Flashback Friday blog post, Keli reminisced about penny candy. She mentioned some of her favorites were Sweet Tarts and Tootsie Rolls and red licorice ropes. In my comment, I recalled trying to keep Atomic Fireballs in my mouth without spitting them out.
Back to today, and the arrival of two boxes of Chewy Atomic Fireballs. Keli had found them in her old time candy store, thought of me, and sent them my way.
Like I said: Social media really is about relationship.
You read someone's blog.
Retweet their link.
Leave a comment.
Build a relationship.
And, you never know, you just might end up with a sweet surprise in your mailbox.


In Your Words: Has social media helped you develop relationships with other writers? With your readers? Have you had any unexpected surprises, thanks to tweeting or commenting on someone's blog or Facebook page? If someone asked you why they should get into social media, what would you say?

In My Words: Social Media = Me + You and You and You and You . . .

The writing world is all a-buzz with talk of social media. Blogs. Twitter. Facebook. Google+. Vlogs. And plenty of things I'm sure I've missed. The one underlying theme I'm hearing is social media is all about relationships.
Think of it this way: Behind every blog, every tweet, every vlog is a person.
Sounds simple, doesn't it?
But with all the information being thrown at us -- that's what it feels like sometimes -- we can easily forget the personal aspect of Internet.
I signed up for Facebook because I knew it was a good thing to do. As a writer, it helped me connect with other writers -- and family and friends too.
I balked at the idea of Twitter for quite a while, but finally caved because I knew I should. Honestly, I probably retweet (RT) other people's tweets more than I post my own tweets.

Another phrase for social media is social networking. My friend and fellow writer, Edie Melson, wrote an informative article about social networking called "Social Networking -- It's All About the Relationship."

Her perspective began to change my attitude about social media, changing my "have to" attitude to a "want to" attitude.
I'm refocusing my efforts when I blog or tweet or comment on someone else's blog or when I add a Facebook friend or LinkedIn colleague. Here's what I ask myself:

1. Blog posts or tweets: What unique perspective or experience can I share that might help someone else? 
2. Comments: Will my comment on this blog add to the conversation? If yes, then I post. If no, then there's no need to just make noise in a comment box. Confession: If I read a blog and see that there are no comments, I will often comment. I've had my "no comment" days on this blog. No fun.
3. Facebook & LinkedIn: Does this person who has asked to be my Facebook friend have any connection to me, i.e. similar friends? If yes, I add them as a friend. No? Then I don't. With LinkedIn, I like to see a connection with other people or at least a similar career field.

In Your Words: How do you handle social networking? Do you feel connected or over-connected? Do you have any tips for managing all the options?

 photo by schlomaster/stockxchng.com