Social Networking and Promotion

As some of you know, I'm co-writing a promotion book with Jamie Engle, and as part of the research, I dived into the world of social networking. Holy cow! I don't think I scratched the surface of what's out there.

I came away feeling like it was something that could literally suck up ALL your time, but it's still worth doing IF you learn to manage your time effectively.

I couldn't even begin to list all the sites out there, but here are a couple that are, IMHO, worth it for authors (and readers!):

Goodreads
Shelfari

These two are specifically targeted to and for readers, which means, that while you'll still be authors marketing to authors, you'll also find readers looking for books and sharing their reading experiences with other readers.

Be prepared to run into readers who don't like your books (if they've read them). Don't answer back or flame. Take it on the chin and look for the readers who DO like your stuff. I know it's easy to say, but let the negative just wash off you. You can't please everyone, so don't bleed away your precious time trying.

And if time is a huge issue, consider microblogging...
Perilously your,
Pauline