Getting Your Name Out There
Where Does One Even Begin?
We all know that a platform is essential to marketing ourselves and our books, but where do we start creating this vague goal: the functional author platform?
Social media. The greatest takeaway I can give you from this year-long journey is to keep it simple. When collecting information on the topic (as you’re doing now), the sheer number of platforms and options fast add up into a puzzle with too many pieces. You could give the puzzle a shot, but the time investment is so high you’d rather think about it another time. And suddenly a year has passed. If that sounds like you, keep it simple. Read on and you’ll have your platform up in a matter of months.
Choose one platform. Instagram, Twitter, whatever, and post there regularly. You’re going to spend lots of time figuring out what content to put out, so don’t overwhelm yourself trying to figure out two algorithms. This should allow you to continue your writing and still engage on your chosen platform.
When you’ve got your content figured out and are posting regularly, pick up one or two more social media platforms and post the same content to all. Social Media gurus will recommend scheduling and calendars and apps and… and you’re overwhelmed. Leave that stuff for later.
Okay, Reece. Done. What Now? Shouldn’t I Make A Website?
You should. But what should you use to make that website? Squarespace, Wix, a human web developer? What about free site builders? And shouldn’t you also have a Newsletter? From where though? Convertkit, Mailchimp, Squarespace? Then there’s Patreon. And Discord, too. And… you know where I’m going with this. Overwhelmed. Let’s keep it simple and take a look at what I wish I did: ask myself what I wanted out of my platform. Who’d have thunk it? I want to provide a place for my audience to engage with my work and support me. I want to build a community around my work, full of readers, writers, artists, and like-minded individuals who are passionate about story. What do I need for this?
A Website for a home base
Patreon for my audience to engage with and support me
Discord to build community
These are the pillars that make up my platform now. But I also have a Newsletter mixed in there, too much social media, and an art career I didn’t see coming. That’s a story for another day, though. For now, we’re doing it better than I did, keeping it simple.
For Patreon and Discord, I just had to find a way to provide value, whether that be from my content (stories and art) or knowledge (tutorials and templates). Get these up and running first since setting them up is closer to social media than the task of making a site. You can check out my Patreon and Discord to see how I’ve done it (This is not a shameless plug. You’re a shameless plug). For your website, I recommend Squarespace (not sponsored, sad times, lol). The builder is easy to use and Newsletters are built-in, albeit come at an additional charge. It’s drastically cheaper than most email marketing companies, though, and you won’t have to waste time integrating the site and newsletters. Time and money saved? Count me in.
Conclusion
By this point, you have an author platform already. Congratulations! But what do you do with it? You certainly don’t want to throw out content aimlessly. That will leave your growth at the mercy of luck, and you’re no Darkfriend (Sorry. Still hyped about the Wheel of Time trailer). This is where I plug my course on growing your platform. Kidding. I’m an author, not a course maker person (yet). Now you just have to keep putting out that content, slowly working those previously mentioned content calendars, etc in. I can’t wait to see what you do. Thank you for reading, and all the best! You can find my links and newsletter sign-up below. Cheers.
