Twitter and Peanut Butter by @LDBlakeley

Happy Peanut Butter Lover's Day!

Despite my Google Fu, I can't seem to find any details on the origins of said day. Nobody seems to know who declared such a wonderful cause to celebrate but its on the internet so it must be true, right? Besides: peanut butter. ❤

Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I must apologize for being MIA. Life got in the way (as it so often does) and I haven't been here since we rang in the New Year. But I'm back and here to talk about one of my biggest distractions: Twitter.

Yes, that's an actual Post-it note I keep over my laptop (edited for politeness, of course; I am Canadian, after all 😉)

And, no, it doesn't always work. I can be easily led down the Twitter rabbit hole and lose big chunks of time in the process. There's a lot to wade through and it can be intimidating if you're not sure where to start. But there is good out there in the Twitterverse. You just have to know where to look.

I follow tons of people for various and sundry reasons. Writer-me, however, has discovered quite a few people whose wit and wisdom make them worthy of a follow and a shout-out.

These are off the top of my head and in no particular order (I could continue this list for days), but if you're looking for a place to start here are some of my favourites:

John Scalzi

Scalzi is a writer (Red Shirts is amazing and only begins to scratch the surface of his bio) my husband turned me on to. His feed is prolific – so much so he's pinned a blog post for new followers.

KJ Charles

If gay historical romance is your thing, then you already know who she is. If not, check her out – your TBR will grow by leaps and bounds.

Chuck Wendig

A beyond fab writer and a blogger who gives what might possibly be THE best writerly advice – period.

Damon Suede

It's no secret I adore Damon Suede and devour every word he publishes. Plus with pinned tweets like this, what's not to love?

Make magic y'all.

The world needs that shit, stat.

— Damon Suede (@DamonSuede) October 29, 2014

Stephen King

I mean...

Alisha Rai

Writer of hawt romance who cracks me up daily.

The Ripped Bodice

Mostly I wish they were located in Toronto instead of L.A. So I follow along and gaze wistfully at all the photos they post. One day I'll manage a vist.

Book Riot

Excellent source of book news and recommendations.

Writer Thesaurus /Angela Ackerman

Writerly things out the wazoo! Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi have created an incredible resource for writers & they tweet out links to scads of writing tools and websites 

Amy Jo Cousins

I love her books like woah. Plus, she is the REC QUEEN. Seriously, if you're ever looking for new titles, this is the girl to follow. She also seems to know when everything is on sale. 

My original plan was to list ten but then realized I would be completely remiss without mentioning

JK Rowling 

For all the obvious reasons. But, seriously, her clap backs are the thing of legend. Exhibit A:

Being sent abuse about an interview that didn't involve me, about a screenplay I wrote but which none of the angry people have read, which is part of a five-movie series that's only one instalment in, is obviously tons of fun, but you know what's even *more* fun? pic.twitter.com/Rj6Zr8aKUk

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 31, 2018

So tell me, who are your favourite tweeps?

Until next time,

50k or Bust: #NaNoWriMo2017 #AmWriting @LDBlakeley

It's that time of year again!

Do you NaNo? I have a few times, but have only managed to do it successfully once. I've decided to give it a whirl again this year since my writing schedule somehow magically aligned with NaNoWriMo. There was no scurrying around trying to come up with a story idea. And because I'm writing the third book in a series, banging out character sketches and plotting storyline didn't make me want to pull out my hair. Much.

I'm so organized I could cry.

Actually, I'm pretty sure I just jinxed myself by putting all that out into the universe. That's how that works, right?

In any event, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, for the unindoctrinated) kicks off today. And while 50,000 words in one month may sound somewhat daunting, it's not so bad if you break it down into daily chunks. 50,000 words in 30 days? Yikes. But 1,667 words in one day? A bit less nail bitey.

I know a lot of full-time writers can hit this word count goal in their sleep. But for someone like me (quite possibly the slowest writer in all of Canada; most definitely the slowest one in the Greater Toronto Area) I can drag 50,000 words into months and months of writing, no matter how inspired I'm feeling. So for me, NaNoWriMo is the perfect virtual cheerleader.

I like dropping by Twitter or Instagram (provided, of course, I don't get sucked into a day-long scroll) for a bit of a check-in with other participants. Knowing so many others are in the same boat can sometimes give me that extra bit of oomph I need to push past a scene or chapter.

If you'd like to join in the fun, head on over to NaNoWriMo.org and sign up. And if you'd like to add me as a writing buddy – you can find me HERE. I'd love the company!

With that said, I have a word count to meet. See you in 30 days!

Happy writing,

A New Year, A New Social Media Site! So, What About Tsu? By @KarynGerrard #Networking

First Off, Happy New Year! And welcome to the new members of Romance Eh, Canadian Style, Leah Braemel, Kali Willows, Deb Cooke, Kayleigh Malcolm!

 

Okay. I've joined Tsu (pronounced Sue). Not another social media place! *groan* So why join? I really can't stand Facebook, never did. There, the truth.(If you like it and it works for you, yay!) Also, I don't like the fact Facebook follows my every move and decides what content I should see, demanding I socialize more if I want to see more people in my newsfeed.

First off, I'm a writer. I write. I don't spend huge chunks of my time on any social media. Its a few minutes here and there during the run of a day. Also, who has time to interact with all your 'friends'? I have 3100 on FB. Its impossible. So people dropped out of my newsfeed into a black hole never to be heard of again.

I recently deleted a whole ton of photos from Facebook and was shocked to see how much interaction there was when I first joined in 2011. Photos I posted would have 80 likes, 40 comments. Then around 2013, it all changed. FB monetized, tweaked their algorithms, and interaction dwindled to nothing. In 2014, it worsened.

I see now having too many friends is quite insane. No normal person with a job and a life can keep up with it all. Yes, I know Facebook is a social site, not a place to sell your books, and Facebook will be pounding that point home starting this month when they will supposedly start cracking down on any posts that smack of promotion or selling something (on profiles, I mean) FB wants that limited to pages.

Fair enough. But out of 2050 likes, only 24 people see my post on my page. Facebook's answer to this is  "Buy an ad!" That tears it.

And its the reason I am trying Tsu. I've seen people curl their lip in disdain over the concept, calling it a pyramid scheme, and in a way it is. The more you share, comment, like, interact, etc... the more money you make. I don't give a tinker's dam about making money on a social media site. (I've made 9 cents so far, *snort*) If it's something you would like to try, have at it.

All I want out of Tsu? To have everyone I am 'friends' with to see everything I post, and I in turn, want to see everything they post. That's it. Simple.

There are some limits. (pictured left) As there should be. The interface is much like Facebook and encourages the use of hashtags like on Twitter.

Some are grumbling already their streams are full of promo. Well, yeah. Your 'friends' are authors, bloggers, and readers. They are talking and sharing about...books. I'm fine with that. And yes, the more popular authors are getting more exposure and shares. It's the way of the world. (One popular author already announced she made $100.00 on Tsu, yay for her)

I've friended or have been friended by many reviewers and bloggers on Tsu, a better connection than I ever had with them on FB or Twitter. If a blogger comes across my post about one of my books on sale for 99 cents, shares the post, I say mission accomplished.

One thing I will be doing different. I will not be letting the friend numbers get out of hand. I want a good mix of authors, bloggers, and readers. If I don't know a person and they are not involved in the romance world in some capacity, I won't be friending back. I've had some guy keep friending me after I declined 3 times. I just found the block button. Done. I am keeping a firm control on who I want in my circle. Wish I had done that with Facebook.

Thanks to Tsu, I am interacting with authors I lost track of on Facebook. Also, when you post on Tsu, you can also post on Twitter and Facebook at the same time with a click of a button. I like that as well.

So far Tsu is all right. I am cautious about it, they don't seem as intrusive as FB but who's to say when Tsu gets bigger they won't introduce their own draconian rules and regulations? They have signed up 1 million users in less than five weeks.

I will keep my eye on it so how it goes, post promo, pictures and recipes that catch my eye (and man candy) Keep it social enough, but keep my private life private, and have fun discussing books. It was all I ever wanted out of Facebook (and never seemed to accomplish). Willing to see if Tsu will deliver. I am willing to give it a go.

Want to give it a try? https://www.tsu.co/KarynGerrard  You can sign up through me. Cheers!