My Theories About Series and Self-Publishing

As I said in class, no one knows yet what will happen with Google+, but it’s off to a very strong start, and the responsiveness of the Google team to feedback and suggestions has been remarkable. For those of us already using Google products like Gmail, Google docs, and Google Analytics, it’s looking pretty promising. Here’s links mentioned in class along with some other links to useful Google+ information.

Mentioned in class:
Google+ Cheat Sheet: http://mashable.com/2011/07/12/the-google-cheat-sheet-pic/
Mashable’s Complete Guide to Google+: http://mashable.com/2011/07/16/google-plus-guide/
Google+ Privacy Settings: http://www.christianpost.com/news/google-plus-privacy-settings-how-do-i-change-them-52623/

Useful Information:
5 Chrome Extensions for Google+: http://mashable.com/2011/07/14/google-plus-chrome-extension/
5 Ways Journalists Are Using Google+: http://mashable.com/2011/07/17/journalists-using-google-plus/
Google+ as a Professional Communications Tool: http://idratherbewriting.com/2011/07/18/google-plus-as-a-professional-communications-tool/
Google+…minus Women, Kids, and Businesses: http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/google-minus-women-kids-and-businesses/
How to Integrate Google+ into Your WordPress Site: http://mashable.com/2011/07/22/wordpress-google-plus/
Make Google+ look like Facebook: http://mashable.com/2011/07/01/googleplus-facebook-userscript/
How to Make a Google+ Desktop App: http://mashable.com/2011/07/12/create-google-plus-desktop-app/
How to Add Profile/Post Search for Google+ in Chrome:
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_to_add_google_plus_search_for_profiles_and_posts_to_chrome.php
How Google+ Ends Social Networking Fatigue: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9218283/Elgan_How_Google_ends_social_networking_fatigue
Is Google+ a Bigger Threat to Twitter than Facebook?: http://gigaom.com/2011/07/11/is-google-a-bigger-threat-to-twitter-than-it-is-to-facebook/

Interesting reading:
Controversy over Google+’s insistence on using real names:
http://point7.wordpress.com/2011/07/24/google-the-pseudonym-banstick-and-the-netizen-cultural-schism/
Who is Using Google+ and How Often: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2095877/Who-is-Using-Google-and-How-Often-Stats
Long-running Google Hangout: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/23/longest-google-plus-hangout_n_907570.html?1311404458
Why Google+ Kicked Out William Shatner: http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/why-google-kicked-out-william-shatner/

So what is Pinterest?
Pinterest describes itself as a virtual pinboard. You can think of it as a way to save links and organize them by image or you can think of it as a way to save and organize images. I like it because people often put together collections that are beautiful, disturbing, evocative, or worth reading.

It’s also interesting because it’s become identified as a woman-centric social network – or at least that’s something the media has focused on, to the point where a male friend stated definitively and somewhat defiantly, “I don’t know a single man who uses Pinterest, but every woman I know does.” (Reported figures seem to actually put women at 60-82% of the users). Women adopt new social media more readily than men, which may account for some of it, but the odd tone that some of the reporting takes on makes it a phenomenon worth taking a look at.

And it’s interesting because it’s growing FAST to the point where it’s the number 3 social network.

How can writers use Pinterest?
Well, an obvious one is a board that features their book covers. For example, Stephen Hunt’s Books Worth Reading (by me) displays 24 covers, including foreign language editions. It’s a nifty way of showing one’s output.

You might choose to create a gallery of fan art as both a way of gracefully acknowledging fans while driving recognition of the stories they illustrate.

Pinning research is an obvious thing. M.K. Hobson’s pinned reference images for her book, The Warlock’s Curse, and there’s plenty of interesting stuff to look at there.

Using it isn’t difficult, not is incorporating it into your website. There are plenty of WordPress plug-ins for Pinterest already; I use one to provide additional visual interest to my website.

Why might you want to avoid Pinterest?
Plenty of questions have arisen about Pinterest and copyright, although the company has been responsive to concerns and revised its terms of service as a result. While some avoid Pinterest for these reasons, some advocate embracing it, as Trey Ratcliff does in his essay, Why Photographers Should Stop Complaining about Copyright and Embrace Pinterest, pointing out that it drives website traffic.

Enjoy this essay on how writers can use Pinterest and want more content like it? Check out the classes Cat gives via the Rambo Academy for Wayward Writers, which offers both on-demand and live online writing classes for fantasy and science fiction writers from Cat and other authors, including Ann Leckie, Seanan McGuire, Fran Wilde and other talents! All classes include three free slots.

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