To dare is to do... a socially awkward writer and the dilemma of social media

 

I've always been happy to admit that I am desperately awkward socially. I find crowded rooms difficult. I can't participate in small talk with groups of more than three people. But added to all that, I'm also a Leo, a total introvert and now officially diagnosed ADHD which explains everything! ... and I'm an indie writer. Argh.

I’m not into pigeonholing and labels, but I do like to try to understand how I feel about what I do. And I am not ashamed to say that trying to promote my books and develop a social media author platform has given me problems over the years.

I write because I love writing, and I publish my books because I have dared to admit that I do want to share my writing with people out there who might like and enjoy the stuff I write.

I’m an impatient reader and I write the way I like to read. Apart from the fact that I need to write to stay sane, I’ll keep going with the whole publishing and promoting my stuff thing because I have had some awesome feedback from people who have actually asked me to keep writing, people I didn’t know before they took the time and effort to get in touch, people who like to read the way I like to read – and write. It’s an amazing feeling.

But I’m a desperately private person. As an indie writer, it’s all up to you. Which is fantastic when you’re writing and editing with a blanket over your head. Not so great when it comes to the marketing and selling. I actually love going to comic cons. That must be the Leo in me. And I can now explain why I can't stand at a table for more than five minutes at a time before getting distracted and wandering off, or fidgeting and getting restless if it goes quiet for a while. Online social media, though, and all the promote yourself stuff... that frightens the life out of me. In case there are any other writers out there facing the same dilemma, here’s a rough guide to how I have managed to do at least some of it:

Twitter (Now X): I used to love Twitter. I used it as a snapshot of what was happening in the world right then. Social media has changed forever the way news is disseminated to the masses. It’s no longer the domain of the established press to tell us what is important. If something was going on, it would be trending on Twitter. I used to love the instant, said and gone nature of a Tweet. It didn’t feel as if anyone was really watching but if someone was, then they saw what I’d said right then and it was gone. Adding a quick favourite was always a cool way of giving a nod and a smile. And I used Twitter to keep tabs on stuff I like and access to stuff I might want to go back to investigate further later. It was very instant and it was very unintrusive. It's changed though and X doesn't seem as welcoming, and if I don't feel welcome, I back away... I haven't deleted my account but I don't go there anymore.

Pinterest: I still love Pinterest. Pinterest is the place where I hoard all the stuff I like. I use it for inspiration, for gathering all the images and quotes that make me feel. It’s like having access to a mood board you can add to and peruse in the middle of the night. If you want to see what inspires me, check out my cool stuff board at: https://uk.pinterest.com/CGHattonAuthor/cool-stuff-pinned-by-cgh/ That’s me (yes, I used to be Sixth Element Publishing but I left... I'm me now). There's also a Harvey Duckman board on there: https://uk.pinterest.com/CGHattonAuthor/harvey-duckman-is-alive/ It’s like having your own personal art gallery. It’s wonderful. In updating this post, I must add a slight proviso... Pinterest is now inundated with AI art. I don't agree with AI art and I know a lot of artists who are campaigning against their work being taken and used by AI. I have a personal policy never to use AI art or use AI in any way in my writing, but Pinterest... I liked it a lot before AI and I'm biding my time to see where it goes. I love seeking out original art. And it's fast and useful to communicate to the real life artists I'm work with on concept art and covers what atmosphere I'm after. But I don't use Pinterest to promote my own stuff...

Facebook: Facebook still freaks me out. It’s like the crowded room, full of happy socially confident people, that you walk into and want to walk straight back out of. I still haven’t figured it out. There are a few people I know and like that I can only contact through Facebook so I pop in regularly. But I still haven’t got the hang of what to say, how to say it, what to like or share without feeling creepy and it’s not somewhere I like to hang out. I have never liked to ask anything of anyone so the idea of asking people to ‘like’ my page or ‘share’ my post makes me incredibly uncomfortable. So I don’t do it. And I think you need to if you want to be part of the whole Facebook thing. Since writing this originally, I've been advised to put all my stuff onto one Facebook page, so I now have one place (https://www.facebook.com/cghatton) where I post about my Thieves' Guild books, the Robinson House Writers, Harvey Duckman and all the other things I do like helping out with school and community newspapers. The Harveys also have a private group where we can chat (if you want to know more about the Harveys, check out https://harveyduckman.com/ We're having a lot of fun playing with out quarterly anthology).

LinkedIn: LinkedIn freaks me out a bit too. I have a profile but I haven’t populated it with all the info I could because I’m not sure I want to post all that stuff so publicly. I’m sure it has potential – some of my most enthusiastic readers are people I know professionally, who found out what I do by accident. So I could probably use LinkedIn more by participating in discussions but I know that's not going to happen. Maybe at some point...

Blogging: Having a blog is a tough one. There’s a really big part of me that wonders why anyone would want to read anything I have to say. I tend not to say a lot out loud. I've always tried to use it for the occasional bits of writing advice for other writers, in case anyone out there is struggling as much as I have, and an odd update for readers if I have anything going on like a new book or photos from a comic con. 

Instagram: I didn't mention Insta previously as I struggle to be shouty about what I do, but I have started to post about Harvey releases, having fun posting the first line of each story in the run up to release. I can do that though because it's not about me...

TikTok: same with TikTok... I've messed about with little video teasers so far and I'm speaking to folks about creating much more audio and visual content so watch this space in this regard.

So promoting my stuff is still as tough as I've always found it. The ADHD diagnosis has explained a heap load and is helping me and everyone around me to understand and be patient when I'm irritating, fidgeting, constantly late, lose things, fly off the handle, explode a pan of eggs I forgot I put on to boil, forget to pay my Tyne Tunnel tolls on time, talk too fast or not at all, get ridiculously excited about the mad ideas I get at all hours, and get overly upset at the slightest hint of critisism or rejection (which I think is what makes promoting my own stuff so paralysing).

At the end of the day, writing books is what is keeping me sane. I love my little guys and I love my universe and I love giving them all a hard time and seeing how they deal with it, and I love it when they surprise me. If posting online now and then helps someone find my stuff that might not have done otherwise, then why not? And if another writer gets a bit of inspiration from reading that it’s not easy, then that’s cool. Life’s hard enough as it is. Living in the future doesn’t have to be impossible for us folk who’d rather hide under a blanket (or a blanket with Internet access so we know what’s going on).

Updated from original blog posts published 31.3.2015 and 17.3.2024