Monday, January 18, 2021

When Social Media Is Bad For Writers

Social media can be a great thing for writers. It allows us to touch base with fellow writers, bloggers, reviewers, and publishers. Writing can be a solitary, lonely endeavor, and social media lets us connect, especially during this time of social distancing. 

Recently, I learned of two anthologies looking for submissions. I promptly wrote some stories and sent them off. Both calls for submission were on Twitter. Had I not been on Twitter, I would've missed the opportunities. As much as social media creates opportunities, at times it can be a detractor.  For myself, I find social media (Twitter, in particular) can bring me down at times. Sometimes, when the following start to happen, I feel the need to unplug from social media for a bit:

1. The news is making me anxious and depressed.

2. I find myself repeatedly doomscrolling instead of spending time reading books.

3. I'm spending more time on social media than writing new books and stories.

4. I'm constantly comparing myself to other writers, wondering if/when I'll have the same success.

One of my goals in 2021 is to read more (I've already read four books) and focus on writing, art, and music, rather than repeatedly refreshing my feeds and scrolling. Social media can be amazing for keeping up on the writing business, but none of us should be afraid to take a break.

And I still believe the most important part of writing is writing. The best marketing you can do is to write the next book or story.  

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