Two examples: I always got a kick out of the “author bio” on Lisa Marie Rice. It’s very obvious this is a pseudonym – and the fact that she says she’s “eternally 30″ suggested to me she was likelyat least 10 years older than that!

On the other hand, I belong to an author list for an author who only recently “outted” herself in a recent magazine article as not only writing under pseudonym, but as wearing a costume (wig and kick-ass heroine type clothing) for book signings. There were members on the list who went a bit crazy – emails about how they were “lied to,” “betrayed”, “made a fool of”, etc. Now, the author didn’t owe anyone an explanation for the pseudonym – you really can’t control the crazies, right? – but I think it was that extra step of “playing dress-up” that freaked people out.

So I would think you’d be better of to make it obvious you’re playing around if you create an character for your alter ego (like Lisa Marie Rice), or you could risk reader backlash if they find out later.

Thanks for the tips, duly noted and memorized. You’re keeping a new kid on the block from screwing up too badly from the start (or, probably, several new kids).

A question: if you write under a pen name, should your authorial Facebook page list your age or the nom de plume’s?

Stephanie, I emphasize with your comment 1,000%. If I’ve learned anything in the past eighteen months or so, I’ve learned that 1) writers can be really wonderful people and it’s a joy to interact with them and “talk shop” 2) writers can be really scary attention-starved people who will turn on you in a moment if you’re not “into” their work.

While I love writing and am thankful and excited about my epublishing opportunities I do not define my personhood and success exclusively by my writing. I’m in school full time and am looking forward to building a career based upon my studies. I have an extended family, friends, and pets who mean the world to me. I have other interests and hobbies beyond writing and these can take up my time.

I’ve interacted with writers whose entire world is about writing — specifically whatever they happen to be writing or have just published at the time — and it’s pretty plain that if one’s not part of their “fandom” one’s friendship is devalued accordingly. It’s frightening and very sad to see this metamorphosis occur.

One promotional “don’t” I’d like to add to the list is this: If you seek my opinion on a book, expect and accept my honest opinion and remember my opinion carries as much weight as anybody else’s.

Too many small publishers have abdicated the role of promotion to their authors, and that’s just wrong. Back in my journalism days I got press releases and ARC copies across my desk. The releases from publishers and PR agencies were more professional, plus most had the resources to do at least one follow-up call. Someone was keeping track of how well their promotion efforts worked – not just in terms of sales, but in terms of who gave them what sort of air time and print space. Now we’re told to get a web site, a Twitter account, Facebook and My Space pages, and work them to death. How do we – or our publishers – define a return on investment?

Perhaps I’m harboring an old-fashioned notion here, but isn’t a publisher in the business to sell books? If so, isn’t it worth their time and effort (and yes, expense) to market their products?

I’ve published one historical and one contemporary, first as e-books and now in print. The big problem is – my publisher has turned down my second books in each genre, probably because I’m not selling in great numbers. The heroine of the contemp is “too old-fashioned” for her age, and the historical is too long. Both fixable, but I’ll be looking for new publishers, probably electronic, for both. And let it be known immediately I understand their position; publishers are in business and need to succeed to make a mark. Success = sales.

The huge problem these days is of simple mathematics. I am one writer of thousands, my books are two of tens or hundreds of thousands. Publisher urges to promote my little head off because they don’t do it. So it’s back to basics. I’ll write and take my chances.

One of my personal peeves is the never updated website. Look, if you haven’t had a book out in two or whatever years, that’s fine. Keep the website up with your (accessible, prinable, backlist–heed Bev’s advice there) and keep in touch online in other ways. Blog if the urge stikes *waving at Barbara Ferrer* or comment on other people’s blogs. Just keep an online presence according to your publishing and writing schedule.

What kills me though is the author with three categories (or more) out every year whose website hasn’t been updated since 2006 or something like that. Kills me, people, just irks me like you wouldn’t believe.

Second peeve: spreading yourself so thin over the net that your presence everywhere is random, sporadic and meaningless. Please, if you are going to do it, choose your weapon, as it were, and budget your time accordingly. Seriously, if you’d rather tweet than blog, please tell us so instead of letting us come back to your (previously frequently updated and interesting) blog for three weeks without an update.

Finally, @ Lynne Connolly: check literary escapism and My Book Garden, they usually have good lists. I haven’t found one yet that is one hundred percent comprehensive, but I get something out of all the previously mentioned and these two as well.

I need my 2+ books a year from La Nora more than I need Tweets from her, so if she’s worried about it being a time-suck, I’ll take her word for it.

Still, I like it. I’ve been doing Twitter book reviews as an experiment and the 140-character limit focuses the mind wonderfully.

I think–and I think I’m reading Barb’s post correctly and agree with her–authors should certainly reach out to readers, keep informed, and participate if and when they can. But they should also do what makes them happy, what they’re comfortable doing, and what doesn’t suck up actual writing time, but can enhance it, or just stir those juices.

Yep. That pretty much sums it up. Because honestly? If you don’t like doing it, it shows. Blogging for me tends to be a way to warm up the writing muscles while the coffee is kicking in. Or just sharing silly stuff with friends. I have one friend who refers to Twitter as the “office water cooler,” which is an analogy I can understand because in a way, that’s what my blog is to me.

We’ll never please every reader, either with our work or with our on-line style, level of interaction, opinions. So, I think, we must please ourselves while respecting, and hopefully appreciating, the reader and the many varied opportunities there are to exchange ideas and opinions. Whether we take those oportunities or–like me and Twitter–avoid them like the crumbly edge of a really high cliff.

What Nora Said

The application deals on FB can be annoying at times, but occasionally there will be one that appeals to me that I’ll sign on for. But I just pretty much delete those.
Did the What level of Hell one last night. That was fun because I told my friend that I was level two and she was level nine, which meant I was ahead of here. She responded that level hell meant she was more of a bad a$$ and I was a wimp. She was right. ROFL

BUT, this email is the ONLY one I ever send them unless they contact me later. The basic gist of my email is this, Hey thanks for contacting me, participating in a contest for my books, your bookmarks are on their way or congrats you won a book. If you’re interested in joining my mailing list, no obligation, here’s where you can join. If you’re not interested, I certainly understand, and that’s the LAST the reader will hear from me unless they contact/connect with me in the future.

About 50% of those who receive the email probably won’t join my loop, which is perfectly okay, but they initiated the contact. For those who do join my loop/mailing list, there’s a benefit to them and me. Announcement groups are an excellent way to get the word out when the target audience is there because they want to be there.

Facebook is for fun, but my Fan Page is for promotion. Two separate animals. And I only invite people to the Fan page who asked to friend me on FaceBook, and ONLY if I “think” they’re readers (can’t always tell that much about people who friend me or why). When I invite, I say thanks for finding me FB and say that if they’re interested in my books, join the fan page. If they’re not interested that’s okay and I won’t bother them again.

I guess my thought is that if I’m polite about it, extend the invitation once and only once, plus the reader and I have connected in a way where the READER was the one to initiate the connection, then one email with an offer isn’t a bad thing. But that’s it. I don’t mine emails anywhere. I don’t like it when I’m suddenly on another author’s email list, when I didn’t sign up for it. I wouldn’t auto subscribe someone to my list. I never have, because I hate when it’s done to me. And I feel like a heel if I ask to be removed from a list where another author has mined my email.

But I think I have a semi-valid excuse. I got on Twitter for the express purpose of using it as a tool to update my blog when I don’t blog. And until a few weeks ago, when I went looking for the url of my twitter homepage to put on my website, I had no idea that people have been replying at my tweets. No idea at all.

Lame but true tale of ‘net ineptitude.