Twitter 101: Skip the hard sell

One of the questions I'm constantly asked when leading workshops on social media is how much is too much when it comes to promoting your book, CD, etc. on sites like Facebook and Twitter. I know some authors who tweet nothing but BUY MY BOOK on the hour. Chances are, those authors are losing the followers they have and surely aren't gaining any new ones. When you turn Twitter or Facebook into a shill for a product, readers switch off.

As of this evening, I have 2,548 followers on Twitter. The majority of those followers have found me not because I'm selling a book, but because I work diligently to build community, share links and re-tweet other writers. Of course, when I have an announcement about a new book, reading, etc. I will tweet it multiple times, but your status should not be a constant barrage of "me, me, me."

I went back to my Twitter feed and picked a day of tweets to highlight and show what I'm tweeting about.  This is last Tuesday:

• Just heard Showtime canceled "United States of Tara." I LOVE that show and Toni Collette. Sigh.

• Watching "Forget Paris." I always forget how much I love Billy Crystal and Debra Winger in the movie. 

• Video of the Day: Riding a bike through Paris http://bit.ly/ldnl1k @Gadling #travel

• Death toll in Joplin, Missouri has risen to 116 after deadly tornadoes. Make a donation to the Red Cross at this link: http://ow.ly/518oA

• @kelliagodon Topic for the next #poetparty will be announced soon. We're looking for suggestions.

• Just got Collector's Edition of @KateBushMusic "Director's Cut" in the mail. Absolutely stunning artwork and, of course, beautiful music.

• RT @huffpostbooks: The case for self-publishing: http://nyti.ms/j7PYd7

• RT @guardianbooks: Open thread: What are the great unread books? http://gu.com

• RT @publisherswkly: New Nook could push Barnes & Noble value up http://usat.ly/iiGbve

• The new Friendly Fires album, "Pala," is brilliant.

I'm always on the lookout for articles and links related to poetry, fiction, social media, ebooks and music and I love to retweet them. All of those topics are in my wheelhouse of interests, so it helps make me a source and clearinghouse that people can come to for information. That's what makes Twitter work – sharing the things that interest you so that others can share them, too.

And while there are no tweets directly related to my novels or poetry, there are some tweets from Tuesday that do relate to my work. The retweet of the bike ride through Paris from Gadling fits right in with my love of the city and the fact that Conquering Venus and Remain in Light are set in Paris.

If you want more followers on Twitter, become a source for good links and information, retweet other followers, and let your interests and personality shine through. Social media is about building community – not the hard sell.

"Remain in Light" cover & sample chapters coming June 1

Vanilla Heart Publishing will reveal the cover and offer the first four chapters of Remain in Light as a download on Wednesday, June 1. The chapters will be from the uncorrected proof, but will give you a glimpse of what's to come in the second book in The Venus Trilogy.

We're still on track for an ebook release in time for the holidays and the print edition in February 2012.

To coincide with the Remain in Light preview, I'll be giving away three copies of Conquering Venus on Goodreads as well as offering three free ebook versions and Remain in Light bookmarks. Details on all this June 1!

Mid-Week Music: "Blue Cassette" - Friendly Fires

From the fantastic new album Pala. Can't stop listening to it!

Until the End of the World

The world is supposed to end today according to some crazy Christian who combed through the Bible looking for secret numbers. Since it's lunchtime on the east coast of America and we're all still here, they ought to track down the old bastard and smite him Old Testament style for bearing false witness.

The only thing good that came out of this hoax is that I decided to watch the five-hour director's cut of Wim Wenders' classic film, Until the End of the World.  Without the movie, Conquering Venus (and the forthcoming Remain in Light) would not exist. When I came home from my first trip to London and Paris back in the summer of 1995, I saw UTEOTW and Jeanne Moreau's performance inspired the creation of Irène Laureux.

In the movie, Moreau plays a blind woman whose scientist husband has invented a video camera that captures images and feeds them into the visual cortex of the brain allowing her to see once again. William Hurt and Solveig Dommartin race around the world to collect images while a rogue nuclear satellite is falling out of the atmosphere and threatening to contaminate the planet. It's a complex, audacious film and Moreau is the heart of the story. In 2003, I had the honor of interviewing Wim Wenders for Moviemaker magazine and got to ask him about UTEOTW. You can read that interview at this link.

When I checked into the Bel Air Hotel on rue Rampon in June of 1995, my room was across the street from an apartment building. On the third floor, there was a long balcony full of flowers and the French doors were always open revealing a desk and shelves lined with books, but I never saw who lived there. So, I created Irène to fill in that blank and UTEOTW and Jeanne Moreau were the catalyst.

Remain in Light is at Vanilla Heart now and I realized today that I'm already missing the characters of Irène and Martin. Maybe I'll start the third book sooner than later. If you're looking for inspiration, find a copy of UTEOTW or another film, album or book that moves you.

The world still spins.

Saints & Sinners

I survived another Saints & Sinners Literary Festival in New Orleans and have returned to tell the tale. The nearly eight hour drive seems to get longer and longer each year, but it's worth it (and cheaper than flying) because I do love the city and I always meet – or catch up with – fabulous people at S&S.

I was thrilled to finally meet Sibling Rivalry Press mastermind Bryan Borland and his partner, Chris. I also enjoyed hanging out with David-Matthew Barnes and his friends, reading with Dustin Brookshire, hearing Michael Montlack read poems from his new collection, Cool Limbo, and sit in on a memoir panel featuring Felice Picano and Bryan Batt (Salvatore from Mad Men). I got to chat with Scott Cranin, director of TLA Entertainment, and writer/journalist Eric Andrews-Katz. Both great guys!

The highlight of the weekend was co-presenting the social media master class with public relations whiz Michele Karlsberg. We made a good team, bouncing ideas and thoughts off each other. The attendees had plenty of questions and there was some lively back and forth. Many writers still don't understand social media or want to deal with it, but it's the way of the new world order.

My hotel room was at the Monteleone on Royal Street in the French Quarter and I had a lovely view of the city from my window (pictured). The opening night party in the courtyard of the Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré was another highlight.

When we weren't talking literature, we were talking about the terrible flooding taking place along the Mississippi. Keep those folks in your thoughts. The Gulf Coast has been through enough.

"Remain in Light" is finished!

I sent Remain in Light to Vanilla Heart last night. I can't believe the novel is finished after nearly two years of work. Still plenty to do before it comes out later this year in ebook format and in print in February 2012, but there's a little breathing room in between. My next projects: editing the fourth Java Monkey Speaks poetry anthology and dusting off my long-neglected collection.

I'm packing my duds and getting ready to head to New Orleans for the annual Saints & Sinners Literary Festival. I'll try to post some photos up here and on Facebook, so keep an eye out for reports. There was a big article about the festival in today's Times-Picayune.

My final post for Poets & Writers' new blog is posted now at this link. It's a shout out to all the local organizations here in ATL that have benefited from P&W's grant program. Lot's of links! Many thanks to Nicole at P&W for asking me to be the inaugural blogger.

Weekend Update

Remain in Light is going to Vanilla Heart this week after an intensive edit and rewrite session. My personal editor, Kathy, fine-tooth combed the manuscript, I've read it again twice and all that's left are a couple of tiny rewrites, which I will finish today. Last night, I wrote eight new pages as part of the last chapter of the novel, but then realized most of it is unnecessary. Some of it will probably go in the third book, so I guess I have a little head start.

My life for the last five months has been nearly consumed by this novel, so I am ready to turn it over to Vanilla Heart and let them do their thing. I'm off to New Orleans later this week for the Saints & Sinners Literary Conference, where I'm co-presenting a master class on social media for writers with Michele Karlsberg. Looking forward to being back in NOLA!

Speaking of social media, poet Randall Weiss interviewed me for his blog and you can read the transcript of our chat at this link. Our interview became part of a paper Randall was doing on Twitter and social media and you can read it at this link.

I received a note yesterday from poets Stacey Lynn Brown and Oliver de la Paz that their anthology, A Face to Meet the Faces: An Anthology of Contemporary Persona Poetry, has been been picked up by the University of Akron Press for publication in early 2012. I'm excited to be part of the book!

Great expectations

My third post as the inaugural Writer-In-Residence for Poets & Writers' new blog is up now! You can read it at this link. For this post, I wrote about my own experience setting up a reading for Slow To Burn when it was released in 2006. It's all about tempering expectations, being realistic and appreciating your friends and supporters.

Remain in Light is almost ready to go to my publisher. I'm still working with my personal editor, Kathy, on some rewrites and corrections. I cannot tell you how excited I am about this novel. It's morphed into a literary mystery/suspense kinda story. It even has a touch of Hitchcock's Vertigo about it, with double identities, jumping over rooftops and obsession. 

And the Big Poetry Giveaway winners are...

Many thanks to the 53 folks who left a comment to enter the 2011 Big Poetry Giveaway here at Modern Confessional. Here are the winners:

Barry Napier wins Jackie Sheeler's Paterson Prize-nominated Earthquake Came to Harlem.

Sandy Langhorn wins David Herrle's Abyssinia, Jill Rush.

Andrew (eldritch1313@yahoo.com) wins my chapbook, After the Poison.

Mike Maher wins the Java Monkey Speaks Vol. 3  anthology.

If you are a winner, please send an email to collinkelley@gmail.com with your full name and mailing address. Your books will go in the mail this week. Congratulations!

Poetry Giveaway Winners Update

I will be announcing the winners of The Big Poetry Giveaway 2011 here tonight at 9 p.m. ET and on my Twitter account at @collinkelley during the weekly Poet Party (follow hashtag #poetparty). Watch this space.