Using Triberr to boost your blog audience #BYBin30

One of the most important aspects, after actually writing a quality book, is reaching people who might want to buy your book. But how are you going to do that? Maybe you've had your blog for a long time, but not many people are coming to your pages to read your content. Maybe your book has been out for a while and, even though you post to Facebook and Twitter, you just don't seem to be creating much of a following.

There are tools out there to help you reach more people. One of them is Triberr. Triberr is a community, and you can create your own community of authors to share each others' content within Triberr. First, you need a Triberr account. Then you need to join some groups on Triberr, preferably groups of writers or groups who share content related to the content of your book. 

This is where the number of people you can potentially reach with each blog post grows. For each person you add to your Triberr group, or who is already in a group you join, your list of people you will reach grows - not by one person but by all of the people who follow them on Twitter.

For example, the number of people who follow my @beckyfyfe account on Twitteris 3,682. If I join a group  of 10 people (in addition to me) and every member in that group in addition to myself has 2,000 followers, then the potential number of people I can reach with each one of my blog posts grows to 23,682 people.

You can start your own group and add people to it, or you can join a group that is already set up. I have just set up a new group called Writing Warriors on Triberr for those of you who follow this challenge. If you'd like to be added to the group, let me know your Twitter user name and the name you are signed up as on Twitter (for example, mine is @beckyfyfe and Becky Fyfe) in the comments and I will add you to the Writing Warriors group.

The key in using Twitter here is to make sure that the people in your group are sharing the type of content you want to share and your followers will enjoy, but also to have members who remain active and share each others' blog posts out regularly. If you have members who never share your blog posts, then you lose out on that poteential source of getting your content in front of the eyes of others.

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This is just one of the prizes that you might win at the end of the challenge. (Subject to availability. If this Book Magic Keychain is not available at the time, something similar will be substituted.) One of these will be added to the collection of prizes that one signed up member will win during the drawing on April 30th.

Creating videos for your blog or your book #BYBin30

Adding video to your arsenal for marketing your book or drawing more readers to your blog can be a real boost. More and more people are turning to vlogs instead of blog reading as well as book trailers to decide what they want to read next.

Although I am new to attempting the video platform, there are a few tips I can give you. First off, begin simply. If you don't know much about video editing software or how to create your own videos, don't start with a complicated software program that requires some previous experience.

The following two videos are examples of some very simple video software programs.

Here's one that my husband and young daughter created for the Chapter Book Challenge using an app called Adobe Voice which they downloaded for free to my husband's ipad.

Chapter Book Challenge

Here's one, using the same app, that I created to go along with my previous post about creating book covers.

Which brings me to another tip: If you are creating a vlog for learning purposes, be sure to include a transcript of the video. While video is the growing trend, there are still many people who don't have the luxury of listening to a video  and still others who prefer to read the post rather than watch it through a video. Adding a transcript gives them options and prevents any of your readers/listeners from leaving your blog without learning what they came to learn. (In the case of the above video, the transcript can be found here.)

Check out the free software that is out there. There are hundreds of free video creation,slideshow creation and video editing software apps out there and many of them are free. If you have a Mac computer or laptop, then you will most likely have iMovie on your computer already. Here's a slideshow style video that my husband made for Melusine Muse Press using iMovie on his Apple laptop. My husband also likes using Microsoft PowerPoint to create slideshow-style videos. If you have a non-Apple computer, then you might have MovieMaker on it. Not all of the Microsoft computers have this program but some of them come with it already loaded.

When it comes to book trailers, your trailers need to be interesting enough to make people want to buy your book. A slideshow of photos won't always be enough to draw your potential reader in. Video clips combined together will work best, but there are other ways to make your video interesting. Here are two examples of video book trailers that use simple illustrations and artwork to create an interesting clip about the book. (Both books are anthologies, and both book trailers were created by Julia Stilchen.) 





Needless to say, videos where you create movement within the video from your own or others' artwork need a little bit more skill to create. There are several programs out there for teaching you how to create your own book trailers or for learning to create more complicated videos. One of the best ones out there (particularly for children's writers) is the Video Idiot Boot Camp by Katie Davis. So what do you think? Are you ready to try out some video blogging for your blog or a video book trailer for your book? ***** 

This is just one of the prizes that you might win at the end of the challenge. (Not all book marks look like this. It might be a fairy book mark or something else, but it will be created in a similar style. Bookmarks are handmade by me. One of these will be added to the collection of prizes that one signed up member will win during the drawing on April 30th.)

How to make the most of 2016

Happy New Year!
My 2016 advice for you:

Don't let yourself have any regrets by the time 2016 ends.

- Travel somewhere new. If you can afford it, go somewhere you've never been before, somewhere where the culture is different from yours and the world is more colourful. If you can't afford that kind of trip, go somewhere local that you've never been before. Find out more about the special beauty that your own town or city displays.

- Learn something new. You are never too old to learn a new skill or try a new hobby. Learn how to do something you have never done before. You might find out you enjoy it.

- Appreciate your loved ones and let them know they are loved, not just by your words but by your actions. Do something caring for someone you love. Spend more time giving out hugs this year.

- Live in love instead of in fear. Do something kind for a stranger. Stop making decisions based on the fear of what *might* happen, and start basing your life on love and service to others. Remember that the kindness you send out into the world will always find its way back to you.

- Do something good for the planet. Go out and spend some time cleaning up litter in your neighbourhood or at the beach, give to a charity that aids the environment, spend more time walking instead of driving places. Find a way that you can help fight climate change and then do it.

- Spend some time at the ocean. If you can swim, go for a swim in the waves. If you can't swim, just sit on the warm sand and watch the waves crashing against the shore. Trust me - it's therapeutic.

- Spend more time in nature. This world we live in is a beautiful place, full of its own special magic. Take time to appreciate the beauty all around you.

- Learn to love yourself. This might possibly be the most difficult challenge any of us will face, but it's one of the most important ones. Your body is not YOU. Your appearance does not define who you are. You have a soul, a spirit, a mind, and that part of you, that hidden part, is who you are. Don't let others who can't see that part of you define you. You know who you are; you know your strengths and your flaws, and, deep down, you know you are worthy of love. Embrace this.

- Take care of your body. While it is only the vessel that carries your soul, it can get sick and it can break down much earlier in life if it is not taken care of properly. So only put food into it that strengthens it and nourishes it, and make sure to exercise your body on a regular basis.

- Pursue your dreams. Don't let society tell you what dreams you should and shouldn't have. If your dreams don't hurt anyone else, then by all means, go after them. Start by taking small steps towards them and build from there.

- Create something. Whether it's art, crafts, the written word or something else entirely, be creative this year. It nurtures your soul, and, sometimes, it helps nurture the souls of others too.

- Be silly. Spend some time just being silly. Let yourself be taken over by a fit of the giggles, make corny jokes, and laugh a lot. Laughter improves your quality of life.