Stuff I Learned at RWA Nationals 2010 - Part 1

There was much talk about promotion this year at RWA Nationals, as there is every year really, and it probably surprises no one that much of that talk focused on Twitter and Facebook. One of the most valuable workshops I attended was given by Louisa Edwards, Roxanne St. Claire and Teresa Medeiros. To be honest, I grabbed a seat in that audience at first because Louisa and Rocki just happened to be my suitemates, but the truth is it turned out to be a smart move because there was some great information to be had and it reaffirmed what I'm already doing. Not saying I'm ahead of the curve, but hello, I am SO not behind it either.

Facebook Fan Pages are The Thing. I have one (here), as do Roxanne St. Claire, Kresley Cole and Gena Showalter, just to name a few of my fav authors. Fan pages are a great way to stay in touch with not only the author themselves but other readers who love the same books. Once you establish a fan page, make sure you get a customized URL - the idea is that it reads like this: http://www.facebook.com/KristenPainterAuthor instead of like this: http://www.facebook.com/38743897439879845784 - much easier to list on websites, business cards, etc.

Once you establish your page, start routing friend requests there. This is going to be much easier if you're a published author. Unpubbed writers may have a harder time convincing people to like them when they don't really have any work to like.

Your mission today is clear. Go out and set up your FB fan page. Right after you "like" mine. ;o) If you already have a FB fan page, feel free to post a link in the comments!