I have a love/hate relationship with social media. It helps me get the word out about my books. I love it when people write to me about what they felt when reading them. (Go to the contact form!) But…
I remember when Facebook started. It was exciting because here, some of us thought, was a way to connect with our far-flung friends, share our lives, especially because nobody really wrote letters anymore. But other stuff seemed to creep in. Pretty soon, people you never knew in real life wanted to be “friends.” Ads appeared. People began to argue with strangers. I do like some of the hiking groups I am in, and I am glad when my real friends share pictures. But….
Social media seems so unsocial now. I have really started to distance myself. I don’t care how many likes I have and I never count up my “friends.” It isn’t real. At its worst, it comes across as braggy or desperate. I get it, people want to connect, especially now. But I have more going on in my life that I want to be present for.
I have found a lot more connection by doing things for other people. I have two volunteer gigs. I also like helping other authors. I spend time with my real friends and don’t feel the need to share my life online as much anymore. I thought hard about why I was even still on social media and finally came to the conclusion that I want to share wilderness and nature with people. It is a passion of mine, that wild places stay wild, that everyone who wants to gets a chance to get out there.
One of my author friends took her business completely off social media. I wonder if that is the way to go. Then I think, no, I want to reach people, and have them read my books. Not to make a ton of money, because very few authors do (I hate to even add up how much I am in the hole). But…
I’m curious to know what you think.