You, Will, Be Ahead of 90% Of The Writer’s Population If You Do This.
The business of writing is not just about writing.
Even if you have the best-in-class product in your garage, you have to promote it. Otherwise, it stays in the garage.
Hey, I get it. The best way to promote our writing is to write exceptionally well. When we can attract the audience through our stories, the audience base feed on itself.
One point to note. That is not the first step. Before any audience can read our beautifully written and painstakingly polished work, the reader population needs to realize our existence.
This is especially true when we are just starting out. Let us put our feet on the ground. No one starts off as a writer with thousands of fans and followers. We build our fan base.
And I see this as the missing leg for many new writers. When I say new, I refer to the business of writing and not the actual writing itself.
Hone your writing, get better, write more, and then do what 90% of the writer’s population do not.
Promote your work.
I Am An Introvert. I Want My Writing To Promote Itself.
I get that, but no, it does not work that.
We have 7 billion people on Planet Earth. Only 1% is wealthy. We have thousands of top-class, elite athletes representing their countries in the Summer & Winter Olympics. Let me remind you only the Top 3 athletes walk away with a medal.
Every piece of work worth doing creates a hierarchy because we align ourselves into an array of people who do it exceptionally well or not so.
And when we do not fall into the Top 1% of writer’s population, make it Top 10%, chances are, we need to proactively promote our work.
The purpose is to let people know that we write. It is not meant to show people how good we are as a writer. Leave our ego at home.
The Introvert’s Way Of Promoting Your Work.
Introverts may appear quiet and self-sufficient. It does not mean that they not aggressive.
We can promote our work in subtle ways, and I will share my methods below.
a. The Introvert’s Way — Short-Forms.
Use the short-form feature.
I have written extensively on this topic, and therefore not repeating myself like a broken recorder. Do reference these 2 stories and work short-forms into your writing arsenal.
Yes, yes. It pays dividends.
A Note: Not all publications accept short-forms. We have to perform due diligence here.
b. The Introvert’s Way — Attaching Our Previous Stories In Our New Stories.
Writers write a hell lot daily. Like runners, we cannot stop. It creates a dopamine-induced feedback loop. The more we do, the more we want to do.
Our content portfolio grows in size as we continue to write and publish. Some of these stories do very well, while others are $0.01 heroes.
Do not leave them on a path of natural decay. The $0.01 stories are like our kids who are momentarily distracted. They have the potential to do well, and we have to bring them back to the right path.
There are 2 ways we can do this. The first method is evident in this segment. All the hyperlinks that you have seen here are subtle attachments to my older stories.
Hyperlinks are non-invasive and do not disrupt the reading experience.
The other method is to use story cards, like the 2 short-form stories in the previous segment. Notice that they stand out, and they invite readers to leave the current story they are reading into the older ones.
I use them sparingly.
c. The Introvert’s Way — Find Publications We Can Work With To Our Benefit.
Smaller publications have to be part of our publication strategy if we are just starting out.
Okay, I get it. Go big, am I right? There is no point in writing if it is not published in publications with 5-figure followers.
Time for a reality check.
The publication has 5-figure followers. That does not mean we will get 5-figure views on our story. There is a correlation between the 2, and if so, not a direct one.
Smaller publications, on the other hand, are like potential high growth stocks. Now, we have to think about the business of writing, the Venture Capitalist way.
Place our bets on smaller, high-growth publications because our stories get circulated more when they grow bigger.
We elevate to the status of an anchor writer for smaller publications when they become a behemoth.
These are the publications that I enjoy working with, each with its distinct advantages: -
- Illumination and sister publications.
- a Few Words.
- Change Your Mind, Change Your Life.
- The Masterpiece.
- Writers’ Blokke.
These publications have one thing in common. They get back to me for writing quality, publishing schedule, and points of improvement.
These pointers work well for me, plus these publications have the potential to become crazy successful in their own right in the future.
Think like a Venture Capitalist. Pick publications that best suit our writing endeavors and invest our stories in them.
We can bet on the jockey (writer) and the horse (publications).
d. The Introvert’s Way — Passive Social Media Posting.
No, we do not need to be everywhere. It is a mistake to think that way. Plus, when we do that, we allow social media platforms to siphon our time and life energy unnecessarily.
For me, I am present on these platforms because of the nature of work I am involved in: -
- Linkedin.
- Twitter.
- YouTube.
I do not get involved with the rest. I will when the need arises.
We can think about it this way. If you have a presence on these platforms, it becomes convenient to circulate our articles where we spend our time.
I have one more tip for introverts.
Post, and get out.
Let the comments and likes come. Avoid paying attention to the day we post our stories. It may affect us emotionally.
Check the comments after 3 days. Use those comments to write an updated version of our stories or new stories.
Think leverage. Think business of writing.
Summary — The 90–10 Principle.
Everyone finds success in their own way.
We have to think and act differently to stand a chance. Of course, it is uncomfortable when we depart from the norm.
What happens when we write what the 90% are writing about?
Firstly, readers get bored. Secondly, there are already sharks in the ocean. Lastly, our stories will be drowned by scores of the same material.
So, write different and promote our work.
We have to promote our work, no matter how quiet and shy we are as humans. We are not there trying to steal the spotlight for the sake of basking in it.
We are doing it to give ourselves a shot to survive and thrive as a writer.
That is the key.
Write well. Promote our writings well.
Aldric
About the Author:
As a content contributor, I write my observations from daily life and my business exposure.
Because our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.
