Monday, May 06, 2013

Promoting Tip - Get a Little Personal

After a whole month of publishing and promoting tips almost every day, I thought I would offer something a little more fun.

Online we need to maintain a level of professionalism, whether we’re a new writer or an established author. We have to be careful how much personal information we reveal. We all have beliefs and opinions, and we need to be careful how we express them. (And we also don’t want the weirdoes showing up on our doorstep.)

However, we still need to infuse some personality into our online presence and let our readers and fans know a little about us. So, I am going to give you a little insight into Spunky’s world.

By the time I was 14, I’d set four goals for my life:
- I didn’t want to go to college
- I didn’t want kids
- I wanted to be a professional photographer
- I wanted to be a published author
(All four accomplished - time to set new ones.)

I’m a total sucker for animated films and movies about animals.

I really wish I could sing. I can hit the right pitch when playing Karaoke Revolution, but I sound awful.

My husband is smarter and better at everything than me - except math. By the time he pulls out the calculator, I already have the answer in my head.

When I develop an interest, I go all out. I don’t just love riding roller coasters - I know all the manufacturers, the parks, the record-setters, etc.

I love black & white photography. It’s easier for me to see the world in B&W than color, as I am drawn to patterns, shapes, and textures.

I’m 5’3” and 120 pounds. Clothes shopping is a pain. My husband says I need to design a line of clothing and call it “Elfin.”

My husband is the hero of my life.

And finally, I am not ashamed to say I sleep with a stuffed tiger named Eddie. He’s my little body pillow.And he's named after comedian Eddie Izzard. (Cake or death?)

What fun, personal things are you willing to share?

***

I’d also like to thank Heather Gardner at The Waiting is the Hardest Part for giving me the Zombie Award.

I will pass it on to my helpers, Spunky’s Soldiers: Laura Marcella, Sia McKye, Golden Eagle, Clarissa Draper, Jo Wake, Tyrean Martinson, Gwen Gardner, Ida Chiavaro, Randi Lee, and Nancy LaRhonda Johnson.

47 comments:

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

I love hearing Spunky snippets! You've got so much passion for life and it's cool that you've always known what you wanted and planned to get it!

Something fun about me? I did the student backpacking/hostel-staying trip around France and Italy when I was in college. :)

Jolie du Pre said...

I'm outspoken, and I always have been. Plus I write celebrity gossip as well as horror/paranormal. My world is not sunshine and roses, and I adore weirdoes! Depending on what a person writes will dictate what they can get away with.

Rhonda Albom said...

Nice to "Meet" you. Sometimes I think my problem is the other way, I reveal too much personal information. Thanks for your post, and your AtoZ tips. It's left me wondering a bit. (in a good way)

Rhonda @Laugh-Quotes.com

Jo said...

Thanks for the Zombie Rabbit Award, apart from displaying the badge, is there anything else we are supposed to do with it?

I don't think there is anything about me that I haven't posted in my blog at one point or another.

JO ON FOOD, MY TRAVELS AND A SCENT OF CHOCOLATE

Summer Ross said...

Love the tiger! I sleep with a bear named Bruno.

~Summer

Heather M. Gardner said...

Nice to know more about you!

Only one tiger? I admit, I have a tiger problem. I have a lot of them.

Cake, please!

Well, we're out of cake. We didn't expect such a rush.

I'll have the chicken!

Have a great day!
HMG

Karen Baldwin said...

I always wonder if I reveal too much. Although the posts I where I do reveal, I get the most responses.

Karen Lange said...

Fun post! It's nice to learn more about you. :) Congrats on the award!

Hart Johnson said...

It can be a funny line, eh? I definitely think it is easiest to engage with the people who use a more personal approach. I try to limit religion and politics, but have sort of embraced the overshare otherwise. Goes with that naked thing...

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Elizabeth, that sounds like a lot of fun!

Jolie, I can be very blunt and I've had to learn to tame that.

Rhonda, glad you enjoyed them.

Jo, I don't think there are any requirements with this one.

Summer, that's cute.

Karen, it's just so difficult to find the small sizes here.

Heather - LOL! You know your Eddie.

Em-Musing, that might be telling you something.

David P. King said...

You love animated films, too? We should talk. And you're right! It's good to let a little of yourself out there once in a while, otherwise people may start to wonder if you're a robot, of sorts. Hold on. I think my back panel is loose ... :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I like animated films.
I'm also a sucker for romantic comedies.

Unknown said...

I love blogs that are more than hops and promotions but contain content information about the writer-- who they are, what they like, a little about their journey. This to me speaks "branding" more than any cover reveal will.

Anonymous said...

I love musical films , but there isn't many around these days,

Yvonne.

Martina Boone said...

I love your four goals. They made me grin. And this post is a really great reminder for me, because I'm awful about sharing personal things online. Maybe that's the most personal thing I can share--I am convinced no one is very interested in my personal life. In person, I try to overcome that with the result that I end up oversharing. Online, I end up editing that to the point that I don't say enough. You'd think I'd be grown-up enough by this point to have found a balance. :D

Jay Noel said...

I didn't show my picture on my blog for a good 5 years. Then I decided to pursue writing "for real," so I had to show myself.

I curse a lot in real life, and it does slip on my blog every once in awhile. Guess I should watch that.

Johanna Garth said...

I love learning all those factoids about you. If you design an Elfin line I'll totally buy clothes...5'2 and after a recent match with stomach flu I dipped below the triple digit weight mark for a few days :(

Stephen Tremp said...

Excellent advice and worth a Tweet!

Great example with the roller coasters! For me, its not enough to know about wormholes. I need to know what the leading theoretical physicists are saying. What are the top research centers. What do they expect on the immediate horizon. What are their greatest failures. That's research.

And its great to know you a little better.

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for the award! I don't know what to say about myself. I always wanted to go to university but I had trouble narrowing down what I wanted to do with my life. Doctor? Architect? Fashion designer? All I know is I never wanted to be a writer. Although I've always had worlds in my head, I never though I could write with my poor grammar skills.

LD Masterson said...

I enjoyed the personal tidbits. it is nice getting to know someone through their blog.

Let's see...I'm the world's worse (best?) procrastinator. Even for things I like, I have a terrible time getting past the inertia. Once I get started, I'm the energizer bunny - I don't want to stop. Which is good because if I do I'm back to the whole inertia thing again.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

David, love animated films! They are so cute.

Martina, you will.

Johanna, you are even more Elfin than I am.

Thank you, Stephen.

Clarissa, that's why we have Spellcheck and editors.

LD, I tease my husband that he's the master procrastinator.

Mel Chesley said...

I try not to be "all business" and book promoting. When I use Twitter, it's hard for me to just come up with witty things to say. I'm better in a group of people. I sleep with a teddy bear. I can't lay on my side without it propping up my shoulder, otherwise, I'm wide awake and my neck and shoulder hurt. And I gotta say, I love Eddie Izzard! :)

cleemckenzie said...

I love animated films and black and white photography. My hero in the latter is Stenglitz.

Now this is very personal and true: I'm 5'1" so I can see over counters. I weigh in at 100-103 depending on how many hot fudge sundaes I consume.

I rescued a Teddy Bear from a thrift store once and counted it as a good deed.

M Pax said...

A cat named Nini usually sleeps with me. She purrs a lot.

I can't sing either.

Golden Eagle said...

Thank you for the award! :)

I tend to go all out when I'm interested in something, too.

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

That's great that you knew what you wanted at age 14. I'm not a roller coaster fan.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on the award and all your accomplishments in writing -- all those books! I also love writing and photography. Neither of those were goals I set, but just happened to me in a natural kind of way. I'm happy to have met you in person and hope we meet again sometime.

Jacline Carter said...

Thanks for sharing the tidbits! As I already knew, we're a lot alike. I understand the B&W thing, because I love different patterns and textures, but I've always been drawn to bright colors.

Susan Flett Swiderski said...

Some great tidbits. I find it most interesting that you kept four life goals that you set for yourself at the age of fourteen. My hubby is like that, too. Me, at fourteen, I thought I'd be a great medical humanitarian traveling the world on the Good Ship Hope, or would adopt at least a dozen children, and then write the next great American novel. Never been on a ship, and didn't adopt any children, but we used to have a canoe, and we're expecting our thirteenth grandchild. Kinda the same, but different, right?

Al Diaz said...

I just love to learn about the person behind the site and find out we actually have things in common. I love animated films as well. I also go all out when something interest me. Problem is, sometimes too many things interest me at the same time. And hey! I sleep with a plush parrot named "Patotas" :)

James Garcia Jr said...

Yikes! Hubs must be special if he can get away with recommending a clothing line called Elfin! Thanks for sharing the very interesting insights into Spunky's World.

-Jimmy

Misha Gerrick said...

Fun answers! I also think it's good to be personal, as long as one isn't mean, stupid or nasty.

:-)

Anonymous said...

I loved learning more about you.

I'm a reserved person, but I do get personal in social media.

Unknown said...

I think you're right. People who read our blogs want to know us, the real us. At least that's true of me. When I got to blog, I don't mind the occasional book reviews, but for the most part, I want to meet a person. I really enjoyed getting to know you better today.

Tyrean Martinson said...

Love the snippets from your life! I agree that we need to be careful, and at the same time we need to be a little personal.

Thanks for the award!

nutschell said...

loved learning all these things about you. Eddie is cute. I can understand why you'd want to snuggle with him:)
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Mel, Eddie Izzard is funny.

C, Lee, you understand my dilemma then. And my B&W hero is Adams.

Mary, I have one of those. too. Her name is Rocko.

Freeda, maybe on our next trip to Arkansas.

Susan, close enough.

Al, that's cute.

James, he gets away with it because he says short is cute.

Nutschell, I've about worn the fur off the poor thing.

Jemi Fraser said...

Those are fun tidbits!! I'm a total wimp with roller coasters - wish I was braver :)

Laura Eno said...

How fun! I'm amazed by people who know what they want early in life. I'm from the pinball side of the equation.
I sleep with a standard poodle who thinks she's a plush...

Chancelet said...

Very nice snippets into your life. I got kind of a sense about you... maybe a bit looney - learning so much about something because you enjoy it. That doesn't kill any of the mystery of the thrill for you?

But I can appreciate that. If God made us all the same, the world would be a horrendous place to be. :) Writer’s Mark

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Diane .. well I'm in awe if you managed to know what you wanted to do at 14 .. I'm still waiting - but I guess now it's writing, surprises me too.

Also your knowledge of rollercoasters - definitely not on my list - the stats and info might be .. but riding them, oh no!

Eddie Izzard .. Mrs - well you are small and that would fit his Neanderthal beginnings ... I don't think you spotted my two posts on his DNA markers back to Africa - I wrote in March?

I definitely won't admit to sleeping with a tiger body pillow - regrettably on that score ... I'm rather dull I think.

Cheers and now I'll have different takes on the Wolfe household! Hilary

Anonymous said...

I didn't get a chance to read all of your April blog posts, but I found the tips helpful from the ones I did read.

Enjoy your Zombie Rabbit Award. : )

Ella said...

I love what you shared! Eddie Izzard is a trip ;D

Bravo...on all you have accomplished!

I want to teach art and I'm going to go pimp myself out next week. I have been known to take dares and do them...coasters, poetry and diving boards, for example-lol.

I am still chasing getting my art on a cover. Yes, I want to be a cover girl ;D
And I'm working on two books, but my big goal I hoped to accomplish comes true on Friday. It isn't something most people would think about. I'll share soon...

Fun post and I love how your husband is so encouraging-so sweet!!!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Hello everyone! I'm sorry, I had a rush formatting job yesterday and wasn't online. I will catch up today.

Laura - LOL!

Nancy, that is very true.

Hilary, I think I saw one of those posts.

Ella, I can't wait to hear it.

Sherry Ellis said...

Your tiger is so cute! It's nice to learn a little more about you.

klahanie said...

Hi Diane,

Of course, you sing with your words. Neat stuffed Tiger. I'm going to see if Eddie Izzard will move to America.

Well done on getting that Zombie Rabbit Award from Stormy, um Heather.

Yay for your Spunky Soldiers!

Gary

Jai Joshi said...

That's hilarious that your stuffed tiger is named after Eddie Izzard! I bet he'd be flattered, ha!

Jai