Your Geek Ain’t Like Mine

14 Jul 2015 2 Comments

by Tiffany M. Davis in Brain Droppings, Live Tweeting Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

From Merriam-Webster dictionary:

Nerd (noun):

: a person who behaves awkwardly around other people and usually has unstylish clothes, hair, etc.

: a person who is very interested in technical subjects, computers, etc.

Geek (noun).

: a person who is socially awkward and unpopular : a usually intelligent person who does not fit in with other people

: a person who is very interested in and knows a lot about a particular field or activity

[sidebar: the above terms are often used interchangeably]

Late last year on Twitter, I stumbled across a group of people calling themselves Blerds (Black nerds). Blerds were the lost tribe I’d been seeking but didn’t know it: a group of melanin-enriched folks with high IQs and love and appreciation for a diverse array of things considered not the norm for traditional Black folks, including comics, video games, science fiction, and punk rock. I was in heaven. I’d found my peoples.

I reveled in it. I wrote about it for Black Girl Nerds. I read comics for the first time (and reviewed a few). I was down like four flat tires.

Then I got my geek card pulled.

I frequently partake in #SaturdayNightSciFi, hosted by Geek Soul Brother, a fellow Blerd. Every Saturday night, we gather across the interwebs to live tweet a curated sci-fi/fantasy movie or the first two episodes of a (usually cancelled) SFF (science fiction/fantasy) TV show. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by some of the offerings and have garnered new favorites as a result: the now-defunct British TV show Misfits and the now-defunct American show Fringe (the latter proved so popular for #SaturdayNightSciFi that we are now indulging in #FringeFriday. Join us at 9 pm ET on Fridays!).

Misfits TV with caption

Game of Thrones fans: yes, that is “Ramsay [Snow] Bolton” on the far right!

Fringe glyph code v4b

The infamous FRINGE glyph/code

Fringe S1 cast

Once again, I was happy to be amongst my tribe, my peoples, those who are often considered to be marginalized within Black society due to our interests and intellect.

Until Farscape.

farscape-characters

Farscape was the latest #SaturdayNightSciFi offering and, as usual for a TV show, we were slated to watch the first two episodes. I barely made it through episode 1.

I was out of my depth from jump with regard to sci fi references that seem to be canon. On the contrary, my Blerd compadres were, well, geeked to be watching, and lost no time dropping SFF comparisons.

“Nice move to cast Kent McCord as Crichton’s father.”

“That trans-dimensional scene reminded me of Contact just a little.”

“…And it’s from Yuri Gagarin” 

“The last few Red Dwarf series jumped a whole school of sharks”

“Love Farscape! But Lexx was the better ship!”

“So, this is the sexy blue alien species that inspired the Asari in Mass Effect, eh?”

“LANI JOHN TUPU and he’s a captain!!!!!!”

HUH?!

Basta cartoon

“Basta” is Spanish for “enough”

Um…okay. I had no idea what they were talking about. The Geek was strong in these ones, but I was on the outside of the Death Star, futilely seeking entry through the formidable force field. My geek game was clearly the opposite of fleek. I wasn’t even on Padawan level; I was just a midichlorian.

What can I say? Geeks gonna geek. I quietly raised my church finger and exited out of the live tweet. (anyone who has encountered the Baptist Church will get that reference LOL).

This was a humbling experience. I realized I am more of a nerd than a geek, it seems: I hardly read comics, I prefer non-alien SFF (Terminator movies and The Fifth Element notwithstanding), and I have only a superficial knowledge of Star Trek (but I at least can differentiate between Star Trek, Star Trek: TNG, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: DS9, and Star Trek: Enterprise). However, I’m all about that Star Wars action, boss, and I have all 132 episodes of the Thundercats cartoon on DVD. I’m also a fan of the Watson and Holmes and Nutmeg comics series.

Maybe there’s hope for me after all.

Thanks for stopping by.

Twitter Chat!

07 Oct 2014 Leave a comment

by Tiffany M. Davis in Live Tweeting, My Stuff, Social Media Tags: , , , ,

Join me for a Twitter chat tonight about The Bastille Family Chronicles: Camille, the Bastille Family Chronicles series, and other stuff that I will discuss at my discretion. 😀

Tonight, 7-8pm ET, on Twitter (@Tiffscribes). Use the hashtags #TheCamilleChronicles and #BFC.

Hope to see you there!

Don’t Believe the Hype

03 Oct 2014 Leave a comment

by Tiffany M. Davis in Book Releases, Brain Droppings, Marketing and PR, Self-Publishing, Social Media, The Writing Biz Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

As an author, especially a self-published author, it’s easy to get caught up on numbers: sales ranks. Bestseller list position. Royalty amounts. Social media followers. Likes/retweets/Pins/shares. Trying to gauge these things will make you crazy, especially when you realize that the numbers don’t tell the whole story.

Luvvie Ajayi, popular blogger, recently discussed the trend of bloggers purchasing followers, site traffic, and the like. She spoke of the need for bloggers  and other content creators to pay attention to the numbers in a different way: pull the curtain back and see if those numbers are real.

This is a problem I’ve run into when feeling out potential social media managers for myself. The ones I’ve encountered all all abut numbers, numbers, numbers. While there is some validity in that sentiment with regard to visibility, it’s not a one-size-fit-all approach. My writing really is geared toward a target demographic, which in itself is rather small. Because of that, I don’t expect huge sales numbers (but I am willing to be pleasantly surprised!). I know who likes my books, and who reads my books. Expanding that circle may net me a few more readers, but if the net is being cast across the waters of an audience that doesn’t really care–and therefore, won’t engage–that energy is not spent well.

For writers, those of us who sell books, it’s a bit different. Unless you are a big name (e.g., Stephen King, Terry McMillan, Nora Roberts, Eric Jerome Dickey, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie) and/or on a major publishing platform, we don’t usually see the types of numbers provided bloggers–in terms of sales, that is. Not understanding this leads to a lot of unnecessary angst.

 

One of my old bosses once told me, “If you want a good review, write a good book.”  Likewise, if you provide quality content, the “numbers” won’t matter because your loyal following will keep you afloat. So what if you don’t reach #1 on the Amazon Sales Rank? It’s better to have only a few hundred, or thousand, people buy EACH of your books, than tens of thousands on ONE book and nada on the rest.

So chill with the numbers game. Sit back, take a deep breath, and write what brings you joy. A Twitter follower of Charles M. Blow (author of Fire Shut Up In My Bones), said it best:

 

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

The Social Media Shuffle

25 Sep 2014 Leave a comment

by Tiffany M. Davis in Brain Droppings, Indie Authors, Indie Publishers, Marketing and PR, Self-Publishing, Social Media, Tech Stuff, The Writing Biz Tags: , , , , , , , ,

I recently consulted a social media expert (who happens to be a member of my sorority, and who also provides social media services to the sorority at the national level) to figure out how to best maximize my exposure. Since this is my first book, and I am a self-published author, I have to work twice as hard in order to gain half the exposure of a traditionally published author.  She reviewed my latest newsletter and recommended that I really work social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, etc) to get my name out there.

Well…that sucks. :/

Not because I don’t realize the necessity of this, given the technological strides we’ve made in our society, but because social media management is a full-time job, and it’s hard to do that AND create a product that requires promotion on social media.  Plus, let’s keep it real: I am of a certain age, and have the most basic understanding of social media versus someone who was born with a smartphone in their hand, and with a Tumblr account. I know how to Twit (yes, I said “twit”, as I prefer it to “Tweet”), post on FB, LinkedIn, and Google Plus; I have a Tumblr account that I rarely check. But that’s about it. For all those multi-layered nuances that so many social media experts send newsletters about, well…I’m not on that level, and can’t afford to hire someone on that level right now.

(sidebar: if there are any college students who want to manage my social media for free, holler. Serious inquiries only.).

The good news is, a lot of the products I use are integrated with each other so that I only have to post to one place/site, and it shows up on other sites (Bless you, WordPress!). Still, the social media sorority sister suggested that I actually post unique content to the aforementioned sites, as a way of providing a more intimate feel with my audience.

Prince WTF look lip curl

Lookie here, I pour out my angst, euphoria, on my blog; I have to do it elsewhere too? This is too much for my little life. But alas, if I want to be marketable, it’s a sacrifice I’ll have to make…kicking, screaming,and Twitting all the way.

Oh, and I now have an official Amazon.com Author Page. Check it out!

Thanks for stopping by.

 

“That” Author

06 Aug 2014 Leave a comment

by Tiffany M. Davis in Book Releases, Brain Droppings, My Stuff, Social Media, The Craft, The Process, The Writing Biz Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Here we are, two days past the official release of my first solo novel, The Bastille Family Chronicles: Camille (informally known as The Camille Chronicles), and I’m trying not to be “THAT” author.  You know, the author who scours the internet for any mention of his or her name, book title, Facebook posts, Tweets, blog posts, Pinterest pins, Instagram pictures…anything.

Nope, not trying to go there. Even though I took a peek at my royalty statements to see what kind of activity my book is doing. And Googled myself (there are a LOT of people with my name…including a woman in San Francisco, where I used to live, who is also a cook, as I used to be. At least we look nothing alike !). All of which I’d told myself not to do, for the sake of my sanity.

I had to breathe, stop, and write this blog before I lost myself in tater tots and back episodes of NCIS, before Graceland comes on .

It’s not the writing that will drive you insane, though it is a close second. What drives a writer insane is the afterbirth, if you will, of the book being published. The postpartum depression, for most of us, that sets in when our books aren’t flying off the shelves like those of our favorite bestselling authors…most of whom have been writing books for many, many moons and are at the point in their careers where they can phone it in, if they choose (and some have done it. *Sigh*).  The realization that you can get the word out there via every social media venue known to man, but that’s about all you can do. You can spread the word to every warehouse, outhouse, doghouse, foxhouse and henhouse (to paraphrase US Marshall Gerard in the movie The Fugitive), but short of forcing people to click the “Buy Now” button, you can’t make people buy your work. Even if you think it’s the best thing since sliced bread, your opinion no longer matters. What mattes now is the court of public opinion, which is fickle on a good day.

Not to mention any reviews given. The positive ones are always great to get,but what about the not-so-positive ones? The ones that pretty much feed that voice in your soul that you managed to still, the one that whispered, “see, I told you this wasn’t going to work.” The internet makes it easy for people to spew invective behind aliases; e-gangsterism is the new black. It doesn’t matter if it’s a reader who just couldn’t connect with your work, or someone you slighted who sees this as a means of revenge, or someone who just wants to see you fail, for whatever reason.

Trying to keep up with all of this, AND continue writing, will make you lose it. So try not to do it.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, time for tater tots. Thanks for stopping by.

 

Stay in the know–join my mailing list!

28 Jul 2014 2 Comments

by Tiffany M. Davis in Marketing and PR, Social Media Tags: , , , , ,

 

Wanna keep up to date on my book releases, book events, exclusive content, and more? Make sure to sign up for my mailing list (and my Facebook page) HERE.

I may not always post everything on my blog, so the mailing list is your best bet to be kept in the loop. Sign up now to be included in the Circle of Trust. 😀

In case you forgot, follow me on the interwebs: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Multiplicity: The Irritation of Managing Multiple Social Media Accounts

04 Jun 2014 Leave a comment

by Tiffany M. Davis in My Stuff, Social Media, Tech Stuff Tags: , , ,

I faced a dilemma recently. Since I returned to Facebook (FB )after a two-year hiatus, I have mainly checked my primary account (mind you, I have more than one due to previous lives/professions/life stages, but I can’t even get into those anymore). I also had what I called my business FB account, which was under my previous job and where I hardly posted; when I did post, I kept it clean because of the business contacts there.  However, now that I’m rolling solo again, I needed to make some changes to that biz account.

Which brings me to a dilemma: how to be in two (or even three) places at the same time, social media-lly speaking.

It’s simple, yet complicated: I used to check my primary account on my smartphone (the layout is easier on my nerves LOL), my biz account on my laptop, and my side hustle on my tablet. Now, since my tablet  has given up the ghost (and I’ve eased back on said side hustle), I don’t check that account much. Which leaves primary and biz accounts.  My biz account was previously linked to my biz email; now, I’ve updated that email so that I can keep up with various and sundry notifications–especially people who automatically tag me and message me on my biz account, because it’s under my more easily recognizable government name (even though they are also on my personal account, where I post a lot, but I digress).

I need Facebook to be like Google or Twitter: I have multiple accounts there, as well, but they are both  set up so that I can easily flip between the accounts as needed. That’s very helpful as I keep boundaries between my personal life and my professional one. FB? Nope. You are locked into viewing/posting via one account, and one account only. Boundaries? Not on their watch!

As my duties increase going forward, I may have to look into one of those platforms like Hootsuite or Buffer or something. I guess. I’ll figure it out.

Anyway, now I have to get used to the changing of the guard. I hope I remember to post my snark in the proper place.

 

Thanks for stopping by.