sallymurphy.com.au

Sally Murphy, Australian author

Love a Book? Tell the World!

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When I’m not writing books, I’m usually reading them (other people’s that is). I read books of all sorts – from beautiful picture books, to children’s novels, young adult, literary fiction, nonfiction, poetry. – if it has words, I will read it, though my heart lies most squarely with poetry and books for young people.

Anyway, that’s almost  off-topic. What I wanted to talk about today is spreading the word. Because most of the books I read I review, for my review site, Aussiereviews, where I have reviewed thousands of books over the past fifteen or so years. But I can’t review every book there, partly because of time constraints, and also because of my own review policy, which means that my site focusses only on Australian books.

But when I read a book that I love that I can’t review on Aussiereviews, I still do my darndest to tell the world about it in other ways. And I encourage other readers to do the same – because good books deserve to be shouted about – so that they will be read. So, here are some quick things you (and I) can do to spread the joy about a book.Book lending quote

1. Review it on a website or blog. If you haven’t got a blog, think about starting one if you have time.

2. Review it on Goodreads, Amazon, or other bookshop sites.

3. Tell people about it. Tell your friends, your parents, your children, strangers at the supermarket checkout. Anyone who will listen.

4. Tweet about it, with a link to the book or to someone else’s review.

5. Share it on Facebook, again with a link if possible. Make it easy for people to find out more.

6. Pin the cover image on Pinterest. If you are not on Pinterest, consider starting a board for books you love.

7. Give it as a gift. If you have a read a wonderful book, buy another copy to give as a gift.

8. Talk about it. Often when I do author visits, as well as talking about my own books I will also mention other books I have loved. When kids tell me about the books they’ve enjoyed, I usually give them a recommendation of something similar which they may not have come across.

9. Display the book. Put it on your coffee table, or face out on your bookshelf so that it will catch the eye of people around you.

10. Lend it. Instead of leaving your book treasure to gather dust, lend it to someone who you know will love it, too. Good friends do remember to return books, and if they don’t they must love it as much as you did.

How do you spread the words about books YOU love? I’d love to know.

PS

This post was inspired by picking up a book from my review pile which didn’t meet my review policy (because it’s not Australian). The book? Those PeskyRabbits, by Ciara Flood. Published in Australia by Koala Books and in the UK, this is a divine book about getting along with neighbours, and trying new things. It deserves to be shouted about!PeskyRabbits

Social Media Tips: How I Use Twitter

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I’m a bit of a social media addict. I love using Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and, more recently Pinterest, to connect with friends, family and with readers and fellow booklovers too. But not every author feels as comfortable and, when I posted a couple of weeks ago about some simple things writers could do on social media, I had a great response.

So I thought I’d perhaps share more specifically what I do, and what you can do, too, to make social media platforms work for you as a creator.

So, here’s a quick overview of what I do on Twitter.

  1. Firstly, I use a simple handle (my Twitter name). In my case, I chose @sallymurphy, because it was easy for potential new followers to remember. If someone wants to find me on twitter, it is very easy. Also, followers will see my name regularly, building easy brand recognition for my books and for me.
  2. Secondly, I follow people. One of the simplest ways to build a Twitter following is to follow people. The majority of Twitter users will follow back – meaning if you follow them, they will follow you. It is not hard to find people to follow. There is a search functionTwitter Tipson Twitter. Search for friends, for people whose work you admire, for publishers, book reviewers and so on. And follow them.
  3. Thirdly, I do what I touched on in number 2, and I follow people back. So, if someone follows me, I usually follow them back. I say usually, because sometimes people or businesses follow me and, when I look at their profile I see that they don’t tweet about things I am interested in, and occasionally even tweet about stuff I am completely opposed to. As a general rule of thumb, I check out every new follower, and if their last few tweets are non-spammy and relatively interesting, I will follow them back.
  4. Fourthly, I tweet. At least once a day. I tweet about the weather, my walks with my dog, what I’m reading, where I am, you name it. Note that this list doesn’t include anything about me the writer. I tweet about those things too – but I try not to overwhelm followers with promotional tweets. Twitter users enjoy engaging with you, but they don’t like being sold to. Which leads to number five
  5. Fifthly, I tweet about my work and my books. I never ask people to buy my books. Rather, I share news about new covers, new reveals, release dates, appearances, and blog posts. I provide links to these where relevant.
  6. I tweet links to stuff of interest to fellow booklovers. If I come across a great blogpost, news article, or review (of someone else’s book), poem etc, I tweet it. Sure, this doesn’t sell MY book, but it spreads the love, and helps make my Twitter feed interesting which in turn increases my following.
  7. I use hashtags. A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by the hash ( #). Twitter users can search twitter by hashtags. For example the tag #kidlit is popular amongst children’s booklovers, so if I tweet on something likely to interest that community, I’ll add that tag. This can attract new readers to me, and makes the Twitter experience user-friendly. Note that some hashtags are simply there to entertain or add humour. For example, if I tweeted that I ate all the chocolate I might add the hahstag #sugaroverload
  8. I tag other relevant Twitter users, by ‘atting’ them. I do this sparingly, but, for example if I tweet a review of Fly-In Fly-Out Dad it would be relevant to ‘at’ Five Mile Press, the publisher. This shares the news with them, and will often result in a retweet to their followers.
  9. I retweet interesting tweets from users I follow. Again, this spreads the love, but also provides interesting content to my followers. Sometimes I add a comment, other times I simply retweet.
  10. Lastly, and this is important, I engage with other twitter users. I have conversations with fellow booklovers, using twitter, by replying to their tweets. BUT, if you are new to twitter you may be unaware that when you hit reply, and the person’s Twitter handle comes at the beginning of your new tweet, only people who follow both parties to the conversation will see your reply. If their twitter handle comes later in the tweet, all of your followers can see it. One way around this is to put a fullstop in front of their handle. Another is to compose the tweet so that their handle appears later in the tweet: I agree @joeblogs. ….

As I said in my previous post on Social Media use, using Twitter can use just a couple of minutes per day, but is a wonderful way to spread the word about your books, your writing, you, as well as being lots of fun.

A Picture That Paints a Thousand Names (Well, Almost)

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When I was researching for and planning 1915, I realised that a famous photo which I had looked at many times was, in fact, of the 11th Battalion of the AIF and, as such, would form a perfect starting point for my book. Stanley, my main character, is a member of the 11th and,as such, would have been in that  photo (were he, of course, not fictional).

So, a photo that I had already loved become even more treasured as I wrote. The photo is of the 11th in front of, and on, the Cheops Pyramid, in January 1915, a few months before they landed at Gallipoli. It’s an amazing photo because it features over 700 men, and  although it is a formal shot, the poses of the men, their faces, and the items they are holding give a glimpse into the many different personalities of the men.

Last week,  I took my son to the Curtin University  Open Day and, when he went off with some friends, I found myself wandering a little aimlessly. Something called me into the John Curtin Gallery. I thought perhaps I might see some art. But what I saw as I walked through the door took my breath away. There was my photo – the Cheops photo – blown up to almost  lifesize proportions on a wall. I burst into tears and then smiled, amazed at what I was seeing.

curtin 4

The reason the photo was there was because in this, the centenary of the year it was taken and the men pictured in it fought in the Great War, a project is underway to identify the men in the photo. Anyone who has a family member who might be in the photo is encouraged to try to identify them within the photo. You can find out more about this project here or contact  WAGS

I sat in front of the photo for ages, amazed at just how much more can be seen with it enlarged. The clarity is amazing. I chatted to other viewers, and had a wonderful conversation with a young boy who pointed out an Aboriginal soldier related to a class mate, and told me both how proud he was of him, but also his sorrow at the difficulties faced by Aboriginal soldiers on their return to civilian life.

Afterwards, I sat at a nearby table and made a red felt poppy, which I placed with others in front of the picture. I hope nobody minds that I dedicated mine to Stanley, who is very very real to me.

curtin 2 curtin 5

 

 

On Issues and Taste (and salad)

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Storm brewing

The other day I posted about my books making people cry and how I’m okay with that. But I have to admit that when I’m classed as someone who writes sad books or issues based books, I sometimes feel a bit frustrated.

I certainly explore some tough issues and some sad situations, but I think when we use terms like ‘issues-fiction’ or label a story as being about a particular issue, we can do the book a disservice.

When a kid picks up a book, they are, on the whole , looking to be entertained. As they read, they may also learn things. That’s fine. But if we suggest that they should be reading a book just because it deals with a particular issue (childhood cancer, or dementia, or the horrors of war, for example), we risk alienating them before they even start.

It’s a bit like healthy food: telling kids they should eat a healthy salad ‘because it’s good for them’ is, on the whole, less successful than telling them it’s yummy. And definitely less successful than if it actually is yummy. The kid who enjoys the first mouthful of salad is far more likely to keep eating, and get the health benefits along with the full tummy and the enjoyment of the meal.

So, too, with a book. Saying: You should read this book because it deals with a weighty issue you need to know about is a turn off. You should read this book because it’s funny, or exciting, or interesting is more enticing. But most successful of all is when a kid samples the book (through a good blurb, or browsing the opening pages, or even being read a little bit of it in class) and wants to know what happens next.

To me, character and plot come waaaaaaaay before any issue. But that’s the topic for another blog post (or two). In the meantime, my point is this: as a writer of fiction, story is always key; and if you are an adult offering books to kids, don’t just tell them it’s good for them. Tell them why they’ll like it, or better still, give them a chance to taste it for themselves.

 

sallymurphy.com.au