social media Archives - Addicted to Writing

Gary Vaynercuk’s Crush It: A Terrific Guide for Bloggers!

Posted on July 24, 2011 Written by Pinar Tarhan

It is not a shocker that I didn’t discover Gary’s sites through my enthusiasm for wine. Frankly, I can’t stand the taste or smell of any wine most of the time. But I am always on the lookout for a good resource about social media and blogging, and I came across Crush during one of my book hunts.

Considering that Gary Vaynerchuk has been a famous online figure for quite a while, my discovery was a little late. After all, this guy has been on Conan and on Ellen and a lot of other places and yet I had no idea who he was when I bought the book.

And after reading, I didn’t find it strange that this guy was this popular.

For one, he uses a conversational tone, and he really knows what he is talking about it. He also has great pieces of wisdom to offer to any blogger/entrepreneur on every level.

Not to mention, Crush It! is recommended by guys like Tim Ferriss (author of The 4-Hour Workweek ,which I also covered on pinartarhan.com) and Kevin Rose (founder of Digg.com).

After having read the whole book, including the appendixes and all, I can safely saythe book is by no means just for bloggers. It is for anyone who wants to make money out of doing what they love (yep, including writers), who wants to make a brand for themselves-even though they are not selling or producing anything (let’s face it, we all sell our CVs at the very least).

So yes, Crush It! is for anyone who wants to take advantage of the internet, social media and the new age in marketing.What does Gary say in this book? I highlighted a lot of stuff and used some serious magic markers on i. Below are some of my favorite quotes from Gary:

“Skills are cheap. Passion is priceless.”

“There is room for everyone in the world of social media, which is the same thing as saying there’s room for everyone in today’s business world”

“…crying about how things should be instead of embracing how things are doesn’t do anyone any good”.

He proves his points by showing you what you can do with a blog-whether audio/video/written- what you can and should do with twitter and facebook. He lists resources, and names sites we should be keeping an eye on. And by sharing true stories, he proves over and over again why he is the right guy to write this book.

At 142 pages, it is a page-turner, but it doesn’t mean you should read and then do nothing. Take the advice, take the action. When you read his life story, you will understand how much he accomplished and so can you.

I am big on self-improvement books in the business area. And being a writer in the web-dominated age, I learned a lot from him.

* Gary blogs on Wine Library TV and you can check out his website Gary Vaynerchuk.

P.S. I love e-books, but I still prefer paperbacks. Yeah, I am one of those people who print out their e-books whenever they can:)

P.P.S. I used affiliate links for Crush It and The 4 Hour Work Week.

: Author Gary Vaynerchuk. Image via pinartarhan.com/blog

4 Reasons Why Every Writer and Blogger Should Use Twitter

Posted on June 3, 2011 Written by Pinar Tarhan

Twitter is important for your business. It is not about regular Joe’s or Jane’s online popularity although it might be a indication of it. But it is mainly about how you make use of social media, how strong a personality you are online, and how well your business is making use of the web. Sure, twitter isn’t the only micro-blogging platform out there but it is still one of the most popular and influential. Books are written and e-books are published every single day about this medium. This article is about the reasons why writers can’t afford not being in tune with it either.

1) Promotion. You have a blog and/or a website. Or maybe you have a website with a blog, or maybe you are running several blogs. Whatever your situation is, if you are writing, you need to have a Twitter account.

You also should personalize that Twitter account by providing a relevant & attractive background image, a full profile and relevant Tweets. If you don’t want to deal with tweets every time you post an article, there are tools for automating the process. However, you can’t neglect to reflect your persona, and your expertise on your Twitter profile. Like-minded people will follow you, retweet stuff that they enjoy, send you messages…In short, Twitter is a great medium to share your business, opinions, posts and passions with others. The traffic (and the relationships) you acquire through Twitter are great perks.

2) (Brand) Image. It is of course much more essential and practical to have relevant people (and/or companies in your list). But to the untrained eye, 2000 followers look better than 200. On a similar note, 20.000 followers look even better. Are there bloggers you like? Follow them. How about writers? Entertainers? If you are in advertising, following advertising blogs and companies is a good idea. Because more often than not, people follow you back. Not only you look more popular and important, but you also have a whole new medium to catch up with the events and industries you are in. Instead of skimming a whole website of news and ads, you will read tweets. You are not allowed to write more than 140 characters so you can choose to be informed about the most interesting stuff.

3) Improving the ability to write better. As mentioned above, you have 140 characters you can use, including a link if you need to use one. Since you have such short space and an impatient audience, you are forced to write better in shorter forms. What better exercise is there?

4) Making connections without much effort. I told you needed to work to promote yourself, but the beauty of Twitter is that others are trying to socialize or get their names/brands out there as well. So people will start following you too. It is your call whether to follow them back or not, but it feels good that your list might end up growing even when you are not actively working on it.

Yes, a lot of people are using Twitter for unnecessarily insignificant updates about their lives. So? Don’t follow them. But don’t let your prejudice about twitter block your success.

I tweet @zoeyclark. What’s your Twitter handle? Share away in the comments.

Castle TV Series: Recommended for All Writers

Posted on March 20, 2011 Written by Pinar Tarhan

Castle starring Nathan Fillion & Stana Katic.

I’m a huge fan of the Castle TV series, a wonderfully entertaining crime/drama/thriller with a good amount of comic relief thrown in.

Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Two Guys and a Girl) plays Richard Castle, the author of over 20 best-selling mystery books and the cool singer father of a teenage daughter.

Castle starts consulting NYPD with their murder cases, first as an obligation and then voluntarily, as he uses the cases and his relationship with the beautiful cop Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) for inspiration.

This article focuses on how fun Castle’s life is (excluding the murders) and how writers can benefit from it.

The Glamor:

Richard Castle lives in a stylish and spacious loft in New York. He is pretty well-off and he has all the gadgets needs.

We see great parties (book launches, charity events and more), fancy restaurants…If we writers ever need motivation, it doesn’t get more fun than this.

The Reality and Humanity

Yes, Rich is rich but he is no Tom Cruise or Donald Trump. He is not in limos all the time, he takes of his teenage daughter Alexis (Molly C. Quinn) and his highly active, actress mother (Susan Sullivan).

But even he is constantly pestered by his publisher. Well, you are never off the hook when it comes to deadlines, even if you are a best-selling writer.

Oh, another part of the (fun) reality: real life authors occasionally guest star as Castle’s regular poker bodies. They talk about novels, fiction, writing and they help Castle brainstorm about real murder cases.

The Murder and The Mystery

I mostly write dramas and romantic comedies. But it is not because I don’t want to write mystery thrillers. I love them. But it takes more than a good idea: attention to detail, hard work and sometimes spending time with some real gruesome facts all add to a masterpiece. Castle might be a fictional character but remember, he is written by real writers who come up with a good story week after week. The show is currently in its 3rd season. So we watch Castle gather clues, brainstorm and work on both real and imaginary cases. Each episode is great for inspiration.

The Characterization and Chemistry:

Castle has great characters. They regular cast all add comic relief. The relationships between Castle and his daughter, his mother, partner/crush/cop Kate Beckett, friends, Beckett’s friends, the captain and his relationships with the suspects…Castle is a good combination of characters and plots that all fit nicely together. It has good amount of clichés but more than enough originality to compensate for them.

The Gadgets

Shows like playing with technology but in this day and age, Castle’s everyday gadget is more than affordable. He has a good phone with internet connection. He can google stuff right at the crime scene.

However he can turn his house into a Frankenstein mode, fence with his daughter or play with laser toy guns in a sci-fi mood. The toys money can buy…

Social Media

It is a very relevant show. Characters joke and talk about tweeting. And if a model suggests she sat next to Perez Hilton (yes, this happened in one episode) on the plane as an alibi, Castle can check the blog during interrogation.

The Fun

Oh, and it shows you a good time. You see family, the writing world, murder department, romance and friendship all in one. He is also full of information on everything. Having written over 20 bestsellers, he has done his research. A lot. And the one-liners are also pretty entertaining.

Check out this show that is based on this fun-loving writer. It might be as inspirational as it is entertaining.

Other Posts Feat. Castle

Castle starring Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic

Castle vs The Mentalist: Comparing Two Addictive Shows

4 Reasons Why Every Writer/Blogger Should Use Twitter