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More vital than knowing when and where to network with your readers or peers or to post your blogs, is finding like-minded groups of people, such as Google+ reader and blogger Communities. There you can reach new people who are likely interested in what you are writing or blogging about…
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Start Conversations and Share Relevant Content
Google+ Communities are for users who are more interested in vibrant conversations around topics than they are about self-promotion. Quality community members are those who share relevant content that sparks conversation or debate, and who participate in conversations by leaving comments and +1’ing posts. Users whose intentions are to promote themselves or spam the community will most likely be removed by a moderator, so be careful how you approach your communities.
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Posts within a community are indexed by Google
and will be found in organic search results –
which means higher ranking for you on Google’s Search Engine!
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Avoid Too Much Promotion
When you join a community, you can find people who are interested in the same topics you are. Depending on the type of community, you may have to wait for approval before becoming a member. Google+ Communities are for users who are more interested in vibrant conversations around topics than they are about self-promotion. Quality community members are those who share relevant content that sparks conversation or debate, and who participate in conversations by leaving comments and +1’s. Users whose intentions are to promote themselves or spam the community will most likely be removed by a moderator, so be careful how you approach your communities..
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How to Join a Google+ Community Step by Step
- Go to the left side of your Google+ page with your cursor
- click on communities
- search or type in e.g. “books” or “blogging” and click the magnifying glass symbol
- almost 60! communities show up, sorted by membership size
- choose for example “Promote Your Book” with over 2,799 members and thousands of posts
- click on their image and see lots of posts
- on top you will see “Join this community to post or comment”
- we are polite and click “Join community”
- then we introduce ourselves and greet the owner of the community
- unless most other pages, this one does not require to choose a category
- you can post right away, either text and an image or just an image
- Interesting:
A great feature of Google+ posts to a community is that you can edit them at any time.
– everyone in the community can read / answer to your post (also not your timeline)
– at most communities you can also choose if you want notifications to your email
– on the left hand side you will find another search function where you can search this community
– you can also see who is a member of your community and follow them
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Start Your Own Google+ Community
When you own or moderate a Google+ community, you can create categories to organize discussions, remove offensive content, highlight great posts, add moderators to help you keep the conversation going, invite members, or edit your community. You can invite people to join your community – up to 500 people at a time. Having more people usually increases the number of posts in your community, and encourages others to use it.
Tip: Anyone can share a community by clicking the “Share this community” button. When you click it, you’ll create a Google+ post that links to the community’s page. But it won’t create an actual invitation for people to accept or decline. Learn more at Google+ Support .
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Communities for Writer and Readers
Writing Contests
https://plus.google.com/communities/111481967442496334030
111PublishingWorld
https://plus.google.com/communities/106581221552488369133
Indie readers and writers come together
https://plus.google.com/communities/113896050662378734315
Book Reviews (make lots of friends there : )
https://plus.google.com/communities/114955415591375277291/stream/73cdb5e5-74ac-4687-b07a-0bbc339e0e55
Share your new books here!
https://plus.google.com/communities/107819409769369111413
Authors and bloggers share their work with readers
https://plus.google.com/communities/115573021758683598908
Learn more about Blogging
https://plus.google.com/communities/104544938885470101047
Community of readers, writers and reviewers
https://plus.google.com/communities/100709131316639681588
Writers, publishers, bloggers share ideas, suggestions. Link to your website
https://plus.google.com/communities/107220611495613902403
Writers helping Writers navigate the world of creative fiction and publication
https://plus.google.com/communities/116514944403874825632
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Google+ is very international
In fact, nearly three-quarters of the Google+ user base is non-American. And it’s passion-based. There is mostly a superior level of the conversations, the obviously great anti-troll features and the fact that Google+ has zero advertising – but does have the best photo tools and video Hangouts. However THE one important reason for writers is the fact that they will increase YOUR Google Search Engine Ranking tremendously – and with it your books exposure!
Which Google+ Communities do YOU recommend?
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If you would like to get more support in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites – or to learn how you can make yourself a name as an author through content writing: We offer all this and more for only $179 for three months – or less than $2 per day! Learn more about this customized Online Seminar / Consulting for writers: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are more than 1,120 of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article for easy sharing at Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://www.111publishing.com
http://www.e-Book-PR.com/
http://www.international-ebooks.com/
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Savvy Writers & e-Books online 
Why You Need Beta Readers
Why You Need Beta Readers and Where to Find the Best
Guest post by Lauren Sapala
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In the tech world “beta” means something that isn’t finished yet; a product that’s still in the testing stage. Authors have now commandeered this term for their own, using it to describe the first circle of readers to review the finished draft of a manuscript. So what’s the difference between giving your novel to a beta reader instead of your friends or family? Well, other than honest, objective feedback (which is one of the most valuable things any writer could ever ask for) the chances of success for your book go up enormously.
The ideal beta reader is usually another writer, and preferably someone who is interested and familiar with the genre in which you are writing. Getting feedback from another writer means you’re much more likely to receive concrete suggestions for improvement, along with comments on what is and is not working. Having a writer as your beta reader also gives you the chance to enter into an exchange. After they read for you, you can read for them. As you examine the weak spots in another’s manuscript with a detached eye, you learn how to logically approach the problems in your own.
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Bringing on beta readers, in short, helps you become a better writer.
So where do you find them?
Your Own Writing Group
Most creative writing groups focus on critique, and due to time constraints, each member is usually only allowed to submit a few pages at a time for feedback. Beta readers, on the other hand, should be reading your entire finished manuscript.
Ask around within your current writing group to see if anyone else has finished their novel and if they would be interested in doing a beta reading exchange with you. Since it’s a trade, both of you will benefit. And since it can be done in off-hours, make it clear that it won’t interfere with the regular meetings of the group.
Google+
Social media doesn’t have to be all about self-promotion. Google+ offers a variety of excellent communities for writers looking to connect with like-minded individuals. The Writer’s Discussion Group has over 14,000 members, and if that sounds too overwhelming for you, smaller communities like Poets of G+, Aspiring Authors, and Writers, Authors, Bloggers are always open to new people too. You can browse around the different communities to find beta readers, or make a post of your own asking for volunteers.
MeetUp Groups and Workshops
If you live in a metropolitan area, Meetup.com offers a dynamic assortment of options for writers. You can find workshops and writing marathons, as well as gatherings dedicated solely to beta readers. This is a great avenue for those writers who prefer face-to-face interaction, and who are also open to meeting new writer friends. If you don’t see a beta reader meetup listed for you city, you might think about organizing your own.
Online Writing Forums
For writers looking for very specific feedback from knowledgeable readers (in the genre of hard science fiction, for example), online forums are an efficient way to find them. Because participants tend to cluster around particular topics of interest, writers can post their call for beta readers in the area most relevant to their style and content. Writers’ Café, the Next Big Writer, and WritingForums.org or Wattpad.com are just a few of the online resources available that can help writers connect.
After you have found your handful of promising beta readers, make sure both of you have the best experience possible. Be clear on your expectations. Tell your beta readers exactly what you are looking to gain from their feedback, and exactly how detailed you want them to be.
Remember, beta readers are not editors. Their function is not to correct your work, or make any actual changes. The goal of bringing on a beta reader is for you, as the writer, to get a view of your own work through a reader’s eyes.
And that, for every writer, is truly invaluable.
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About the Author
Lauren Sapala is a writer, writing coach and blogger at www.laurensapala.com. She blogs about writing, creativity, and finding and holding onto one’s inspired passion in life. She currently lives in San Francisco, is working on her fifth novel, and in her free time facilitates the writing group she founded, “Write City”.
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If you would like to get help in all things publishing, have your book intensively promoted and learn how to navigate social media sites: We offer all this and more for only $ 159 for 3 months. Learn more about this individual book marketing help: http://www.111Publishing.com/Seminars
Please check out all previous posts of this blog (there are 880+ of them : ) if you haven’t already. Why not sign up to receive them regularly by email? Just click on “Follow” in the upper line on each page – and then on “LIKE” next to it. There is also the “SHARE” button underneath each article where you can submit the article to Pinterest, Google+, Twitter, Chime.in, Facebook, Tumblr and to StumpleUpon.
Thanks a lot for following:
@111publishing
http://on.fb.me/TvqDaK
http://bit.ly/VmtVAS 111Publishing @ Google+
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Posted by ebooksinternational on September 20, 2013 in Book Reviews, comment on posts, Marketing, post to public, posting, Self-Publishing, Social Networks, Writing
Tags: aspiring authors, beta readers, beta-reading, Google+ communities, Meetup.com, objective feedback, Poets of G+, where to find Beta Readers, Writer’s Discussion Group, WritingForums.org