wood platformTake a look at what you’ve done in life, and what you value that enables you to accomplish what you have and plan to accomplish in the future.

Okay, here we go. Let’s get personal. Your writer platform is you, the work you’ve done, the book(s) you’ve written, and who sees it. It’s organic in that it changes and needs to be seen and interacted with others. Jane Friedman is my new go-to guru for writing platform. She talks about three characteristics of Visibility, Authority, and Proven Reach. https://janefriedman.com/2012/03/13/author-platform-definition/

  • Visibility. Who knows you? Who is aware of your work? Where does it appear? How many people see it? What communities are you a part of? Who is in your circle of influence?
  • Authority. What’s your credibility level? Credentials? Become an expert in your field. Don’t have the masters degree or PhD? You can become an expert by teaching a class, writing guest blogs, do some public speaking, answer questions on other blogs.
  • Proven reach. Yes, it is who you know and can prove you know.  Quantitative evidence can be the size of your email list, newsletter list, website traffic, blog comments. Qualitative can be good reviews and testimonials about your work.

How do you weave these characteristics into your writing life?

Next up: How to Build Your Writer Platform.