I love it. I hate it. I love it. I hate it. I…you get the gist.
Well, it looks like social media is here to say, guys. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say…embrace it already!
I totally get the the love/hate thing. I’ve gone through it myself.
It’s a common subject.; in fact as I was writing this post, I came across a great blog post by Jenny Hansen discussing Facebook called What do your Facebook Interactions REALLY say about you? Be sure to check out the Social Me analysis fun when you stop by.
OK, so back to the love/hate thing!
When My Space was “it”, I quit and rejoined several times. Each time I left because I wanted intimate relationships, so if people couldn’t see me in person or at the very least call me on the ancient-adjacent telephone…well, tough cookies!
When I moved away from my fam in Dallas, I joined Facebook. Somewhere in there I quit due to my previously mentioned stance over the lack of modern day intimacy.
And, guess what? I got lonely as hell.
If I didn’t get the memo before that the hey day of the casual phone catch-up was over, I got it this time.
Gee whiz, even email, our techy equivalent to a handwritten letter, has lost its glory in the world of personal relationships.
So, I decided to rejoin Facebook for the sake of companionship. I realized this is just how things are. As such, I decided to stop swimming upstream and simply float along the lazy social media river.
Before anyone gets huffy or accuses me of drinking the Kool-Aid, please know that I am still a diehard advocate for in-person or telephone get-togethers. The exquisite comfort of the human voice is unparalleled no matter how far the internet takes us.
I like to think of social media as an enhancement of communication, rather than the bitter end.
As a lesser known author trying to get my name out there, it is an amazing tool – and hey, it’s free and pretty darn fun.
Don’t worry, I’m not one of those annoying writers polluting your social feed with book pimping updates. All I have to say about that is…YUCK! I think we can all agree that people selling anything aggressively is such a turn-off.
However, I do believe in making new connections through social media and hanging out, having some laughs and sharing bits and pieces of life together. Undeniably, it’s a strong community out there, and I think in many ways it’s a healthy development.
Do people share annoying tidbits from time to time? Yes. And my advice for you is to either hide their updates or just scan right along past them. My advice for them…the complaining, the whining, and the too much info are no-no’s.
Nobody ordered a Debbie Downer with a splash of neuroses.
Like anything, moderation is key.
There is no need to be a part of every social media site in existence. I stick with Facebook and Twitter. Oh, how I love Twitter! It makes me feel super clever when I nail a point in 140 characters or less.
(Pardon my social media nerd outburst there.)
Still not with me? Here are two of my favorite social media memories which changed my outlook…BIG TIME!
Twitter Talk
A blogger gal pal of mine, Jessica Korteman of Notes of Nomads, and I had this incredible convo on Twitter. She lives and Japan and had just started reading my book, Everything’s Not Bigger. So, we were chatting on Twitter about my little book. It was morning here and I was sipping my cup of joe. It was nighttime there, and she was drinking a cup of milo. To speak with someone I have never met, to share a warm beverage with someone on the opposite side of the world…you guys, that’s pretty damn cool.
P.S. Be sure to check her blog out! I always joke that she is the female version of Indiana Jones in my mind, and she’s probably going to end up as a character in one of my books.
Facebook Reunion
I lost contact with my childhood best friend, Laura. We went through everything together growing up – playing Barbies and “house”, our first boy crushes, and major obsessions with Tori Amos and Aerosmith. She moved out of state, then I moved out of state; she moved again, then I moved again. We tried tracking each other down many times and had no luck.
Quite awesomely, we reunited on Facebook. Logically speaking, we probably would have never found each other without silly old Facebook.
If you take a good look at your own social media memories, you may notice some undeniable moments you would not have experienced otherwise. Think about it for a sec…
Virtually, you’ve gone to many weddings, you’ve seen lots of newborn babies, you’ve supported someone when they were going through a rough time with a comment – a little ray of hope.
Perhaps it’s not the type of humanity we ever thought could exist, and that is why it confuses and scares us sometimes. But, it’s there for us if we want it.
Seriously?! How are we NOT friends already? Click the links below, so we can fix that!
Let’s share a laugh (and maybe a snort or two) on Facebook!
Let’s Tweet our little hearts out together!
ALSO, ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT FOR YOU TO…
Vote for two of my characters’ names (it’s fun!)
AND…
Score $1 off on both of my books on Smashwords!
So, what do you guys think about social media? Do you love it, hate it, or love/hate it?
Britt Skrabanek 
❤ Love you Britt! That put a really big smile on my face on a day when I really needed one. I am the WORST at staying in touch with people. FB is an absolute blessing for me because I wouldn't even talk to my MOM without it…sad as it may sound.
Aw, love you too! It truly is one of the coolest things I can remember about FB.
I feel like so many of us say negative things about social media, but there is a ton of positivity out there.
So true Britt. I love it. Most of my social media time is interaction with people I talk to in person every day. I schedule my babysitters through FB. I am getting to know lots of other writers, like wonderful you, through Twitter and the blogosphere.
~Gail
Yeah, when we stop to think about it…it is quite amazing. That’s why I think we need to appreciate the good that comes with it. I hear otherwise most of the time.
And, I love getting to know wonderful you, sweet thang! : )
Britt, you brave girl…you get all over that social media with your wild self. 🙂
Thanks so much for the link!
Ha, Jenny! I most certainly will.
You are very welcome for the link love. You always post awesomeness.
Great post, Britt! I ‘talk’ to so many virtual friends and it really give me a buzz when we connect 😀
Thanks and totally!
It’s like a diverse coffee shop. Sure there are some highly-caffeinated individuals in the mix, but there is plenty of warmth to go around, making it a genuine place to just hang out.
Thank you so much for the shout out, Britt! I read this on the train on my way to work and it really made me smile. I remember that Twitter conversation so vividly and it meant a lot to me too. How often does one get to have a one-to-one convo (virtually or otherwise) with the author of the book they are reading?! Keep going, Britt! When you are famous, I’ll be able to recount that Twitter conversation and say “I shared a drink with her once!”
Absolutely! I’m so glad you remembered it.
After we chatted that morning/night I was totally excited…such a cool experience that would not have been possible without good ole social media.
As always, thank you for your lovely encouragement. It means the world. : )
My pleasure 🙂
Like you, I got into Facebook (my first venture into social media) to keep in touch with family. Ended up running across friends from the old days and making new ones.
Have had some great interactions on Twitter, the best ones during baseball playoffs and the World Series.
I definitely use it as a tool to keep in touch with loved ones…it’s a fantastic way to share photos. But, I’m always the one to pick up the telephone and harass my family members. I say, “Hey, remember the telephone? Let’s chat the real way!”
I know you’re a Twitter junkie like me. Can’t wait to see all those baseball updates flying around (pun intended).
I’m not on Facebook or Twitter yet but I do love the interaction of the blogosphere and I stay in touch with my friends and family abroad through Facetime and Skype (not sure if that really counts as social media though). As you say, it’s all about moderation 🙂
Yes, the blogosphere is really all the best social interaction rolled into one lovely place, especially for us reader/writer types.
But, if you ever join FB or Twitter, I’m happy to help out with any questions you might have – especially Twitter, which I find is kinda crazy to figure out.
I love Skype, but I can’t ever get my family on there it seems. We always just end up on the phone. LOL!
I’m sure I’ll have questions if I do join Twitter so thanks for your offer!
Hey didn’t know you had a FB author page Britt – just ‘liked’. (Misread your post and thought you left your FARM in Dallas :-))
I’m a reluctant FB-er and it’s strictly for real-life friends, and I’m just not enthused by Twitter. I do love the blogosphere though but, even so, I am pretty choosy when it comes to ‘follows’. Getting too old I guess.
Haha! The Dallas farm. That’s awesome!
The blogosphere is definitely my favorite out there. But, Facebook and Twitter are fun for sharing little life tidbits I would never post about on my blog. I use my social media avenues for more casual conversation.
Since you’re choosy with your follows, I am honored to be one of them. : )
Of all the social media networks I like blogging best. I feel like I have developed some great relationships with people I have never met. In fact, I consider a number of them to be friends. For me, that’s a big deal as I am a major introvert and don’t do small talk well.
I used to use FB a lot, but honestly I got so annoyed with the people talking about where they were and what they were doing every hour of the day. I don’t care that you’re taking a shower, people!!
Twitter I like because it’s a great way to practice writing — but I don’t use it as much as I should.
Then there is LinkedIn, which I have yet to figure out. So far, I think it’s a lot of threads by people who don’t have blogs but need writing questions answered.
I know there are about half a dozen more out there, but my head is already swimming! I think you and I are connected on Twitter and FB, but I’m going to double check those right now…
Yes, blogging is definitely the best! I think we readers/writers naturally connect with the idea.
The shower comment on FB…LOL! I hear ya on that. I guess I’ve learned to tune so much of that out – selective hearing in the digital age.
I’ve really grown to love Twitter. At first I didn’t have a clue, but now I feel I have the swing of things.
I’m actually on LinkedIn as well, but hardly use it. Last summer I got on while searching for a job, and that is exactly how I landed one. It’s awesome for networking, but I don’t really utilize it much for writing.
Again, moderation is key since there are a gazillion social media outlets!
At one point I used to really like using Twitter and Facebook, but for some reason I just… stopped. I haven’t made a status update on FB for more than two months now, and I often forget that I have a Twitter account. Though I agree with you that it’s annoying when people just use them for promotion. It really clutters up the feed.
I go through phases where I update more frequently, then I become a bit sparse when I’m busy. But, those non-stop promotional posts are just complete crap in my opinion. : )
I’m still not sure how I feel about social media. I think I have trouble with it because I’m actually a very private, introverted person. I love blogging, but haven’t told my friends or extended family that I do. I prefer connecting with people I don’t actually know. I think because if my cousins, aunts and uncles read my blog posts, they’d start talking to me about them. I sound like a horrible person, and maybe this doesn’t even make sense, but it’s basically compartmentalizing my life.
Or maybe I just don’t really want to stay in touch with all these ‘friends & family members’ that I never pick up the phone to call. They’re the reason I don’t like facebook. I’m friends with each and every distant relative who has crawled out of the woodwork and I don’t really want them to know what’s going on in my life. As soon as I make one little post on facebook, I’m inundated with phone calls. I rarely use faebook any more.
I’m realizing now that maybe social media is hard for me because I’m not really all that social at heart! For me, social media is more about writing and reading and connecting with people on topics that interest me.
Social media is definitely tricky business.
What’s funny about my friends and family is that they know everything about my life because of my blog, so I start to tell them a story and they stop me…they already knew that! LOL!
Putting ourselves out there takes all the mystery, doesn’t it? It’s an interesting predicament in our modern world.
Great blog. Thanks. And thanks for following mine, too 🙂
Yours, too! Mr. Tim Dittmer showed me the way to your fabulous place. : )