Social Media and Books

 I recently attended this webinar hosted by Publishers Weekly and just the next week, I came across this article online  - nice timing right? Or nice sleuthing, either way you look at it! 

At any rate, it got me to thinking about social media and the act of reading. Reading typically is a solitary activity – one you do curled up on your couch, or on the beach or over lunch or before bedtime … or is that what reading USED to be …

With all of the (constantly upgraded) eReaders and tablets out there I feel that reading is quickly becoming (or already IS) much more social than in years past. There are social reading apps, authors have online presence on Twitter, Facebook, and their personal blogs. 

Gone are the days of the “autographed” postcard being sent to fans via snail mail. And IN are the days of tweeting with your favorite author AS you read their novel (in ARC form or post publication). 

IN are the days of publishers hosting twitter chats, doing cover reveals, and giveaways on Facebook and author blogs to really get the buzz going for the readers. 

IN are the days of established authors helping out debut authors as they join forces in author panels at book festivals across the country. 

I’ll be honest, when I start reading a book, I immediately look for the author on twitter and hope that they have a presence, and that they actually interact  - fortunately I’ve had much success and it really brings that much MORE to my reading experience. 

Gone are the days of the introverted reader, and in are the days of interaction.

So get social – if it’s your thing!

 It certainly makes reading more fun for me when I get to talk directly to the person who actually wrote the book! I mean it’s like talking to a celebrity when you tweet with authors right!

Do you connect with authors or publishers online? Do you think their presence hinders or enhances your reading experience?Let me know in the comments!