Do You Have a Secret Addiction?

I believe that people hide their romance reading as a secret addiction, a guilty pleasure kept under wraps. Since it is the number one selling genre of books, people must be admitting and sharing secretly.

Now I am admitting my guilty pleasure too. I have discovered Twitter. In fact, I am a complete Twitter junkie. @madisonmichael_ is my favorite place to hang out. When I should be writing, I am on Twitter. When I should be editing – yep, I am on Twitter. When I am not on Twitter, I am reading books on how to Tweet smarter, like Beth Berany’s “Twitter for Authors”, or taking a whole series of daily Tweeting lessons from Kirsten Oliphant (@kikimojo). In fact, it is amazing that I made time to write this post.

I have discovered apps like Hootsuite, Commun.IT, Buffer, Recurpost and Social Jukebox. These are all tools to make using Twitter easier and my life more complicated. I am learning to be a curator of content and learning to use all these tools as well. They all offer added capabilities and insights that fascinate me. They feed my addiction.

I should be begging for an intervention, but I am doing the next best thing. I am ingesting classes and books written by wise social media gurus like Chris Syme to learn to reduce my habit to a reasonable 15 minutes per day.

Why Twitter and not Facebook? Why social media at all? What is the appeal? Is it a complete waste of time.

I admit, I began with Facebook and struggled to do more than lurk, although I had friends posting what they ate, did or bought. I spent my time reading all about their daily lives while sharing little of myself and that suited me just fine.

My activities seemed too inconsequential. I would remember to share long after an event occurred, when it was no longer relevant, insisting on being in the moment when I could have checked in. I am no photographer, so including art to my posts was a challenge.

So, I resisted Twitter initially. Why add more challenges to my already-busy life? Besides, what could I share with the world in 140 characters or less?

Here is what I learned about Twitter that changed my view of social media completely. Twitter has allowed me to find and connect with other authors, editors, designers, and bloggers. These are my colleagues, but before Twitter, I felt isolated from them. Now I can find out what they are working on, learn from their advice, and share with them in return. With a simple Retweet I am able to help promote their novels, because what good is great writing if no one reads it? Connecting an author with an audience is meaningful work.

Connecting. It is why I Tweet, why I am on Facebook, why I invite you to join my email list and ask for your reviews and comments. I write alone in a room. My writing life is reduced to a closed space, me, myself, my furry friends and a laptop. But my imagination is fed by interacting with you. Sure, sometimes I feed it by binging on Poldark or the Fever novels by Karen Marie Moning, but it is so much better when I get to partake of your lives and your activities. You fill me with joy (and a few new ideas). Some days I put down the laptop and actually travel into the world, but most days I travel via computer.

You are my world – my real world. So please, reach out and share your lives and interests with me, help feed my imagination, provide feedback. Bring me the pleasure of your company, even if only electronically. Connect. Sign up for my email list, write a review, add your comments to this blog, share and comment on Facebook or Twitter, Like, Friend or Follow me. I welcome all of you into my world and I look forward to seeing you there.

Come join me in this insanity. It is fun. It is fast paced and full of interesting information. Like baking? You can find bakers galore. Like hiking? The intrepid explorers are out there too. If you like romance or writing, I promise that you can find a wealth of knowledge and support.

Speaking of support, I am still on schedule to launch “Bedeviled” in time for holiday gift giving. I am excited to share Alex’s story with you. Like the prior Beguiling Bachelor novels, Set amidst Chicago’s elite, “Bedeviled” contains a touch of intrigue and plenty of romance. Stay tuned to my newsletter or watch my blog, Facebook or Twitter for launch information.

If you think you can control your addiction, come find me on Twitter.