I while back I
wrote a post about social media for writers. At the time I was pretty new to the wonders of tumblr, so I gave a brief
summary of how it could be useful for writers.
Now that I'm more
acquainted with the magic of tumblr, I can tell you that not only is it a
fantastic resource for writers, but if you haven't tried it out, you should.
What is tumblr?
Tumblr is a
social media site where people can share anything and everything from text,
pictures, videos, music files, links... you name it, there's probably a way to
share it on tumblr.
Why is tumblr
useful for writers?
Besides being
another social media time-suck (which, as addicting as it is, doesn't fall
under the category of "useful"), tumblr is chock full of inspiration.
You can find anything from full-length blog posts, to poems, awe-inspiring
pictures, music and links, to great sites all on this one fantastic social media
resource.
How does it work?
Once you've made
an account (which, like most social media sites, is free), you create a blog.
Your blog is basically the page where everything you share will show up, and
it'll look a little like this. The style you end up with will depend on
what template you choose (there are many different free options), but they all
work basically the same way.
If you have a
Twitter, I highly recommend linking your Twitter account to your new tumblr.
I've had quite a few Twitter followers really enjoy what I tweet out from
tumblr, so not only is it a great way to share your finds with your Twitter
friends, but I've found I get quite a few retweets of my tumblr goodies.
Win-win.
After your blog
is set up, it's time for you to start following people. For writers, I
recommend Quote Book , Better Book Titles , PrettyBooks , The Final Sentence and Teaching Literacy (you could also follow me , you know, if
you want to).
Are you following
people? Great—now it's time for you to reblog.
For my Twitter
users, reblogging is the tumblr equivalent of retweeting. Once you see
something you like, you hit reblog and it'll show up on your blog and allow
anyone who follows you (as well as your Twitter followers) to see it.
Tags!
This last point
is something I didn't take advantage of right away, because I didn't realize
quite how they work. If you're familiar with Twitter hashtags, tags on tumblr
work nearly the same way. Anything you post (or reblog) can be tagged with a
few words of your choosing. Once you tag them, they will show up in a stream
with other posts tagged with the same word. For example, a post tagged with
"NaNoWriMo" will show up if someone searches "NaNoWriMo" in
the tumblr search bar, just like Twitter.
Tags allow you to
give your posts a little extra exposure, so you can share them not only with
people that follow you, but others who check out those tag threads--definitely
something you should take advantage of.
So that about
covers my tumblr summary. Although it's not for everyone (no social media site is), I've really grown to love tumblr as a writer, and I think
you could, too.
Have you ever
tried tumblr? What are some of your favorite tumblr follows?
25 comments:
I have tried Tumblr twice, and both times found it incomprehensible to the point of leaving me in tears and the most UN-user-friendly place on the Web. I can't figure out how to use it, I don't understand what it IS, and I deleted my account in complete and utter frustration. This from a person who was created and managed several message boards and creates their own Web sites from scratch, writing my own code. What IS this fascination with Tumblr, and why does everyone else get it but me? :(
I have an account, I just haven't done anything with it. I would try again, but I'm kinda busy with NaNo. Maybe I'll go back at some point :) I like your Harry Potter thing about Snape :)
I don't think everyone gets it easily--it took a bit of digging before I fully understood how to use it. If you'd like to try it again, this site has some pretty easy instructions that could help. Let me know if you decide to give it a try again. If not, I wouldn't stress over it. It's a fun site, but certainly not worth stressing about. :)
I didn't really use mine much at first because I didn't understand it, but once I started following some good blogs I really started to find some fun things on there...the Snape thing included. :D
I have an account as well, and I just reblog illustrations I find cool and / or inspirational. I'm not too worried about getting followers right now -- just making a big repository of things I like.
That happened to me the first time, too. It's definitely a different way of doing things.
I don't really worry about getting followers on tumblr. It's nice when you do, because then you get other people to share what you share, but what I really get out of it is the things I find (like pictures, quotes and illustrations).
I've just gotten started with Tumblr, Ava, thanks to you and that wonderful reblog you did earlier of the Dumbledore/principal comparison. So this post is extremely helpful to me to help me understand how it works. I've not spent much time with it yet, but I've heard many writers talk about how they find inspiration there.
Thanks!
The Dumbledore/Principal comparison made me laugh, which is why I had to share it. I'm really glad you saw it (I was hoping you would) and I'm thrilled you're trying out tumblr. Definitely let me know what your experience is like!
Thanks so much for this summary! I haven't used Tumblr partly because I wasn't sure I wanted to take the time to figure it out. Now you've taken away that excuse! :)
This is great, Ava. I've stared at it in the past. I've click on your tumbler tweets (and other writers as well) but didn't feel like I wanted to figure it out. Now that I have my primer lesson, I'm ready :) Thanks.
You're very welcome! I hope it helps you get to know tumblr a little better. :) Let me know what your experience is like!
You're so welcome! Let me know what you think once you try tumblr out. ^_^
I have only heard about Tumblr but sounds like I need to set
up and account and start using it. Thanks for talking about it.
Sure thing! Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. :)
Was on there for a a while then it was off to My Opera and now here. Tumbrl is a great site. I don't know if they allow comments anymore. Last time I knew, they didn't. So haven't been to that site in a while. Great site though. I didn't like the glitches it had, but sites do have them!
I certainly don't use it instead of my blog here, but I think it makes a great addition. :)
Very informative, I myself like tumblr as well, because it is easier to use and very user friendly, even if you are new to blogging, you won't get lost. And one more thing, posting your photos and videos are lot more easier..
Agreed! Posting videos, music and photos is much easier on tumblr than it is in most social media sites.
Thank you for linking back to Pretty Books :)
You're very welcome! ^_^
I chose a fairly narrow tumblr theme--"a book in the hand"--and only post images. I've found it actually forces me to be rather ruthless in a creative way that helps me build the kinds of "muscles" I frequently use as a writer. I can't hit reblog just because I like an image. I can't hit reblog even when I love an image. I can only hit reblog when it actually fits my theme. That is so much harder than it looks on paper.
I know what you mean about that being more difficult than you'd think! When I first started my tumblr, I only wanted to reblog writing-related images or links--now although I still focus on writing/literary themed-reblogs, I do occasionally share other things I really like as well. :)
OMG GREAT post! I totally didn't get Tumblr....it is a blog? Is it like pinterest? Ive been so confused on it. Not sure I need it right now, but thrilled to understand it a bit better ;)
Ha ha thanks! So glad this helped! :D I understand the confusion—I mostly joined myself to see what the fuss was about.
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