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Social Media Management
For Authors Made Easy
Social Media for Authors: Choosing the Right Platform - Yes, it's important.
At EverHarmony Press, we believe in using every affordable (or free) marketing tool available—especially social media. Whether you’re a debut author or have a shelf full of books, social media can be one of the most affordable and effective ways to reach readers. The challenge? Knowing where to start, which platforms are worth your time, and how to actually connect with your audience without feeling overwhelmed. This guide is designed specifically for authors — especially those new to social media — with clear explanations, practical tips, and examples you can use right away.
📘 Facebook for Authors
Facebook remains one of the largest and most active social platforms, especially among adult readers. It’s excellent for building community, sharing long-form posts, and running targeted ads.
✅ Pros:
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Large, diverse user base—ideal for adult readers.
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Groups allow deep engagement with niche audiences.
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Event feature is great for launches, signings, and virtual meetups.
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Highly targeted ads for genre, age, interests, and location.
❌ Cons:
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Organic (free) reach is limited without ads.
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Skews toward older demographics—less appealing to teen readers.
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Requires steady engagement to stay relevant.
📚 Best Genres:
Mystery & Thriller, Historical Fiction, Non-Fiction, Romance, Christian/Spiritual, Literary Fiction.
📌 What to Post:
Announcements, excerpts, behind-the-scenes updates, event invites, reader polls, and Facebook Lives.
💡 Pro Tip:
Consider creating a private Facebook Group for superfans or a series community—this builds loyalty and repeat buyers.
📸 Instagram for Authors
Instagram is a visual-first platform, perfect for building an aesthetic author brand and connecting with the Bookstagram community. It’s a great space for YA, romance, and fantasy authors.
✅ Pros:
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Excellent for cover reveals, mood boards, and aesthetic storytelling.
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Strong book-loving community eager to share content.
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Reels and Stories help boost engagement and reach.
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Hashtags can expand visibility beyond your followers.
❌ Cons:
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Requires consistent visual content.
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Only one clickable link in bio.
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Posts can disappear quickly in the feed.
📚 Best Genres:
YA (Fantasy, Contemporary, Romance), Romance, Fantasy & Sci-Fi, Paranormal, Poetry.
📌 What to Post:
Cover reveals, character art, writing life snapshots, carousel tips, aesthetic reels, and reader shoutouts.
💡 Pro Tip:
Engage with Bookstagrammers—liking, commenting, and sharing their posts helps grow your reach organically.
🎵 TikTok for Authors
TikTok’s #BookTok community has launched countless books into the spotlight. It’s perfect for authors who want to reach younger audiences and share creative, authentic content.
✅ Pros:
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Massive potential for virality.
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BookTok community actively promotes and recommends books.
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Doesn’t require a big following to get traction.
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Casual, authentic content often outperforms polished videos.
❌ Cons:
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Requires frequent posting.
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Trends change quickly.
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Not ideal for older-reader genres without creative adaptation.
📚 Best Genres:
YA (Fantasy, Romance, Contemporary), Romance (all subgenres), Fantasy & Sci-Fi, Paranormal, LGBTQ+ Fiction.
📌 What to Post:
Tropes, mood boards, “If you like X, you’ll love my book” videos, short readings, behind-the-scenes writing life, reaction videos.
💡 Pro Tip:
You don’t have to dance—storytelling paired with trending audio is what gets noticed.
📌 Other Social Media Platforms Worth Exploring
🐦 X (formerly Twitter)
Great for: Sci-fi, Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Non-Fiction, Indie Authors
Home to the #WritingCommunity, X is great for networking with writers, agents, and editors. Quick updates and conversations thrive here.
Heads-up: Fast-paced and text-heavy; reach has dipped.
Great for: Non-fiction, Memoirs, Business, Personal Development
Perfect for authors who write from expertise. Builds authority and connects you with a professional audience.
Heads-up: Not ideal for fiction marketing.
Great for: Romance, Fantasy, YA, Historical Fiction, Cookbooks, Non-Fiction
Acts more like a search engine than a social platform. Great for evergreen content like mood boards, blogs, and trailers.
Heads-up: Requires consistent pinning for results.
📽️ YouTube
Great for: YA, Fantasy, Non-Fiction, Vlogs, Writing Tips
Long-form storytelling and community-building through video. Great for showing personality and deep dives.
Heads-up: Requires filming/editing skills and time investment.
📖 Goodreads
Great for: All genres
A must-have for discoverability. Use it to collect reviews, run giveaways, and connect with readers.
Heads-up: Not highly interactive, and traction grows slowly.
📚 Niche & Lesser-Known Reader/Book Social Platforms
While the big names like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok dominate most marketing conversations, there’s a whole world of smaller, book-focused platforms worth exploring. These spaces may not have massive audiences, but the people who are there are highly engaged and already looking for their next read. By showing up on niche book and reader apps, you can connect with targeted communities, spark meaningful conversations, and reach potential readers who might never find you on the bigger platforms.
📖 BookBub
Great for: All genres, especially Romance, Mystery, and Thriller
Best known for its Featured Deals, BookBub also has a social follow feature that alerts readers when you release new books or run promos.
Tip: Post regularly to your BookBub profile with recommendations, updates, and promotions.
📚 Fable
Great for: Book clubs, curated reading experiences
Fable is designed for virtual book clubs. Authors can host their own clubs for their books or related themes.
📚 Tome
Great for: Book discovery and recommendations
Tome is like “Instagram for books” with short, shareable posts about what you’re reading or recommending.
📚 The StoryGraph
Great for: All genres, especially stats and mood-based recs
A Goodreads alternative focused on personalized recommendations and beautiful reading stats.
📚 LibraryThing
Great for: Non-fiction, historical, academic, collectors
One of the oldest online book cataloging communities, with strong niche reader groups and giveaways.
⏱️ Social Media Schedulers I Use (and Recommend)
Using a scheduler keeps you consistent, saves time, and lets you post when your readers are actually online (not when you finally have five spare minutes). Here’s what I use and why.
✅ My Setup
Content360
Best for: Bulk scheduling across many platforms, AI-assisted drafts, automation.
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Strengths: “Create once, adapt everywhere,” AI caption help, bulk upload, works with lots of networks (great reach for a small team) affordable, pay once and have it for life.
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Trade-offs: This scheduler is still being developed so it does have limitations. User Interface can feel clunky; occasional posting quirks. Good to have a backup plan for time-sensitive posts.
Metricool
Best for: Reliable, day-to-day scheduling and performance snapshots.
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Strengths: Solid posting, AI tools, maximum of 50 posts per month under the free plan while other scheduler brands only give you a 14 day free trial, clean calendar, handy analytics—even on free. Great for FB/IG, and quick “must-posts.” upgraded subscription plan(s) are affordable starting at $22 a month, or only $18 if you go with the annual plan.
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Trade-offs: Post/brand limits on free; advanced features sit behind paid.
🧭 How I Use Them (So They Don’t Step on Each Other)
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Metricool → Author Brand
For YA fantasy reader content: IG, TikTok, Author FB Page. Use for announcements, launches, reels you must get out on time.
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Content360 → EverHarmony Press
For publishing tips and client-facing content: FB (business), LinkedIn, IG (business), Pinterest, Shorts. Use for batching and evergreen queues.
Bonus benefit: If/when I bring on a VA, I can grant access to just one scheduler—clean separation of brands and data.
🧩 Why Do I Use Two Schedulers?
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Clarity: Separate voices (reader-facing vs. author-services) stay consistent.
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Redundancy: If one hiccups, the other keeps priority posts flowing.
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Clean analytics: No mixed dashboards—easier to see what’s working for each audience.
📅 Suggested Posting Cadence (Schedule) for Authors
(Example: Two Pen Names)
Why Two Schedulers?
If you publish under multiple pen names—especially in different genres—it’s smart to keep their social media separate. This keeps branding consistent, prevents cross-genre confusion for readers, and makes tracking results easier. Using a different scheduler for each pen name can make managing them much simpler.
Pen Name #1 — Scheduled in Metricool
(Example: YA Fantasy Author)
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Instagram: 3–4 posts per week
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TikTok: 3 posts per week
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Facebook Author Page: 1–2 posts per week
Pen Name #2 — Scheduled in Content360
(Example: Cozy Mystery Author)
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Instagram: 3 posts per week
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Facebook Author Page: 2 posts per week
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Pinterest: 3–5 pins per week
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YouTube Shorts or Reels: 1 per week
Tip for Authors with Multiple Pen Names:
Niche reader sites like BookBub, Fable, Tome, StoryGraph, and LibraryThing don’t allow automation. Post there once or twice a month with updates, giveaways, or reading lists. Keep a folder of ready-made captions and images for each pen name so manual posting is quick.
📌 Choosing the Right Scheduler for Your Author Brand
Not every author needs more than one scheduler—in fact, most don’t. If you write under a single pen name, your best bet is to focus on one scheduler that fits your unique style and workflow.
The “right” tool is the one that:
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Connects to the platforms you use most.
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Fits your budget (free or paid).
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Feels easy and comfortable to use.
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Helps you stay consistent without feeling overwhelmed.
Pro Tip: Before committing to a paid plan, try out a free trial or free tier. This lets you see how the tool fits into your routine—and whether it helps you post more consistently—before you spend a dime.
In the end, it’s not about having the fanciest scheduler, it’s about having the one that works for you and helps you connect with your readers. Here is a side by side comparison of the most popular schedulers for authors out there.
📊 Author-Friendly Social Media Scheduler Comparison
Scheduler
Best For
Strengths
Considerations
Beginners & budget-conscious authors
Easy to use,
solid analytics,
free tier covers basics,
supports major platforms
Free plan limits posts & accounts
Content360 (Lifetime deal)
Automation lovers & multi-platform authors
AI content help, bulk scheduling, many platform connections
UI feels clunky, occasional posting glitches
SocialBee (Paid)
Authors who want evergreen content recycling
Category-based queues, strong posting consistency
Higher learning curve, no free plan
Later
(Free + Paid)
Visual planners (especially Instagram-focused authors)
Great visual calendar, IG hashtag suggestions, media library
Limited non-visual platform support
Buffer
(Free + Paid)
Authors who want simple, reliable posting
Clean interface, easy scheduling, basic analytics, supports all major platforms
Free plan allows fewer scheduled posts at once
SmarterQueue (Paid)
Heavy automation & evergreen post rotation
Powerful content recycling, auto-fill schedules, strong analytics
Higher price point, no free tier, best for high-volume posting
💡 Social Media Content Ideas for Authors
(For when you’re staring at the blank post box wondering what to say…)
1. Behind-the-Scenes Writing Moments
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Your writing desk or coffee shop setup.
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A short clip flipping through your handwritten notes.
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“First draft vs. final draft” comparison photo.
2. Book Teasers & Quotes
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A favorite line from your book (with an eye-catching background).
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A cliffhanger paragraph (stop before the reveal).
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An audio clip of you reading a scene.
3. Reader Engagement Posts
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Polls: “Which cover version do you like best?”
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Open-ended questions: “What’s your favorite book to reread?”
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Fun challenges: “Describe your favorite character in three words.”
4. Author Life Snapshots
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Events you attend (book signings, fairs).
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Your pets “helping” you write.
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Morning coffee or tea ritual before writing.
5. Cover & Character Reveals
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Step-by-step unveiling of a cover (e.g., cropped image > half reveal > full reveal).
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Artwork or AI renderings of your characters.
6. Genre-Related Fun
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Share a fact, trivia, or fun meme related to your genre.
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Recommend another author in your space (good for networking).
7. Reviews & Testimonials
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Post screenshots of reader reviews (with permission).
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Thank readers publicly for their feedback.
8. Writing Tips or Advice
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“What I wish I knew before writing my first book…”
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One-sentence tips about plotting, characters, or editing.
💡 Pro Tip: Mix these ideas up! Variety keeps your feed interesting and gives different types of readers something to connect with.
💬 Engagement Tips for Authors
(Because a post that no one responds to is just shouting into the void…)
1. Ask Open-Ended Questions
Instead of “Do you like fantasy books?” ask “What’s your favorite fantasy book and why?” — it invites a story, not just a yes/no answer.
2. Reply to Every Comment
Even a quick “Thank you!” shows readers you value their time. The more conversation on your post, the more the algorithm will show it to others.
3. Use Relevant Hashtags (More about hashtags in a moment!)
Mix broad hashtags (#BookLovers) with niche ones (#YAParanormalRomance) so your post reaches both large audiences and targeted readers.
4. Tag Other People & Places
If you’re at a bookstore or event, tag them. This can lead to them resharing your post to their followers.
5. Engage Before You Post
Spend 10–15 minutes liking and commenting on other people’s content before you post. It warms up the algorithm and makes your profile more visible.
6. Use Polls & Interactive Features
Polls, quizzes, and “Ask Me Anything” stickers get people to click and participate — and that counts as engagement.
7. End with a Call-to-Action (CTA)
Tell people what to do next: “Drop your favorite reading snack in the comments!” or “Tap the link to read a free chapter.”
8. Keep It Human
Share genuine moments and small stories. Readers follow authors not just for books, but for personality and connection.
#️⃣ Beginner Hashtag Guide for Authors
(Because “just use hashtags” isn’t exactly helpful…)
1. What Hashtags Do
Hashtags are like search labels. When you add a hashtag to your post, it helps people who are interested in that topic find it — even if they don’t follow you.
2. Types of Hashtags to Use
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Genre Hashtags — These connect you with readers of your genre.
Example: #CozyMystery, #EpicFantasy, #RomComBooks -
Audience Hashtags — These target the type of reader you want.
Example: #BookLovers, #YAReaders, #SciFiFans -
Event/Theme Hashtags — These tie into book events or reading challenges.
Example: #FridayReads, #NaNoWriMo, #IndieApril -
Author Journey Hashtags — These share your personal writing progress.
Example: #AmWriting, #BookLaunch, #WritersLife -
3. How Many to Use
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Instagram: 8–15 hashtags per post (mix large & small ones).
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TikTok: 3–5 hashtags, focused and relevant.
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Pinterest: 3–5 in the description.
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Facebook/LinkedIn: 1–3 hashtags max.
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4. Finding Good Hashtags
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Search your genre on Instagram/TikTok to see which hashtags are active.
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Look at authors like you and see what they’re using.
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Use free tools like RiteTag or All Hashtag Generator for ideas.
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5. Keep a Hashtag Bank
Make a note on your phone or a document with your favorite hashtags grouped by topic. Copy-paste them when you need them — saves time and brainpower.
💡 Pro Tip: Don’t just copy the same hashtags every time. Swap in a few new ones so you reach fresh readers.
🎨 Basic Branding Advice for Authors
Branding is how you present yourself so readers recognize you across all platforms. It’s more than just a logo — it’s the look, feel, and personality of your author presence.
1. Keep Your Profile Photos Consistent
Choose one professional headshot or high-quality image and use it on all platforms. Readers should know it’s you at a glance.
2. Match Your Colors & Fonts
Pick 2–3 brand colors and 1–2 fonts you’ll use for all graphics, banners, and promo materials. Consistency builds trust.
3. Keep Bios Aligned
While you can adapt them for each site, make sure the tone and key details match.
4. Use a Recognizable Tone
Your posts should “sound” like you. If you’re warm and conversational in one place, don’t suddenly become overly formal somewhere else.
💡 Pro Tip: Good branding helps readers remember you, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. If you’d rather focus on writing, EverHarmony Press offers branding help for authors — from choosing colors and fonts to setting up your social profiles.
A
Algorithm
The “rules” a social media site uses to decide which posts people see.
Example: If you post regularly and people “like” or comment on your book teasers, the site will show your posts to more readers.
Analytics
The numbers that tell you how your posts are doing (views, clicks, likes, comments).
Example: You post a video about your new romance novel and see it got 500 views and 50 likes—analytics told you that.
B
Bio
A short description about you at the top of your profile.
Example: “Author of Secrets in the Fog | Cozy Mystery & Tea Enthusiast.”
Boosted Post
A regular post that you pay to show to more people.
Example: You boost a post about your book signing so people in your town will see it.
C
Call to Action (CTA)
A sentence that tells people what to do next.
Example: “Click the link to read the first chapter for free!”
Carousel Post
A post with several pictures or videos you can swipe through.
Example: Five images showing your book cover, characters, and a short quote from the story.
Content Calendar
A plan that shows what you’ll post and when.
Example: Monday—writing tip, Wednesday—character art, Friday—book teaser.
E
Engagement
When people like, comment, share, or click on your post.
Example: A reader shares your book trailer with their friends—that’s engagement.
Evergreen Content
A post that’s always relevant and doesn’t “expire.”
Example: “10 Tips for First-Time Authors” is evergreen—people can enjoy it anytime.
F
Feed
The main page on a social site where posts from accounts you follow appear.
Example: Your readers scroll their feed and see your new book cover reveal.
H
Handle
Your social media username, usually with an @ symbol.
Example: @JaneDoeAuthor
Hashtag (#)
A word or phrase with a # sign in front to help people find posts.
Example: #HistoricalRomance #EverHarmonyPress or #BookTok.
I
Impressions
How many times your post was shown on someone’s screen.
Example: If 200 people saw your book giveaway post, that’s 200 impressions.
Insights
Another word for analytics—the numbers showing how your posts performed.
O
Organic Reach
How many people saw your post without you paying for ads.
Example: You post a funny book-related meme, and it gets shared 20 times—those shares gave you organic reach.
P
Pinned Post
A post you choose to stay at the top of your profile.
Example: You pin your book launch announcement so new visitors see it first.
Platform
A social media site or app.
Example: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok.
R
Reels
Short videos on Instagram or Facebook.
Example: A 30-second clip showing your book unboxing.
S
Stories
Posts that disappear after 24 hours.
Example: A quick video of you signing books at a local store.
T
Tag
Mentioning another account in your post with the @ symbol.
Example: “Had a great time at @MainStreetBooks!”
Trending
Something that’s popular right now—like a hashtag, video style, or song.
Example: You use a trending TikTok sound with a clip from your book trailer.
U
User-Generated Content (UGC)
Photos, videos, or posts about your book made by readers or fans.
Example: A fan posts a picture of themselves reading your book at the beach.
V
Viral
A post that spreads very fast and gets a lot of attention.
Example: A funny video you make about writer’s block gets 50,000 views in a week.
Free Glossary of Social Media Terms Printable
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💡 If you come across a term someone uses online that you don't understand, don’t be shy—ask them! Social media moves fast, but it’s never too late to learn, and most people are happy to help.