I think about writing like I think about long distance biking. I (used) to do a century (100-mile) bike ride about once every other month and even tried a double century (but only made it 172 miles ). Tour de France rider I am not.

The analogy is this: Writing is a long-haul exercise, just like any endurance sport. And if you are into endurance sports you know you are going to hit really bad times along the way. It’s going to happen. You have to be ready for it, or you will give up when you hit the hard times.

For instance, when I start a century, the morning is cool, the bikes are pretty, there are a lot of sexy bodies around, everyone is laughing and joking. It’s all good. 25 miles in we are leading the pack and feeling good, rolling hard and fast, rotating lead, drafting off each other.

At 40 miles in, the pack has fallen apart, and my back hurts and the wind has come up and the sun is baking (this is Texas in the summer, after all).

At the 49 mile mark, I blow a tire, and it has to be the back, so what a bitch. Headwinds now, too. As a biker you learn early on that whenever there are winds, it is a headwind.

At 55 miles I’m thinking this is a shitty way to spend a day, but it was my choice. I could be with my kids at the pool, or with my buddies at a football game. Why am I doing this?

At 70 miles I feel like throwing up; something has upset my stomach…maybe those homemade cookies at the 25 mile stop.

I am on a highway by myself when I reach 80 miles, and I’m no longer sure where I am…if I’m even on the right route. My phone battery is dead and I’ve used my spare tube. My average speed is dropping, and I just don’t have the energy to keep it up.

Then, lo!, at the 90-mile mark I see a sign that says “Riders, this way” and I am on track.

At 95, I come across some of the people I started with, and strangely, I begin picking up speed. How weird.

100 miles and I’m pissed because I thought I was done, but more work to do…the “100-mile” course is really 102 miles, but I know where I am. And then…I cross the finish line. It was not pretty, and I did not set any land speed records, but I got it done. By myself.

It may sound crazy, but long-distance biking keeps me sane as a writer because both are endurance sports, and I know — I know — there are bad times ahead. But I also know, I’ll get through them as long as I don’t lose my commitment, never give up or give in.

The same goes for writing. Steel yourself to know that you are going to — figuratively speaking — have headwinds and blown tires. Life is long. Take a break. Catch your breath. Get back on your bike and keep on pedaling, keep on writing.

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Confused by all the different image sizes you need for your social media presence? Wish there was a simple tool to create the images you want?

Problem solved! I’m going to keep this simple by highlighting the best sources for both.

The ultimate guide to proper image size for social media

Social Sprout’s social image size guide is fantastic.  It lists over 25 examples that are frequently updated. Each template is illustrated and clearly explained. Here is an example for Facebook:

Canva: The simplest tool for great social media graphics

Canva. Go to their site, scroll across the top (screen shot below), pick what you need, and start designing.  If you are looking for a custom dimension, they can support that, too. Their interface is super easy to use once you figure it out, but it is not intuitive. So take fifteen  minutes to look at their “Design School”.

That’s it. There are other guides and other tools, but from what I have seen and used, these are the two best. Use Social Sprout’s guide to understand the dimensions of what you want, and use Canva to make it look beautiful. Simple!

I wanted to keep this short and simple, but do share if you know of other tools that can be helpful. Good luck!

Please share with other writers and bloggers by using the buttons below or to the right. Thanks! Allen

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The good folks over at SocialMediaExamier put together a helpful, concise summary of how to configure the security settings at a number of the most popular social media sites (Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Pinterest). Before you go there, though, let’s think about what your security settings should be as a writer seeking publicity. Just as there are steps to writing a book, there are steps to staying safe. Obviously you do want to increase your exposure and how often search engines find you (or SEO — Search Engine Optimization — as it is known). You don’t want your bank account emptied, though, so let’s talk about some social media security tips.

Clothing is Optional when you are promoting yourself

It is a rather contradictory position in which to find yourself. On the one hand you very much want people to know your face and your name. You want them to feel personally connected to you.

For reasonable and appropriate people, sharing many details is perfectly fine. Unfortunately,  when you step into the public arena, you can be sure there are going to be socially inappropriate people as well as criminals in the crowd. Should you catch their eye — no matter the reason — if they come after you, they will likely use the information you have shared via social media sites. Worse, they will probably aggregate a lot of it to build a more complete picture of you. So if you are on six sites, but only put your home address on one, be sure they will find it when they are compiling data on you.

Have a plan and be consistent with what you share across sites

As you should with most things in life, start with a plan. Figure out how much you want to share, and what you will not share. For instance, print off the checklist from the SocialMeidaExaminer site. Preview the screenshots they provide before you actually go to the sites. Use a highlighter to mark what you are willing to share, and use a black pen to cross out what you don’t want to share.

When you are done, make sure you are sharing the amount of info you are comfortable with, and make sure you are being consistent from site to site with what you share.

Be conservative — anything that you release about yourself is out there forever

Be conservative when you start posting and communicating via social media. That is, share less rather than more about yourself. There is a good chance that what you do share may stay in the public domain for a very, very long time. It might stay out there forever. Here is another good article about threats to your security via social media that highlights how simple comments can reveal far more than you think. 

Promoting yourself while also maintaining good social media security is possible

It is this simple. And it should not take you more than an hour to prepare what you want to share and then go to each site and set it up as you want it.

Here is the link to the Social Media Security Checklist. If you find their checklist helpful, be sure to “like” or “share” it to show your appreciation.

Some other helpful references:

FBI — Internet Social Networking Risks Humans are a weak link in cyber security, and hackers and social manipulators know this. They try to trick people into getting past security walls.

Social networking and security risks – GFI  Social networking and security risks. By Brad Dinerman. The popularity of social networking sites has increased at astonishing levels.

For a humorous twist on Identify Theft, check out this video.

 Please use the buttons below and to the left to share with other writers. Thanks, Allen

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