Something has changed profoundly in my reading habits. I am beginning to choose books and the authors that write them for a whole new reason. I look for authors who engage in conversation with their readers. A few years ago authors never would have dreamed of interacting with readers outside of book tours, signings and readings. Now authors and readers are communicating via many formats. Personally, when I choose my next read I look online to see if the author is connected. Are they engaged in conversation already?
So would Hemingway have been willing to communicate with his readers? I hope so. With the way publishing is going today, authors need to engage and build communities involving their readers. (For more information on getting published today see my friend Jon’s blog post) They win both financially and relationally.
Here is a short list of authors and organizations that are doing this well and willing to risk engagement. Their risk is paying off.
Mary Russell (The Bee Keepers Apprentice), Tony Hsieh, Seth Godin, Steve Garfield, Gary Vaynerchuk, Chris Brogan, Andy Andrews, Dr. Tim Erwin, Ransomed Heart, Dr. Emerson Eggerich, Jane Kirkpatrick, Rick Warren
To find your own authors, search Facebook for their name or title. On twitter search for the book name or author. Many readers create a search term if the author has not (you can do this by simply posting on twitter about your book with a #hashtag in front of the term).
Please list add any you have found engaging.
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