Burnout and the author’s social media presence
The overwhelming necessity of being active and present on social media is exhausting. Sometimes all you want to do is work on your current project and end up pushing aside updating your website or making a post. And yes, your project is extremely important! But so is your online presence. Without an active online presence, your audience may turn to a different account that is updating regularly. That’s not ideal.
But how do you manage being a successful author and having successful social media accounts? Practice and commitment. It can be so easy to push those measly updates to the side, tell yourself you’ll do it later after you finish this chapter. But then that chapter turns to an entire section, a whole book, and all of a sudden it’s been weeks since you’ve made a post.
Now it’s been so long since you updated anything you feel it’s better to just put it off until you have something substantial to make an update with. This is a common misconception, and can be a leading cause and symptom of burnout. Where you’re so exhausted and overwhelmed by social media that you physically and mentally cannot add to your current accounts.
Welcome to burnout, where overload is the leading cause. When you’re writing, it takes a mental and physical toll on you, and it can be hard to turn that energy (or what little you have left after a successful writing session) into something else productive. Taking breaks is a great way to prevent burnout. Making a schedule and trying to stick to it can help.
Utilize planning and scheduling options that are available on your social media platforms. Make yourself make time to create and plan posts. They don’t always have to be major updates about what you’re currently working on. Sometimes your audience just wants to know what you’re up to and that you still exist. Even small things like a picture of the sunset from your reading nook or backyard, an except from your favorite book that you’re reading, or even a photo of one of your pets can go a long way to maintain engagement from your audience.
Don’t try to plan 3 months of posts and videos in one afternoon, that can make the burnout worse. Instead make a plan, look at your metrics for when your audience is most active and what type of content they like the most, and start creating content that is genuine for you and your brand. Take small steps and try not to overdo it, or you may end up with a bigger problem than when you started. Most importantly, be kind to yourself and understand that burnout is a real thing, and that taking care of yourself is most important.
