From MediaShift, an assessment of social media, e-books, blogging, Facebook, Twitter, and Skype—all this stuff I thought I’d never do:

So this is what it’s like to be an author now – finishing the book is only the beginning. New technologies allow writers to seek out and engage with their readers more than ever before, and to participate in a community of readers and writers that isn’t limited by geography. The drawback is that for many authors who want people to buy their books, social media isn’t optional. In the years to come, the image of a reclusive writer, isolated in his garret, might become an antiquated one, like that of someone pounding out a novel on a typewriter or reading an actual book made of paper.

I’d actually prefer to be the reclusive writer, but it doesn’t auger well for actually selling books to follow that path—one must get with the times, which involves shameless self-promotion.

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