Wow-we received SO many great Qs from y'all last week- keep em' coming! Remember, if your question is chosen you'll receive a book. This week, Our lucky question-asker will be receiving Skipping a Beat by Sarah Pekkenen. (We love it so much we had to give it away AGAIN!) And up for grabs for you if YOU leave a comment? An ARC of Sarah Dessen's What Happened to Goodbye? (out May 10th)! Don't forget to send your "hard-hitting" Q to: asklizandlisa@chicklitisnotdead.com! Blogging, books, social media, mama drama, baby blunders-we're here for you!

Today's awesome Q comes from Melissa:

Hello Liz and Lisa!

I'd first like to say THANK YOU for sharing your story and the stories of other great authors. May I also commend you on your social networking abilities. I recently landed my first "Social Media Consulting" side job and I constantly revert back to your Facebook fan page to show my client what a successful page should do! It is very clear that you have both built quit a name for yourselves doing something that you you love. As a soon to be marketing grad from Illinois State University I am trying to soak up as much advice as possible! I was hoping you could share 5 Do's and a Do over specific to fresh grads? You have created a very loyal fan and I look forward to your reply!

Warm Regards,

Melissa

Melissa,

First off, thank you for your kind words and congratulations on your upcoming graduation! You go girlfrin'!

Considering the fact that neither of us had one clue what the hell we were doing when we launched CLIND over two years ago, we'd be happy to help others learn from our many mistakes. Here's our 5 Do's and a Do-Over: Social Media style...

DO'S

1. Have a platform. What are you all about? Make sure you have a plan before you type your first OMG. Are you the next expert on vampire chick lit or Queen of all things romance? Then own it, baby! The beautiful thing about social media is you can be anything you want to be. Just make sure you know what that is.

2. Keep it simple. Nothing makes us hit the "back" button faster than a cluttered site. Yes, we know it's tempting to add that Goodreads or Flickr widget (Lisa!). We've been there, done that. But you really have to ask yourself if it's adding value or just something you thought was cool for a hot minute. The most important information on your site should be links to your Facebook and Twitter pages (you have those, right??!) and how people can contact you (don't make them search for your email address!).

3. Clock in Treat blogging like it's the dream job you've always wanted! Run it professionally and be consistent with your postings and in your dealings with publicists, authors or anyone within your network. A good site takes a lot of work and pays very little (if at all!) so passion about your project is essential. If you love what you do, it will show on your website.

4. Give 'til it hurts. Okay, so we're giveaway whores-we know! But besides having consistent, quality content, giving things away is the very best way to build your network of followers . And it's FUN! So try it. Trust us on this one.

5. Follow the Golden Rule. Tweet with care, people! We know it's all the rage to get into internet smack downs with other people over this and that, but we think it's better to always treat other people in cyberspace with respect. It's easy to get carried away when you're hiding behind that keyboard. Believe us, there's going to be times when you are VERY tempted to go there. But don't do it. Step away from the Macbook and just do what we do-write each other bitchy pre-caffeinated emails instead!

DO-OVER

Wow-this is a tough one because we believe that all blunders are great learning experiences. Or at least that's what we tell ourselves to feel better when we F up. But of course there are things we wish we could take back. But the key is not to beat yourself up too much about it-Life is too short to worry about all the little things we can't control.

Hope that helps! And remember the most important DO of all-HAVE FUN!

xoxo,

Liz & Lisa