Where do all the #SceneGirls go?

That moment when you catch yourself thinking like an adult...

Interesting...
I also like cupcakes.

Lately there's been a trend of something I've come to identify as Scene Kids, specifically the female of the species. They are not to be confused with (but are similar to) hipsters, indie, goth, emo, and indie girls. Here's a handy quiz in case you need to know where you fall. I was just looking through random stuff online and I had a thought... I worried about how this might affect their future.

It's fine to dye your hair a fun mermaid color when you already have a job, or get piercings and tattoos where no one can see them, or wear interesting clothing. I think the same rules apply to most things in my mind:

If you are an adult who pays their own bills and is independent of anyone else, then you have the right and freedom to make any choices you want, provided you are willing to live with the consequences.

Awww, like this. She's 20.
Photo credit val-empathic.tumblr.com

But what about if you're 15 and you really want to get a lip ring and dye your hair green and pink?

I had a cousin who went through it a few years ago. That story does not end happily, but it does illustrate my point... when I was 15 I had no idea what my life was going to be like in a week, let alone a decade. I see all these really adorable girls on Tumblr or in my town at grocery stores or at concerts or at bars (if you hit a college hangout) who are clearly part of whatever the 'scene' is for "Scene Girls".

They have the hair, the make up, the clothes, the piercings, and I assume the Instaham and KikMe accounts. Some of them are really, really young! And they are really, really into things on the internet that seem questionable safety-wise. There's a WikiHow where they specifically encourage these girls to "model".

I don't think that's really sound life advice. This seems to be a sort of "famous for being famous" training program where you start getting random likes and favorites from strangers based solely on your looks at a really, really young age. Need proof? Here's a NSFW Tumblr. Check those numbers. Girls are desperate for attention and validation. The internet specializes at the illusion of both. Also, side note, I really hope those girls are legal.

I can't stress enough that no teenager escapes that time of their lives without some sort of permanent battle scars, that almost goes without saying. But do you really want to base your entire future on how "the sex" you looked in your selfie? Or worse, pin your entire future career path on what your InstaTumbBook page looks like from high school/college? What are they going to do when they're 30? Do we want a world where that's the norm? I doubt it. I certainly don't think that's a good idea.

There is nothing wrong with girls of any taking cute pictures, there is nothing wrong with having an online persona, there's nothing wrong with experimenting with hair, fashion, make-up, whatever. Any women who makes it to adulthood can look back and cringe and regale you with long-forgotten tales of what it meant to be "posh" or "grunge" or how awesome they looked in that baby doll dress or those platforms or that trucker hat.  Equally, we were all convinced that whatever we were doing was the best possible thing. We were so smart and we totally knew better than everyone else, because it's like my life and you can't live it for me and I know what I'm doing you're not the boss of me!

That's all part of growing up.

But another equally important part of growing up is forgetting some of that stuff. For example, there are no surviving pictures of my one high school male friend who wore heels and a dress and make up for a dare one night, because if there were, he probably couldn't go into politics now.

This is really the first generation that won't be able to forget their mistakes because they are committing them en masse to the bowels of the internet, and repeat after me, "The internet never forgets."

As a sort-of-adult now, I feel for them. I just... I just want them to make smart life choices and think about their actions and-

oh my god I've turned into my mother...

Please excuse me while I go dye my hair pink and jump on the bed while eating something terrible for dinner.

http://bit.do/brtKa

The Problems with eBook Marketing

Understanding the amount of money you would need to traditionally market your eBook is vital to your success. Obviously, as an indie author you are not going to have a ton of cash, a marketing budget or any other sort of "traditional" modes available. So when people tell you to "market" your book on your own, essentially creating your own viral campaign, what are they actually tell you?

As an indie author, I've found some things to be less helpful than others...

First of all, getting a Twitter account is a fine first step. You may actually attract some readers. It's not likely though. If all you are doing is posting adverts for your book, people will usually just mute you and then there goes any sort of retweetability. So, if you're going to have a Twitter, don't be boring and single-minded. Your Twitter is all about promoting yourself as an interesting person, and thereby making it seem that your book may also be interesting.

Getting a blog/website/whatever account seems like a logical second step. This is one such step that you're reading right now. It's only effective if it talks about things other than your writing. Again, very few people are going to want to pick up a book you've written if you just post pictures of your cover and excerpts. They want reviews, interviews, color, pictures, entertainment, and maybe a small plug for your book at the end. It's not a great way to get readers, it's just a good way of communicating with them once you have some.

The third thing that any blog or successful author will tell you is that reviews are key. Getting eyes on your book and getting people to recommend it on Amazon, or give it reviews on their blogs or wherever is the real goal. It's better to have 50 good reviews than to have 300 reviews and only 5 of them are 5 stars. You need to select your reviewers carefully and don't try to bribe them! You can't "pay" for reviews (beyond a free copy of the book usually) so that they remain unbiased. Well, you try getting some random stranger to review your book without buying some sort of "package". I haven't found one yet. I'm sure they exist, but it's just rare to find that one honest, independent reviewer that has free time and would love to read your special little offering. Pro-tip: Don't ask anyone in your family to review it on Amazon either. If they live in the same house, have ever been shipped to or have any connection that Amazon can see, they will reject the review based on the fact that you might "profit" from their review. Even if they purchase a copy of your book at full price, their review will be rejected. True story, happened to my first and only review.

By now, if you're like me, you're getting a bit desperate. You are starting to look around at the people you follow and see that they all have thousands of followers. You wonder if it would be easier to just buy advertising on your own... maybe buy some followers... maybe invest in some paid interview/blog tour/bookplugging service things... after all, that's what most people kind of think has to happen to get some lift off. You can't tell people how amazing your book is if no one is even aware you wrote one. I honestly can't tell you if these methods work because I'm broke and I've never tried any of them. I have been just going along, minding my own business, refusing to spend a single penny. I wrote a book because I had to, and I don't think that I should have to spend money to get people to read it. If someone hears about it, that's fine. I'm obviously not going to get rich and retire early, but at least I'll know that any sales I get are strictly because someone liked my work.

Marketing an eBook is really an uphill battle, especially if you don't want to invest in the "traditional" methods of advertising that are available to indie authors. I know a lot of people will say that you have to put money in, you have to be willing to show you believe in the product before people will give it a chance. My argument is that I believed in it enough to put it up on Amazon, and I'll do anything I can for free to promote the heck out of it. I just don't think anyone else should get rich off my effort in the process.

Just my two cents.