Social Media for Authors: Guidance from Our Marketing Executive

As a Marketing Executive in Publishing, social media plays a big part in my everyday role. Social media can be a very powerful tool for authors, but there’s a lot to learn about managing an author profile – it’s certainly quite different to managing your own personal profile! When starting off with social media, authors often have a whole host of questions, such as what photos do I post? What will generate interest in my publication, and in me? 

All of these are such valid questions, and it is very much my job to know the answer! So in this article I’ll be exploring all things author social media, including why it’s so important, how to keep your account engaging and get some people interested and connect to your work. 

Why is Social Media Important For Authors? 

Social media is an important tool for authors to reach readers, whether the author is traditionally published or independently published. It not only allows you to find new readers, but allows you to stay connected with current readers, and keep them updated on potential new publications or events. 

In today’s publishing landscape, having an author social media profile is a core part of your Author Brand.

What Social Media Platform Is Best For Authors? 

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to identifying which platform works best: each platform has different audiences who interact with different types of content 

Platform	Target audience	Books that typically perform well	Content type	Discoverability
Instagram	Varied*	Genre fiction	Author-centric & book-centric	Very good
Facebook	Older users	Specialist interest, genre fiction	Author content	Less discoverable
LinkedIn	Professionals	Business books	Posts that use your book to support teachings	Good
TikTok	Varied: tends to be younger	Genre fiction (particularly romance and fantasy)	Author-centric and writing-centric	Good

*Instagram's global base is growing. Whilst 32% of the global base being 18-24 year olds and 25-34 year olds making up 30% of the global base, there is now a growing interest from 35-44 year olds, who made up 16% of Instagram’s audience in 2025, according to Connect. 

Making sure you identify where your audience are is so important. Social media can take a lot of time, and you don’t want to waste your efforts on the wrong audience! 

Top tip: questions you should ask yourself to identify your audience include: who are your readers? What do they like? Why are they choosing your books? How old are they likely to be? What lifestyle factors are there to consider (career, hobbies, how they spend their free time). This will help you whittle down your audience, and then identify an appropriate tone and style. 

How Many Platforms Should I Be On? 

Once again, whilst there is no one-size-fits-all answer, I thoroughly recommend that authors focus on 1-3 social media platforms, rather than spreading themselves across multiple. 

As addressed before, each social media platform has different audiences, and also different post types that perform well and algorithms. Managing multiple platforms is an incredibly time-consuming process, so we recommend that authors focus their energy on the platforms that will work best for their audience. 

What Kind of Posts Should I Do? 

What kind of posts you should do does depend on your platform and your audience. However, a general rule of thumb: rather than focusing solely on your book (yes, of course this should feature on your page too), I’d actually recommend posting more about being a writer. Post a picture of you at a book signing, or writing in a cafe. Organic, real photos which utilise your experience as a writer will grab the interest of a wider audience. People on social media looking for books rarely engage with an author who will only post about their books and nothing else – they’ll go to bookstagrammers for recommendations – but they will engage with people who are offering the behind-the-scenes of being an author. Once you’ve interested them with your author angle, you will simultaneously be promoting your publication. 

Whatever you post, you want to ensure that your post is either entertaining, engaging or educational, and that your content has the right voice and style for your audience. With that in mind, here are some recommended posts by platform: 

Instagram: 

• Author-centric: events that you’re going to, day in the life of being an author, behind-the-scenes of self-publishing/publishing, attend x event with me at an author, meet the author, how I got my book published
• Book-centric: reviews of your book, why you should read x
• Writing-centric: day in the life writing with me, writing behind-the-scenes 

Facebook: 

• Author-centric: events you’re going to, people with your books 
• Book-centric: high-quality graphic detailing your book 

Top tip: for Facebook, find groups around your subject and post your book on there (i.e. posting in the Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Fans Group, which has 48,000+ members) 

LinkedIn: 

• Teachings from your book, how you’re using your book to promote your business. 

TikTok: 

• Author-centric: events that you’re going to, day in the life of being an author, behind-the-scenes of self-publishing/publishing, attend x event with me at an author, meet the author, how I got my book published, advice for self-publishing
• Writing-centric content: day in the life writing with me, writing behind-the-scenes 

Top tip: make sure you research other authors who have published in a similar genre to you. What posts work well for them? What platforms work well? How do they use their posts to support their publication? Doing regular check-ins can help you identify what posts are working well, and which ones aren’t. 

Top tip: interact with your audience, and with other posts. Replying to comments can actually boost your place on the algorithm, and therefore in people’s feeds, which boosts your visibility. 

How Often Should I Post On Social Media as An Author? 

I recommend that you focus on posting 2-4 high-quality posts a week. There’s a common myth that you should post everyday, however, it is far worse to post lower-quality content more regularly, than it is to post less often, but to a higher standard. 

If you are using a platform that has stories, such as Instagram, you can utilise this feature daily, to stay present, and focus on 2-4 grid posts a week. 

Whilst you should only post a couple of times, make sure you do a daily check for comments, likes, direct messages, and to engage with other creators as well. 

Can I Use AI On Social Media? 

We strongly recommend that you don’t. AI is a hotly debated topic, especially in the publishing industry where human creativity is so vital. AI-generated posts are easily identifiable by both design, and by the fact that Instagram now has a feature which identifies AI-generated content. This means that your viewers will be notified if you use AI-generated content, and your account will be labelled as an ‘AI-Creator’. Many people, who are against AI, will therefore be deterred against your account, and therefore your book. 

The 'AI Content' tag will appear above your post, just under your Instagram handle, so that users can identify AI-generated content before they engage with it. 

The Importance of Quality 

Of course, nobody expects photos taken on a professional camera for your social media, however, having content that is high-quality is important for maintaining interest in your social media platforms. Social media platforms are reliant on visual appeal to catch attention. Gone are the days where people went on social media to read chunks of text: people want high-quality, visual content. 

If you’re leaning towards using graphics (which are an effective social media tool when combined with other types of media), make sure you opt for graphics that are good quality.

It can be easy to create an AI-generated image, or graphic, and post and pray for the best. You may also post an image or a video that’s not actually the right size for your platform, which may sound trivial but definitely impacts the quality of your post! Low-res images, graphics and AI-generated images tend to have lower engagement, which can impact how often your post appears on people’s feeds. 

Some tops dos and don’ts for quality: 

Do: 

• Post high-resolution images which are clear and fit the dimensions
• Use platforms like Canva or professional services to create eye-catching, engaging book graphics or ads
• Take photos of your books in a well-lit room, with an aesthetically pleasing background (a lovely bookshelf always does wonders!)
• If you have a new-ish iPhone, take your photos/videos in Portrait mode. It will instantly give your photo a professional finish, and make everything in the background blurry (fancy!) 

Don’t 

• Put your book cover or images through AI
• Use AI to create graphics of your book
• Post screenshots that will get cut off because of dimensions (for tips on what to do with screenshots, check out our top tip below!)
• Post low-resolution images 

Top tip: if you use Canva (it's free!), follow these steps to ensure your content is always the right size for your chosen social media platform: 

Click custom size 

Click social media

 

Search for your platform (i.e. Instagram post, Instagram reel, Facebook post)

 

Then you will have the exact dimensions for your social media post. This means you can ensure that your photo won’t get cut off, and will fit the dimensions of your chosen platform. 

Why Aren’t My Reels Getting Views or Likes? 

Reels have to capture attention in the first 3 seconds to keep viewers watching. Typically, you’ll see that reels that perform the highest will have a sneak peek into the exciting part of the video, normally with text, which acts as a hook. Think of what is interesting about your video, and ensure that is conveyed right at the start. Also, using captions on your video is important, as many reel users watch without sound. 

If you’d like to incorporate reels into your social media strategy (which is a very effective way to use social media, especially for increasing your page’s visibility), then you should definitely invest in learning how to edit, and how to make them engaging. Unfortunately, a video of someone solely talking without any visual hook will be less effective in engaging your audience. 

What editing platforms are easy to use? 

• Canva: lots of good features on the free edition, and it’s available on the web and as an app
• Capcut: very popular amongst reel users
• Edits: this is a part of Instagram, but you can always save the videos to your camera roll and upload them onto other platforms. 

Should I Use Paid Advertising For Social Media? 

Paid advertising can be an effective way of finding new readers, particularly on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. However, setting up paid ads can be a bit of a maze, so ensuring it is done properly is crucial. 

For authors who publish with Troubador, we offer Meta Ads as one of our Marketing Materials options. This means we create the graphics and manage campaigns for our authors, in order to reach more readers. 

If you’d like to do it yourself, make sure you do plenty of research on how to set up Meta ads (be warned, it takes a bit of getting used to!) 

Good Habits For A Healthy Social Media Account 

• Research: regularly researching
• Variety but consistency: don’t post the same thing over and over again (people get content fatigue!) but also don’t post on such different topics that not all your audience will want to engage. Think to yourself: is this interesting, and relevant to most of the people who follow me? If it is, give it a post.
• Invest your time: social media does take time! If you’re serious about your social media marketing strategy, investing time to get those editing skills, or those higher-quality images, will pay off in the long run. 

Where Do I Get Started with Author Social Media? 

Research authors publishing in your genre, and identify where they’re posting, what kind of posts they are doing, and what is working well. From there, choose your platform and get started! Make sure to share your page with all your friends and family, to get momentum going. Take your time and remember to enjoy it!