Alan McClure is a writer and musician based in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. His creative output is eclectic and prolific, Alan recently talked to us at DGWGO about his attempts to improve his Online Presence as he tries to be noticed by publishers
Alan said “What is your web presence?” This is a question I’ve seen on a number of publishers’ and agents’ websites during my (so far largely futile) efforts to get my writing published, and it’s had me scratching my head. Surely my web presence is irrelevant when I’ve just entrusted you with my latest masterpiece – doesn’t the shimmering quality of my prose speak for itself? Don’t my poems leap sufficiently off the page unaccompanied by a URL? Well, it seems not – and I think I know why.
We live in an age when absolutely anyone can share their writing with the general public. Social media and self-publishing websites have granted access to an audience to anyone who’s ever strung two words together on a whim. While this is potentially a great thing, it does also mean that there is a lot – and I mean a LOT – of writing sloshing around by people who aren’t necessarily particularly committed to quality, originality or even legibility, and that means that traditional agents and publishers are deluged with material on a daily basis. They need some way, any way, to try and figure out who actually wants to be a writer, as opposed to those who are merely fairly pleased with the best-man’s speech they knocked together last weekend: and one albeit rather arbitrary way for a writer to display a sense of commitment is to do a bit of serious self-publicity.
Having come to this conclusion, and with advice from our Literary Development Officer, I decided to bite the bullet and put together a website. I enlisted the help of my friend Ken Smyth, a Gatehouse legend who juggles top-class internet brilliance with fatherhood, artisthood and all-round-mover-and-shakerhood in a rather impressive fashion. I wrote the words (wincing, as I always do when obliged to write about myself in the third person) and Ken shuffled them together in a way that would look just as good on a computer, a tablet or a phone. Now I would never have thought of that, and wouldn’t have known what to do about it if I had – I can’t recommend getting a bit of expert advice highly enough.
Anyway, a couple of get-togethers down the line and Ken and I are satisfied that the site is good to go: links seem to be working, the font is agreeable, and a quick browse through practically leaves you thinking that I’m already a well respected writer of note, rather than a poor old primary school teacher with a penchant for making up stories and songs. This is the ‘Ziggy Stardust’ school of self-publicity – if you tell enough people you’re already a star, a few of them might start to believe you…
Have a wee glance if you’re interested – with a bit of luck you’ll be in the company of the next lucky agent that I decide to trouble with a piece of work! Just click this link http://www.alanmcclure.co.uk/
Picture by Kim Ayres Photography
