When talking about a writer's platform, there is one thing that I say over and over.
Nothing is set in stone.
A writer's platform changes with the times. It changes and grows as a writer changes and grows. As the technology changes, so too do our online activities.
And the past few years have seen so many changes within my own platform that I wanted to take the time and highlight how we have to be prepared to just go with the flow.
It started with a book
In 2017, I published a book on how to build an online platform safely. It contained specifics about how to sign up for certain accounts and the security settings associated with those accounts. However, as anyone can attest to, within the realm of social media and the internet, the technology changes so fast that we often struggle to keep up. As a result, that 2017 book quickly became an internet dinosaur. It needed updating. But I was avoiding it.
In May 2023, I got an email from IngramSpark stating that distribution for digital products would no longer be available for my region via their service. This meant that the ebook format of my 2017 book was being pulled from publication by IngramSpark. I had two options: do a mad-dash rush to get the ebook out via Draft2Digital, or get my A into G and rewrite the book, finally updating it. I chose the latter.
But in my planning for that rewrite, I also needed to revisit my online activities and accounts—and I discovered redundant accounts and security holes that needed to be plugged.
I closed multiple Twitter accounts, deleted unused Facebook pages, closed email list accounts that were never used, and a whole range of other things. My followers never knew, because they never knew about the accounts in the first place.
And of course, while in the process of dealing with my own platform tidy-up process, I discovered accounts that I thought had two-factor authentication on them but didn't, and somewhere along the way, I got locked out of three critical Gmail accounts. DOH! (That particular crisis was dealt with, and the lessons associated found their way into the new book.)
The arguments around ChatGPT and AI within publishing blew up, leading to strikes and multiple lawsuits. (And another chapter was added to the rewrite of my book.)
Twitter changed its name and several of their policies. Threads came online and gained massive popularity. (And that change was incorporated into the rewrite.)
MailerLite decided that they were disabling the free accounts on their classic interface. And despite the forced move to the new system, they are still one of the best email list providers around.
Medium changed its criteria for monetization. And I got an email from Udemy (the system I had been using for my on-demand courses) that I must add at least 5 minutes of new video material to my courses, or they're taking them down.
All the while, I was looking at my own platform mess and wondering why I bothered.
Then I reminded myself of all the opportunities that I've been given and how I actually like certain activities.
So, yeah, nothing is set in stone. Our platforms change all the time… and sometimes those changes are driven by external events, but how we respond is still our choice. It's our platform, after all. We're the ones that need to manage it.
Shifts within my own platform
Over the past few years, there were some minor and major changes that happened to my platform. In the beginning, it was all minor stuff that my followers and subscribers are likely never noticed, except when I put those changes in their face.
My lists moved to the new MailerLite system, and all subscribers were asked to reconfirm their subscriptions. I lost in the order of 40% of my list in that move, but I'm okay with that. Because it meant that the other 60% actually wants to hear what I have to say. And ever since the move back in 2023, my open rates have been around 70% for every email I send. And when I see those numbers start to drop, I just run a reconfirm campaign, cleaning out the dead weight... and those numbers climb again.
With many sites insisting on the pay-to-play model, I was forced to examine which activities are worth paying for. I needed to focus my efforts—and my finances—on the tasks that I enjoyed doing, eventually leading to some sort of reward. And not all rewards are financial.
I announced on Medium that I would no longer be posting content there. But my followers probably never noticed, because Medium was filled with reposts of content from my other blogs.
I rationalized my social media accounts too, moving away from the separate accounts for personal and editor activities. The only site affected was Twitter/X… whatever it's called. The account for Black Wolf disappeared. And if the writing community ever leaves the site, then my personal account will disappear too.
While I'm not averse to paying money for certain activities, I won't pay for something that doesn't bring me joy or any reward. It's just not worth it.
When it came to Udemy, I wasn't fussed about their decision to "unpublish" my course that was about productivity and finding a writing routine that actually works. In truth, I've never really been happy with Udemy as a platform. So, when I got their email demanding that I add content to a course that didn't need more content, they made the decision on what to do about those courses easy.
Simple. Demand that I do work that isn't necessary and I'll leave.
Now to work out where I'm moving to. But again, this is just another example of how a platform is continually evolving. Nothing is cast in stone.
And in 2025, I was faced with a massive platform change. Because of trademark issues, I was forced to seriously consider whether I continue to operate my editorial and publishing activities under the name of "Black Wolf" or not. It was a hard decision, but I ultimate decided to drop the "Black Wolf" name. Which of course meant a massive restructure of my platform, one of which I'm hoping won't need to change for a very long time, because consolidating my blogs into the one blog was a lot of work. But I did it, and am proud of the result.
But my point is that our platforms are not a static beast. They change and evolve as we change and grow.
The lessons to take away from this
Don't be afraid to give a new social media or a new site a go, incorporating it into your platform. Because if it doesn't work for you, you can change it. If something better comes along, you can move to that better option. If the site changes its settings and policies to something that you don't like, you can change your platform design and use something else.
Nothing is cast in stone.
Hidden Traps of the Internet
In February 2024, I proudly launch the new version of my book about building online platforms. There were a lot of lessons learnt during that launch, and I'm learning more in the time since it was released. No doubt, many of those lessons will eventually find my blog.
Hidden Traps of the Internet
Take control over your online presence.
Building an online platform is an overwhelming and daunting task, with many pitfalls and horror stories surrounding the internet. It’s not surprising that many writers shy away from online activities, putting that online presence into the do-it-later category. But to survive in today’s publishing industry, a writer needs to be online.
This book focuses on how to build an online platform in a safe manner. Judy L Mohr (writer, editor, and writing coach) talks you through the various components of an online platform, showing you the tricks to staying safe online, carving out your own little corner of the internet while building that author platform.
Available in print and ebook.
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