There’s more than a bit of grumbling these days about writers being intimidated by the marketing process. They’re tired of hearing  about how writers have to sell themselves. To have a platform. To embrace social media for writers.  To throw away all privacy, not to mention modesty, to flaunt whatever they’ve got to the masses, making sure transparency is part of their brand. (Did I get enough buzz words in there?)

If you’re a writer who would rather fall down a flight of stairs than “put yourself out there”, you are not alone. Author John Green said, ‘Writing is… a profession for introverts who want to tell you a story, but don’t want to make eye contact while doing it.’ A recent article on education and careers noted that writing is one of the top six professions for introverts. Remember the good old days when a writer like J. D. Salinger could become a recluse and, in doing so, up his cachet as a writer? Well, as we’ve been told over and over, those days are gone for good.

It was the Pulitzer Prize winning writer Edna St. Vincent Millay who said that  ‘a writer who publishes a book willfully appears in public with his pants down’ – referring to the level of vulnerability writers must experience to allow the public to read what they’ve written. In today’s hyper-marketing environment, this has never been truer.

With the publication of my first book – and the launching of this site – I am stepping into that brave, new, pants-less world. But I am not going alone. Because I have found a source of unexpected support for even the most reclusive writer: other writers. You see, there really is a band-of-brothers-and-sisters-mentality among those of us who wield the pen and the keyboard. And you’ll meet them here. Great writers. Famous writers. Emerging writers. All of whom will share their lives, their books and their writerly advice. Our first two ‘Meet the Writer’ interviews are with Mary Alice Monroe and Katie Crouch, two power-house Southern writers whose work is consistently on the New York Times Best-Seller List. So stay with us. And do not fear. For even though you may drop your (metaphorical) pants as you expose your writing and yourselves to the world, we’ll make sure your laundry is clean.  NEXT INSTALLMENT FEATURES AN INTERVIEW WITH NY TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF SOUTHERN FICTION, MARY ALICE MONROE  STAY TUNED!