Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Social networking the Amanda Strong way...plus a book giveaway!

**Giveaway is now closed**

Our next debut novelist is Amanda Strong, author of "with just one click...", which was inspired by some situations her friends got into on Facebook. She has come to CLC today to talk about the hazards and thrills of social networking. She also has two copies of her novel to share with some lucky readers anywhere in the world!

Amanda grew up in Massachusetts and was inspired by such classics as "Romeo and Juliet" and "The Great Gatsby." After graduating from Ithaca College, she focused on her small business, but then realized that she just had to write and got back into it, working into the late hours of the night when her family was asleep. She currently lives near Boston with her husband and two kids. You can find her doing her own social networking on Facebook and Twitter. Check out her blog, as well!

Have you been “friended” by an ex? Have you spied on your spouse or significant other’s Facebook page? Have you crossed the line with one of your “friends”? In my case, all of the above, and that is why I wrote, With Just One Click. To clarify, none of these stories are about me, but they have happened to friends, or friends of friends, and more frequently than you’d think!

Facebook was the catalyst for me to dust off my pen and paper and pursue my passion … writing. Over the past few years, I heard stories about the complicated friendships and relationships formed on Facebook. The sordid details were more like a Hollywood script than typical suburbia life. The stories surfaced over and over; the people would change, but the same universal subjects popped up like, reconnecting with an ex, spying on your significant other or not trusting your partner’s friends, and crossing the line with a friend, leading to infidelity. The main stars of these plots were everyday people, someone’s sister, wife, mother, friend, or neighbor. These scenarios appear relatable and could potentially happen to any one of us given the right situation or circumstance.

I learned social networking really doesn’t have many rules to live buy, thus creating an enormous amount of freedom for each friend. When I began this book, I felt in some ways Facebook ruined lives. Now, I’m not a Facebook hater at all, but when you see firsthand one of your closest friend’s marriage destroyed over a reconnection on Facebook, you can become bitter about social networking. Or when you hear one of your friends can’t be friends with her own husband, because she’s too suspicious and can’t help from stalking her own husband’s Facebook page. Or when a friend is friended out of the blue by an ex, and you see the curiosity and memories eat away at them, and the “what ifs” flooding their head. When you watch all these examples hover around the people you care about creating hurt and indecision, some negativity is bound to occur.

As a friend, I witnessed the demise of a marriage in front of my eyes as an unwilling spectator, watching innuendo and speculation on Facebook turn into heartache. After that moment, I realized how comfortable people were on social networking sites. Almost forgetting so many people can see every word or picture you post. I wanted to highlight these relatable situations but in a fictionalized setting, hoping readers themselves would come to their own conclusions about social networking and relationships.

In the book, I follow three women’s journeys, navigating through social networking and pivotal times in their lives. Chloe, a successful movie reviewer and serial dater, is added as a friend by her first love ... the one who left her standing at seventeen with a note in her hand as he simply walked away. She’s faced with a decision… confirm or ignore a person she once hated, resented, and loved. Morgan, a loyal stay-at-home mother and wife, is blindsided one day with a discovery ... one of her husband's friends is his single and very flirtatious ex-girlfriend. Brynn, a lonely mom to two distant teenagers and workaholic husband, becomes immersed in Facebook ... the one place she finds solace, hope, and herself again. When she revisits the past with one of her friends, her world is turned upside down with regret and indecision. Three lives changed forever with just one click. Confirming a friend isn't as easy as it seems ... but do these women have more in common than just Facebook?

Beyond the juicy relationships, I touch upon the positives of social networking, like the friendships and the community setting where people can interact with friends they may otherwise never have been in contact with. I personally felt it was important to be neutral and not sway towards saying Facebook is good or bad. People will have their opinions on this subject, and they will not always agree. I hope the reader will come to their own conclusions about the three women’s choices.

What surprised me after finishing the book and creating these stories was that I felt differently than I did in the beginning. Mainly, Facebook is a forum used by individuals, each creating their own experience, always different and unique for that person. Social networking is a tool, whether you choose to join or not, I think a person has to be honest with themselves about what they want out of the experience. Ultimately, each person is in charge on Facebook. With or without temptation, they themselves are the ones making the decisions on their behalf, not the social networking site they happen to be signed up on.


Special thanks to Amanda for sharing her thoughts with us...and her book with you!

How to win "with just one click...":
Please comment below with your e-mail address.
(Please note: Entries without an e-mail address will NOT be counted. You can use AT and DOT to avoid spam. Or provide a link to your facebook page or blog if you can receive messages there.)

Bonus entries (can be listed all in one post):
1. Please tell us: What is the biggest social networking faux-pas (or snafu) you have ever made?

2. Follow this blog and post a comment saying you are a follower (if you already follow, that's fine too).
3. Post this contest on Facebook or Twitter or in your blog, and leave a comment saying where you've posted it.
4. Join Chick Lit Central on Facebook. Edit settings if you don't want to receive a lot of messages at your e-mail account. (If you're already a member, let us know that too.)
5. Add a friend to our Facebook group. (Tell us who you added.) Be sure to remind them to edit their settings.


Giveaway ends June 27th at midnight EST.

44 comments:

Kat said...

This sounds like an interesting book. The internet certainly has it's drawbacks. I think that if someone was going to cheat, they would anyway, but perhaps facebook makes it easier now.

ladykathryn@rogers.com

Kat said...

I don't know that I'm guilty of any faux-pas... I know I made a comment once that someone removed. I have removed people from my friend list without giving a head's up.

ladykathryn@rogers.com

Kat said...

I am a follower of the blog through GFC.

ladykathryn@rogers.com

Kat said...

Posted on fb.

ladykathryn@rogers.com

Kat said...

I am a member of CLC.

ladykathryn@rogers.com

Jel said...

im already a GFC follower, name is Jel

punkme15 at gmail dot com

Alison said...

Sounds like my type of read.
alison.fees@gmail.com

Alison said...

I haven't had any social network faux-pas (yet LOL).

I'm an email and GFC follower.

I'm follow you on Facebook as well

alison.fees@gmail.com

BRN2SHOP9 said...

I added someone on facebook & twitter that new a professor and then tweeted that I blocked her on facebook, but forgot to delete her on twitter. opps.

BRN2SHOP9 said...

i follow via facebook

BRN2SHOP9 said...

this book sounds very good.

Anonymous said...

I have learned to becareful of my facebook vents. I am a follower on both facebook and blog. I will post link to giveaway on my blog.

jenceyg msn com

I think the book sounds great.

Kim W. said...

I really want to read this book!

kewalker1972@gmail.com

1. When I first joined Facebook, I was confused just like everyone else, trying to navigate through it all and figure it out. Well, I thought I was sending a private message to a friend about her "secret" date that night and asked her whether or not she was going to break it off with her current boyfriend, but instead of a private message, I had posted it on my status update. And her boyfriend was a Facebook friend. And he read it. Ooops. Enuff said.

2. I already follow this blog.

3. I have posted this contest on Facebook.

4. I am already a member of CLC on Facebook.

Margie said...

This sounds like a very interesting book. Thanks for the giveaway.
mtakala1 AT yahoo DOT com

Margie said...

like Chick Lit on Facebook
mtakala1 AT yahoo DOT com

Jel said...

im a member of Chicklit Central on FB, name is Jung Rae Woo

punkme15 at gmail dot com

Jel said...

faux pass? uhm i tend to delete people in my fb friends just coz i dont feel like being friends with them online haha lol

punkme15 at gmail dot com

Jel said...

tweet: http://twitter.com/jelaiii_x/status/83742311498006529

punkme15 at gmail dot com

Jeryl M. said...

I would like to win this book.

jeryl.marcus@gmail.com

Jeryl M. said...

The biggest social networking faux pas I have made is looking to see who other people are friends with.

I am a follower of this blog.

I am a facebook fan.

jeryl.marcus@gmail.com

Linda Kish said...

My son was on my computer and I accidentally friended someone onto his account because I hadn't realized he had signed me out and signed himself in. Notice it was on my computer, not his.

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Linda Kish said...

I am a GFC follower

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Gayle LIN said...

I would love to win this book. I'll put it on my to-read list anyway.
I deleted some friends without telling them first. My reason was good and they would have understood, but it looked as if I were being sneaky.
I'm posting this on Facebook.
I follow the blog through CLC
I follow the blog at GFC

Movie Passenger said...

Sounds like a great book! I'm very careful not to do anything crazy on Facebook, but I did once friend request someone I didn't get along with by accident. So that was awkward.

Encgolsen@gmail.com

Bee said...

err once when i was drunk i had a sneaky look at facebook to see if my 'first' was on there..he was, a picture of him and clearly his son. I was so bowled over i sent him a message saying how happy i was he had children. It was very random as it wasn't a long relationship - i never did hear back but glad i didn't too!

bellalass2003 AT yahoo.com

1Realtor said...

Too funny! I actually did pretty much the same thing twice - mentioned to a co-worker of mine that I didn't realize her daughter was a republican because I saw her post on the Mayor's Facebook page. My co-worker said "my daughter is not on FB" and I said "oh yes she is!" She tried to find her but couldn't and we realized that she blocked her mother from friending her!!! It was too funny! Another time did the same thing by mentioning a post my cousin had made and her mother said - how did you know that? And I said - I read it on Facebook - well, needless to say, both their mothers are Facebook friends of their daughters!!! Would love to read the book! Will share this on my FB page - Patricia@NeumannRealEstate.com. Thanks!

1Realtor said...

Also, I am a member of CLC and am following the blog!

Literary Chanteuse said...

I was angry with my husband and changed our status to single once on facebook. Every one was sending emails and the rumor mill started. Needless to say my hubby apologised.

Margaret
singitm@hotmail.com

Literary Chanteuse said...

I'm a GCF follower

Margaret
singitm@hotmail.com

shanaelyse said...

This looks like a great book!

1. My biggest faux pas probably involves posting risqué articles and using profanity, which apparently irks some of my more conservative and family-oriented FB friends.

2. I follow you on GFC (user-shanaelyse)
3. I like you on FB.

Shana S.
shanaelyse@gmail.com

Krystal Lynn said...

Oh the internet, fabulous place to meet crazies. I can admit to starting an actual relationship with someone that I had met online, messaged and talked to but not actually met in person. Looking back, I can't believe how long that whole thing lasted. I've also managed to start a "Face in Hole" war with my uncle. It's a site where you can put someones face on a hilarious picture. Kinda like photoshop but for adults. Now there are pictures out there that people actually think are real. No, my uncle never dressed in drag but these pictures say otherwise!

miss_kris_11 AT yahooDOTcom

Krystal Lynn said...

Blog follower and group member!

miss_kris_11ATyahooDOTcom

Ann Summerville said...

Facebook seems to cause more problems than it solves. Sounds like a great book.
Ann
cozyintexas@yahoo.com

PoCoKat said...

Belong to Chick Lit Central on FB

littleone AT shaw DOT ca

PoCoKat said...

Some people don't like me posting links to my blog reviews on FB if that can be considered a faux pas.

littleone AT shaw DOT ca

Anonymous said...

I am a follower of CLC, love having opportunites to win books, this one sounds very interesting, I do think it makes it easier to reconnect with your past, sometimes good, sometimes better left alone. I haven't reconnected with anyone who used to matter, but I'm sure I've had stuff on there I didn't want just everybody to see.......but sometimes you just forget what all people can see on there! ashersmamaw at yahoo dot come

Lady KT said...

henshawredux AT gmail DOT com

My biggest facebook faux-pas was finding my bf's ex's page to find a blog post about how much she loves him and she can't wait til he dumps me and they can be together. HUGE fight ensues but four years later we are still together and she is married to someone else. I wish I had never looked and never saw her site.

I am a follower and LOVE your blog!

Nancye said...

One of my biggest social networking faux-pas was when I replied to a FB message to the whole group instead of just the individual and caused a few minor embarrassing moments. Ooops! No more "reply to all" for me!!

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Nancye said...

GFC Follower

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Nancye said...

I like you on FB

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Nancye said...

Tweet! Tweet!
@NancyeDavis

http://twitter.com/#!/NancyeDavis/status/85553357971922944

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Mary Preston said...

Nothing untoward has happened to me via the internet. Of which I am pleased.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Mary Preston said...

I would like to think I have not made any major faux-pas. None have gotten back to me.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Mary Preston said...

I follow as a subscriber.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com