Tech Tips for Managing Information Overload

By Katie DePoppe

When I began my career in the literary world, my first job was as a book publicist. While that was before the onset of the social media marketing frenzy we see today, at that time, we were on the cusp of new and creative ways to use technology to push new books into the mainstream.

Although my career has taken a few turns from my previous job (I’m now on the production side), I’ve kept abreast of tech strategies and have enjoyed, over the last 7 years, watching as the PR/marketing world strives to find the next best thing. The creativity and strategy behind it all is exciting to me.

I’m a researcher at heart and for many years, I’ve subscribed, pinned, bookmarked, saved, filed, and printed thousands of articles, blog posts, studies, and analyses on many areas of interest: social media marketing, productivity and organization, and writing tools and strategies, to name a few.

Through my work with digital media, I’ve also had the chance to attend a number of conferences and seminars where I’ve made connections with people in these industries who have logged way more hours than I have. Those opportunities afforded me the chance to discover people who are doing incredible work churning out valuable information for writers that encompass a number of areas that we are now expected to master: writing, editing, marketing, public relations, and the list goes on. The responsibility of the writer has grown. We now, more than ever, share the burden of helping to cut through the noise and get our messages heard.
 

With that said, here is a list of some of the tech resources  that may be of help in your writing journey, whether you’re in the process of drafting a manuscript, building a platform, or getting the word out about a finished product. This is just an explanation of my personal system and resources. Please leave comments with your own tips, suggestions, and links to your favorite blogs. The internet is a big, big place! 

For Managing Blogs, Articles, & Research Overload

Feedly
Feedly is my favorite. I believe its design is intuitive, and it offers an organized way to keep track of posts and articles you may not have otherwise gotten a chance to read. I especially like the design aesthetic: uncluttered, simple, and customizable.

Part of my job is to keep up with trends and current events. I do this, in part, by reading lots of blogs. This helps me to see everything in one place and has been a tremendous help in uncluttering my inbox. I used to assign an email folder to each blog to which I subscribed, but that became quite cumbersome and time-consuming. Now, I only subscribe via email to a handful of my favorite blogs that I’m sure to read every day. The others go through Feedly, and I check them at my convenience.  

You probably already know that there are many blogs out there for writers. I’ve listed a few of my favorites below. If you need help managing all the great content you’ll be getting when you subscribe, give Feedly a try.

Pinterest
Most everyone now knows that Pinterest is a sort of giant bulletin board, and it is an extremely valuable tool for those like me who tend to see my to dos or ideas as “out of sight, out of mind.” I’m also a visual learner, and when I can see everything in one place, grouped with imagery that jogs my memory about the content that lies within it, I think clearly.

Pinterest comes in handy when I’m gathering ideas for projects, stories, and articles. Often times these ideas are sparked by something I see in a blog. In those instances, I may take a specific post that I’ve already saved via Feedly and cross-post it to one of my Pinterest boards. My Pinterest boards are alphabetized and are given simple names that are easy to remember.

Evernote
Also intuitive and user-friendly, Evernote is ideal for storing information on the go and for easy accessibility. It allows for easy organization and is available as an app or via desktop.

For Storing Information & Content

Scrivener
For years I’ve had a very imperfect system made up of notebooks, my Evernote account, and myriad of email folders, but very recently my husband and I have tried to combine everything into the writing software, Scrivener. I’d heard of this a while back (and it may not be news to many of you seasoned writers out there), but only after I began to research project management software for a database that I was building, did I realize that Scrivener a lot more than I thought. Not only can you organize long-term projects like novels, research projects, etc., but it’s ideal for holding all of your content – blog posts, notes and ideas, podcasts, scripts, etc. – in one giant collection. Take a closer look here. 

Blogroll of Tech People Who Know More Than I Do

Amy Lynn Andrews – I met Amy at Allume last year. She’s amazing. Just subscribe to her Useletter. You won’t regret it.

Kat Lee @ How They Blog – A secondary project by this Inspired to Action mom blogger, How They Blog features interviews with bloggers of all levels and asks them about their processes. Each interview includes a list of quick links to blogger/writer resources.

Jeff Goins – Jeff is a writer for writers. Just subscribe. Every blog post and newsletter is packed so full of valuable information, you’ll need a nap after processing it all.

This is rather long, so I’ll stop there for now. What are some of your favorite writing tips, tricks, or resources?

Katie DePoppe is the founding editor at large for Azalea, a magazine that celebrates the lifestyle, history, and culture of the South Carolina Lowcountry. She is the curator of and a contributor to Azalea's blog, The Azalea Room, which explores Southern culture as a whole. Join her Facebook group, The Southern Lit Project, an extension of her blog series, The 50 Books Every Southerner Should Read. An aspiring author of Southern fiction, Katie is a member of Word Weavers International, ACFW, and is a life-long member of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society. Connect with Katie on Twitter @KDePoppe or follow her on Instagram @katidepoppe.