Shameless Self-Promotion

Mike Birbiglia is a comedian, but really he's a storyteller who has more in common with Mark Twain and Garrison Keillor than Ron White. With a few stints on This American Life and now a book deal with Simon & Schuster, what Mike is really great at, in addition to relaying snippets of his ailment-ridden life, is self-promotion (alot of it cheap, or free social networking). In addition to a well-designed Web site and newsletter, Mike is active on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr (he encourages fans to send in photos), MySpace and YouTube. He interacts with fans by email, has a street team and seems really accessible (I'm planning on tracking him down for a phone interview as soon as possible about the writing of his book-do ya hear that, Mike?). I saw Mike in Cincinnati this past week and he did not disappoint.

Take a lesson from Mike and make the rounds if you are a storyteller, whether in film, print, radio or TV. Get your fans involved and they will spread the word!