As an independent author you are solely responsible for promoting your books. One of the most effective ways to do so is through social media networking sites. Here are five of the best.

Facebook is arguably the biggest social media site in terms of global traffic. Therefore you need to utilise this and create an author fan page. Even if you have a personal profile it is best to keep all book related posts on your author page. You don’t want to start to annoy family and friends by constantly posting, ‘buy my book.’ An author fan page is a good way though for potential readers to find information about you as an author and your books.

Twitter is also another obvious choice. This is a way in which to interact with authors and readers and to promote book giveaways and promotions. Also do not forget to use hashtags as this will connect you with other like minded people who can help in promoting your book. Twitter also has an excellent sense of community and you will soon find yourself submerged in the world of all things ‘writers.’ If you support other writers whom you admire, then the same will happen for you.

Goodreads is most possibly the largest reading community on the internet. Every author who has self-published needs to register as a Goodreads author and this is free and easy to do so. You get your own author page, featuring your profile, bio, photographs, videos and you can even link your blog. Most importantly it is a place where you can list your books and interact with other authors and readers, and they can review and rate your books. Authors need to make sure that their books are searchable there for others to find.

Reddit is a forum where you are able to post links to interesting articles and where various discussions take place, including those about books. The readers on the site, known as 'redditors,' vote on whether they like or dislike a particular article and this places them in a sort of top ten, so this is a very good way in which to become known. Again, though, you need to be an active member of the site to see any benefits. The best way to do so is to engage in conversations and post articles that are related to your genre of writing.

Google+ is gaining steadily in terms of popularity and so therefore is a 'must' place to advertise your book and presence as an author. One excellent feature is that of Google Hangouts so that you can actually have book discussions and online Q&A sessions. You can also post relevant articles and add blog posts to your page, as well as connecting with readers and authors alike.

So, as an independent author, make the most of the social media networks available to you and get promoting your book. You just need to find the right one for you and there are many out there.