Second Life, Social Media and COVID-19

Remember Second Life?
It burst onto the scene almost twenty years ago, made a big splash on the cover of BusinessWeek, and then seemed to have gone away.
Well, Second Life didn’t go away, it’s still there, and the pandemic seems to have given it a “second life” so to speak.
(Please pardon the pun, I couldn’t resist!)
Let’s talk about this!
For those of you who don’t keep your geek status up to date, Second Life is a virtual world where people create avatars and go about building their lives inworld.
There’s an economy of sorts and over time, communities have come and gone.
The start of the 2020 pandemic brought back in many folks who haven’t been around for awhile as well as a horde of newcomers. (Called in the inworld vernacular, “noobs”.)
Many of these folks were just killing time since they were under lock down in Real Life (More inworld vernacular!) and came inworld to see what’s going on and to try and reconnect if they could.
(Me? Why am I inworld? I’ve had a longstanding interest in computer animation and virtual worlds and have been dabbling in Second Life for just over ten years. But, that’s a story for another day!)
One of the longstanding residents, who’s been inworld seemingly forever, is Draxtor Despres.
He broadcasts a very successful weekly talk show from SL and recently started up the Second Life Book Club where he meets Real Life sci fi/fantasy authors to discuss their books and what’s happening in the world.
(Admittedly, there’s been a lot lately.)
Draxtor broadcasts live inworld and via YouTube and recordings of his various shows can be found online.
He started doing this because of a lifelong interest in books and a need from writers to find a way to reach their readers during the pandemic.
The first broadcast has almost four hundred live viewers across Second Life and social media.
The YouTube recording has been viewed almost 1,200 times.
Pretty good, eh?
Most writers I know would settle for just a fraction of these numbers.
So, why am I telling you this?
As some you know about me, I enjoy reading mysteries and thrillers and I also sit on the Board of Directors of the New York Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America (MWANY).
(No, I don’t write fiction, although some of my past managers may claim that my status reports might qualify.)
Since the pandemic started, between my clients and MWANY, I’ve been engaged in helping writers with book launches and staying in contact with their readers.
Once I saw what Draxtor was doing, I inquired about any interest in doing a similar show in Second Life for mysteries/thrillers.
I’m happy to announce that he said “Yes” and on Monday, July 20th, at 6:00PM Pacific/Second Life Time, The Mystery Hour with Con Sweeney will premiere.
My first guest is Erica Obey, an award winning author and President of MWANY.
We’ll be discussing her books and writing during the time of the coronavirus.
For those of you who aren’t ready to immerse yourselves inworld yet, the live broadcast and recordings can be found on YouTube and the Facebook page.
For those of you who would like to take your first steps inworld, my Second Life business partner can help you get yourself established.
Just contact me and I’ll put you in touch with her.
Going forward, The Mystery Hour with Con Sweeney will broadcast live on the third Monday of every month at 6:00PM Pacific/Second Life Time.
Mark your calendars because I have a great guest lined up for August!
Please join Erica and me on July 20th at 6:00PM Pacific/Second Life Time!
I promise you an interesting evening of discussion!
That’s it for now!
Please check-out my 8 step approach for developing a social media program to get some more ideas on how to use social media.
Also, never forget to reach out to either ask questions or to ask for help from someone like myself!
In the meantime, thank you for following and reading my blog!
I look forward to any and all comments that you may have. I will reply to any comments made to this blog post as promptly as I can.
And, remember!
I do this for a living and if I can be of any assistance to either you or your organization, please feel free to call on me. Our initial discussion will be of no charge to you.
I can also be reached at conpsweeney@someddi.com.
My Twitter handle is @conpsweeney.

Stay well!