What is a "Platform"?

As I blogged earlier, I received three requests for submission of the memoir from people I met at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference. One response came two weeks ago. The agent was not interested, citing, among other things, that I did not have a strong platform.
A platform, in publishing terms, is a large number of people (1,000 minimum) who are "engaged" with the author, resonating with the author's message, thereby proving there is a market for the book. We are advised to begin working on our platforms even before our book is finished. The hottest social media at the moment is the blog. Getting readers to subscribe to a blog is practically a science. Social media gurus are at the ready to help with books, webinars, articles, etc. Many of these gurus are making big bucks, enticing authors to shell out significant sums to learn their "platform secrets." This, of course, leaves the poor author even poorer, or spending significant time trying to learn these "secrets" on our own.
All this has left me wondering where that leaves me. Stay tuned.
Blessings,
Linda

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