How to network successfully and build your career as a professional writer.

Most of us are introverts and hate putting ourselves about. If we wanted to sell things, we’d have gone into double-glazing, not writing stories. Fortunately there are some easy ways to increase your profile and make contacts.

Go to places where other people are. You can’t network sitting at home. You need to be in places where you meet new people. So join a writer's group or attend conferences and festivals.

Focus on what you can do for others. The most popular people are the helpful ones. So think primarily in terms of what help you can offer to the people you meet.

Adopt a high profile. Join a committee; organise a talk; serve coffee; sell tickets. Doing jobs like these lifts you out of the crowd, creates a positive impression of you as someone useful, creates the impression that you’re one of the insiders, and brings you closer to useful people.

Meet the people you need to meet. It’s noticeable at events that unsuccessful writers spend all their time chatting with each other, while the successful writers are chatting with producers and script editors. If you have a list of people attending an event, decide which ones you need to make contact with — then seek them out.

Enthusiam is attractive. The more genuine enthusiasm you can communicate, the more people will remember you. So be enthusiastic about your own work; and also be positive about other people’s projects.

A quick ‘compliment-and-question’ is a good opener. It’s not necessary to create a permanent professional relationship at your first encounter. You can aim for a quick ‘compliment-and-question’ — you enjoyed their last production, or the speech they just gave, and could they explain something further? A brief conversation is enough. If it develops, great. And if it doesn’t, then maybe they’ll remember your face anyway.

Your job is to listen. People love talking about themselves or giving their opinions, so just listen. Understand their point of view. Ask them to expand on their ideas. You may even learn something useful.

“Narrow the distance.” The great Lithuanian scriptwriter Ken Basford (no, really) used this phrase about meeting people. Discover something about them as a human being, even if it’s just learning their name, to narrow that initial gap between strangers and create a relationship.

Have interesting answers ready. Always be prepared for people to ask what you do or what you’re working on. Have a short, positive answer ready which spotlights a couple of the most interesting bits.

Always carry your business card. A few simple contact details to leave with someone — at least phone and email, and maybe a web site listing your credits. It also serves to remind them of your name, so they’re more likely to remember you in future.

Be up front about asking for favours. People can sense it anyway, so you might as well be honest. Ask if they can help you. (Even be honest about leaving your business card or writing a follow-up note. You’re hoping they’ll contact you if they hear of anything useful.)