So honestly, why has this kooky chick decided to use a pineapple as part of her branding? And is there such thing as pineapple symbolism? OK, it’s time to ‘fess up…

 

The Branding Bit

At some point soon on this blog I’ll be talking more about branding. I know not all writers have it on their radar, but I would love to share my thoughts on this in due course. (Pop your email in the sign up box if you don’t want to miss out!)

When an author thinks about branding, they need to consider who their ideal reader is, and what will draw them in. I know many writers will say hell, my ideal reader is anyone who will buy my damned book! Well yes and no, but I promise we’ll talk about that more in a future post.

For now, we’ll just say your branding should use colours, fonts and perhaps even props (pineapple!) which will resonate with the people you want to attract. You are the lighthouse, guiding in your faithful tribe. The people who will love and support you. Your superfans, if you will.

 

Stand out, Sister!

Your branding colours/fonts etc should be consistent, so that when your tribe see your stuff, you are instantly recognisable. They think hey, girl with the pineapple – what’s she saying today? (Or maybe – bleurgh – her again. Keep scrolling! But that’s OK – you don’t want those people. Imagine the snipe-y Amazon reviews.)

And when choosing your branding, you should think about how you want your ideal reader to feel when they land on your site. For me, I write romcom. Most of my blog posts and social media stuff contain humour or are tongue in cheek. So when people land on my pages I want to make them smile. Hence bright colours and a slightly random pineapple.

Quite honestly, when I was fiddling about with branding colours I felt energised by yellow, and the pineapple image kept catching my eye. (I am essentially my own ideal reader. I write the books I want to read – so that works out well!) I wasn’t actively seeking exotic fruit.

 

She Carried a Pineapple?!

Then when the pineapple refused to shimmy away, I asked my headshot photographer (Kathryn from Capture this Moment) to just humour me. To her credit, she was pretty damned cool! (She does branding photography too – check her out.)

But as a writer, a random pineapple wasn’t enough. If you write novels too, you will know that things ought not appear for no good reason. They have to work for their place on the page, or go home.

I love weaving symbolism into my writing, so I did some research to see if the pineapple could be symbolic. Writers – do you do this as you’re writing too? Anyway, here’s what I found out about pineapple symbolism…

 

Pineapple Symbolism

The pineapple wears a crown – cool!

The pineapple is sweet – ahh.

The pineapple is a symbol of welcome – perfect!

The pineapple is a symbol of friendship – yes please.

The pineapple is a symbol of hospitality – indeedie.

The pineapple is a symbol of luxury and wealth – OK, why not!

 

You’re Welcome!

So quite frankly, what’s not to love. I absolutely want my new website and blog to be a place of hospitality and friendship, and for people to feel welcomed.

Do I want to wear a crown? Possibly not – I haven’t really got the hair for it. But there’s nothing wrong with thinking big (or indeed getting a buzz cut).

And as for wealth. Hmm. As writers we are conditioned to believe we will always be on the breadline. But maybe we’ll have a money mindset pep talk sometime soon. Who’s in? Sign up to my blog if you don’t want to miss that either. We can unlock the path to sparkling success together…

 

I Would Love to Know…

Do you like finding out what things symbolise too? And pineapple on pizza – yay or absolutely nay?! Ping your thoughts in the comments box a bit further down. I would love to hear from you.

And as always, thank you so much for reading. You’re my pineapple in a world of apples.

Big love

Anita

Writer, Blogger, Author of Funny Love Stories