How I Use Pinterest and Canva

I think this is one of my first how-to posts, so I hope I do it justice. I am here today to talk to you about one of my favourite apps (Pinterest) and a new app I like to pair with it (Canva). I believe both to be critical tools for any writer.

To start, let me give a short description of both.

Pinterest is a search engine type app where you can look up photos on any subject. You can then ‘pin’ those photos to your ‘boards’. You can have an unlimited amount of boards for an unlimited amount of themes and you can have them private or public.

Canva is a graphic design app where you can create a million different kinds of graphics using various templates, free images, and other features.

Pinterest is my favourite place to store story inspiration. Dream cast for my characters. Photos that match the setting. Quotes and song lyrics that match both the plot and the people. I can spend hours adding to my story boards (and in fact I have done just that on several occasions). I have 14 boards dedicated to writing. My debut novel has 3 of its own. Let me show you a snapshot below:

So Pinterest is a great way to keep your visual aids all in one place and it’s a great place to find images to spark interest in your reader by sharing via social media. My favourite way to do this is by making aesthetics, and this is where Canva comes in.

If I’m going to share on Instagram, I go to Canva and pick the Instagram template option. I scroll through until I find one I like. Usually a template with 5, 7, or 9 photo slots. Second, I go to Pinterest and take a screenshot of the photos from my board I want to use. Then, I upload the photos, rearrange them until they fit, choose a background colour, and add text as necessary. And voila! You have an aesthetic you can share about your characters, plot, or setting. Here are some of my favourites:

You can also use Canva to create promotional graphics for your author platform, like blog posts(as shown above) and release parties. They also have a bunch of templates, for Twitter and Wattpad banners, and Facebook covers. The sky is truly the limit. You'll see the below graphic if you sign up for my newsletter.

The best part of both Pinterest and Canva? They’re free. There is a paid version of Canva, but I find I can get everything done exactly how I want without paying a cent.

I hope this has been semi-informative. Let me know if you’d like to see more topics like this in the future! My next post will be on my publishing tips, so stay tuned for that.