Twitter can make you a better author.

No, I’m not crazy. It really can. Sure, some people think that if you get on Twitter, you’re trying to AVOID work, but hey, it can be a productivity tool, too.  Let me explain…

1.    Twitter is great for forcing motivation. Have you ever participated in a #1k1hr? (That’s writing 1000 words in an hour.) If you log on to Twitter, you can usually find writers posting that they are about to start at #1k1hr.  (Jeez, I know I do them like 4 or 5 times a day, so you an always join me for a #1k1hr.)

If you need to get pages written, if you need to get those words churned out, then step up and participate in a #1k1hr.  By agreeing publicly (ok, on Twitter) that you’re in to write—well, you are IN to write. When the hour is up, it’s time for accountability. You share your word count. You prove that you didn’t goof off during that time.

I do these #1k1hr events multiple times a day when I’m on a deadline. Simply put, I find them to be awesome.

2.    Networking. Once upon a time, if you wanted to network with other writers and readers, you had to attend a big conference event.  Thanks to Twitter, you can network 24/7. There are always other writers on Twitter. Always other readers. Find them. Search by your interest. Follow them. Get folks to follow you. Talk and communicate.  Follow editors. Follow agents.  You’ll be amazed at the networking opportunities that develop.

3.    Industry Insight. Okay, this goes along with my last point…if you’re following editors and agents on Twitter, do you know what they may do? Tweet about the books they want to acquire. Tweet about the books they love. Tweet about their working lives so they can give you insight into marketing and book buying and publishing meetings. If you get really lucky, you can catch an #AskEditor or #AskAgent event. These hashtags designate that an editor (#AskEditor) or an agent (#AskAgent) will be available to ask answer questions on Twitter for a specific period of time (say an hour). So if you have a specific question that you are dying to get answered, then this is your chance!

4.    Promotion. If you’re a writer, then Twitter is great for fast promotion.  Now, don’t get me wrong. You shouldn’t be beating folks over the head with constant news about your latest release, but you can still effectively promote. You can announce contests, show off new covers, share book deals—and then other people may re-tweet your news, so the promo effect is compounded. How awesome is that?  But, again, don’t be promo crazy. Have conversations on Twitter, don’t just constantly blast about your books.

5. Interaction.  Writing is a solitary job.  Writers spend hours in front of computer screens, tapping out pages and pages.  During the day, it can get lonely. When you need a break to chat with others, you can find plenty of interaction when you log on to Twitter. Talk for a few moments. Rest your mind, then jump right back into your story (with a #1k1hr).

So that’s it. My top 5 reasons for loving Twitter.  Got any points you’d like to share?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 at 10:54 am and is filed under Romance. You can follow any comments to this entry through the RSS feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.