The Best Reader + TIME

Back to the Basics

Welcome to the Back to the Basics class! If you missed a previous class, here are the links:

  • Insert an HTML direct link to your blog into comments
  • Comment Etiquette
This week I'd like to address the wonder that is Twitter. Yes, Twitter. We've all heard the news reporters quote Twitter and we know all about Snooki's bad Twitter grammar. Oh, wait, you haven't heard of that? Well, for your enjoyment and my pure amusement — here you go:

Okay... back to the point. Many people would have you believe that Twitter is very much like Facebook's status updates where you can type what you are doing in 140 characters or less. The reality of Twitter, and I think that those who use it religiously would agree, is that it is much more of a message service (like MSN Messeneger, AIM, or Yahoo Messenger) where you can communicate with hundreds of people who have the same interests as you. For instance, I follow all my favorite blog reviewers, authors, publishers, etc on Twitter. It's also a great marketing tool (again, here's a for instance, all of my posts are automatically fed to my Twitter account with a link and the title). In my opinion, as all of these classes are, Twitter is a great tool to "put yourself out there" and get involved in the book blogging community.

I am currently following 514 people on Twitter — most are book bloggers, many are authors, and the rest my favorite publishers and agents. Because I live in the Midwest and the Twitter craze hasn't exactly caught on yet — my Twitter account is solely for books and blogging. Does that mean I don't send random "tweets" (I hate that word) about my life or the wedding? No, but the primary focus is books and marketing.

If you don't use Twitter (again, to each their own) I think you're missing out on a lot. By "tweeting" back and forth with different authors and reviewers your begin to build relationships that you don't necessarily get from commenting on a post. The response is obviously quicker and you can have more in-depth conversations, despite the character limit. I have received books from authors, publishers, and other reviewers because of Twitter. I've been more aware of what is happening in the book blogosphere because of Twitter. Sheila and I were also the one of the few who attended the first debut author get together at BEA last year due to a quick tweet from Shannon Delany (author of "13 to Life ")! We had the opportunity to talk to so many authors one on one! It was fantastic!

Yes, I'll admit it: I've become addicted to Twitter! I love the conversations, the ability to "stick my nose" in other people's business, to find out the latest bookish news, to connect with bloggers I read consistently, to connect with authors I love... etc. But there's also the business/marketing side to Twitter that is extremely beneficial to blogging.

First of all, before I forget — quick plug to "follow" me on Twitter via @google, send me a quick tweet by putting "@google" at the beginning and mention that you read this post so I can follow you back!

If you've bought into the concept of Twitter, after you've signed up and installed the Twitter app to your desktop for easy and consistent viewing, find a Twitter Button to add to your blog. Mine can be found in the right sidebar. Then, if you really want to go all out, add your Twitter updates as well (again, mine are posted on the right sidebar).

This next part is vital and one of the best parts about Twitter: synch your blog feed to Twitter. Meaning, every time you post (even if it is a scheduled post and you aren't at your computer), the title and link to your post will be automatically tweeted to all your followers. This is a great way to get yourself out there even if you, like most people, are at work or school during the day and can't be on Twitter to get your link out there. I use (and LOVE) Twitterfeed. Another great service that I've used in the past is Google's FeedBurner. Both services are free and easy to use and, like I mentioned, can do wonders for marketing your posts and blog.

You can also synch your Goodreads account to Twitter so that every time your rate, review, or mark to read a book it posts to Twitter automatically as well. You can do this by going into "My Account" and then into "Feeds." Again, this is a simple but extremely effective way to market yourself and your product (blog, reviews, posts, etc).

The next step (if anyone is still reading) is to go out and begin following people. Don't know where to start? Who to follow? Here are a few of my favorite "Tweeters" (link goes to Twitter page):

  • @BookaliciousPam from Bookalicious
  • @BookJourney from Book Journey
  • @MichelleBall from Hooked To Books
  • @GReadsBooks from GReads
  • @brokeandbookish from Broke and Bookish
  • @thestorysiren from The Story Siren
  • @shanynlee from Chick Loves Lit
  • @booksandwine from Good Books and Good Wine
There are also quite a few fantastic authors on Twitter who you can @ when reviewing or talking about their novels. It's easy to search Twitter to find your favorite author but a few of mine are:
  • Shannon Delany — author of "13 to Life "
  • Lauren Oliver — author of "Before I Fall " and "Delirium "
  • Julie Kagawa — author of "The Iron King "
  • Denise Jaden — author of "Losing Faith "
Make sure when you follow someone to send them a public tweet (put @ in front of their Twitter name — ex: @google) and say a quick hello and introduce yourself. If you don't respond to their tweets with "your own two cents," they won't know you are there! Twitter is the place where jumping into conversations isn't rude, putting your opinion out there isn't presumptuous, and linking your blog consistently isn't spam (always in moderation people). Give it a try! I was a skeptic before and am now addicted to all things Twitter. If you make an account or already have an account, link it below (please link to your Twitter profile — not your blog).

As always, if you have a question please leave it below!

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Back to the Basics + TIME