I usually write long blog posts to explore a topic in depth. But sometimes, I know you just want to get some useful information you can grab quickly, and then get on with your day.
So, here is my first Quick Tips post. Today’s Quick topic is Twitter for Writers.
My disclaimer: These tips are not RULES. There are no RULES for Twitter, except the ones decreed by Twitter in their own Terms of Service.
Feel free to take anything you find helpful from among these tips, and ignore the rest.
This is a distillation of things that I have discovered about Twitter during 3 years on the social platform. Three years in which I have made an extraordinary number of useful and inspiring connections. Connections that have boosted my own writing and publishing career in concrete ways. All because I joined Twitter in 2011 and made that first “not sure what to say here” tweet. 😉
Ready? Let’s go.
1. Use Twitter to connect with other writers, not to sell books.
This probably goes directly against what your publisher told you and what you learned in that Writer Marketing seminar. Nevertheless, you’ll find that the people who try to sell books on Twitter get disillusioned and give up. The writers who love Twitter are using it to connect. Just for starters, I have personally met four of my brilliant beta readers on Twitter. Count ‘em: four. And I learn all the time from the links writers tweet. There’s a lot of other outcomes I could tell you about, but we’re keeping it brief today!
For more on how this connecting thing works, check out my post Twitter for Writers: Two Golden Rules. (Dang. That post title is making a mess of my “no rules” declaration above. Perhaps I’d better change it to Two Golden Suggestions. Haha 😉 )
2. Small is beautiful.
I used to think I needed a gazillion followers to do any good on Twitter. I no longer believe that. I’ve noticed that the people who genuinely interact with me often (but not always) have small followings. In fact, I now often make a point of following the small accounts and newbies, because they will actually talk to me. (They probably wonder why I’m stalking them, haha.) I’m not the only one to notice this phenomenon. This article in the Wall Street Journal talks about how big companies are finding that having a small, engaged following is more valuable than a big following.
3a. Following back is polite…
It’s not compulsory to follow back when people follow you, but it IS the generally accepted way to say, “Thanks and hello.” It doesn’t mean you have to read everything they say. Let go of that idea, and it frees you up to follow whoever looks interesting.
3b. …but CHECK first.
Setting up one of those autofollow thingies on your account is a bad idea, and will make you a spam-and-bot target. Plus you’ll end up reading fascinating tweets from a lot of p*rn stars and people trying to sell you Twitter followers.
4. And while we’re at it, don’t auto-message ANYONE.
Your publisher or that Writer Marketing seminar probably told you to send an auto-Direct Message to every new follower. Go to google search, type in “hate auto dm”, and see why it’s a bad idea. (I got 1.5 million results on that search just now.)
5. Share useful/inspiring stuff.
Some ideas: you can tweet links, pics and thoughts. Not sure what to tweet? Refer to Point 1: what would be useful, inspiring or encouraging to another writer? What might help them? What has helped you?
6. Reply!
Click on that “notifications” tab, and you’ll see who’s talking directly to you, or talking about you. It’s nice if you answer. But it doesn’t have to be instant. The world has lots of timezones, and most of us are happy to wait.
7. Be yourself, relax, and have fun!
If you’re a newbie, don’t stress. All of us were awkward — all knees and elbows — for the first few months on Twitter. Allow time to find your voice… or let it find you. It’ll come.
What do you think? Are you a Twitter fan? Has it helped you? Share your stories and suggestions!
Great article, Belinda, simple and practical. I’ve wondered, however, whether readers do lurk on Twitter looking for books to read, as there are a number of hashtags such as #BookGiveaway #FreeBook and #FridayReads which are obviously aimed at readers.
I’ve promoted my books using those and similar hashtags, but not with any consistency, so don’t know if they’re an effective tool or not. What are your thoughts?
Thanks for visiting, Robin. An author friend of mine shares her books regularly, and seems to find it valuable. I’ve very occasionally picked up a book that I saw on Twitter. I think the time you’ll get a negative reaction is when that’s all you tweet, and you never help anyone else, or tweet in a real and personal way. Hope you figure out a tweet method that works well for you. 🙂
Belinda, it is refreshing to get feedback and information about interesting topics.
Your blog is very informative. As others have mentioned, I’m a newbie to twitter.
It is easy to get some followers but some seem to follow to sell their product.
I want to use it to connect with others who have similar problems.
Great stuff – Thanks again!
Jerry
Jerry, there will always be people using social media for purposes that don’t align with our own… I now just ignore those others and keep making the most of my own involvement in the site. Best wishes for your engagement on Twitter!
Im a newbi! I thought only tv news reporters and politicians were tweeters until I discovered @writingclasses. I’m very encouraged by your tweeting tips because I have been worrying hugely that I’m not tweeting enough, following a cast of 1000s and trying to stay on top of everything, everywhere!
Thanks Belinda, I will be staying in touch.
Welcome to my blog, Jazz, and welcome to Twitter! It’s a great place to connect with other writers. I find it’s best just to let anything we don’t like go past us and ignore it, and seize on the useful and interesting and worthwhile parts. Enjoy!
Thanks for this list. I’m new to Twitter and feel, just as you describe, “all knees and elbows” about it. I want to follow/talk whatever with people but worry about doing something “wrong”.
Jamie, we all feel like that at first. Don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of it. 🙂
This is a helpful list. I especially appreciate #4 – No auto dm. The worst ones ask you to visit them on another platform or retweet a link.
Thanks Susan. Yes, it’s not a good idea to show people up front that you have no commitment to Twitter. 😉
I hadn’t thought of it that way, but you’re right. If I wanted to connect with them on Facebook, I’d have found them on Facebook.
I was at the Romance Writers of NZ Conference over the weekend, and one of the speakers (Marie Force, I think) said Twitter is great for connecting with writers but Facebook is better for connecting with readers. I suspect that’s probably true – I find it easy to find writers on Twitter (and good writers obviously read as well!), but I don’t find a lot of “just” readers there.
I also suspect that might be true, Iola. I use Twitter to connect with other writers, not readers.
But another thing for us all to remember is that the best long-term way to use social media – whatever the platform – is as a conduit back to our blogs/websites. We don’t own our social profiles, and they can be deleted tomorrow, or the algorithms changed so that no one sees us any more.
good points, Belinda. And thank you for taking the time to write your blog. I enjoy it and find it useful with a common sense approach.
Thanks Heather. I appreciate you taking the time to stop by. 🙂
Hello Belinda:
Have been following you. I am new to this e-world. Found these 7 twitter tips very valuable. It’s a confusing social media info jungle out there and it helps to focus on your points. Short and positive. I especially liked your remarks on beta readers. Thank you so much.
Thanks Heather, and welcome to the e-world and Twitter. You’ll get the hang of it soon, and I hope you enjoy Twitter and find it valuable! 🙂
Well said Belinda. Thankfully I’m on top of this practice but there are plenty newbies who’d love to learn the ropes. Of course I’m sharing everywhere. 🙂
Thanks Debby! 🙂