Tweetering On The Edge

I have often said that I wasn’t up for Twitter and Facebook. I have a website and a blog and am signed up to Goodreads (a bit sporadic and behind with the updating), which all take up time, so how is there time for anything else in between writing and editing? And do I really want to tweet? However, my media savvy daughter told me I was missing the point – and I’m sure she’s right. She recently opened a Twitter account and set up a Facebook author page for me, and presented me with the done deal. I’m really just getting used to the idea – tweetering on the edge, I suppose you could call it. (Click here and here to follow or ‘like’ me)

One of the undoubted attractions of Twitter actually answers one of my misgivings – the time factor. Five minutes to spare can be used to check on tweeting activity, and even tweet. Blogging is different - and serves a different purpose. Another thing is that just as you don’t have to conform to what might be termed ‘blog style’, you are in charge of what you do on twitter. You don’t have to go in for the ‘I’m now waiting at the bus stop’ kind of tweeting – which isn’t really me. And you don’t have to tweet all the time.

With the London Book Fair coming up (11-13 April), I was checking out their website and came across this, which is a discussion of authors and social networking, their different attitudes and the variety of ways they use them. It suggests that, given the increasingly limited resources and overworked publicity staff of publishers, authors have to take responsibility into their own hands for getting their name and work known, and social networks are an accessible and cheap way of doing this. I agree with this.

But I also came across these articles, here and here , which bring home how a site like twitter can be used to keep in touch with news about the authors, organisations and other people you are interested in – all in one place. And that is a definite attraction.

I am still learning – with interest.