Twitter

Everyone posting on my publisher's yahoo group has followed each other on twitter. I still have discomfort with the site; but from all I read, it is the standard now in business and an excellent marketing tool.

One author has even broken a book into Twitters that are posted several times each day. I don't think I would bother with following that one - but I think I would follow the writers on this board.

My twitter is www.twitter.com/dkchristi and I would be pleased to have you following my posts (though they are not daily, sigh); and I will likewise be glad to follow yours.

Perhaps we can post our twitter id's here and then follow each other? Just a thought.

Once you get started, the junk Twitters are huge; but I just sift through them, block those I don't want and follow those I do.

I've only been to Twitter twice and didn't really see much that I found interesting. It might definitely be more interesting if folks here joined there as well.

My beef with twitter is all the rubbish it generates.
My time could be better spent doing something less trivial.
I do not think twitter is any better a tool for publicity than anything else online and it certainly is not a must website to be on. I have used twitter or rather dabbled with it and I'm not very impressed. There are lots of fake famous people using it so beware and you'll find yourself spammed cos they all want your money.

I agree.

With all the people out there reading, I can see why some would say twitter is great for publicity.

The trouble is, that all that publicity has to be indirect or it will be considered SPAM.

Those who seem to use twitter the most effectively are those who have a multi-channel career. Those with web sites that convey free information in addition to products or services of some kind and post links to blogs all day long because those links are considered helpful to others. A novelist who "simply writes novels" has to go at PR even more indirectly.

It takes more time than it's worth, I'm thinking.

Malcolm

I find it takes very little time. I receive a lot of junk that I delete, followers that I block; and it still doesn't take much time. I like going to someone I wish to follow and clicking on their list of tweets. I get a picture of their activities. It's especially nice for acquaintances with whom I don't otherwise connect.

I agree with Malcolm that having a variety of interests and web site info to which followers may be directed is the key to one's own marketing.

I also pick up quick news tips, book publishing contacts, reviewers, interesting web sites, and other ideas for publicity.

I have made a point of picking up whatever social networking venue that I can with dkchristi so my name recognition stays tied to me as an author. How many I am able to maintain to be useful remains to be seen.

Thanks to those who have added me to their Twitter; I will do the same. It's an experiement; maybe it will work well for some and poorly for others.

Would someone mind explaining the basics of Twitter to an old lady who, while she talks about, and truly believes in, learning and accepting change, has problems with some of the newer uses of technology, like texting, or cell phones, even, or facebook, which my younger daughter keeps telling me I need, and especially, these days, twitter.

Ann