Optimizing Twitter for Authors

Twitter for Authors: Scrabble characters spelling "Twitter"

Last month we discussed the power of Instagram to reach your readers. But that isn’t the only successful platform. In fact, Twitter may be the dreamboat of social media for authors. And it isn’t hard to see why. Let’s look at a few things most writers love:

  • Writing thoughtful or quirky sentences
  • Collaboration with other writers
  • Talking with other writers about why they aren’t writing
  • Research
  • Chatting with readers

Sure, you could do these things in local groups or on Facebook. But here’s what makes Twitter different – and essential for your marketing platform.

Twitter Integrations Helps Busy Writers

Unlike Instagram, Twitter is far easily integrated into websites, blog articles, and 3rd party scheduling systems. In fact, scheduling may be the most attractive aspect for writers with a busy schedule. Instead of tweeting for your next book signing weeks in advance, take an hour and schedule them all at the same time. They will be published at a pre-set date, so you don’t even have to worry about them.

Twitter is also compatible with different chatbots and WordPress widgets, meaning there are many style variations to match your author brand.

The Hidden Power of Twitter Lists

Lists are a wonderful feature, but they are generally swept aside.

Imagine being able to add potential book bloggers and reviewers into a single feed, so that you can easily find their posts and interact with them. That’s one way to utilize a list.

You may be asking, why shouldn’t you just follow them? Following can be useful, but the problem lies in how many people you follow. Not only will you be following influencers and book bloggers, but also publishers, friends, family, news outlets, and more. This can make reading your news feed hard to follow – and you’re likely to miss important tweets.

Twitter for Authors: Scrabble characters spelling "Twitter"
Are you using Twitter to promote your work?

 

#Hashtags: Overused?

Hashtags are the key to gaining Impressions – or how many eyeballs noticed your post. So it’s tempting to pack your tweet with them. Don’t give in. The more hashtags you use, the more spammy you will look. So how many should you use? Experts at Twitter and Social Media Today suggest using no more than 2 hashtags per post.

That said, you can vary your hashtags depending on the content. If you use the Twitter app, you can use the in-app search bar for suggestions. And if you are scheduling posts, some programs also autosuggest hashtags once you start writing one.

Bonus: Did you know that there are awesome hashtags for writers. Check out some of the most popular hashtags:

  • #amwriting
  • #amediting
  • #WordCount
  • #WritersBlock
  • #WritingPrompt

Network with Twitter Chats

You may think everyone is chatting on Twitter, but this is something different. Twitter chats are specific times set to discuss certain topics. Normally there is a moderator to ensure that enough time is spent on each topic and that spammers don’t interfere. Tweets participating in the chat are marked with a hashtag and the chat’s name.

Chats are a great way to meet not only influencers in the space, but also make new friends. Some popular chats include:

Looking for something different? Author Raimey Gallant composed this list of Twitter chats for writers. You may want to give it a glance!

Twitter for Authors: Is it worth it?

It’s hard to see the return of investment (ROI) for any social media platform until you’ve experimented a little. Social Media is playing the long game. But Twitter appears to be especially useful for writers who want to hone their craft, meet colleagues, and to share some of their writing. There are various ways to get involved, stay organized, and optimize your time so you aren’t tweeting 24/7.

Is Twitter for authors? Absolutely, give it a try.

Want to stay up-to-date with the latest writing and marketing tips for writers? You can follow founder @Desiree_Duffy and our hashtag #BCE.

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