Create visuals like this at canva.com. It’s quick and easy.
Twitter did not appeal to me at first (or second or third). So why, you ask, would I write this post? Recently, I find myself enjoying it more and more. There are lots of fun challenges for writers and the character limitation ends up being a great revision tool.
How Twitter can help your revision
One Word Search
Many of the writing challenges have themes. One of the challenges I did had “green” for its theme. I opened my work in progress (WIP) and typed the word green in the find bar. This brought up every instance of the word green in my manuscript. As I searched through, looking for a sentence I would like to share with fellow writers and readers, I found myself editing every single sentence. I also noticed a trend toward shiny green eyes that I probably wouldn’t have noticed otherwise–time for a game of pessimistic moustache with body part eyes. I posted:
Today it was fluorescent green and at the moment it was taking the shape of her left molars. #1linewed #WIPWed
— Maria L. Berg (@authormariaberg) September 21, 2016
(that’s the first time I’ve embedded a tweet. So many firsts recently here at Experience Writing )
Themes and Word Count
The reason twitter is working so well for me as a revision tool is the limited character count. Another theme I participated in was Send/Receive/Give. In my WIP, my main character wrote a poem that fit this theme perfectly. However, I could only use a small part of it within a tweet. I thought it was a great revision exercise to attempt to keep the message and feel of the poems with so few words. Here is what I tweeted:
Like waves take sand, the thief moves one’s dream to another.
The imbalance erodes, soon sending standing form to fall.
#FictFri— Maria L. Berg (@authormariaberg) September 23, 2016
Finished revision and ready to pitch?
The third line of hashtags in my picture is for you. Writing a pitch for your book that will fit in a tweet is great practice for creating your logline. When you’re ready to start querying agents, or are working on a new story idea #MSWL is great! Agents list stories they are looking for. This can quickly narrow your agent list to agents looking for your work.
Check out Twitter Pitching Like a Pro over at publishingcrawl.com
These are only a few ways that I find Twitter helpful to my #writingprocess. There are many more hashtags to explore and create. Have fun!
For more hashtag suggestions L.M. Pierce has a great list.
There are also many books out there about using twitter for writers. For more tips and tricks check out:
Your Book, Your Brand: The Step-By-Step Guide to Launching Your Book and Boosting Your Sales
Twitter for Writers: The Author’s Guide to Tweeting Success (Writer’s Craft Book 8)
Twitter for Authors Artists and Entrepreneurs: Social Networking for the Creative Mind
Experience Writing 