6 Benefits Of #1LineWed
For those of you who aren’t on Twitter or, for whatever reason, haven’t ever followed a #1LineWed tag on social media, it’s an event each Wednesday in which writers and authors share lines from their projects under a certain theme, identified by the aforementioned hashtag (short for 1LineWednesday).
For a while, I didn’t pay much attention to the trend, but in recent months I’ve been getting more involved, and now it’s one of my favorite writerly trends on Twitter. Here are six reasons why I would encourage writers and readers alike to tune into #1LineWed:
#1 You get to share your best lines
1LineWed is the perfect opportunity to show the world that clever line you wrote last week. Simply put, it’s loads of fun.
#2 You get a glimpse of other writers’ style and voice
Lines shared for 1LineWed tend to stand out for their humor, beautiful prose, shock value, cleverness, etc. It’s amazing to see how, within one specific theme, each write has something unique to share.
#3 You learn how prominent a theme is in your manuscript
Today’s theme was ‘need’. I ran a word search in my manuscript, and was surprised by the results. I used the words need, needed, or needs at least once in over half of my scenes. I jotted down a memo to cut out as many of those as possible when I start editing.
On the flipside, a few weeks ago the theme was ‘smell’. Once again, I ran a word search and found out just how scarce my use of the sense of smell was. Since then, I’ve made a point to incorporate all senses, not just sight/sound.
#5 You find new people to connect with
Returning to social media for a moment. A simple click on the hashtag takes you to a constantly updating list of what people are sharing, which in turn gives you a bunch of fantastic writers you’ve maybe never met before.
#6 You get free exposure for your work
Tweets/posts with the 1LineWed hashtag tend to get a decent amount of views, likes, and retweets/shares. Even though the primary goal is to have fun and see what others are up to, it’s also a great way for people to find out about your book, ask questions, and maybe even take interest enough to stick around.
If you’ve never gotten involved in a #1LineWed event before, I definitely recommend giving it a try. The rules are simple: stick to the theme, no purchase links, and get creative! I hope to see you there soon. In the meantime, keep calm and write on!
