Twinkle, Twinkle, I'm on Twitter

I've been twittered. Or at least I've dipped my toe in and have given it a try. I feel so . . . connected and a little baffled and a lot overwhelmed by the feeds. Who to follow? What are the rules? What are the social niceties that one must follow so that one does not upset or insult anyone? Which being me, won't be all that hard NOT to do.

I blame Liza Palmer (@LizaPalmer) and Megan Crane (@megancrane) (who also writes as Caitlin Crews) entirely for this situation. When I was down in LA for the Romantic Times conference, they took me out to dinner, forced me to eat way too much food, as well as second dessert, and then, when I was in a food induced, pushed-over-the-edge-by-too-much-chocolate hangover, they convinced me that I couldn't live without Twitter. More like browbeat. The peer pressure was too much. I caved like a souffle. Albeit it, a really good chocolate one.

So what have I learned from being on Twitter? [image error]

1) Well, it is an entirely new language. Full of #marks, RT (which means Retweet, aka a forward, not Romantic Times–which is totally an honest mistake if you spend the first three days on Twitter wondering why everyone is plugging Romantic Times.)

2) That you can truly waste a lot of time wondering what is going to roll up next in the feed and also that if you live on the West coast, that on Tuesdays you shouldn't go on Twitter after 5 pm, unless you like having a new episode of Glee spoiled by all the East coasters tweeting their opinions of said episode, #whichIhaven'tseen. Same goes for during the day when All My Children and One Life to Life are playing any where east of northern Idaho.

3) That, like Facebook, Twitter opens you up to a new a much bigger world of connectivity. I have met some interesting new people, hooked up with some old friends–waving at former Dell author and talented writer, Shelly Thacker (@shellythacker)–as well as communicated and shared tweets with famous folks I never thought to "meet." I've also happened upon some news pieces and business news that would probably have never passed my radar before Twitter.

All in all, I've enjoyed meeting other Austen aficionados, knitting addicts, and of course, lovers of books and especially romance novels. I love the quirky humor of my fellow romance authors (@KatharineAshe and @TessaDare) and love peeking into the lives of others. Therefore, if you are so inclined, and are not easily insulted, and most of all, will humor my missteps and odd tweets, I invite you to follow me, @ElizBoyle.[image error]

Now to make it more fun, I want to hear about your adventures or non-adventures with Twitter and to sweeten the pot, I am giving away a bag of books to one lucky commenter, tweeter or otherwise lucky person.

CONTEST Guidelines and Rules:

Three ways to enter:

1) Leave a comment here on my blog with either your Twitter handle or on why (and more importantly, HOW) you have avoided Twitter. (If you are reading this on Facebook, pop over to this post on my blog, http://elizabethboyle.com/blog/2011/0... because Facebook has gotten all stinky about contests, so entries can only done at my website.)

2) Follow me on Twitter and then make the following tweet:

I just entered to #win a bag of romance books from @ElizBoyle! #AndILoveToWin. You can enter at http://tinyurl.com/3q4px39

3) Do both and you're entered twice!

Enter before May 20th, midnight PDT and I will announce a winner in my Saturday, May 21st blog. Check back to discover if you've won and contact me before Saturday May, 29th to claim your prize.

©2011 Elizabeth Boyle Blog. All Rights Reserved.

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