First Class Twit of the Year!

On Friday, my DH informed me that I had to join Twitter because it was easy to figure out and I'd be able to 'connect' better with readers... Now, I have to admit I've been avoiding it like the plague up to this point because it has 'enormous time-suck' written all over it, and what with two catering-challenged teenage boys who never stop eating, a major email addiction and a slight problem with prevarication to deal with already it's not like I need another one of those in my orbit. But I have to admit the words 'easy' and 'connect' seduced me big time. And I should add that while doing the Selfridges workshop I was asked by several of the attendees why I wasn't on Twitter, which made me feel a bit like the moment when my oldest son informed me I was the last person in the universe who didn't know how to use predictive texting.

So I decided to dive in.

Here are a few of the valueable lessons I have learned from the process:

1) If a man ever tells you something is easy DO NOT believe him (really I should have learnt that one after he suggested we have kids, but I'm a slow learner).

2) Twitter is not easy, especially if you're like me and tend to lapse into a coma if anything even remotely resembling instructions have to be read beforehand (which probably explains why I have so many pieces of IKEA furniture which don't stand up properly).

3). Despite appearances to the contrary, if you simply hit reply when a tweet appears on your mobile, you are not replying to that person, but all your followers (thanks for the tip Trish Wylie!). So if anyone was wondering why a series of disconnected Tweets appeared on my account saying things like 'Huh?' that's why.

4). I am now following 47 people, and I'm not sure I even know 47 people... It's exciting, exhilarating and totally terrifying...

5). I have 30 something followers who are going to get extremely bored following me if I don't think up something interesting to say. Which is exciting, exhilarating, totally terrifying and just as suspected, a complete time-suck.

6). Be careful about what picture you put on your profile. As your DH may tell you a perfectly innocent shot of your knees looks like something else entirely and you'll have to change it in a hurry so as not to unintentionally flash your followers.

7). If you find it hard to edit your blog posts to less than 5,000 words, writing something smart and witty and informative in 48 characters (or whatever the heck it is) is like trying to squeeze yourself into a size 8 dress again after two kids, several thousand bars of Green and Blacks and without the benefit of armour plated magic knickers. ie: Not gonna happen.

So there you have it.. Why I'm on Twitter. And why I'm crap to follow but I hope you'll follow me anyway on @HeidiRomRice

PS: If anyone knows how to link their Facebook status and their blog posts to their Twitter account, please let me know before I have to throttle my husband.