newbies' guide to Twitter

Learn Twitter: 10 Beginning Steps by Ruth Snyder: A Review

 

I've had a Twitter account since 2009 and have used the same Twitter handle since then. However, I've never had a good handle on the uses of Twitter and how to make the most of it. Thanks to Ruth Snyder's book Learn Twitter: 10 Beginning Steps, my situation is improving.

 

Snyder starts by identifying several benefits of Twitter including:

-keeping up with current trends

-meeting new friends

-finding information on topics you're researching

-notifying people when you write a new blog post

-sharing quotations from your writing

-building a platform

 

I was already exercising some of these benefits, though on a sporadic basis. Other benefits in Snyder's list open new possibilities in my mind. After reading her book, I hope to take better advantage of my Twitter account.

 

Her book is written in clear, concise language. It's very basic. The first six chapters take readers through creating a Twitter account, preparing a profile, and posting their first Tweet. Each chapter ends with an assignment inviting readers to apply what they have learned.

 

Snyder's remaining three chapters discuss:

-following people on Twitter

-etiquette and safety guidelines

-writing good Tweets

-relationship-building on Twitter

Again, each chapter ends with a suitable assignment.

 

I discovered new things throughout the book, and not just in the last three chapters. For example, I learned that you can pose a question on Twitter and ask people to retweet it, thus accessing the knowledge of many beyond your own group of followers. I learned about a media platform called About Me. I wasn't familiar with it but immediately saw its advantages so now I'm on About Me as well as Twitter.

 

I learned that you can link your blog to Twitter and also use Big Big Tweet to post messages longer than Twitter's prescribed 140-character maximum. I haven't tried these two yet but may do so in the future.

 

I recommend this helpful book and look forward to the next one in the series, Learn Twitter: 10 Intermediate Steps.

 

 

Elma Schemenauer CONSIDER THE SUNFLOWERS: 1940s-era novel about love, Mennonites, faith, & betrayal.  Info at http://elmams.wix.com/sflwrs   Order from Chapters online http://tinyurl.com/nsylp5j or Borealis Press http://tinyurl.com/lfdo9pf