I’ve heard all the reasons. I’ve listened to the excuses. I’ve tried to convince people that “Twitter doesn’t bite.” In fact, the very first blog post I ever wrote was about how to get your feet wet in the Twitter pond.
Okay, I’m a Twitter fan. Outside my blog, that’s where I spend time online. Resources, opinions, conversation and community abound. Follow and be followed, it’s out in the open and the sharing can be intense.
But one of the things that stops authors from getting into the conversation is: they don’t know who to follow or where to find them.
Answer: I’ve done the work for you. Over the months I’ve found lots of people to follow who really contribute, in one way or another, to the independent publishing conversation that continues to evolve.
I went back over my list looking just for the people who would be of interest to other self-publishers, and here they are, ready-made for you to use.
You’ll find designers, publishers, authors, marketers, agents, editors, and just about everyone else connected to self-publishing in one way or another that I follow. These are people who use Twitter actively, providing tremendous value to followers.
Not everyone is here. I’ve tried to avoid corporate accounts. Every panel tells a story. The bios people write on Twitter make fascinating short reading, too, just try a few.
Got somebody I should add to the list? I’d love to hear, so leave me a comment. It can only get better.
So start clicking. The list is in no particular order, but each profile is a live link to that person’s page on Twitter. Have fun!
And yes, the bonus round:
Takeaway: Using and enjoying Twitter can come down to simply following the right people. Here are 52 to get you started.
Image: Flickr.com/Matt Hamm
Thank you for the list, will add on to my growing list of followers….
I hope don’t mind me dropping in a little plug that I think self-publishers might really find useful. I offer the chance for FREE advertising on my blog for Indie authors. The details are here:
http://www.bibliofreak.net/p/indie-book-of-week.html
Feel free to follow up with me on Twitter or through my e-mail.
Great list, thanks! Found some interesting new people to follow!
Some adds I would recommend:
@marketingwizdom – great resource for marketing articles and branding
@duolit – more great articles about self publishing, from marketing to editing
@advicetowriters – inspirational quotes from fellow writers
And also, you can always check the following, to find some great undiscovered fellow writers or the latest info on writing and self publishing by searching on Twitter for:
#amwriting
#amediting
#selfpublish
Thanks again! Happy writing!
Oh, and I’m @RantingsOfaGirl
I’m working on self publishing the first book of my non-fiction series, “Is The Juice Worth The Squeeze?”, that I’m using Createspace.com (so far) to publish this Spring/Summer 2011.
Thanks for the great additions, Chris.
Thank you! I already followed a lot of these, but it’s always good to find new twiends. I’m @kristiecookauth
Great list!
I’d include Dean Wesley Smith. A renegade established writer who’s come over to ‘the dark side’ and strongly advocates for self-publishing. Has some interesting, over-the-top ideas.
Thanks for the tip, Wendy. I’ll put him on my list for when I update this.
Joel,
Thank you for putting such a great list of folks together. Like Joan mentioned, the screen captures of the folks on your list make this even better. I have added maybe 35 more folks to my Twitter stream thanks to this list.
Joan, David, glad you enjoyed this. I love seeing the profile photos of each person, and the little boxes actually have quite a bit of information in them. Thanks for coming by.
What a terrific service that you used screenshots of all the people you recommend!
That’s so much more helpful than just links.
Hi Jeff,
I’m delighted to see I’m following every single one on your list – but a little sad that I didn’t make the grade! Then I noticed the date and realised that my tweeting wasn’t particularly good back then. I hope I’m doing better on that front now!
Best wishes to you and keep up the good work!
Sue
Thanks for the list, Joel!
Makes me feel like I’m connected to the right folks, because I was already friends with all but 2 of them! And thanks for the input on my book cover. My Twitter DM is not working, so I couldn’t respond. Thanks – you’re a great resource and help. BTW, after Jacqui Penn is finished editing The Reunion, I was going to send you my book and have you quote my ebook/interior layout. Later.
Jeff Bennington
The Reunion
The Rumblin’
Killing the Giants
Thanks, Jeff, I’ll look forward to it.
Thanks a bunch for this… I do appreciate it… Although I have 3 books published I didn’t know where to start…. This is very help full. Thanks again.
A really good roundup – thanks for compiling it. If you want to consider our site, we write on a variety of topics related to self-publishing, evolving business models and print on demand, among other topics.
Brian, thanks for stopping by. I’ve just recently become familiar with your website and was thinking of adding it to the blog collection I assembled recently,
36 Great Blogs for Self-Publishers
Sure, Steve, you give good value and know the self-publishing scene. The list has been pretty active, so I hope you get some followers from it. (Do you like the little “profile” boxes? Took a while, but I think it’s worth it.)
Geez, Joel, I can’t believe I didn’t notice this list before today. Thanks for including me in some august company.
Hey, Suzanna, glad you like it. I love combining the graphics with functionality, it just makes it more useful. And I will definitely be adding to this, so stay tuned!
Wow, this is so helpful! I need to use more clickable images like this – makes it fun to look at and useful at the same time. Getting busy now adding all the ones I’m not already following.
I’d also love to get the e-book fairy into the list, (she’s me, blush), since your comment today on my post about changing delivery systems was “Listen to Suzanna!” (@brainmaker).
Thanks again for providing a super list.
Marian, it was actually a good bit of fun, glad you liked it!
This is a FABULOUS list, thanks for putting it together. You’ve got some great people on there!
Thanks to you Carol for all the help you give people trying to market their books.
Joel – thanks for including me in such esteemed company. Happy tweeting for better publishing.
Jonathan,
Yes, there’s a ton of talent represented by this list, thanks. Sorry your comment go caught in the old spam filter, but thanks for stopping by!
Hey Joel,
Honored to be included on a list with such wonderful folks and to discover some great new people and resources myself!
Hey, that’s great Dana and Joanna, that’s why I did it. We have such a great community it’s fun to share.
Thanks for including me Joel – I also got a few new people to follow from this list. Excellent! Happy weekend.
Wow, thanks for including me on this terrific list! And I found several new peeps to follow :)
Dana
Hey, Zoe, you are a champion of indie publishing, so thanks to you too!
Thanks for including me in your list! I feel honored to have my name listed with many of these people because many of them I admire.
cj, thanks for that. I’ve actually “mined” your list among others! Appreciate you stopping by!
Sue, you are a great resource, glad to have you.
Thanks for including me, Joel! =)
Thank you for this great list! I have a twitter list of book designers and others in the constellation of self- and private-publishing [the area I work in]
http://twitter.com/#/list/cjmadigan/book-designers
I’m already following a great number of your picks and will be adding many more to my twitter follow and list.