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Home > Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter

Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter

By: Felicia Pride
Posted: April 15, 2009 at 6:50 AM

Writers are connecting with their readers, 140 characters at a time.

 

Twitter is the most recent Web phenomenon to prove that even the stupidest of ideas can be transformed into marketing brilliance. Many who left MySpace for Facebook have now graduated to Twitter, the new Internet time-waster of choice.

Twitter is a free service that allows users to tell what they are doing in 140 characters. And it is freakin’ addictive. Plus, it’s the perfect ego-builder: People who don’t even know you care about what you ate for breakfast. Writers, who often tend to work in isolation, are especially taking to it. More and more authors are taking advantage of Twitter’s power to connect with readers, distract them from finishing that manuscript and show that they are just as crazy/weird/normal/boring as everyone else.

Below are just some of the authors, along with their Twitter bios, who are letting you peek inside their lives. Disclaimer: This is far from an exhaustive list. Add to it. Tell us which authors you’re following in the comments section.

Abiola Abrams: @abiolatv

TV bigmouth, author of Dare, goddess passionista.

Donnell Alexander: @donnyshell

At work on forthcoming book, or hustling up freelance journalism gigs or trying to get paid from those gigs.

Keith Boykin: @keithboykin

CNBC contributor and editor of The Daily Voice.

Carleen Brice: @carleenbrice

Writer. Children of the Waters hits July ‘09.

JLove Calderon: @jlovecalderon

Author, educator, activist, who has worked passionately on social justice, race and gender issues for over 15 years.

Farai Chideya: @faraichideya

Former host NPR's News and Notes; author of Don't Believe the Hype & Kiss The Sky, plus two more books.

William Jelani Cobb: @jelani9

Writer and blogger at American Exception.

Lolita Files: @lolitafiles

Woman. Writer. Lover. Multi-pet owner. Occasional bitch. Friend.

Nelson George: @nelsongeorge

Aging B-boy, graying boho who loves movies, books and what was once called good music.

Donna Hill: @donnahill

Author, editor, mom.

Jimi Izrael: @jimiizrael

Screenwriter and author of The Denzel Principle due out Fall '09 on St. Martin's Press.

Kenji Jasper: @youngjasper

Screenwriter, novelist, journalist, photographer, warrior, cook.

Tayari Jones: @tayari

Writer and a blogger.

Aliya S. King: @aliyasking

Writer based in New Jersey.

Melissa Harris Lacewell: @harrislacewell

Princeton prof and MSNBC regular.

Miles Marshall Lewis: @furthamucka

Bohemian B-boy expatriate in Paris blogging at Further Mucker.

Elisha Miranda: @elishamiranda

Published novelist, award-winning filmmaker and entrepreneur who creates profitable media for artists, networks and businesses.

Scott Poulson-Bryant: @SPBVIP

Writer/novelist, co-founding editor of VIBE magazine, and soon-to-be PhD student.

Felicia Pride: @feliciapride

Me.

Sofía Quintero: @sofiaquintero

Ivy League homegirl, cultural activist and urban goddess.

Lawrence Ross: @alpha1906

Author.

Earl Sewell: @earlsewell

National best-selling author.

Yasmin Shiraz: @YasminShiraz

Award winning author. Keynote speaker. Mentor. CEO. Producer.

Danyel Smith: @danamo

Novelist. Editor-in-chief VIBE Magazine/VIBE.com.

Lori L. Tharps: @MeltingpotLori

Writer, author, speaker, intensely interested in cultural collisions.

Toure: @ToureX

I got two kids, and I can't believe it either.

Colson Whitehead: @colsonwhitehead

Another down-on-his-luck carny with a pocket full of broken dreams.

Sekou Writes: @SekouWrites
Author. Editor. Writer. Editor-in-chief of Uptown magazine's Web site.

 

Felicia Pride is the book columnist for The Root and the founder of BackList. Her most recent book is The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop’s Greatest Songs. E-mail her here.

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Links:
[1] http://www.theroot.com/users/fapride
[2] http://www.theroot.com/print/9469
[3] http://www.theroot.com/printmail/9469
[4] http://www.theroot.com/views/why-don-t-you-follow-me-authors-twitter
[5] http://www.facebook.com/share.php
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[7] http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=%7C+%40TheRoot247:+Why+Don%E2%80%99t+You+Follow+Me%3F+Authors+on+Twitter+http://wapo.st/1dgMq0
[8] http://www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=postto&t=Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter&u=http://www.theroot.com/views/why-don-t-you-follow-me-authors-twitter
[9] http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.theroot.com/views/why-don-t-you-follow-me-authors-twitter&title=Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter
[10] http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=edit&bkmk=http://www.theroot.com/views/why-don-t-you-follow-me-authors-twitter&title=Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter
[11]
[12] http://twitter.com/
[13] http://twitter.com/abiolatv
[14] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416541667?ie=UTF8&tag=therootcom-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=1416541667
[15] http://twitter.com/donnyshell
[16] http://twitter.com/keithboykin
[17] http://twitter.com/carleenbrice
[18] http://twitter.com/jlovecalderon
[19] http://twitter.com/faraichideya
[20] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0452270960?ie=UTF8&tag=therootcom-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=0452270960
[21] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/141658594X?ie=UTF8&tag=therootcom-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=141658594X
[22] http://twitter.com/jelani9
[23] http://www.americanexception.com/
[24] http://twitter.com/lolitafiles
[25] http://twitter.com/nelsongeorge
[26] http://twitter.com/donnahill
[27] http://twitter.com/jimiizrael
[28] http://twitter.com/youngjasper
[29] http://twitter.com/tayari
[30] http://twitter.com/aliyasking
[31] http://twitter.com/harrislacewell
[32] http://twitter.com/furthamucka
[33] http://www.furthermucker.com/
[34] http://twitter.com/elishamiranda
[35] http://twitter.com/SPBVIP
[36] http://twitter.com/feliciapride
[37] http://twitter.com/sofiaquintero
[38] http://twitter.com/alpha1906
[39] http://twitter.com/earlsewell
[40] http://twitter.com/YasminShiraz
[41] http://twitter.com/danamo
[42] http://twitter.com/MeltingpotLori
[43] http://twitter.com/ToureX
[44] http://twitter.com/colsonwhitehead
[45] http://twitter.com/SekouWrites
[46] http://www.thebacklist.net/
[47] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1568583354?ie=UTF8&tag=therootcom-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=1568583354
[48] mailto:booksontheroot@gmail.com
[49] http://www.theroot.com/views/roots-global-book-list
[50] http://www.theroot.com/views/prose-passion
[51] http://www.theroot.com/views/meaningful-obama-book
[52] http://www.theroot.com/category/views-tags/facebook
[53] http://www.theroot.com/category/views-tags/authors
[54] http://www.theroot.com/category/views-tags/book-publishing
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[56] http://www.theroot.com/views/Culture
[57] http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=edit&bkmk=http://www.theroot.com/root-100/2010/janelle-mon-e&title=Why Don’t You Follow Me? Authors on Twitter
[58] http://www.theroot.com/views/audrey-smaltz
[59] http://www.theroot.com/views/eddie-longs-coronation
[60] http://www.theroot.com/views/top-5-whitney-houston-performances