Twitter Glossary

Last week, I directed my post to the anti-Twitter crowd. This week I'm aiming to help the Twitter-clueless crowd. If you are interested in trying Twitter, these definitions may come in handy.

Twitter.com ~ After you have opened an account, the main website is really only good for a few minor things: 1) managing your account settings (change your avatar, time zone, profile info, etc.), 2) following back (I like using the website to follow back because all your followers are listed in an eye-pleasing format, so all you have to do is go down the list and check yes or no), 3) checking out profile pages of other Twitterers (which is fun, seeing their background templates and such), and 4) checking out trending topics (though some Twitter clients can do that too). Other than that, the website is pretty useless. I hate to say it, but it's true. Most of the time it's slow, unresponsive, buggy, or you get the fail whale. Not very conducive to navigating the Twitterverse.

Twitter Client ~ These are free programs you download that handle your Twitter feed in a user-friendly way. Much like your home screen on Facebook, there is always a never-ending flow of tweets to scan. Do you have to read them all? Nope. Scroll through and land on the ones you're really interested in. The good thing about these clients is that you can have them running behind the scenes on your computer. You don't have to be constantly checking and refreshing a website, like Facebook or Gmail. You can also tend to several different accounts, be alerted when someone replies to you, search trending topics, and more. My opinion? If you're not using a Twitter client, you're wasting your time in the Twitterverse. Tweetie for Mac is my favorite, but there's also Seesmic Desktop, HootSuite, TweetDeck, and others.

Twitter Feed ~ This is the place where all your followers' tweets appear. It continues to refresh as long as your followers keep tweeting. Your feed might seem daunting at first, or practically empty, but it's here that you'll find the most intriguing articles, news, reviews...little gems you may have never heard about if it weren't for Twitter.

Hashtags ~ Placing a hashtag (#) in front of a word makes that word a topic. People searching for that topic can find your tweet and interact with you. Let's say you're really in to Jimmy Buffett, and you want to toss a tweet out into the Twitterverse about how much you love "Margaritaville." Attach #parrothead to the end of the tweet, and you just might get a friendly reply from several other parrot heads who agree. Or disagree. Or just want to tell you how to whiten your teeth for free...see Twitter Spam.

Trending Topics ~ These are the most popular topics in the Twitterverse at the moment. Sometimes they are hashtag topics. For example, the current trending topics as I write are Ted Kennedy, Snow Leopard, and District 9. By searching trending topics, you can see what people are saying about them in real-time. Just a quick example: not too long ago there was an earthquake in California. Everyone knew the range of the quake instantly because people tweeted about it. That's a pretty amazing feature.

Tweet Chat ~ A Twitter chat is a fun, engaging, and oftentimes overwhelming experience. By using TweetChat.com and specifying a hashtag topic to follow, you enter another dimension in the Twitterverse. Your Twitter chat window consistently refreshes, bringing every new tweet bearing your hashtag to the forefront. This means that at certain designated times, you can have a group conversation with other Tweeple all over the world. Kind of like the days of old when we actually used chat rooms. Only Tweet Chat is a bit more public, and the ones I've been to have been rated G. PG at the most. My favorite Tweet Chat is #kidlitchat on Tuesday nights, 9pm Eastern. I've met incredible people in the writing community whom I may have never found on Twitter otherwise. I've been encouraged by my peers, and I've even LOLed, for real.

Twitter Spam ~ Twitter may sound lovely so far. At the very least, it sounds like something you could try. But in the immortal words of Poison, every rose has its thorn. Twitter spam is a prickly sucker. Spammers can contact you through a variety of means: replying to you, sending you a direct message, or by simply following you. Most are bots, simple computer scripts that latch on to every Twitter account in existence and send annoying messages. Some are real people, but they think shoving a product down your throat is good marketing. The best way to prevent Twitter spam is to only follow people you're interested in and block any spammer that tries to follow you. If you befriend a spammer, they can send you a direct message, which clutters your inbox. Some spammers are hard to identify--their avatars are photos of real people, and they seem to tweet like real people, too. But you'll get the hang of spotting the Shelly Ryans of the world with a little practice. Incidentally, I would make it a rule of thumb not to follow anyone with the default brown and blue avatar, or anyone with gibberish numbers and letters for their account name.

DM ~ If you want to send someone a tweet, but don't want the whole world to read it, send them a DM (direct message). However, DMs can be extremely annoying. There are thousands who think using automatic DMs to thank people for following them is a great idea. I did too, at first. But then I started getting hundreds of DMs every day. Now I'm not such a big fan. If you want to thank someone for following, send them an @reply. It's more thoughtful and personal than the mass DM that says, "Thank you for following me! I look forward to your tweets!! Meanwhile, visit my website and buy my product!!!" *shudder* Oh, how I hate auto-DMs!

@reply ~ By placing the at symbol (@) directly in front of someone's Twitter name, you can message them personally. The message is not private like a DM. The receiver of the reply will be notified of the message. This allows them to find the reply easily, instead of hunting through their feed for any mention of their name. People who follow both you and the recipient can see the replies too, so they can follow along with the conversation if they want. If it's a reply that you want everyone to read, simply put a period in front of the @ sign, like so: .@coldplay Just wanted to tell everyone, you rock!

Retweet ~ If you like someone's tweet and you want to share it with your own followers, type RT and then a space before the person's Twitter name. Example: RT @coldplay Thanks, @mgbuehrlen, we think you rock too. << See? If Coldplay sent that tweet to me, I would want to retweet it so everyone could see. (Seriously, I would.)

Follow Back ~ As a Twitterer, you must decide how important followers are to you. If you're only interested in gaining info and joining a community, then the number of people following you may not be a big deal. You can pick and choose which of your followers you want to follow back without too much fear of offending anyone. But if you are a company or public figure, you may want to follow everyone back. (With the exception of spammers.) A true follow back is a way of saying, "Hi! Thanks for following me."

Locked Tweets ~ You have the option to "lock" your tweets and make them all private. The only people who can see them are those you specifically allow, like your mom, your brother, your best friend from college, etc. I do not recommend this, as it seems futile when Twitter is about connecting with new people. Locking your tweets might be useful if you already have an established community on Twitter, or you have no interest in communicating, you simply want to follow others.

Shelly Ryan ~ Shelly is a spambot that follows everyone. You'll meet her eventually. She may go under a different account name each time, but she's the same old Shelly, trying to show people how to make money as easily as she can. Poor thing. Doesn't know she's a scam. I've linked to one of her many Twitter profile pages so you can see her avatar, but I don't know how long the account will last.

Really, that's about all you need to know to get started. It may seem like a lot to absorb. I learned most of this by trial and error over the past year. But knowing these terms up front should help you quite a bit.

In the last post I mentioned I would give you a list of people to follow. Instead, I thought I would open the comments section up for suggestions. Who are your favorite Twitterers? Let us know!

Twitter and Urban Exploring

For the anti-Twitter and Twitter-clueless crowd

I've lived in the Twittersphere for about a year now. Currently, I have no plans of relocating or buying a summer home in the Tumblrverse. Now that I've settled in quite nicely--unpacked all my belongings, even hung a few pictures on the wall--friends and family often ask me what Twitter is all about. That question fueled this blog, to be split into two parts. (Twitter is not something you can describe succinctly.)

When it comes to Twitter, I've found most internet-savvy people fall into one of two categories: either you already tweet and love it, or you're so rebellious against Twitter that you cringe each time it's mentioned. (You thought you were talking to someone you respect, and then out pops the T-word. For shame!)

I understand where you're coming from. In fact, I wore the same shoes not too long ago.

But Twitter isn't just a bunch of social medialites micro-blogging about what they're doing at any given moment. It has grown into something infinitely more valuable.

It's sort of like standing on a street corner, gazing up at one of the old, abandoned buildings in Detroit--the Dave Broderick Tower, for example. You've watched your friends and colleagues walk boldly through the front doors like fearless urban spelunkers for a while now.

Sure, from the building's exterior, you might be a little intrigued. The thrill-seeker in you may want to try something new, but you heard Urban Exploration can be risky, and you're not sure you want to spend your days reading sob poetry from some guy named Justin, hearing the latest celebrity gossip, stumbling across a burning toilet, or worse, a frozen corpse. (Don't you wish you hadn't clicked on that last one?)

There might be a few gems inside (like this amazing view) but why trudge through the sludge to find them?

The truth is, you're right. There are some doozies in Twitterland. But for many, there is also a community living there that is so beneficial it actually changes lives.

If you've heard this before, you may have tried peeking in through a window, only to find it boarded shut, cracked, smudged, or grafittified. Judging by the cryptic home page, it seems Twitter is just a bunch of Facebook status junkies telling each other what kind of cereal they're noshing on. How could that possibly be beneficial?

Sorry to say, that's just scratching the surface. You're going to have to go through the front door like everyone else to see what's really inside. You may have to do some digging, some experimenting, some exploration, but before long, you'll discover why tweeters, twits, twitterers, and twats never want to leave.

Unlike the Broderick Tower, whose owners promised gorgeous renovation over four years ago with no sign of follow-through, Twitter actually delivers the goods.

No matter what your interests, there is a community waiting for you on Twitter. In a band? Use Twitter to connect with your fans one-on-one, post events and shows, along with photos of your bassist doing a handstand while eating a chili dog. Artist or Crafter? Connect with folks who want to buy your work. Freelancer? Find people in need of your services. Mom? Chat with other mommies dealing with the same issues you are, right at that very moment. Own a business/store? Feature new products, reviews, tips and tricks, and answer questions from your customers. Online Magazine? Post links to your latest articles, reviews, and blogs. If you're a writer like me, you can use Twitter to get your work (and your name) out there and mingle with the cream-of-the-crop publishing world.

Even if you feel like you have nothing to offer, you can follow people who inspire you: your favorite author, news anchor, journalist, politician, blogger, celebrity, critic, etc. Don't forget to follow @Astro_Mike, the astronaut who tweets from space. (Admit it, that's pretty cool!)

So now, after all of that, you might be thinking about opening the Twitter door and taking a step inside. If so, I can give you some tips to make the transition easier. My next post? The Twitter Glossary: what it means to @ someone, what hashtags are for, the dos and don'ts of direct messaging, why you never ever ever ever ever use the Twitter website to actually tweet (unless you're in a pinch), and more. I'll also post a list of great folks to follow to get you started. Sounds exciting, huh?

'Till next week, share this post with your anti-Twitter friends and enjoy this short animation, Twouble with Twitters. Remember, it doesn't have to be like this!




All Urban Exploration photos from www.ForgottenMichigan.com. Check it out for further UE photos!

Here In Spirit

Growing up in the Midwest with limited resources, I rarely had the opportunity to travel. That is partly why I became a fiction writer--I wanted to visit magical places without the hassle of passports, luggage, airport security, jetlag, etc. But I know I'll get the chance to travel abroad one day, so I'm compiling a list of real-life magical places: places that will inspire and fill me with wonder. Here are a couple of them.

Almost like a painting, the Tara River (Balkans Region) has a mystical quality, beckoning me to slip down its carved canyon path. (And take a dip in the turquoise pools.)





Faerie Glen (Isle of Skye, Scotland) is another beautiful and mysterious place. What I wouldn't give to have a croft nestled in those little hills.

Photo by go_family

A wonderful shot under the trees in Faerie Glen. You can see just how other-worldly the area truly is.

Photo by Benjamin Pfeiffer


Saint-Cirq-Lapopie is one of the many medieval villages I'd like to explore along the Lot River Valley in France.


I want to stroll down this path and smell these flowers...


...and sip coffee as the sun and mist rise over the River Lot.


Know of any place I should add to my list? Comment and let me know.

Preliminary Site Is Up!

The links at the top right of the page should be working now. Check out the other pages I've added this evening. More to come soon. Let me know what you think!

It's About Time

I finally did it. I designed a website and blog for my alternate personality: Aspiring Author.

This should be a simple task for a web designer, but I could not bring myself to create it until I was ready for the query letter phase. Now that my first novel is finished, critiqued, and edited, I'm ready to introduce everyone to the real me. The me that has been hiding since I first heard the words: once upon a time.

To most, I'm just Mandy: owner of a small business, senior editor and co-founder of a parenting website, co-author of a self-published cookbook, freelance web designer, and social media (and coffee) addict.

But I've been living a secret life--a fascinating, exhilarating, addictive life--and I'm ready to invite you in.

It may appear that I work from home, editing articles and photography, and managing my storefront (which I happen to live above). You may think I'm always online, tweeting and facebooking. (Is that even a word?) It may seem that I spend most of my days curled up on the couch with my laptop, wearing comfy pajamas and warm socks fresh from the dryer. But in reality, I'm not there at all. I'm traveling. Away on business.

Each day I step into a new world I've created. I journey back to colonial times and explore what native America might be like for Susan, a modern-day woman. I ride along with Prince Edmund through the kingdom of Teluth as he fights desperately to save his friends from persecution. I slip into the shoes of Kate, a young, single mother shunned by her church and family. I scrub floors during the Great Depression with Addie, a loyal, soft-spoken housemaid with a mysterious past. I even help Princess Amaryllis as she sacrifices her life, and love, to save her country, Vespara, from war.

You see, I'm not just Mandy: serial entrepreneur. I'm M.G. Buehrlen: sword-fighter, sailor, noblewoman, time-traveler, oil baron, single mother, professor, archeologist, musician, colonist…

The list goes on as long as I continue to write. Hopefully, one day soon, you'll be able to join me on my adventures.