Musing by Moonlight: Why I Hate Twitter

Musing-by-Moonlight

Yes, it’s true.

I hate Twitter.

Why?

I think it’s a waste of time.

Which is the wrong attitude to have in the book blogging world, because Twitter is how most people make their connections and promote their work.

Here’s why I hate it:

You have to be able to dedicate real time into tweeting something meaningful, and reading other tweets and responding to those.

I don’t have time for Twitter because I don’t have time to sit down and scroll through page after page of social media of people I don’t know in real life and don’t particularly care about what they had for breakfast or them livetweeting some show I don’t watch/can’t watch because I live in Australia and we get everything late #spoilers.

That’s what Facebook is for.

Twitter, for me, is a necessary evil.

I automatically link about 99% of what I produce on other websites to my Twitter. Very occasionally, if I remember, I’ll either reach out to an author or blogger if I need to leave a quick message, usually that they have something to do with my blog post of the day. It’s less formal than sending an email.

Twitter is very clique-ey

It’s hard to break into social circles. I’ve written many times on my blog about how isolated I feel as a consequence of where I live, and that isolation extends into my blogging life. Conversations are often over by the time I wake up. So when other bloggers mainly use Twitter as their social media outlet (I still prefer Goodreads and Booklikes: what can I say, I’m old school) I feel completely excluded.

I know the main reason for being excluded and isolated is that I don’t use Twitter very much. It’s a vicious circle. I enjoy my privacy, so I don’t talk about my real life. I don’t use my real name. I don’t talk about non-book things. And the book things I do talk about can be found on my Goodreads/Booklikes updates.

Why do I keep it?

Literally the only reason I haven’t deleted my Twitter is because of the way other people use it. Publicists promote my reviews to their authors using my auto-tweets, or link back to me. The author reads a review, and can reach out to me if they wish, in an informal setting. It’s ease of use for the publicist and the author. It’s easy for me, too, because I’m automatically sending those updates. I literally go weeks at a time without logging into Twitter.

How do you feel about Twitter? Is it a necessary evil or an enjoyable way to socialise?

Nemo
Nemo

About Nemo

A lover of kittens and all things sparkly, Nemo has a degree in English Literature and specialises in reviewing contemporary, paranormal, mystery/thriller, historical, sci-fi and fantasy Young Adult fiction. She is especially drawn to novels about princesses, strong female friendships, magical powers, and assassins.

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7 thoughts on “Musing by Moonlight: Why I Hate Twitter

  1. Eilonwy

    I don’t even have a Twitter account, because I spend enough time online already without adding that! And as you point out, I worry about the time-consuming aspect of it. If I get a book published, I suppose I’ll be obligated to maintain a Twitter account under my author-name, but I’m really not looking forward to it.

    That said, I do feel a bit out of a lot of loops on account of not being on Twitter.

    1. Nemo

      Yeah, Twitter is a necessary evil for authors. It gives fan a really quick, convenient way to reach out. I still hate it and I probably feel just as much out of the loop as you do.

  2. Jackie

    I’ve had a twitter account for a handful of years now, and I just started to enjoy the site. Honestly, I don’t use it nearly as much as other book bloggers do, because you’re right– sometimes it cliquey, but then, blogging in general is kind of cliquey too (and that applies to all niches). Sometimes people live-tweet their breakfast or their experience watching the newest episode of the 100, and I really don’t care about that. Buuuut, I’ve actually found a lot of great content through Twitter. I have my feed reader, which house my subscriptions to my must-read blogs. When I run out of articles to read in my feed reader, I turn to Twitter. I find some really great and engaging and inspiring articles through Twitter. Not always, of course, but for me it’s still a useful tool.

    1. Nemo

      I’m really glad you’ve found a use for Twitter. As for me, I just don’t seem to have the time.

  3. Samantha @ Bookish Serendipity

    Thank you so much for sharing! Personally, I adore Twitter, but I can definitely see your points. It is definitely clique-ish at times, which can be frustrating, but I do love how it allows me to talk with people (without commenting on their blog) about anything that we feel like chatting about, and it’s a great way to track new blog posts and book deals. Great post!

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