For years, I have been working at writing screenplays.  Only recently have I ventured into the novel writing arena.  With this newest venture, a whole new world has been opened up for me.  First came Nanowrimo (aka National Novel Writing Month).  I have met some awesome local writers who have become great friends and who keep me on task.  Next came Twitter and an entire universe unfolded before me.

Here are even more people like me! All writing. All struggling. All in the same boat. Together. People who understand me and what it feels like to write—create.   And the access to people! Not sure what to name a character? Send a tweet out and get tons of answers seconds later.  Curious how long it took someone to write their about-to-be published work? Ask.  There’s a good chance they will answer.

When I first joined Twitter, I had no clue what on earth I was doing.  Thank goodness for @mixeduppainter (you should follow her, she is awesomely sarcastic and just as awesomely talented).  She helped me find some people to follow and gain some followers myself.  As I played around, I came across the hashtag (#) writeclub.  There’s a club on Twitter for us? I asked what this fabulous #writeclub was all about.  @MeganWhitmer and @MeganPasch answered me and I was hooked.  People from all across the country writing together on Twitter on Friday nights.  They also occasionally sneak a quick session on other days, but the main event is on Fridays.

As I continued to meet new people, I also started to follow their journeys.  Namely, the journeys of @MeganWhitmer and @LeighAnnKopans.  I respect these two ladies and was intrigued by the bits of their stories that I was coming to understand.  It was from following these two on Twitter that I found out what CP’s are. That’s critique partners for those of you who didn’t know what that meant either.

The more I got on Twitter, the more I stalked these two for the wealth of knowledge that they are.  Don’t get me wrong, I stalk plenty of people so don’t think I’m leaving you out.  I probably stalk you or will stalk you given the chance.  Anywho, back to my point.  As I followed Megan and Leigh Ann, I found myself cheering them on and praying for them to get published.  Watching their struggles made me want more and more for them to accomplish their dreams.

So, I find myself blogging my gushing pride for two people I’ve never met because 140 Twitter characters cannot describe how excited you can get for someone to accomplish their dreams before your eyes.  These two women are not the only ones I’m rooting for.  There’s a whole slew of writers that I am eagerly awaiting great news for.  One of which is @mixeduppainter who is not quite to querying, but when she is, I will be crying with her through rejections and doing a dance when she gets to that pinnacle of being published.  And @careytorg who is currently querying is another I am rallying for.

If you’re not on Twitter, you really should be.  Not just for the fabulous friends you will make, but for the knowledge you can gain.  And seeing someone succeed is a nice bonus, too.

Lastly, Megan’s and Leigh Ann’s book are not out yet, but they will be soon so you should totally go and read them.  Between will be out in 2014 and One is coming June 11, 2013 with its sequel Two out October 2013.  One and Two will be self-published so stay tuned for more info.  Or check out their blogs to stay informed:

http://meganwhitmer.blogspot.com/

http://leighannkopans.blogspot.com/

Oh, and if you have a sudden urge to get on Twitter, besides all the above, there are numerous others that would take too long to put here that you should follow.  Follow me @seeredwrite and I can suggest writers of all shapes and sizes for you to follow.  Some of my lovely Twitter friends write for this other cool blog:

http://samuraiscribes.wordpress.com/