Twitter Guide For Authors & Illustrators > Networking > I can't afford the time/money to get to networking conferences right now. Can Twitter help?
Index of topics: Main Twitter Guide For Writers & Illustrators page. To go back to my blog for kidlit/YA writers and illustrators, see Inkygirl. You can find me on Twitter at @inkyelbows (focus: writing and illustrating children's books) and @DebbieOhi (livetweets, chat, photos, personal ramblings). Also see my list of Other Useful Twitter Guides For Authors And Illustrators and Twitter Lists of: agents who represent kidlit/YA, kidlit/YA editors, children's book art/creative directors and K-12/teen librarians on Twitter.
Search the FAQ for entries containing:
Q. I can't afford the time/money to get to networking conferences right now. Can Twitter help?
While nothing can replace face-to-face interactions, Twitter can be a great way to get a peek into the goings-on at events like SCBWI conferences for those of us who can't always attend in person, or before committing the time and money for the first time.
How can you do this? By following the official hashtag of the event, like #LA15SCBWI for the 2015 SCBWI Summer Conference in Los Angeles. You can even reply or interact with people at the conference by adding a hashtag to your tweets, but do NOT use the hashtag unless it's appropriate.
Tweeting "Thanks to those at #LA15SCBWI for tweeting such great info" is fine but "Hey #LA15SCBWI attendees: check out my new book!" is not. The latter is likely to hurt your reputation and antagonize those using the hashtag.
Last updated on August 2, 2015 by Debbie Ridpath Ohi