What Are Twitter Chats, Anyway?

Have you seen them? #YaLitChat, #YaMgChat, #writersroad, #YABookChat..and others. You may have seen tweets inviting you to join in and A)have no idea what that means or B)feel intimidated to do it.

I'm traversed through both A and B recently and can now tell you what they are and that they aren't that scary at all.

So what are they?

Tweeters use special hashtags like #YABookChat, so that they can find each other when they are discussing a specific topic. If you use tweet deck or hootsuit (and if you don't, why aren't you?#makelifeeasier), you can create a column that shows only tweets that use that hashtag.

Now that you are using the hashtag when you tweet, you are officially part of the discussion with that group.

Let's say #YABookChat is meeting tonight at, say, 9:00pm EST/ 6:00PST to talk about books. And not just any books but two specific books whose authors will also be joining the chat. Let's say it's authors @elle_strauss and @Lisa_Nowak and we're talking about the books #clockwise and #runningwideopen

All you have to do is type Hi #YABookChat. After that you don't have to type the hashtag again, because there's a list at the bottom of tweetdeck where you write in your tweet that keeps track of all the hashtags you use.

Or, if you see the hashtag in your stream, just click on it and a new column with open up with only tweets using that hashtag.

And when you reply to someone, their @name and the #hashtag are already there, so you just need to type your comment. (I just discovered this at the last chat. #slowlearner #proudofmyself)

EASY and fun. Joining in on chats is a great way to meet new tweet friends and to discover new info on topics you love.

There is a big hint imbedded in the instructions above. =)

Lisa Nowak and I will be guests tonight at #YABookChat, 9:00 pm EST,where we will be pleased to answer your questions about books, ourselves and anything else you'd like to know. Now that you know how easy and fun it is, I hope that you will join us!

What about you? Have you ever joined in on a twitter chat before? If so, what did you think?