Welcome!

Please invite all your Twitter followers to attend by giving them the party hashtag #SWLP date and time. As host, I want to do anything I can to help you have an enjoyable experience while you promote your book and celebrate its launch! Below are some notes on mechanics of participating and some suggestions to make your involvement as a featured author go as smoothly as possible.

If you have participated in Twitter Chats or Twitter Parties before, just use # SWLP and participate as you usually do.

If you are new to Twitter Parties, here’s how to get started:
(NOTE: These instructions are also now housed permanently at She Writes, right here .

• You need a Twitter account to participate. You can sign up at www.twitter.com if you don’t yet have an account. She Writes has a great webinar on Twitter for Writers that you can purchase at a discount (Information should be up on the main page and here byTuesday September 7.)

• If you have participated in Twitter Chats or Twitter Parties previously, just use the hashtag #SWLP and whatever method you normally use for Twitter chat.

• If you are new to Twitter Chat or Twitter Parties, we think the following method is the easiest way to participate:

a. Sign up with www.tweetchat.com. It’s just a few clicks to link your Twitter account to TweetChat. Allow at least 15 minutes in advance of the Launch Party for sign up, so you won’t miss any of the festivities!

b. When you want to join the [insert name of event] at 9 p.m. ET on August 24, sign into ww.tweetchat.com, and enter hashtag #SWLP (Look for the big box at the top of the screen with a # sign beside it.) This will direct you to a TweetChat room where you’ll be connected with everyone who is participating. And you won’t be distracted by any tweets coming in about any other topic.

c. When you want to leave the [insert name of event] chat, just close the www.tweetchat.com page.

Outline of the Party
• The host will begin with introductions, then will ask authors to tweet a quick summary of their books. Tweet length is short (about 140 characters including our party hashtag) so you may need to send two quick tweets. We recommend that you prepare those tweets in advance, so you can paste them into the box where you will enter text. Keep each tweet to no more than 135 characters, so there is room for the party hashtag.
Example tweets:

My book is called "Becoming a Life Change Artist: 7 Creative Skills to Reinvent Yourself at Any Stage of Life" We discovered that...

…the skills required for successful change are the same skills great artists use to create their masterpieces-skills we can all learn....

....We are all creative and can use that creativity to have richer lives

• The host will then ask participants for questions or comments about any of the books. Keep an eye out for questions or comments about your book. Respond to any that you can (or want to!) Don’t worry about responding to every question or comment. If there are a lot of people participating, the dialogue may be moving too quickly for you to track or respond to during the party. We will post a transcript of the party, so you have the option of responding to additional questions or comments.

• The host may ask a fun question of all participants, for example: “Hey everyone: What foods do you crave when you’re writing?” Or “What’s the strangest thing that’s happened to you while writing?” I will let you know in advance what that question is, so you’ll have a ready response.

• At about the half hour mark, the host will announce that the “virtual toast” is coming up in a few minutes. Then host will say something like: “Authors, is there anything else you’d like to mention before we make a toast?” That could be an opportunity for you to let people know about an event you’re having, e.g. a signing or interview, or a giveaway. We suggest you prepare a tweet in advance that you can then paste into text box.

• Participants will be invited to make a “virtual toast” to offer their good wishes to you and your books. And then we’ll be finished!

A Few More Things…
Please send me your Twitter Username so I can be sure it is working properly for a Twitter Party, and so I can provide it to participants at the start of the party. You can send it to me via Twitter @kathyjordan or email me at Kathleen.jordan@comcast.net If you’re new to Twitter or Twitter parties, and wnat to do a dry run before the party, or have any questions, I’m happy to help.