Make the most of your messages on Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking sites The advent of Twitter and other social networking sites, as well as the popularity of text messaging, have made short-form communication an everyday reality. But expressing yourself clearly in short bursts-particularly in the 140-character limit of Twitter-takes special writing skill. In 140 Characters, Twitter co-creator Dom Sagolla covers all the basics of great short-form writing, including the importance of communicating with simplicity, honesty, and humor. For marketers and business owners, social media is an increasingly important avenue for promoting a business-this is the first writing guide specifically dedicated to communicating with the succinctness and clarity that the Internet age demands. Covers basic grammar rules for short-form writing The equivalent of Strunk and White's Elements of Style for today's social media-driven marketing messages Helps you develop your own unique short-form writing style 140 Characters is a much-needed guide to the kind of communication that can make or break a reputation online.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments xi Foreword by Jack Dorsey xiii Introduction xv The Short Form xv The History of Twitter xvii Part One: LEAD 1 Chapter 1. Describe: A Brief Digression to Discuss Journalism Is Warranted 7 Observe the Truth 10 Play with Perspective 11 Lead with Action 13 Chapter 2. Simplify: Say More with Less 15 Constrain Yourself to the Atomic Unit of One Message 16 Appreciate Craftsmanship as a Thousand Small Gestures 18 Start Small and Serve a Special Niche 19 Limit Yourself to One Sentence, One Thought 21 Chapter 3. Avoid: Don’t Become a Fable about Too Much Information 23 Remember What Not to Do 25 Find Your Lowest Common Denominator 28 Divine a Strategy against Too Much Information 29 Practice Self-Defense 30 Reinforce, Don’t Replace, Real Life 32 Part Two: VALUE 35 Chapter 4. Voice: Say It Out Loud 39 Extend Your Range 41 Build Your Repertoire 43 Strengthen and Amplify 44 Chapter 5. Reach: Understand Your Audience 46 Measure Reader Engagement 47 Gauge the Reaction to Your Message 48 Identify Your Fans 50 Chapter 6. Repeat: It Worked for Shakespeare 53 Enable Repetition of Your Message 53 Repeat the Words of Others, Adding Your Mark in the Process 56 Exploit the Twitter Effect 56 Chapter 7. Mention: Stamp Your Own Currency 58 Design Your Mark 59 120 Is the New 140 61 Post One or Two Replies,Then Take It Offline 62 Chapter 8. Dial: Search for Silence, Volume, and Frequency 64 Pipe Up Just When It’s Quiet 64 Understand the Use of CAPITALS 65 Discover Your “Office Hours” 66 Chapter 9. Link: Deduce the Nature of Short Messages 70 Study the Anatomy of a Single Message 70 Share the Power of Hypertext 71 Change the Meaning of Words by Linking Them 72 Chapter 10. Word: Expose the Possibilities in Phraseology, Poetry, and Invention 74 Design Your Own Pattern 76 Build Your Own Lexicon by Inventing New Words 81 Poetry Is a Guide 89 Part Three: MASTER 95 Chapter 11. Tame: Apply Multiple Techniques Toward the Same End 101 Technology Will Consume Us If We Don’t Learn to Control It 102 Discover the Antidote to Each of 12 Stages 104 Manage Multiple Accounts Effectively 108 Remember: It’s All about Timing 109 Chapter 12. Cultivate: Meet 140 Characters, Each with a Unique Story 110 Create a Culture of Fun 110 Imagine Your Audience 112 Focus on Learning 113 Chapter 13. Branch: Steady, Organic Growth Is Most Manageable 115 Don’t Let Success Go to Your Head 115 Do the Same Thing, but Differently 116 Never Stop 118 Part Four: EVOLVE 123 Chapter 14. Filter: Teach the Machine to Think Ahead 129 A Little Programming Goes a Long Way 131 Breaking Things Is a Path to Learning 133 Chapter 15. Open: Give and You Shall Receive 135 Go Positive 136 Never Limit Yourself to One Platform 138 Chapter 16. Imitate: There Is Nothing Original, Except in Arrangement 140 Become an Apprentice 140 Take Someone Else’s Style One Step Further 141 Create a Caricature of Yourself 142 Chapter 17. Iterate: Practice a Sequence of Tiny Adjustments 144 Write Everywhere and Often 144 Games for Words 145 Ignite Change 146 Part Five: ACCELERATE 149 Chapter 18. Increase: Do More 153 Produce a Series on a Short Subject 153 Manufacture Velocity 155 Exceed Constraints 157 Chapter 19. Fragment: Do It Smaller 158 Decrease the Size of the Atomic Unit, the Message 158 Embrace Ambiguity 159 Recommended Reading 161 Glossary 165 Index 173