Twitter. All the rage for "everybody" (really, over 1 billion users as of now) but still a mystery to many of us. How does one say something meaningful in 140 characters - or fewer? Does it matter, or is it just another way to grab time from an already overloaded schedule? Must I twitter?

Every so often I delve into the world of "things helpful to authors." In this case, though, I think the information has a much broader interest level. Jo Linsdell's new book, Twittertastic, is written for authors; however a huge portion of the material would also apply to anyone who wants to get something out of the Twitter experience.

Here are some of the subjects that Jo covers:

How to set up your profile and personalize it

Creating your network

Ideas for making the most out of the new features

Tweets- Types of content you can share

Retweets, hashtags, and other Twitter terminology made simple

Twitter etiquette- Dos and Don'ts of the Twitterverse

Time savers

Jo, in her usual manner of clarity and brevity, introduces the reader to the fundamentals of Twittering. How to set things up, how to find people of interest to follow, how to get yourself noticed, WHAT to tweet and where to find content. Also, as is her habit, she includes pages and pages of links and references to get you started on the "but where do I find?" part. You really DO want this one in Kindle format, those hyperlinks are terrific.

Jo also researches her books and provides the statistics and supporting content that drive home her points. For instance, tweets with images garner a 40% greater response from tweeters than text posts. Jo shows you where and how to find image content, how to upload and how to capitalize on it.

As I mentioned, I am greener than the newest newbie in this world of word-spurts, that's why Jo's explanation of #hashtags, @addresses and lists, as well as when and where to use what is so helpful. She makes it all seem so easy!

Why, you ask, should someone listen to this particular voice in the crowd of "social media experts?" Because Jo is an internationally bestselling author and illustrator. Each year she conducts PromoDay to bring writing industry people from around the world together. She also manages a blog specifically for Writers and Authors. I should also mention I count her as friend and colleague.

For any aspiring author who is looking to understand how to use social media to promote their work, this is a great guidebook on the basics that must be done. Jo gives great real-life examples of how branding, marketing and public relations are done using social media. There is also an added value - many of the tips that Jo gives can be applied to any online business marketing effort. It's just that well put together.

Great job, Jo!

I thought it was a good basic guide; it would definitely be a help to the new Twitter user. It doesn't go into very much depth about anything, and only took me about an hour or so to read, but there is plenty of great information about certain sites for reference and sites to follow on Twitter, and also explanations of some Twitter terms. It showed me a few things I didn't know, so I'm grateful for that!

The bit about the setting up of your account is very good, and everything is explained very clearly, with screenshots. The mood of the writing is upbeat; nice. I liked how the author showed examples of each step (okay, okay, one of them is me!). There's a section about live tweeting an event, too, which is interesting, though perhaps a little more than the new writer learning how to use Twitter would need to know.

I have to say, I didn't find it as helpful as some 'how to' guides. There are omissions; in the list showing groups of people to follow (agents, book marketing experts), it missed out the main one: avid readers. Bookworms. The people who are on Twitter to socialise and nothing else, and happen to like reading, ie, your potential customers. The other thing was that there was no mention at all of the ghastliness of automated RTs, DMs, etc, which is a massive potential pitfall for the new Twitter user, and nothing about the spam accounts that plague us - or how NOT to spam people!

To sum up, I'd say it's a useful reference book and definitely worth reading, but it has some gaps.