Cheers!

I’ve seen a lot of posts over the last while about gratitude and thankfulness, probably sparked by the thanksgiving holidays and the build up to Christmas. But whatever the reason, isn’t it great to see?

A couple of months ago I found that my twitter stream was filled with self promotional links. Of course, self promotion is wholly necessary – and to be applauded – but ALL the tweets were self promotional which I thought was a bit extreme. So I threw out the question:

“Where has all the conversation gone? My twitter stream is all self promotion!”

Some people suggested I was maybe following the wrong people and should unfollow a few. A valid suggestion, but I choose selectively and I know I’m following a crowd of fun and interesting people – so what happened? Was it just bad timing?

On closer inspection, I found that there were strings of RTs supporting other writers – published traditionally as well as independently – so I couldn’t complain. In fact, I was pleased to see how supportive everyone was being and my irritation turned to a feeling of admiration. I felt like applauding.

But it got me thinking…with all the advice out there about self promotion via social media, is it possible to lose the art of conversation and get bogged down with links to our writing/books/blogs?

As a result, I decided to take a bit of time out to celebrate a few other people’s achievements. After all, if you can’t celebrate those you admire, you’re not living!

There are so many deserving people that I could add to this list, but I’m limiting it (for now) to a few who really stand out to me personally. There’ll be more next week…

Vanessa O’Loughlin is the brains and brawn behind @writing_ie and Inkwell Writers. In my experience, she’s instrumental in bringing together writers, agents and publishers as well as providing brilliant workshops with attentive aftercare. There are many published writers out there who are thankful for her help.

Bob at @gutterbookshop is one of those people you can’t help adoring. As well as his fabulous bookshop, he’s a really lovely and interesting guy who’s always up for fun & a chat. Plus, he’s full of ideas and works like a Shire horse to make them happen.

@sarahwebbishere needs no introduction. But not only is she an amazingly prolific author, Sarah’s also extremely generous and helpful to those starting out. A kind and talented lady.

@mduffywriter has just released her second book, The Terrace, with Hachette, which quickly reached the top ten for original fiction here in Ireland. Her first book, Any Dream Will Do hit the Irish bestsellers list. Best thing is, Maria’s down to earth, fun and incredibly kind.

@derekF03 went from wishlist to a recorded album in under a year, and he still manages to maintain excellent writing on his own blog and writing.ie’s Songbook. Throw in a few novels at various stages of brilliance, and you know that Derek is one to watch. Driven, enthusiastic and supportive, he’s also great craic.

And finally, never forget the poets. Kate Dempsey is always on the lookout for what’s going on so she’s a great one for sharing news and events, especially via her Emerging Writer blog. For all things poetry, check out her writing.ie blog Poetic License or connect with her on twitter.

There’ll be more celebrations next week, but in the meantime…

Are there any bloggers or tweeps that you particularly admire? Please give them a shout out!