"I wish I read more" is a line that comes out of almost everyone's mouth at one point or another. But between work, your Netflix queue and tweeting out what you ate for lunch, picking up War and Peace can be challenging.
But what if scrolling through your Twitter feed could provide you with beautiful, sharp and well-written snippets in 140 characters? A recent article in the New Yorker about the authors' role on Twitter and the potential of Twitter fiction got us thinking about our favorite authors who tweet. Our list of top five authors provide tweets that are sometimes literary, sometimes funny and always well-written.
Reading an author's tweets may not be on same level as reading a Russian novel, but you will be exposed to some insightful, well-written snippets in about the same time it takes you to get your coffee.
1. Teju Cole / @tejucole
Followers: 160K
Tweets: 13.3K
Authors aside, Teju Cole is one of the best people to follow on Twitter. Period. He artfully uses the platform for a variety of different artistic endeavors, creating tweets that are both intimate and insightul. From his amazing Twitter fiction, to his political and social commentary, to his crowdsourced art, Cole is able to make his tweets stick in the ephemeral world that is Twitter.
2. Susan Orlean / @susanorlean
Followers: 272K
Tweets: 27.1K
Susan Orlean, a New Yorker writer and author, is a self-proclaimed Twitter addict and has used her love of the social media platform to break stories. But unlike other writers, Orlean also uses the platform as a way to engage in discussions with her readers (not just one-way conversations). Her feed is a good mix of writerly insights and simply funny musings.
3. John Green / @realjohngreen
Followers: 2.89M
Tweets: 21.7K
If anyone has won the Internet, it's John Green. Green is the author of immensely popular YA books such as Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska, but he is also the creator of some great Internet projects. From his online community of "nerdfighters" to his Youtube crash courses, Green simply provides a bright spot on the Web. And with so much of the Internet being all snark and cynicism, Green's hopefulness and sincerity is refreshing.
4. Joyce Carol Oates / @JoyceCarolOates
Followers: 103K
Tweets: 6780
Joyce Carol Oates is one of the strongest literary voices on Twitter. Her feed is filled with biting social commentary about world events. But be forewarned, Oates' tweets are quite controversial and she has garnered much hate for her strongly opinionated views. Wherever you fall on the Joyce Carol Oates likability spectrum, her Twitter feed is a good way to keep track of the news and the controversy she creates from it.
5. Gary Shteyngart / @Shteyngart
Followers: 42.8K
Tweets: 3418
The author of The Russian Debutante's Handbook and Little Failure: A Memoir, Gary Shteyngart's books are extremely funny and his Twitter is no different. His feed is filled with humorous commentary on the news, selfies and some self-deprecating musings. Also known for his prolific blurbing, "The Collected Blurbs of Gary Shteyngart" tumblr, is also worth a peruse.
Image Credit: Moyan Brenn/Flickr
