140 characters is not a lot of space . . . which makes it a fun challenge for those who like to get creative with social media.

One creative way Twitter is being used is the Twitter Fiction Festival, taking place from Wednesday, March 12 until Sunday, March 16. Fiction authors and readers will use the short form to share story snippets, picture prompts, and other fun, fiction-related posts.

Amy Haddock of NovelCrossing noticed that relatively few Christian authors had participated in the first Fiction Festival. So she put together these great ideas for each day of the fiction festival, and asked Christian fiction authors to mark their posts with the hashtags  #TwitterFiction and #chrific. Her ideas range from micro-book reviews to a fiction author posting as one of their characters for a day.

Here’s how you can join in the fun:

Writers

First you’ve heard of the Fiction Fest? Well, it’s not too late to join in. There’s no better way to gain followers than to participate in an event all about fiction! Email Amy@NovelCrossing.com for more details if you think you’d like to participate.

Readers

Search for posts with #TwitterFiction and #chrific, and enjoy the fun from some of your favorite authors.

Create some posts of your own: This isn’t just for fiction writers. Nearly every day has a way for readers to participate as well. My favorite is Book Spine Poetry. . . stacking up a few book spines to form a “poem.” (One of my coworkers found me giggling in my office trying to create something really deep with a stack of books. Watch for them on Bethany House’s Twitter feed on Sunday!)

People Who Like Winning Stuff

If you retweet a tweet with the #TwitterFiction and #chrific hashtags or create one of your own with the same hashtags, you’ll be entered to win a great prize package of books, including all of Bethany House’s March releases. (Sorry, this is only open to Twitter users.)

Let’s take Twitter by storm, Christian fiction readers and writers!