6 simple tips to use Twitter effectively as an actor

01/19/21 • 19 min

So this episode I don’t have a guest, it’s just me, and I’m going to share with you 6 simple tips for using Twitter effectively as an actor.

This year, I am making some changes to how I interact with my smartphone.

I want to make at least a small dent in the time I spend on it, and I want to use it more consciously.

I’ve turned off notifications for everything except calls, texts, and one or two messaging apps.

I want to choose when I log into social media, rather than being pulled in by the endless pinging sounds on my phone.

And I want to reduce the time I spend mindlessly scrolling social media.

So I thought I would share the tips I’ve picked up over the years to use Twitter more effectively, and more purposefully, as an actor.

In my OTHER job I’m a digital marketer, so as well as my own personal experience of making Twitter a better environment for myself as an actor, these tips are also infused with some basic marketing know-how.

Oh, hey, I almost forgot to wish you a Happy New Year.

It’s not been the most optimistic of beginnings, in fact it feels a bit like the starter pistol sounded and we faceplanted.

Which reminds me, the other reason there’s no guest this episode is that I just did not feel ready to engage with the outside world in time to organise a guest.

Anyone else in that kind of mood?

Despite that, I remain optimistic that we can make 2021 a good year.

Tweet me and let me know how you’re doing.

So this episode I don’t have a guest, it’s just me, and I’m going to share with you 6 simple tips for using Twitter effectively as an actor.

This year, I am making some changes to how I interact with my smartphone.

I want to make at least a small dent in the time I spend on it, and I want to use it more consciously.

I’ve turned off notifications for everything except calls, texts, and one or two messaging apps.

I want to choose when I log into social media, rather than being pulled in by the endless pinging sounds on my phone.

And I want to reduce the time I spend mindlessly scrolling social media.

So I thought I would share the tips I’ve picked up over the years to use Twitter more effectively, and more purposefully, as an actor.

Oh, hey, I almost forgot to wish you a Happy New Year.

It’s not been the most optimistic of beginnings, in fact it feels a bit like the starter pistol sounded and we faceplanted.

Which reminds me, the other reason there’s no guest this episode is that I just did not feel ready to engage with the outside world in time to organise a guest.

Anyone else in that kind of mood?

Despite that, I remain optimistic that we can make 2021 a good year.

Tweet me and let me know how you’re doing.

Previous Episode

Andrew Macklin, actor and career coach, on the problem with New Year’s Resolutions

One of the things that has really helped me feel connected to the creative world while in lockdown has been Andrew Macklin’s series of videos entitled “Creative Career Talk” where he talks to all kinds of creative people about what it means to live well as a creative in the world today.

I knew Andrew was an actor, and that he has worked with companies like The Royal Shakespeare Company, The Abbey Theatre and The Old Vic, but I hadn’t realised until very recently that he is also a career coach.

Because he has spent a lot of this year talking to people about living well as a creative, and since he also works with people to help them build the creative career they want, I knew Andrew would make an excellent end-of-year guest—a time when a lot of us reflect on the last 12 months and start to make plans for the months ahead.

First I got my Doctor Who nerdism out of the way (Andrew was in an episode that aired earlier this year), and then I asked whether there were any common threads that ran through his Creative Career Talks.

I also asked Andrew what he thought about the pervasive idea that actors have to sacrifice everything and “go all in” in order to succeed.

And to finish up I asked Andrew what his thoughts were on New Year’s Resolutions.

We chatted about:

The importance of building and sustaining a group of people you are inspired to work with
The need we have to progress and develop
Being the arbiter of your own medium
How the concept of going “all in” is highly seductive, but has its own drawbacks
The problems with New Year's Resolutions, and some better alternatives

Andrew was as insightful as always, and if you want more of those insights, check out the journal on his website, or his series of videos Creative Career Talk on YouTube.

You can see Andrew’s impressive acting resume on his website, where his coaching & training is also available.

AND he mentioned he will be doing some free coaching in 2021, so follow him on Twitter on @actthemacklin to be sure to hear more about that.

I can hardly believe this is my last podcast of 2020, I just want to say thank you for all the support since I started this back in May (which seems like about 3 years ago now).

I would LOVE to hear from you on what you have enjoyed, what you would like more of, and less of, and who you’d be interested in hearing on the podcast. Email me on [email protected] or connect with me on on Twitter (@frankiep).

Have a great Christmas and here’s to a less insane 2021 :D

Next Episode

Director Patrick O’Shea on his new docuseries and tips for attracting media attention

Almost exactly a year ago I headed to the stunningly gorgeous Riverstown House to shoot some reconstruction scenes for a docuseries about Ireland’s Greatest Loves.

I depicted Yeats, opposite Ciara Fitzgerald as Maud Gonne.

It was freezing, with snow and rain forcing us to grab the outdoor shots during brief gaps in the weather—not that you’d know it from the footage as those gaps then tended to be absolutely beautiful.

Freezing, but beautiful.

We were able to work relatively quickly indoors, with the decor at Riverstown House providing the perfect backdrop as we moved from room to room to represent different locations.

It was a great, supportive crew, with Patrick O’Shea (or Paddy as I will refer to him from now on) directing and Rupert McCarthy Morogh as DOP.

I knew I was in good hands, having worked with Paddy and Rupert previously,

That series, Scéalta Grá na hÉireann, has been airing on TG4 over the last few weeks and the final episode airs on Wednesday the 17th of February 2021.

Given that today is Valentine’s Day I thought Paddy would make the perfect guest this month to chat about the series.

Paddy is an award winning director with two features under his belt, a drama and a documentary. He has also directed multiple short films, also in both drama and documentary form. We had a great chat about Scéalta Grá na hÉireann, and Paddy very generously shared some invaluable tips he has picked up while being involved in the marketing and PR of his work.

We chatted about some of the things you have to be aware of to increase your chances of getting into the media.

And the importance of raising awareness and contextualising your work for your audience—regardless of how uncomfortable it might feel blowing your own trumpet (that’s a real saying right? It’s not just something my dad says...?).

I also asked Paddy about his choice to stay in Cork and make work from here, and he made some excellent points about how that choice enables him to make work he might not be able to otherwise.

You can check out Paddy’s IMDb here, connect with him on Twitter or Instagram, and view some of his work on his website Southernman Films.

Scéalta Grá na hÉireann was produced by Bo Media, and you can see it on the TG4 Player (at the time of posting at least).

As always, let me know what you think of the episode on Twitter (@frankiep) and if you want a quick, easy and affordable actor’s website check out www.mysite.actor.