If you thought you noticed a slight lull in the frequency of our Facebook and Twitter posts over the little while, you were right. Some of that came from a general slowdown around Reading Week (even social media butterflies need a break sometimes), but there’s another reason, too…
Photo Credit: NASA HQ PHOTO via Compfight cc
We’ve been busy working on some new features. Now they’re ready to launch! Starting this week, on top of the usual posts devoted to upcoming events and enthralling literary miscellany, our Twitter and Facebook will feature some new content organized by day and theme. Check them out:
1) #OEDnesday: It’s not Wednesday anymore, it’s OEDnesday! As in, “the OED” or Oxford English Dictionary, that eminent storehouse of words, familiar and arcane, ancient and hypermodern. On Wednesdays we’ll now feature at least one word of the day, as well as links to interesting articles to impress your friends about obscure slang, strange word origins, and other little known facts about the weird, wonderful world of language – all under the hashtag #OEDnesdays. We’re making #OEDnesdays a thing with this unique feature. Coming up this week on Twitter: Blatherskite. Are you a Blatherskite? Is it a problem if you are? Follow us @UFVEnglish to find out . . .
2) #ThrowbackThursdays (also known as #TBT): Okay, we can’t take credit for this hashtag, but we join “Throwback Thursdays” to feature content about what happened on this day, and this week, in literary history. What famous or influential works were published? What authors were born or died? What other events occurred that are part of the history of the world of letters? When we’re feeling nostalgic or cheeky, #TBT will also be a venue for reflecting on our own departmental history – recalling great past events like last year’s Paradise Lost reading, reconnecting with our alumni, or reposting awkward photos from past poetry readings or Louden Singletree launch parties.
3) #FeatureFriday: Fridays will be our venue for featuring all kinds of things that are relevant to our department and our field, but especially content (articles, interviews, videos, blog posts) that highlight what makes studying English so great and so highly valued. Got a cousin or friend that keeps asking you why you take English courses? Look here , for instance, for links to articles that show them why English students not only get to write and read amazing stuff, and grapple with huge ideas and issues, but they also tend to go on to have amazing, rewarding careers in many important fields.
Besides those ongoing features, our Writer-in-Residence Jen Sookfong Lee will be blogging throughout the Winter 2016 semester. Check out her first post here, and stayed tuned for more . . .
Facebook reports that our department’s page just crossed the 200 “likes” threshold yesterday. That’s great news – let’s keep our online English community growing! Tell your friends to like us on Facebook and follow us @UFVEnglish on Twitter. And if you have ideas for material we could/ should circulate, use the hashtags above and Tweet us, or message us on Facebook–we’ll like and repost!
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