One of the big pushbacks I see from companies, thought leaders, and institutions when it comes to leaving X and trying a new social media platform is “there aren’t enough people” or “they can’t leave all those followers.” But, who’s truly listening when accounts post? A large number of followers doesn’t always equal engagement with real people. Let’s dig in.
I think comparing a kidlit superstar’s social media engagement on X and a humble Bluesky account with 1/52 the followers can prove a point.
Mo Willems is among the most famous and prolific author/illustrators today. The Pigeon series of books has sold more than six million copies! His account on X (formerly Twitter) has close to 100,000 followers, and his team still posts really fun content there regularly. But what sort of impact does he have when he posts to X? Bluesky is a newer and increasingly popular social media platform that is similar to the Twitter of a few years ago… Could it be possible that Mo Willems would get a better response if he joined Bluesky?
A baby bunny might have the answer.
I’ve been pretty outspoken about why individuals, companies and institutions should leave X and try Bluesky after I saw horrific, violent photos posted to a children’s book event’s hashtag. So, let’s see what happens when we pit a social media post result from one of the world’s most popular children’s book authors and his beloved multi-million selling character on X against a post by… me, an unagented author/illustrator, and a tiny friend who lives in my yard, on Bluesky.
The contenders:
THE FAVORITE on X! World-famous Mo Willems’ official THE PIGEON account on X! (Plus an assist from another organization you may have heard of…The New York Yankees!) X says The Pigeon has 93,600 followers! 52 times as many followers as his Bluesky opponent!
VS.
THE UNDERDOG on BLUESKY. The slightly less famous Brian Kirby, an unagented author/illustrator on BlueSky, along with a baby bunny that he saw in his yard. Brian has 1,800 followers on Bluesky. 91,800 fewer followers than The Pigeon on X.
The Posts:
The Favorite’s Post on X: The Pigeon partners with Yankee Stadium (which has 31.2K followers itself) to promote Mo Willems Family Day with a post on X. Sounds like a really fun time for up to 46,537 (Yankee Stadium’s capacity) ticket holders! A big event! A huge promotion! Hot dogs!
Post Stats:
1 Reply
5 Retweets
37 Likes
2.8K User Reach (2.99% of 93.6K Followers) – 1K users more than Brian’s follower count on Bluesky)
43 Engagements
The Underdog’s Post on BlueSky: Brian notices an adorable bunny that is living under his backyard steps outside Cleveland, Ohio. He hastily shares a picture on Bluesky. Baby bunny does not have a social media account like Yankee Stadium does, so he is not tagged in the post. The bunny will not be appearing at a stadium. No promotional payment was exchanged between Brian and the bunny.
Post Stats:
7 Replies
11 Reposts
247 Likes
265 User Engagements (14.72% of 1.8K followers)
Brian and his baby bunny pal had 222 more user engagements than the Pigeon/Yankees team.
Mo & The Pigeon’s number of engagements was just 0.045% of their number of his “followers.”
Brian and the bunny’s number of engagements was 14.72% of his number of followers.
Brian’s post had 6.16 times the engagement of The Pigeon’s, despite having just 1.92% the number of followers.
X reports that The Pigeon’s post reached 2.8K users (2.99% of 93.6K Followers). If true, 43 engagements out of 2,800 is just a 1.5% engagement rate.
The percentage increase from 0.045 to 14.72 is 32,611%.
At least 265 people on Bluesky heard what I said, whereas we only have proof of 43 users hearing Mo Willems.
There is only one possible explanation. 93,557 of The Pigeon’s 93,600 followers must be Red Sox fans!!!
Ok, maybe this isn’t the only possible explanation. Maybe the real explanation is that every user who followed The Pigeon over the 15 years since his Twitter account was created in June 2009 (2009 was the last time the Yankees won the World Series!) may not still be visiting, especially now that the platform has changed to X. Maybe a hefty percentage of his more recent follows are not from real accounts, and bots do not understand the amusement of The Pigeon getting to eat a ballpark hot dog. Maybe X users have all become bus drivers. Maybe a baby bunny just has a better Klout score than a best-selling-worldwide-phenomenon author…? Maybe Bluesky’s lack of content-throttling algorithms and user base of actual human beings favors baby bunnies. Maybe X is indeed an empty arena claiming the seats that were filled back during the Eras Tour are today’s current attendance, while Bluesky is a standing-room only ballroom packed with fans waiting for a show.
A 6-year old in 2009 would now be old enough to have an adult beverage at the game. Time moves on.
43 Million People had Blockbuster Video cards.
I no way do I mean this as an attack on Mo Willems and The Pigeon. His whole team is creating great content! My kids love it! ❤️
I just hope The Pigeon and all of his publishingindustry pals join me on Bluesky.
The remaining company he keeps on X doesn’t deserve him.
The algorithm-free aspect of Bluesky is refreshing, but setting up your account can be a little confusing, so I’ve put together a little explainer with some of the top lists/feeds to follow.
When you connect with accounts that share your interests, check their profile for their lists, feeds, and starter pack tabs.
Feeds – User-created timelines of posts populated by options drawn from Bluesky, which may include keywords, date ranges, types of posts, and who is posting. Typically focuses on a specific topic or hashtag, or even a user list combined with other criteria.
Starter Packs – Up to 50 collected accounts organized/curated by a user, ideally on a unifying theme, with related feeds available as well (don’t neglect toggling over to the feeds tab in a starter pack). You can follow all of the accounts in a single click, or follow any of the accounts individually. A time-saving way to start following people and related feeds!
Lists – Collections of accounts created by a user. Following/pinning a list will let you see all of the posts everyone on the list is sharing, in a chronological timeline. Includes replies, where you can see who people are talking to. Focuses on people grouped by similarities (i.e. kidlit agents), and not a single topic (i.e. the agent could be talking about the amazing key lime pie they just had).
Charlene Chua used the analogy that switching between various feeds & lists is like changing a TV channel. You can control the content you see, rather than having an algorithm choose it for you. Some feeds and lists may seem similar, but are slightly different—such as the SCBWI list and feeds I’ve included. Debbie Ridpath Ohi‘s SCBWI feed is pulled from her curated list of identified SCBWI members/staff/faculty, while my SCBWI feed pulls the keyword/hashtag from anyone using it. Both are useful depending on what you want to see!
Below are kidlit-related options to follow on Bluesky—you can add them to you experience by clicking PIN TO HOME at the top of the lists and feeds, or by hitting FOLLOW ALL on the starter pack collections:
A great place to start and see current conversations and active users! This is a comprehensive feed that scans for kidlit-related posts from many lists of users actively moderated by multiple members of the Bluesky kidlit community. Filters out replies, and uses various keywords and hashtags to keep on topic. Some of the lists below are tied into this huge feed. More info—and to check to see if you are already eligible to appear in the feed—can be found here.
An expansive 1,600+ user list with any and all kidlit-related accounts, illustrators, authors, agents, art directors, publishers, librarians, boosters, bloggers, etc.—where you see what everyone on the list is posting chronologically, no matter what the topic. Like a big cocktail party with thousands of guests. If you have any kidlit interests and want to be part of the Mega Feed, ask to me be added to this list. If activity on BlueSky seems quiet, checking in on this list of unfiltered posts is good way to see current activity and connect with people.
Collects posts tagged #KidLitArt. Like following the hashtag. Mostly used by illustrators of children’s books & children’s illustration, and for the monthly #kidlitart chat on Thursdays. A fantastic way to check out the great art users are posting.
Posts from illustrators who work on published (or publishing soon) children’s books – boardbooks, picturebooks, chapterbooks, middle grade, young adult, comics, etc.
A list of agents and agencies who represent kidlit/YA creators. Don’t harass anyone by querying/pitching via Bluesky unless they have asked! A great, growing list to follow.
A starter pack to easily follow agents and agencies who represent kidlit/YA creators. Just hit “follow all” Don’t harass anyone by querying/pitching via Bluesky unless they have asked!
A more specific starter pack to quickly follow all of ABLA’s agents that are on Bluesky! They have a handy list of their agents as well. A great way to help people connect with the whole agency presence!
Collected list of SCBWI members, staff, and conference faculty. You can find more info about the Society Of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators: www.scbwi.org.
A starter pack to easily follow #KidLit / children’s authors who are posting on Bluesky. The 50-account limit woefully underrepresents the volume of authors on the platform, but the included feeds are a great way to encounter and follower more authors.
A collection of KidLit & YA editors who work with traditional publishing houses. Please do NOT pitch or query directly via Bluesky unless they specifically ask.
All posts from a collection of creators (writers, artists, colorists, editors, etc) who’ve worked on published (or publishing soon) comic books, series, and graphic novels aimed at MG and YA audiences.
Follows the #kidlitartpostcard hashtag to chronologically show posts to Gina Perry‘s wonderful monthly event (typically the 1st Thursday of the month, except for holiday delays) where illustrators post their art and information.
If you think you should be included on any of these lists, ask one of the administrators, they typically have instructions on how to ask in the list’s description. You can first check to see if you are already on a list by scanning the “About” tab, or by checking the MEGA FEED information on this page.
Also – make your own lists, feeds and starter packs! The best part of Bluesky is having control over what your own timeline looks like. Take advantage. Debbie Ridpath Ohi has a wealth of information on her website, and all of the admins I’ve shown above have more lists, feeds and starter packs than the ones I’ve listed, all easily found on their Bluesky profile.
Find the ones that work for you, or make your own!
Also of interest:
The DISCOVER feed is administrated by Bluesky, and shows trending content from your personal network. You can click the ellipsis button at the bottom right of each post in the feed where it gives you the option to show more posts like that one, or less. It is like a curated social media algorithm, but you have more control. Admin: @bsky.app
If you know anyone still on X that is wary of transitioning to Bluesky, share these tools to help them migrate! And show them why they should.
I’ve been in Marketing with a capital M for a couple of decades, and have worked on large-scale online campaigns for companies like Taco Bell, Wendy’s McDonalds, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Dannon, Toyota, and many more. I have experience looking at engagement data for huge companies, and have seen good and poor decisions made across the board as far as online marketing goes. I’ve also experienced the positive effects of a large user reach on platforms like Twitter and Reddit, and have had my content go viral to the point where it is a top trending topic for days. I understand the pull of a promised number of followers, and the years of work and luck it takes to build that following. 30 year olds today were 12 years old when Twitter launched, it is hard to pivot to building another thing. But I’m imploring agencies & publishers that are not migrating away from X because of their follower count to reconsider. Because the follower count and actual follower reach are two different things.
One need only look at the actual engagement numbers. The accounts created on X still exist, but most account owners have stopped regularly using them.
The follower count on X is an accumulated number, not a current one. It’s like the ticker on a turnstile in an abandoned railway station, showing everyone who passed through over 18 years. That number doesn’t mean the station is packed.
During a recent #kidlit pitch event on X (formerly Twitter—I think it is past time to keep calling it that), an account posted horrific, gory photos to the hashtag. Seeing this sort of content in a children’s book event is something that would have caused a huge uproar at one time. But I haven’t seen any mention of the posts or photos anywhere. I have screen captures, I know they were there.
Why are the publishers/media companies/agents & agencies not distancing themselves from an online space where something like this happens? Accepting the unacceptable? The answer I usually get is that they can’t move away from their follower count.
Without naming names, let’s look at the engagement that major publishing industry accounts are truly getting from their followers on X. Below are reply, retweet, like and post reach numbers from a publishing, education, and media company that has built up 236,000 X followers. Their posts nowadays reach only about 0.2% of that—fewer than 1.5k on average, and they typically get less than 10 engagements per post.
This same publisher recently shared a site-wide 40% off sale to their 236,000 X followers, and this is the engagement they had for that announcement:
Five likes and one retweet, despite their hundreds of thousands of followers. When you look at the post engagements, the sole retweet does not actually exist.
If they opened the window of their corporate offices and shouted at people on the street, would they get a better return on their marketing…?
Another publisher has about 37,000 followers on X—here are some of their recent post engagements:
The two retweets are from the author and illustratorof the book being posted about. If you are on X and see a publisher post, click through to see what the reply is. You will often find “whoohoo” or heart emoji ❤️ replies from the mentioned author or illustrator, without any another interaction from the supposed thousands of followers. No shame for any creators, some of my favorites are among these sole responses, and I would do the same. They SHOULD be responding in support of the posts that are made. But are these posts reaching people who are not already aware of the book? Imagine the Beatles posting about their new single and the only person the post reached was Ringo.
Here is another example—this literary agency has about 9,000 X followers. Posts they share (that aren’t RTs from other accounts) are getting <10 engagements, and reach less than 5% of their follower count.
Here is another fairly well-known literary agency on X, with about 6,200 followers. Even their best-performing posts reach <10% of their followers, and have fewer than 20 engagements.
Is this marketing that works? Is the return on time and effort worth loyalty to a platform where grisly photos are posted to #kidlit-related hashtags? How many of a publisher’s or agency’s followers on X are actual human beings, interested in and capable of buying books? How many followers look like this?
What do engagements even look like for these big X accounts anymore? How many “likes” are starting to come from accounts like these?
How many replies look like the troll gibberish under this post?
All of this garbage ad content pours into #kidlit community hashtags and pitch events:
Automated bots even hijack the picture book events on X to share twisted “AI” book pitches:
Imagine an agent or editor having to sift through this nonsense to find a worthwhile pitch. And again, the horrors of war hijacked the hashtag during the final #pbpitch and posted gruesome, nightmarish photographs of children alongside picture book pitches for children’s stories.
Look at the engagement yourself for kidlit accounts. Pay attention to the volume and interactions they get. If you click through to view the handful of replies and retweets on posts, you will find most are from the authors and illustrators of the books mentioned, employees/other divisions of the same company, a few friends or family, bots or trolls. Not users that you would want to PROMOTE to.
Social media fatigue has set in for many people, and chasing down what the next big thing will be is exhausting. But instead of chasing down the next big thing, expecting it to be automatic, why not join in and help build a new community that works the way social media used to, connecting people? That’s what Twitter was 10-12 years ago, users building a following and trying new things, like chat events and pitch parties. The platform didn’t create those, it merely enabled users to make them happen. If more corporate and agency accounts put the effort into building a following on Bluesky, where there are already thousands of kidlit creators and agents interacting and building a framework to succeed, the positive feeling of discovery through connecting online can return. And you can curate your own content there, without an algorithm deciding what you should see.
Regaining a following is not automatic there, but with the new feeds and lists (ex: Agents, Editors, Illustrators, Kidlit Community, Librarians) that users have created (that contain THOUSANDS of Kidlit-related users posting fantastic content), people WILL find you if you post even a little genuine content and use a #kidlit hashtag. Users have already primed the pump for you.
Look through the 139 engagements on that Bluesky post—those are from REAL people, relevant to their interests. ABLA has even made a list of their agents on Bluesky, to make it easy for everyone to connect with them.
Mallory Grigg, Senior Art Director at MacKidsBooks, recently posted a call for illustrators on both X and Bluesky at the same time. She has 9,133 followers on X, and just 874 followers on Bluesky. Look at the engagement numbers for each platform.
On X:
Looking through her 46 replies on X, there are 25 responses, two of which are ads, before you get to the responses labelled as “Probable Spam.”
There are legitimate responses that are unexplainably in this spam category, and the rest of the replies are hidden with this warning:
On Bluesky, where she has only 9.5% of the follower count that she has on X, her engagement is actually higher:
The 36 responses to her post on Bluesky have no ads or spam, and there is nothing that could be labelled as offensive content, but there are illustrators sharing samples, attempts to be helpful by referring indigenous artists, and a recommendation for finding the illustrator she’s looking for on the Cartoonist of Color database.
Engagements on X total 3.5% of Mallory’s follower count, while the engagements on Bluesky were 43.2% of her follower count there. Bluesky delivered 378 total engagements, while X delivered 320. Consider what the support of a MacKidsBooks presence on Bluesky might have achieved.
I’ve worked in marketing long enough to know that decision makers often look for receipts rather than results. It’s easy to impress the boss with a big number, and X counts on that. But marketing teams, agents and editors need to convince the decision makers to INTERPRET the data, instead of looking at hollow follower numbers. I believe they will find that the right thing to do completely coincides with the SMART thing to do.
Several of us who have been recommending Bluesky have been receiving pushback that amounts to “The agents aren’t there,” “the publishers aren’t there,” “the schools and libraries aren’t there.”
Why not? Tell them to migrate over. They are posting on X, spending time, effort and marketing paychecks to reach a minimal amount of users who may or may not even exist, and getting the sort of response a flyer on a coffee shop bulletin board would get, if soulless robots drank coffee. If they get their teams to join Bluesky and actually interact with their community, the return would be better, the community would benefit, and their presence will draw more truly engaging followers to the platform.
Gina Perry has even moved her popular #kidlitartpostcard event exclusively to BlueSky and Cara, and it was a great success, with 192 artists posting their art on BlueSky for the 1st event there!
It’s not just Kidlit where these engagement numbers are happening—check this thread about climate science from Katherine Hayhoe, which even breaks down the percentage of negative engagement her post received on each platform:
Why Not …Threads?
Threads does indeed have a lot of users registered, having been easy to onboard for anyone already connected to Facebook and Instagram. But it presents the same issues, particularly for Kidlit creators, that Facebook and Instagram have. Artists don’t want their images used for as fodder for AI learning. The algorithm favors clickbait over conversation. Engagement is lower than on Bluesky, despite Thread’s claim of 175 million users. And the release of Threads in the European Union was postponed amid regulatory uncertainty about how the app will use personal data. Sounds delightful, right?
I informally asked Bluesky users why they were drawn to Bluesky over Threads, and was surprised there were fewer answers about the copyright/AI/privacy issues, and the overwhelming response was Thread’s negativity:
“I really struggle with all the negativity and gossip“
“My Threads is constantly showing me book drama…”
“…started off positive but quickly began to feel like drama and negativity was what drove the algorithm…”
“The threads preview on my IG is always showing me book industry drama and just generally bad vibes.”
“Threads is just an off shoot of Instagram and I find it an hostile environment…”
“Bsky feels more positive / craft / art-focused. Threads feels like a whole pile of drama and I don’t need more!”
Bluesky has a great art community, and it is a safer space for LGBTQ+ people too.”
“More community focus.”
“Better control, to see what you actually want—like all the great feeds…”
“So much positive energy here. I haven’t felt this kind of joy in a long time. Great kidlit crowd. Lots of creative vibes.”
My personal observation is that the platform believes its users would rather see Nestle get in a flame war with Wendy’s or Weird Al Yankovic, and not show the users you really want to follow in a chronological timeline. It’s what a non-Twitter user thinks Twitter was all about.
What Can You Do?
What can you do to get your agency, publishers, SCBWI, school, library, colleagues, etc. to make the change? Share this information with them—refer them to the feeds, lists and starter packs that have been created to help with onboarding. Email decision makers, your agent, publisher, art directors. Recommend they check out Debbie Ohi and her tutorials, Charlene Chua’s illustrator Starter Packs, and my guides for kidlit and the Kidlit Mega Feed.
Tell them they are playing an empty arena on X when they could be playing Bluesky’s packed ballroom.
The amazing Debbie Ridpath Ohi and Charlene Chua teamed up with me to pool our resources, creating a way of connecting quickly and easily with the kidlit community on the BlueSky social media platform:
One easy way to join in is to get onto my KIDLIT COMMUNITY list. This is one of the moderated lists that the Mega Feed pulls from. I’ve been adding users to this list steadily over the past year, and it is very inclusive. Ask me to add you if you don’t see yourself in the feed: @boringstorybook.com
…but check to see if you are already eligible to appear in the Mega Feed HERE first.
This feed should truly help anyone who is looking to connect with other people in kidlit, including creatives, publishers, agents, agencies, boosters, chat/event moderators, SCBWI groups, librarians, educators, art directors, picturebook, publishing news, YA, MG, GN, etc. etc.
Bluesky does not have an algorithm that chooses content to show users, it allows users to choose the content they want to see. Our project pools several vetted lists from multiple moderators into one comprehensive feed, and also scans for a variety of kidlit-related keywords and hashtags in the posts to keep on topic and filter out unrelated content (i.e. no “Ihave a toe infection,” “My cat smells,” “I just really got into crypto” type posts). There are also NO REPLIES in the Mega Feed, although you can click on the individual posts to see responses if you would like, or visit the moderators’ original lists, which I recommend following as well.
The Mega Feed is like an algorithm run by discerning humans, serving curated #kidlit content! It’s intended to be a gateway to connect and join conversations, especially useful for new users to onboard quickly. We hope it brings back the days of actual engagement between humans, and gives everyone an alternative to posting into a void.
Feeds can be built with lists or a host of criteria, such as a keyword, hashtag, emoji—they can be tailored more specifically to a topic, or combination of lists and topics. Like Debbie Ohi’s book bans feed. A great way to build a feed is via BlueSkyFeedCreator.com—their developer has been very helpful in getting this project going. Try and build your own feed!
Our new MEGA FEED combines multiple moderated lists ofusers(from a growing number of contributors) into one comprehensive feed and ALSO curates further by using specific hashtags & keywords while filtering out replies! There is no single person controlling the content, we have many lists, with more added all the time. Pooling multiple kidlit list moderators that serve a variety of kidlit interests should result in feed that provides a much easier way to jump in and take part.
One last thing – share the feed with any holdouts you know on other social platforms. And remember, this is a work-in-progress effort, and many people are volunteering their time to benefit as many in the community as possible. Please interact patiently and kindly, as there are sure to be hiccups along the way. And a word of advice – be yourself and try to connect with people on BlueSky, rather than just promoting. You will have more success in finding people to support you.
Screen caps of our planning sessions by Debbie Ohi
I submitted my story FOR SHENANIGANS ONLY as an author/illustrator and was one of 25 entries chosen for the illustrator’s showcase.
The event itself has been a great experience, with or without the finalist result. I was paired with 6 other authors for a ranking group, where we all read through and critiqued 6 of each other’s manuscripts. I was also lucky enough to get a critique from past 3x finalist author/illustrator Ellen Seal. I loved the stories I was privileged to read, and the ranking process, and hope to see stories I critiqued get published soon.
The showcase goes live on March 25, I will be following up with a more in-depth recap of the experience once the dust settles!
One of the indoor activities my kids loved during the isolating years of the pandemic that we continue to do every so often is a movie night campout. Staying up late building pillow forts and watching monster movies without any mosquitos or hungry bears around is the best.
So I made a National Parks-style poster tribute to this simple bit of family fun.
One of the ways I brainstorm characters for my stories is to draw them over and over until I feel like I know them. My favorite original characters to draw are Noodle and Goofball, who appear in a few of my stories. They are toddler twins with different birthdays and ambitions to avoid bedtime and create shenanigans.
Goofball is the youngest, and the most rambunctious. He wears dinosaur pajamas, likes climbing things and identifies as a monster (especially when it is close to bedtime). He’s ready for adventures at a moment’s notice, but can be very sensitive sometimes. He is susceptible to joining in the precocious plots his sister concocts.
One of my goals is to make characters that wouldn’t be too hard for a child to draw.
Sharing a Procreate doodle video of my character Noodle.
She is a pre-school kid who gets a little overstimulated and diabolical before bedtime, so I was inspired by the manic characters in old sugary cereal commercials when I was designing her. Her hair is a spiky, like spines and horns on a monster dinosaur. Her face is all eyes and mouth to make her extra expressive.
For this doodle, I used Procreate, which records your drawings in a time-lapse video. I use a syrupy black ink brush for her line work, because I want the humor and cartoony expressiveness of old newspaper comic strip characters, and I color her in using bits of pink/orange felt and flowery blue & yellow fabric I scanned, to make her appear as if she has really comfy pajamas on and give her a children’s book quality.
Using real world textures for color was inspired by paper cutting illustrations in picture books like The Snowy Day, or Eric Carle’s tissue paper collages. Scanning textures and using them to color in my characters helps to make digital drawings feel more natural, I think. I offset the color slightly to give her a vintage printed look. Do you think she is ready for shenanigans?
On the first Thursday of each month, children’s book illustrators from around the world share illustrations across social media using the hashtag #KidLitArtPostcard.
Illustrator Gina Perry is kind enough to organize this event exclusively on Bluesky and Cara.
