It’s got me contemplating my own tribes. There are the obvious ones – my extended family, the parents of children my kids go to school with, friends I went to high school or college with.

Then there are the writing tribes I belong to. When I worked at a daily newspaper, the other reporters were my tribe.

When I went freelance, not only did I lose my full-time paycheck, I lost my tribe. Instead of being part of a pack of 300, suddenly I was on my own – at least that’s what it felt like at the time.

It’s partly the reason journalists – anybody really – feel discombobulated after losing a job. Suddenly the tribe you’ve identified with for as long as you held that job has vanished.

But as Godin points out, the Internet is the perfect tribe-making tool because it makes communicating so easy. First it was through email listservs, then IM and chat rooms on online services like AOL, then the Web, blogs, and now the ultimate tribal circles, social networks like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Ning, LinkedIn and so on and so on.

Today, I’m part of several writing tribes. Knit them together and they’re the buddy system I lost when I left the newsroom. They’ve become intrinsic to my professional identity.

My tribes:

Freelance Success – A subscription-based writer’s community with a weekly newsletter and pay-rate database. For me and many of the hundreds of professional writers who pay the site’s $99 annual fee, the best part is the message boards, which are active, civil and cover topics such as magazines, corporate writing, blogs, travel writing and books.

#EditorChat - A weekly online chat on FriendFeed.com hosted by Motley Fool finance writer Tim Beyers and business feature writer Lydia Dishman that takes on all manner of subjects writers and editors care about. #Editorchat happens Wednesday nights at 8:30 p.m. Eastern. The latest discussion covered the types of work or household tasks freelancers outsource to buy themselves more time to work – or would if they could afford it. Earlier discussions have covered the New York Times’ decision to have columnists teach online classes, writing for content aggregators and hyperlocal news.

Twitter – Writers use Twitter many ways – to connect with sources, promote a story, showcase a blog. Another is to synch up with fellow writers. I follow several hundred writers and editors and am followed by a like number. We use it like a mini-message board, to share tips, answer quick questions or exchange atta boys. If you’re a writer, follow me at
@MichelleRafter and I’ll follow you back.

Portland digital media scene – A collection of writers, bloggers, podcasters, software developers and other media types with one thing in common – living and working here in Portland. This is probably the most loosely defined tribe I’m in. Portland’s media tribe hangs out at the Green Dragon on Fridays for Beer and Blog, goes to WordPress user groups meetings and WordCamp Portland (the next one’s Sept. 19-20 at Webtrends), and congregates at Mediabistro.com cocktail parties (which, BTW, somebody needs to resurrect – Mediabistro, if you read this, I’m happy to volunteer). The area’s digerati coalesced in the biggest way ever when more than 150 locals got together at the Digital Journalism Camp in August to listen to panels on hyperlocal news, new revenue models, podcasting and more.

UPOD – A Yahoo group for experienced freelancers led by Los Angeles freelancer David Hochman that I tune into via email.

Online News Association – This trade group for professional journalists who specialize in digital media has benefited from the demise of traditional (print) media in the past year, witnessed by a major uptick in membership. The group holds an annual convention – this year’s is in San Francisco Oct. 2-4 and I’ll be there – regular online and in-person classes, an online journalism awards competition, member discussion forum and offers other benefits and resources.

These tribes have become the places I look for help, bounce ideas off people, blow off steam when I’m frustrated with a story or editor or visit when I just want to talk.

As more people work freelance – not just writers but all kinds of freelancers – expect to see more tribes. That’s what all the fuss is over social networks, which ones are the best tool for creating tribes. It’s why Facebook and Twitter are such big news, why investors still pour money into social network start ups and everyone from job boards to media outlets are tacking on a community component to their websites – think of it as tribal warfare.

Are you in a tribe?

• Pitched a story about Twitter.
• Found sources for the story on Twitter.
• Had sources use Twitter to publicize the story once it went live.
• Watched my Twitter followers have a real-time debate over pros and cons of issues raised in story.
• Had a Twitter conversation with one of those followers over what was being debated that led to an idea for follow up piece.

When I mentioned this chain of events on a writers’ board, one friend wrote:

I joined recently and don’t get it. I thought I’d be able to drop in and out of streams of conversations on certain topics, but I don’t even know how to get anything meaningful out of anything. I click on “Everyone” and just have a static list of who said what in the last few min. I click refresh and get a bit more. I really thought I’d be able to see more real-time action.

I get similar questions from writers who’re  just starting to use Twitter – and it wasn’t that long ago that I was in the same boat.

So for what it’s worth, I’ve taken everything I’ve learned since my first tweet and compiled this, a writers’ guide to getting the most out of Twitter.

Have a plan. Think about why you want to use Twitter. Is it to find sources? Troll for story ideas? Promote yourself as an expert on a specific topic? Build a platform for your book or blog? Look for work? Deciding what you want out of it will drive how you use it.

Follow people. Once you’ve figured out why you’re using it, follow other Twitter users who fall into one or more of your designated Twitter areas of interest. If you write about gardening, for example, you’ll want to follow gardening experts. Do a Twitter Search to find them. Use the Search link at the bottom of the Twitter home page and search for “gardening” or use the hashtag #gardening. If you spot someone who’s tweeted something interesting, click on their bio, read more about them, and if you like what you see, follow them. You can also use directories like WeFollow.com to find people whose interests you share or who you think would make good sources.

Introduce yourself. If someone you follow follows you back, or someone you don’t know follows you, introduce yourself. Send them a DM – Twitter speak for a private message – explaining who you are, where you’re located, what you write about, and throw in a link to your Website or blog. That’s a lot to fit into 140 characters, use a service like Tiny URL to keep it short. Tailor your DMs to new followers to their interests. I cover HR, tech and social media and when someone new follows me, I rewrite my initial DM depending on common interests or geography.

Tweet. That is to say, don’t just lurk, enter the frey. Most writers are born sharers so this shouldn’t be hard, but the 140-character format and constant stream of tweets it could take some getting used to. What to say? That’s the easy part: talk about what you’re working on (without giving too much away), crowdsource for stories you’re doing, vent about workplace frustrations or comment on someone else’s tweet. It’s also perfectly acceptable to promote something you’re written or your latest blog post, just be careful not to overdo it.

Use Twitter tools. Widgets and apps like TweetDeck and TweetGrid can keep track of followers or tweets by grouping them into categories and replying to comments after they’ve scrolled off the screen. Mashable, the social media Website, has as list of 140+ Twitter tools with links to even more.

Take it at your own pace. Freelance writer Donna Hull suggests:

Don’t feel like you need to read every twitter, even TweetDeck can’t help you keep up with all of it. Be sure to check your DM’s and @replies as they are the most important. Otherwise, think of it as communicating in real time. Jump in the info stream, get as much out of it as you can. When it’s time to jump out, forgot about it until the next Twitter session.

For a lot of people, Twitter is a numbers game that’s all about how many followers they can get – similar to the open networkers on LinkedIn or friend fiends on Facebook who collect connections like baseball cards. But a worthwhile social network is based on quality, not quantity. You want to know the people you’re adding are there for a reason. If that means you only add a couple new Twitter followers a week, so be it. On the other hand, the more people you follow, the more conversations will be going on in your tweet stream and the more you’ll have to read, learn from and reach out to when the occasion comes.

Restrict your intake. It’s easy to get caught up in the flow, literally. But if you’re billing by the hour or project like most freelancers, you can’t afford to spend all day on Twitter, even if it is great for finding sources and ideas. Donna Hull put herself on a “Twitter diet,” giving herself Twitter breaks like coffee breaks. Other writers check in before or after their workday.

Here are some other blog posts from tech-savvy freelancers sharing how they’re making the most of Twitter:

Getting started on Twitter – Twitter basics from Elizabeth Kricfalusi, the tech writer behind the excellent Tech for Luddites blog.

8 ways Twitter can grow your freelance business – Bizzia.com’s Jennie Cromie penned this guest blog post for TwiTips, a newish Twitter tips Website from ProBlogger.com’s Darren Rowse.

25 publishing industry people to follow – Former Writer’s Digest editor Maria Schneider’s list of Twitter must follows includes book agents, publishers and social media gurus.

Editorchat – In early February, Motley Fool writer Tim Beyers and freelancer Lydia Dishman started this gabfest for writers and editors that takes place live on Twitter every Wednesday from 8 to 9:30 p.m. EST. Use #editorchat to follow the action or read entire transcripts on the Editorchat blog.