Writers love Twitter. The reason? We work in solitary confinement--a short distance from the fridge and coffeemaker and often with a dog or cat or two to keep us company while we stare at a screen. Twitter is our water cooler, our cocktail party, our cafe. So when we need a break and want to talk about books and other things literary, many of us turn to Twitter. And with its 140-character limit, Twitter sharpens our wordsmithing and can even be a source of inspiration.

You don't have to be a professor or even a writer to follow these authors. Following them is like being part of a literary salon--thoughtful conversation sprinkled with irony and wit. You may find that you're buying more books as a result. Thanks to Ken Calhoun, a fiction writer and professor of design and new media at Lasell College, for alerting me to this list of top 50 creative writing professors on Twitter. The list includes me--much to my surprise in the esteemed company of authors I love.

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All those downloaded copies of "50 Shades of Grey" may mean fewer trees are felled in the name of "mommy porn," but that doesn't translate into a smaller carbon footprint. The equation is not that simple, according to Nick Moran, writing for The Millions.

Moran notes:

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The death of Maurice Sendak has many people quoting their favorite lines from his books and interviews on social media. Even better are people's recollections of Sendak and what his books meant to them--here in the United States and around the world.

In addition to their memories, below are links to Sendak's archived interview on NPR's Fresh Air (replayed today on the show, which left the staff weeping), President Obama's reading of "Where the Wild Things Are" and a YouTube video of Carole King singing "Chicken Soup with Rice."

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