Geeky Folks That You Should Follow On Twitter

Social media can be a veritable wasteland. It’s hard at times to separate the wheat from the chaff, as it were, and follow only those developments that are genuinely worth following. Given the average signal-to-noise ratio of any social platform, it can be surprisingly difficult to find likeminded folks who have updates of any merit in addition to being worth following.

But that’s what we’re here for, by gosh! Below, you’ll find an eclectic mix of artists, writers, comedians and bloggers that all vary in their position along the Scale O’ Geek, but are similarly awesome. And really, a little geek and a lot of awesome are better than lots of geek and no awesome.

1. @petermolydeux

This account takes a satirical look at what must be going on inside the head of Peter Molyneux, the man behind games like Fable and Black & White. The best part is that these humorous takes often sound like something Mr. Molyneux might actually cook up.

• Example 1A: “Why are bosses mostly big? What if the final boss was merely a cunning ant? As designers we need to challenge the ‘rules’ more often.” [editor’s note: This was pretty awesome when it happened in Earthworm Jim]
• Example 1B: “Can you truly visualize in your mind the possibilities of a ‘game over’ screen that is also a character that can be interacted with?”

2. @FakeAPStylebook

For those who don’t know, there’s a style book that lays down the law for anyone wanting to publish material in the Associated Press. Many outlets out there use this same style book with minor variations. This twitter publishes rules that are unfortunately not included in said style book.

• Example 2A: “You are legally required to include a picture of a woman dressed as Slave Leia in your #SDCC article.”
• Example 2B: “Replace the Oxford comma with the Yale comma. It’s not as prestigious but still gets the job done.”

3. @kellyoxford

Kelly Oxford is a blogger. Often enough, she’s vastly amusing. She will sometimes remind her followers that she’s a mom in her 30s. Being a mom is part of her life, but isn’t what consumes her whole being; she is still a funny person.

• Example 3A: “Sarah Palin’s last job was a grandma on a reality TV series, please stop acting like she’s a politician. Thank you.”
• Example 3B: “Just watched a dog get a lady her medication from a cabinet then turn on a microwave; but the microwave was empty. Stupid dog.”

4. @ActuallyNPH

Neil Patrick Harris truly needs no introduction. The star of How I Met Your Mother, Doogie Howser, M.D. and, of course, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Twitter is probably the easiest way to keep track of his current projects. Straight from the horse’s mouth, all that.

• Example 4A: “Had a blast guest judging SYTYCD this week! The top 10 dancers are so talented – almost better than those chicks that danced with Snoop.”
• Example 4B: “I’m trying to find a really great ventriloquist puppet, with lots of clever articulation. And oddly, there is no punchline. Any leads?”

5. @DanHarmon

Dan Harmon might currently be best known as the guy who gets the Created By credit at the beginning of the television show Community, but many in geek circles perhaps would follow him more closely if they knew that he was once a major member of the Dead Alewives. As in, these guys.

• Example 5A: “A guy got really mad at me 20 minutes into a conversation last night because he had been told I was Peter Jackson.”
• Example 5B: “Here’s an outrage to distract you from the Emmys: whatever happened to the Community porno?!”

6. @warrenellis

Warren Ellis is a writer of many things. Though he is perhaps best known for Transmetropolitan, his work continues to this day across various franchises and mediums. His Twitter is included here to keep track of his wayward wanderings and new material.

• Example 6A: “The time has come, as it does for every British comics writer, for me to learn magic. I shall begin by dowsing for my pants.”
• Example 6B: “So Chinese censors halt tv shows about time travel, & then Chinese scientists declare time travel impossible. No connection there, then.”

7. @neilhimself

The Twitter of the one, the only, Neil Gaiman. Gaiman’s work as an author includes episodes of Doctor Who, the Sandman comic series and novels such as American Gods. If there can be words written for it, chances are that Gaiman has had his hands on it.

• Example 7A: “Have awful feeling that I may have tried to explain plot of “whatever happened to the caped crusader?” to Cameron Mackintosh tonight. #drunk”
• Example 7B: “Some people think the opposite of “Funny” is “Serious & Important”. I think the real opposite of “Funny” is “Not Funny”, like a bad sitcom.”

Honorable Mentions

@IGLevine – Ken Levine is head of Irrational Games, the studio behind BioShock. Need I say more?

@ryanqnorth – Ryan North is Dinosaur Comics. Please to be reading if you have not already.

@zoetica – Zoetica Ebb is, among other things, an artist. She has also been known to photograph for Suicide Girls. Yes.

@emilyterrible – If there’s a touch of subjectivity here, it’s in my inclusion of artist Emily Carroll. Her comics and video game doodles are some of the best out there.