#randomRT was first hashtagged by @jerrykeks on 8-9-12.
After that it was used sporadically by various tweeters until a small subset from the twitter gang called #SnarkAlecs started using it regularly in July of 2014.
How it began- I (@pinkyguerrero) sometimes have extremely pernicious insomnia and had started a retweet game in the wee hours to amuse myself, where I'd announce that I'd be doing 5 random retweets from my raw incoming feed of over 2000 followers. After a couple of days of this, @ggfletcher and @jenn_528 of the #SnarkAlecs were the first to use the hashtag #randomRT on July 14, 2014 for the word 'mouse', the next day (15th) I suggested the word 'pink', and one of the others suggested 'excellent'. @vickiaddesso jumped in the day after that (16th), and very quickly we were joined by @TScottBrave, @ladiosabri, @JHallmeyer, @hwilson2009, and @theclurichaun, all taking turns suggesting words to retweet.
On July 19, 2014 @holidill formalized #randomRT into a #SnarkAlecs game as a daily group tag tweet, and then created a --> list <-- to help keep us organized, and every single day since then has assigned a designated time for a rotation of players to choose which word to use in the game.
Other people have been asking to join in the game, which is awesome. Since it's difficult to tag more people in the alert tweet, and takes quite a lot of effort explaining the game in tweet threads to individuals, I am creating this page to make passing the information along easier.
How To Play #randomRT (updated 12-1-14)
Basic- when you are tagged with the word, you find 5 tweets containing that word and retweet them. You are allowed to use searches, and you can pair the assigned word with a word of your choice to focus the search into a direction you're more interested in. For example, if the word is 'spice' you can search for 'spice chicken' or 'spice candle' or whatever takes your fancy. This helps steer clear of unwanted content, which sometimes surprises us. We have also discovered that we sometimes gain followers when we retweet interesting and funny tweets. Once you've done your 5 retweets, you are done until the next word tag.
It's ok to play catch-up when you miss the tweet time. We all do it. Sometimes we miss and just move on to the next, other times we catch them all up at once if we've missed the whole day. How you play the times on #randomRT is up to you, but generally this game is about keeping a group of people synchronized on twitter with a fun game. We check in on each other, but you don't have to do that to be included and play the game.
@holidill tweets out the word assignment alert every morning to the core group, so he's the one to watch if the group grows and you get missed on tag tweets. On weekdays there are 3 games- at 12 noon, at 6 pm, and at 10 pm, all eastern. On weekends there are 4 games- 9 am, 12 noon, 6 pm, and 10 pm. all eastern. Again, you can adapt this to your time zone and either synch with us or catch up on your own time. I often do the late game early the next morning because I'm usually in bed before that late word is tweeted out.
The designated times are all Eastern, so it's up to you to figure out your time zone. I'm central, so I tweet an hour earlier than the tweet says so I stay in synch, but some people prefer to wait until that hour reaches their time zone.
It's up to each player in the core group to pay attention to being tagged in rotation and then to tweet their word out to the gang, or at least to @holidill, and then he'll tweet the word out to the gang. Some people tweet their word ahead of time in case they are stuck at work or in a school project or something, and then we do the retweets for that word later at its designated time. Sometimes a word gets missed because stuff happens, no big deal. Sooner or later, words keep coming.
At first it's a little daunting, but it's really fun being part of a flock of birds flying in formation on twitter. If you want to join the game, please let me @pinkyguerrero know. As the group grows I keep fine tuning how everyone gets contacted.
It's also ok to #randomRT with us on your own if you don't feel comfortable being listed in the group and would like to remain anonymous. I have personally asked to be removed from the word assignment rotation because my hours are so wonky and I retweet around the clock anyway, and I know @holidill enjoys doing an extra morning game during weekdays that the rest of us aren't tagged in. This game is for FUN, it's for FRIENDS, and it's for YOU to feel like part of a group and have something to do. The rules are just guidelines, and the organization keeps us from scattering all over the map and feeling lost.
:edit: I have created another --> list <-- with additional players. If you want in on this twitter game, please tag me on twitter. You guys are welcome to start your own teams and tag them yourselves. The important thing is that we do this to sync and stay in touch, and we find fun things to share on twitter.
:edit: 11-30-14
You are welcome to subscribe to these lists on twitter.
Tag Team 1
@TScottBrave
@ggfletcher
@hwilson2009
@JHallmeyer
@jenn_528
@ladiosabri
@pinkyguerrero
@vickiaddesso
Tag Team 2
@stjulia
@OceanicBlue
@SilkenSoul
@theClurichaun
@MrShuggoth
@SesameSquirrel
