— "But really My Chemical Romance's "Disenchanted" is the best power-ballad of the last ten years." (Sept. 14)

Margaret Atwood (@MargaretAtwood)

Frequent Booker Prize candidate Margaret Atwood, best known for books such as "The Handmaid's Tale," has one of the more literature-oriented accounts. Perhaps that's why she has such trouble keeping thoughts under 140 characters.

Sample tweets:

— "Help! Identify a story in which a stranger hides on a boat, appears only at night to tell of a woman he failed - keys are pregnancy, coffin" (Oct. 1)

— "The story I seek is not scifi. Might be 19th C or early 20th C. The boat is returning from some "colony"or other. The hiding man is a doctor" (Oct. 1)

— "Okay, giving up for the moment. Can query person in whose house book with the story resides. Will take time. Let you know answer when found." (Oct. 1)

Steve Martin (@SteveMartinToGo)

At this point, it's fair to describe the comedian Steve Martin as an author—he's written a novella that was well-received by the New York Times, a play that was well-received by the New Yorker, and many short pieces that were published in The New Yorker. Likewise, his Twitter has been acclaimed by the New York media.

Sample tweets:

— "After much thought, I have decided to use my sense of humor for good rather than evil." (Oct 1)

— "Just hired three ex-News of the World employees to get my voice messages.  So much easier." (Oct 1)