Queen of Small Talk

My friends constantly tease me about being the queen of "small talk"/talking to strangers. By having this quality, I have made friends with a letterer from DC Comics, made friends with tourists visiting my fair city and when I visit their fair city I email them for recommendations, made friends with people at conventions who follow my fandoms, and so on. Put it this way -- I have made my own network of friends or gained some valuable information/learned something new by following these steps. 1: If you are sitting on a train or a bus and you see someone reading a book, smile and talk to the person/comment on the book they are reading at the moment. Try to keep it on the positive side! Unless you can be hilariously funny, the first time you come contact with a stranger; especially a stranger; is not the greatest time to start complaining about your day, your boyfriend/girlfriend, etc. 2: Just start talking about an interesting news item you might have read, a recent movie you saw, or a book that is getting a lot of buzz. When I met the letterer from DC Comics, he was wearing a Superman t-shirt so I asked him if he watched Smallville. He was also reading a comic book so I talked to him about that too. The point of the matter is -- be observant. Do not just in your iPod or put your eyes in a book. You might actually meet someone interesting! Unless of course you are having a bad day and you really just want to be your loner self, then of course you can do that too. 3: Have a genuine reaction to what a person says. Make sure you have the spirit in which the comment was offered. For example, if someone makes a joke, even if it is not that funny, try to laugh. As they say -- fake it 'til you make it! 4: Have eye contact. I know that when I am talking to someone new I try to look them straight in the eye and act interested. I hope this helps you! Let me know your results! Also if you have any advice about this, feel free to leave a comment below.