While people may have been sliding into one another's DMs since the beginning of Twitter, colloquial usage of the term, which describes smoothly direct messaging someone on Twitter with, uhh, "romantic" intent, didn't emerge until the last few years. What began as an (incorrect) Yahoo Answer in 2013 grew into a full-on pop culture moment, appearing in pictures, videos, and even songs.

Despite its easy meme-ability, the DM-slide is funny because it's true. More people than you think have have sent or received a DM as a romantic gesture, and some have even gotten into relationships thanks to the feature. In this week's Sex Talk Realness, Cosmopolitan.com spoke to three women, both DM sliders and slidees, to learn more about their relationships, and if they think it really does all go down in the DMs.

How old are you?

Woman A: Twenty-two.

Woman B: Twenty-three.

Man A: Twenty-six.

Are you in a relationship?

Woman A: No.

Woman B: Technically not.

Man A: No.

Have you ever slid into someone's DMs? If so, did this result in an IRL date? Why or why not?

Woman A: Yes.

Woman B: Yes! We started texting and then decided to see each other.

Man A: Yes. And it did, on several occasions. In two cases, it led to real-deal relationships. One was amazing, one was terrible. In other cases, it's led to, like, hookups. I feel like there was chemistry and we both thought the other was cute, so it worked out.

Has someone ever slid into ~*your*~ DMs? If so, did it result in an IRL date? Why or why not?

Woman A: Yes. I've had people from other countries DM-slide. They were just after tit or butt pics...

Woman B: Nope.

Man A: Yes, that led to sex but not long-term dating.

Had you two interacted online before, or was this the first time?

Woman A: Yes, in all instances of DM sliding, we had spoken for a while.

Woman B: Yeah! We had faved each other's tweets and sometimes had some back-and-forths on Twitter for about a year.

Man A: In both cases, yes. Although in the second [bad] case, the DM slide was maybe two tweets into talking.

How long did you two DM for?

Woman A: A year-ish?

Woman B: Literally no time at all, because my first DM included my phone number.

Man A: In the good relationship, I don't really recall. Maybe a week? In the second, we were temporarily on opposite sides of the country temporarily, so there maybe a month or two.

If you eventually met IRL, when?

Woman A: After a year.

Woman B: A little over a month.

Man A: At a reading in one case, at a bar below my house in the other case.

How did it go?

Woman A: I've had two long-term relationships that came about via a DM slide.

Woman B: Really well! I still can't believe it happened. We were in a very serious relationship, and although we're not together anymore, we're still really important parts of each other's lives.

Man A: The first one went well. I later found out that the girl was in a relationship, so we didn't date for a few months. I assumed she wasn't romantically interested in me, but she was. The second one was probably the worst first date ever. Things ended in tears and an extremely dramatic argument. Naturally, we dated another two months.

What do you think makes for a successful DM slide?

Woman A: Don't take yourself too seriously or sweat over it. If you're 99 percent sure someone has a Twitter crush on you, there's no harm in a little "Hi." If it fails, it'll just turn into a friendly chat and boom, you've got your alibi.

Woman B: I think keeping it natural, following up on something you two have already tweeted about.

Man A: A successful DM slide is like any successful first-time interaction. You find a common ground and discuss that in a light way. Maybe like a bad article, or someone being annoying or having a meltdown. If you find that there's chemistry, you can suggest meeting IRL. Mostly the successful DM slides have been when the girl has been in the same or similar field. Like, I was working for a Brooklyn media company freelance briefly and the girl worked there. We hadn't met, but there was some common ground. That girl had posted an article I wrote and said something mean about it, not realizing that I had written it. So that was a fun way to meet. I didn't take it personally, it's just online.

What are some things to AVOID in a DM slide?

Woman A: Don't be a fucking creep, so that means no unsolicited dick pics! I get screenshots of porn sometimes and I'm unsure why someone would think that's a good idea.

Woman B: No previous interaction! If there's no context, it's hard (for me, at least) to see it as anything other than uncomfortable.

Man A: You should avoid being a fucking creep. Most of life is like that.

Why do you think this kind of messaging/interaction still has a stigma?

Woman A: The notion of internet relationships are still relatively new; fears of being catfished or chancing upon the next Ted Bundy run rife among DM sliding-skeptics. Realistically, it is no different than introducing yourself to a total stranger at a bar.

Woman B: It can feel kind of silly, especially if you just see Twitter as a place for jokes and memes. While I think it's definitely getting better, as long as people keep distancing the internet from "real life" (rather than acknowledging that they're connected), people will see internet-based relationships as not as valid.

Man A: To the extent that it does, it's because most people are really bad at it. It's seemingly no better or worse than meeting people in a bar, or on Tinder. That being said, it's rough because you're, like, writing things down and putting your name to them. So there's major possibility for embarrassment.

I don't really think it's that strange. People meet all the time. It's only creepy if you go in with a super-strong agenda. But I know people (wildly successful writers, actually) that have gotten married because the guy thought the woman was hot and friended her on Facebook. That seems pretty aggressive to me, but I'm apparently wrong.

How do you think the relationship was different having met this way?

Woman A: I think it goes to show that real intimacy — sexual or romantic — can be legitimately formed online. More often than not, this does translate IRL. I certainly wouldn't rule out dating someone I met online again.

Woman B: I don't think it was! While it got its start online, it unfolded like any normal relationship.

Man A: We talked about Twitter a lot more than I would with a person that I met in any other circumstance.

What do family and friends think when you explained how you met?

Woman A: I'm not really one to discuss partners with my family but I don't think my friends cared. They all have internet friendships and I met some of my closest friends online.

Woman B: I just really vaguely said we "connected" online because it was easier than explaining all of Twitter to my parents. My friends thought it was very "on brand."

Overall, would you recommend sliding into someone's DMs as an effective way of dating?

Woman A: I think it has its pros and cons, just like any method of dating. The plus side here is that you've spent time getting to know the person, rather than scrolling through their online dating profile, so it's not a total shot in the dark.

Woman B: I think so! At least, it doesn't hurt to try. You can really get to know someone by their tweets, so if it seems like you'd get along, why not try?

Man A: It's effective if you're good at interacting with people online or via text. Definitely if you have an even moderately good Twitter or Instagram presence, you've sort of been showing off for the other person the whole time, which is kind of the basis of meeting IRL. I don't think it's any more or less effective than any other way. The level of effectiveness seems related to your personality and ability to interact in various settings. Like I hate talking to women in bars, it seems very skeezy, but online feels safer. Maybe because you can turn off the screen.

Follow Kathryn on Twitter.

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