Ryan Holiday is the bestselling author of Trust Me I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator, and a PR strategist for brands and writers. He gives monthly book recommendations at RyanHoliday.net.

What was once a fascinating yet relatively obscure subsection on a fledgling social news site is now one of the most coveted interview spots in our media world. Properly done, the Reddit AMA (short for "Ask Me Anything") can generate hundreds of thousands of impressions and drive fans into a frenzy. It can reinvigorate an established persona or hoist a completely obscure or unusual person into the Internet spotlight.

What is an AMA? It's a thread of questions within Reddit, hosted by an interesting person who declares "I Am [Person X], Ask Me Anything." The Reddit community responds with the type of honest, earnest and provoking questions that would rarely show up in your typical media interview. Anyone can participate, from the host to the casual Reddit user to the fans who simply upvote questions.

People from all kinds of backgrounds are trying their hands at AMAs. In the last several months alone President Obama, Bill Gates, Al Gore, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Snoop Lion, Tony Hawk, Dan Rather, astronauts currently in orbit, Playboy models, Iranian presidential candidates and Dwight from The Office have all taken turns in the AMA spotlight.

SEE ALSO: 13 Fantastic Subreddits You Should Subscribe To

After Gerard Butler’s AMA on March 18, the actor was so moved by the experience, he uploaded a video thanking Reddit for the opportunity, calling the process “one of the most fun, inspiring interviews he ever did.” (And that video consequently made it to the No. 1 spot on the Reddit homepage, and earned more than 674,000 YouTube views.)

The AMA has quickly become a powerful and appealing tool for a host of A-list figures — chiefly because it's unlike any other form of media.

But how does the Reddit AMA really work? What makes it successful? And what is it like to host one?

Now that I have actually completed an AMA of my own and advised several clients and friends on theirs, I feel qualified to share insight about the unique Reddit experience. Perhaps most importantly, I can also advise your brand how to share in the experience (and access the massive audience).

Let’s explore this new medium and what makes it tick — why some AMAs are fascinating, organic conversations that spike book sales, promote movies, help political causes and spread messages. And why others, well, flop.

The Basics: How an AMA Works and How to Do One

First off, the Reddit AMA suffers from the classic Wikipedia problem: Even though Reddit may seem simple for Internet natives, for others, it can appear pretty intimidating. To wit, I doubt that Larry King did his AMA without significant help (a few years ago he didn't know how to use the Internet). But in reality, Reddit is actually quite simple.

So, how does one actually go about getting an AMA? Technically, anyone can post — just start a thread on the forum and see if Redditors care to learn more. But the best way is to plan ahead and talk to the people in charge.

Pick a time and date and schedule your AMA with Reddit’s moderators in advance (all it takes is a private message). You can get placed on Reddit's “upcoming AMA” sidebar, which is seen by almost 3 million subscribers. In other words, don't make an amateur mistake and “surprise” Reddit with your AMA. Get maximum exposure by planning ahead.

Of course, the most compelling part of an AMA is the headline. This is how celebs (and interesting weirdos) let Reddit know who they are, what they do and why users should be interested. But you have to be concise: 30 words or less.

Don’t these examples make you want to click?

The best AMAs put equal consideration into the body of the post, too. Rightfully, the hosts never assume Reddit knows anything about who they are or what they do. Therefore, hint at topics you're qualified to talk about, and detail what you want to talk about. Links to your work can generate higher quantity and quality of questions.

Be sure to prepare. When I did my AMA, I tried to anticipate the most frequently asked questions and generated a few replies ahead of time. Keep in mind that the first few questions you answer are likely to be the the most upvoted, and therefore, seen by the most number of people. (This isn’t cheating; it’s thinking ahead.)

Once that’s done, all that’s left is to step into the ring. When I first posted the link, questions piled up fast, about one every minute. After the AMA hit the front page, that number jumped to 3-5 per minute.

Don't feel that you have to answer every single question. However, you’ll get in trouble if you’re dodgy, as Rachel Maddow discovered, when she declined to answer most of the more political questions on her AMA.

All the attention from an AMA feels flattering, if not addictive, even to the most jaded celebrities and public figures. Media interviews can be inherently gratifying — after all, a journalist has researched a subject and wants his or her thoughts. But multiply that by the power of 1.6 million listeners, factor in a completely open and safe environment, and you have the Reddit AMA.

Getting the Most Out of an AMA

Strict promotion is never the reason to do an AMA — Woody Harrelson experienced backlash when he pushed his movie too hard. But coordinating your Reddit appearance with a launch or a release is clearly the strategy behind many AMAs. A book release, a new product, a business launch or an announcement can actually help prompt people to think of questions.

But keep in mind, this isn’t The Tonight Show. It’s far better to view the AMA as a chance to participate in a vibrant community, rather than a sales pitch. Prepare yourself for all types of questions, the operative word being “anything.” As Neil deGrasse Tyson told me, Reddit is “a raging community of people with boundless curiosity.”

By all means, link to your product. Answer questions about it. Talk about it. But be prepared for that boundless curiosity and don’t fight it. Reddit loves to explore tangents and unexpected directions. You, as the interviewee, are powerless to control the direction of these tangents. Often that means the conversation will steer away from what you're promoting. And attempts to fight that usually don’t go well.

One of the most popular questions during my AMA asked how much American Apparel pays its models. That has nothing to do with me, nothing to do with my book, and in my opinion, is pretty boring. But the community wanted to talk about it, so they did.

Finally, Reddit AMA participants should heed this tip from Reddit CEO Yishan Wong: “Ask people what other famous/awesome/cool person you know that they would like to see an AMA from, take a top-voted couple answers and convince that person to do an AMA, too.”

What’s Next for the AMA

You’d think an AMA hosted by the president of the United States would be the pinnacle for the medium. But I’m not sure that it is. The Reddit AMA is still very much a trend on its ascendency. Many people still have no idea that this rich tool and gratifying experience even exists.

But when you look at the Reddit AMA leaderboard, the quality and quantity of upcoming names is getting better every day.

In the words of Gerard Butler, the Reddit AMA “made me think about my own life and where I am at and where I came from.”

Image composit via iStockphoto, tumpikuja