One of the workshops I'm attending in this weekend's SCBWI Florida summer conference in Orlando is on Digital Media. Emma Dryden, Rubin Pfeffer, Curtis Sponsler among others are presenting. In the past year, I have attempted to up-date myself by joining Facebook, reading more blogs, starting a blog of my own, and researching how and under what circumstances I might choose to digitally published some of my work.
Several months ago a non-author friend recommended Nicholas Carr's book What the Internet is doing to our Brains: The Shallows published in 2010. Her point in our conversation was that reading and readers are changing, mainly by the influence of the short bits of information that sideline just about anything we might look at on the many Internet sites most of us access daily. The many attractive features of the Net (interactivity, hyperlinking, searchability, multimedia) capture our attention easily. Many are reading more and more quickly but, the author contends, seldom enjoying the total immersion into reading that deep readers previously experienced. We might follow an interest by jumping to a related link but seldom read beyond the first few sentences. Carr states a paradox: the Net seizes our attention only to scatter it. Instead of a continuous, coherent stream of information causing us to reflect and think deeply, we are exposed to a "jumble of drops." We have switched from reading to "power browsing."
How does this affect what I write for today's youth? I'm not sure, but I do know as I revise my stories, I keep in mind a comment from a trusted writer in my writing group. She said something to the fact that "long sentences and paragraphs lose her attention." She wants the story to move more quickly, wants the dialogue to be short and sweet. Good advice for any writer. But I still want to create moments when a reader can savor a scene, empathize with a character, think more deeply.
Despite this, the interactivity idea excites me. I have some stories where I can see the possibility of hyperlinks to enhance, create more fun for a middle grade or younger reader. Maybe my workshop will guide me to learn how to do this. If I can see this now for stories I have already written, I know I can create new stories in a format that will fit into this new age.
Looking forward to seeing what insights you get from the digital media class...as a lifelong reader, I still enjoy deep immersion in a great story. Of course, now I read it on my Kindle, but I still read it! :) I find the web to be a wonderful place for sharing and even gaining an in-depth knowledge of a topic, but I cannot imagine the "shallows" ever replacing the total immersion in a great novel. My hunch is that the internet has enabled a greater number of people access to the written word (and thus shallow interactions) but perhaps those people who only read a quick glance at a website would not have been novel readers in the first place. I know far too few people who engage themselves daily in a great book, but that has been the case my whole life, not just since the advent of the internet.
ReplyDeleteMy head was swimming after the four presenters in the Digital Media track at the SCBWI meeting in Orlando. A quick summary would say that the creative opportunities are growing and writers should jump in! Most believe the printed book will survive but e-books, enhanced e-books, and apps will proliferate as well. Tablets may nudge out e readers as well. I'm excited about eventually getting my books out digitally. I want my stories to be read. In many cases, that adds to hard copy sales. Thanks for your comment.
ReplyDelete