I’ve ported this blog over to Neil-Kirkpatrick.com
Thanks for reading, I hope I continue hear from you guys!
Neil
The public relations instructor at the University of Oregon tweeted out this article the other day: How Social Media Improved Writing. Author Simon Kuper makes a few good points, but I find his main argument flawed.
Kuper posits that because technology and social media allow anyone and everyone to write, we are all better writers. Twitter forces us to condense our thoughts, and consistent use of Facebook means more writing per day. Great, right?
Just because everyone can write doesn’t mean that they should. The internet is a chaotic free-for-all, and you need look only as far as YouTube comments to see what I mean:
Good writing is akin to mind-control (check out the science on this one). When you write, you’re creating a physical manifestation of your thoughts and you’re inviting others to share your experience. Good writing forces you to organize your idea; the first draft is usually bulky and sloppy, but revision condenses the work into a concise and well organized version of your argument. It’s difficult and takes time.
But bad writing takes seconds, and social media encourages this very practice. It’s a fast paced, say before you think mentality that’s even infected “news” outlets such as CNN and Fox News which both made a series of incredible reporting mistakes over the past couple years including the Supreme Court ruling on health care and the Boston Bombing.
What most people write on Facebook is unfocused, illiterate, or just plain useless. I’m just as guilty; here’s a gem from my feed: “I’m currently partying in Brooklyn and its awesome.” Cool. Absolutely no value added to your life. Just me gloating about a mundane experience. Once in a while you’ll see an insightful link to a newspaper article or an interesting photograph. But let’s face it; updates don’t often progress past “omg, breakfast was so dank this morning!”
What about the idea of practice? The more you do something, the better you get at it, right? Yes, but there’s a difference between practice and mindlessly spewing your thoughts into the internet. There’s a phrase called “mindful” or “deliberate practice,” which means to engage your craft with focus and effort. I seriously doubt many people “practice” their writing on social media.
I agree with the author on this point though: it’s an incredible gift to be given a voice and a chance to be heard, even if you’re competing with millions of other people in the YouTube comments section or on Twitter. But just because you have a voice doesn’t make you a better writer. Good writing comes with time and deliberate practice. All social media does is give your brain a connection to our digital collective consciousness. Without craft or thought, you’re left with pollution.
I lost my phone in the shuttle to the airport. I fell asleep, and when I woke up the driver was ushering us all out. In a rush, I grabbed my stuff and jumped out. I walked inside the airport and checked my pockets for my wallet and phone. Yes on the wallet, but the phone was nowhere to be found. Panic! I dropped my bags and rushed outside. It was just like in the movies: the shuttle speeds away just as I step outside.
Okay, so at this point, I have two options. I can chalk my phone up as a loss. It’s an iPhone, expensive and not easy to replace. Especially with my budget I would be out of a phone for probably six months. But, my plane is leaving soon so I don’t have much time to track it down.
Worst case, I have to reschedule my flight. Lets get my phone.
I stumble to the front desk and ask how I contact the shuttle bus. They point me downstairs. I wander aimlessly for a couple minutes looking for a help desk. I end up next to a group of cabbies. They all chirp,’
“Taxi? Taxi?”
I say no, but then respond in desperation
“I’m looking for the shuttlebus. I lost my phone.”
They cabbies all turn away, except for a gentleman with glasses and a red shirt.
“Well there are many shuttlebusses. Do you remember which company?”
“No….”
He smiles and leads me over to a phone. There listed are all the shuttles from Manhattan to the airport.
“Just call this one and give them your name. It’s the mot popular one.”
I call the phone number. A guy gruffly asks for my name and I explain that I’ve lost my phone. I give him my last name.
“Neil?” He asks.
“Yes!!!”
The man asks what terminal I’m in. I stammer cluelessly. The taxi driver who showed me the phone however, has been standing nearby the whole time. When he sees me stumble, he calls,
“You’re in Terminal C!”
I answer the man on the phone.
“He will be back in 2 minutes,” the guy on the phone says.
I hang up and approach the cabby. He’s a middle aged guy with dark skin and kind eyes. I shake his hand.
“Thank you. Thank you so much for your help.”
“My friend,” he answers. “I saw you were in distress and you needed help. In this world, this is how we must treat each other. I hope that one day, you will do the same for someone else.”
I eventually met up with the shuttle guy, got my phone, and now I’m sitting in the airport waiting for my flight. It probably wasn’t a big deal to the cabby to help me out. But he saved me heartache and stress, and kept my night from taking a bad turn.
It’s really not hard to help people sometimes, and often even the smallest gestures can make a huge difference.
Who says people on the East coast aren’t nice?
A large part of my personality and writing is directly influenced by about five or six books I loved in high school. I used to think that these were just great books, but apparently fiction has a more powerful effect on us than you’d think.
According to an article in the New York Times, the mind can’t differentiate story from reality. When reading or listening to well composed, vivid language (good writing), the mind runs through the story the same way a computer runs a simulation. (Maybe this explains why I was so terrified of The Shining as a kid). Here an excerpt from the article:
The brain, it seems, does not make much of a distinction between reading about an experience and encountering it in real life; Fiction — with its redolent details, imaginative metaphors and attentive descriptions of people and their actions — offers an especially rich replica. Indeed, in one respect novels go beyond simulating reality to give readers an experience unavailable off the page: the opportunity to enter fully into other people’s thoughts and feelings.
When reading a compelling piece, your body physically reacts to the writing. You experience the sensory details and feel the emotional stakes of the story. Writers and readers have known for centuries the power of a good story, but this science also raises a few questions. If you can essentially manipulate someone into thinking and feeling how you want them to with good writing, what ethical boundaries should be considered?
I’ve never been to New York, but I’m heading there in about a week with a group of friends.
I’m kinda nervous.
I’ve never been in a huge city before. I’ve traveled briefly around Denver, San Francisco, and Phoenix. But I mean… New York. It’s an iconic spot in the US, and from what I’ve heard, it’s wayyy different than the West Coast.
I’m a mellow guy, and I love the culture in Portland. Everything’s relaxed and friendly. It rains a lot, and people stay inside to play music and read books. Some of my friends who went East for college comment on their nostalgia for home.
“Man, everything back home is just so much chiller. I’m really stressed out over here.”
However, some people absolutely love New York. The amount of stuff going on, the music, the food, the everything. I wonder how I’ll react, and if it’s really as big and crazy as it’s made out to be.
I guess we’ll see. But I’m beyond excited, and beyond ready. Let’s do this.
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