Iain Broome
Stop lying about what you do
I’ve been reading booktwo.org by James Bridle for about a year. He recently wrote seven posts about the future, and this one’s a belter:
We prejudge endlessly. Because we have not experienced the emotions that new technologies trigger we assume that they will be less powerful than the emotions we already know. Just because we haven’t had these feelings yet. I love books. But I know that ereading will inspire a whole new range of responses to the written word and I want these too (I am trying to collect them).
I totally agree and I think that the sentiment applies to writers as well as readers. The e-reader and ebook are here to stay, so let’s stop assuming that what’s new is bad and what we had before should always be.
I say that as an ex-sceptic too - I honestly thought it would take years and years for technology to get where it is today. But the truth is, opportunities for writers are here now.
And I’m not talking about indie writers or self-publishers either (though the benefits for those folks are clear). It’s time for all writers to start thinking differently about the future. We need to individually and collectively begin to think and behave positively.
James talks about inspiring a whole new range of responses to the written word. Not only that, e-reading will inspire a whole new generation of readers, young and old. I don’t know about you, but I want those people reading my work.