Writing: form, content & connection

writ·ing/ˈrītiNG/
Noun:
The activity or skill of marking coherent words on paper and composing text.
The activity or occupation of composing text for publication: "she made a decent living from writing".
Synonyms: script - handwriting

Obviously, there's much more to writing than Google's basic definition as the task of adhering to the rules of composition; no writer makes a "decent living" by simply stringing together words or sentences in preparing text for publication. The bad writing the public is most often exposed to is proof: television.

Next month a new sitcom called "Work It" will debut on ABC. The idea is recycled: two out-of-work frat-boy salesmen dress up as women to get jobs.

Richard Rushfield says that the last time there was actually a long-term functional sitcom was in 2004 when the last episodes of the 10 season long "Friends." The reason why "Friends" - which has earned Warner Bros. approximately $944 million to date - was so successful and lasted for so long is because the characters and situations mimicked the reality of the '90s. Today, almost every new show plummets and is canceled, but not necessarily because of incoherent writing or badly composed text, but because of bad ideas, bad communication and most of all, bad connection. If the writer can't connect with a show's intended audience within the first few weeks, it's over.

The public has a short attention span, and only writers that write what they know can really connect with their audience. Writing, no matter the format, is an art beyond simply an activity, skill or occupation: it is expression at its finest.

The National Intrepid Center of Excellence in Bethesda, Md. will be making use of this form of expression this January to help psychological trauma patients in their four-week holistic treatment program, which already offers painting, sculpting and creating music as a part of their "healing arts" rehabilitation. Patricia Kimes reports that expressive writing and story telling program is meant to help TBI and PTSD patients confront and manage the symptoms and emotions of their conditions. The program will be evaluated for "the effect of the arts as a catalyst for healing" to see whether it should be replicated at other Defense Department and Veterans Affairs Department facilities.

Expression is difficult, especially in the form of writing, but it is an excellent form of healing, communication and connection. Evelyn Small helps writers learn to write effectively by examining three new books on the market:

A useful compilation of reminders on the fundamentals of personal storytelling, Marion Roach Smith in The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life (paperback, $12) teaches you how to express yourself through the written word.

A glimpse:
pay attention to detail
tell the truth
touch on universal themes
write what scares you
there’s no right word when there’s nothing on the page.

With social media and new text-based ways of communicating creating new reading and writing habits, Christopher Johnson's Microstyle: The Art of Writing Little (Norton, $21.95) is an example and insight driven examination of the art and science of modern language.

A glimpse:
think in terms of tools, not rules
verbal ingenuity for the Incredible Shrinking Message
better communication during information overload
"language at play"

By exploring past and present languages and forms of communication throughout the world, Columbia University professor John McWhorter in What Language Is (And What It Isn’t and What It Could Be) (Gotham, $26) explains the changeability of language.

A glimpse:
a world tour (maps included)
characterizing through idioms: ingrown, disheveled, intricate, oral and mixed
shows how words wander and meanings morph
language as "living things" of "endless forms most beautiful and wonderful.’ ”

Considering the changes in the forms of expression and communication, it's surprising already established book publishers aren't moving faster into the digital world. Oon Yeoh writes what digital media analyst Rebecca Lieb says about the publishing industry: the e-book/book app industry is not even at its infancy stage, "it's at an embryonic stage." Ebooks are yet to become properly interactive, though Apple's ePub and Amazon's new KF8 format allows for embeddable multimedia, they have yet to reach the popular forms of gaming, entertainment and interactive utility that the public demands. Between the Apple iOS and Android, book apps will likely revolutionize the book publishing industry but not in favor for the established book publishers.

Jenn Webb tells about the future of publishing through a true expert: According to author and digital book producer Peter Meyers, whom has been researching and documenting the digital publishing revolution in his project "Breaking the Page: Transforming Books and the Reading Experience," publishers have already spent time, effort and resources experimenting to deliver on the public's demand for new and enhanced kinds of reading experiences. It's simply not worth it. Unless content design and reading experiences are completely rethought (see Inkling's ibooks), enhancements could deter those actually interested in reading books.

Storytelling and narrative nonfiction stories, whether in digital or print form, are best told simply, in words. New technologies will allow different kinds of reading experiences, but books are valuable because they give people continuity and a thread to follow while the rest of their days are fractured by information overload. Using digital tools (see StackOverFlow q&a site for technical challenges) in conjunction with an author to create compelling stories or informative teaching material is the future of the industry, but the best tool is still market research; "Publishers and authors must think through the consumer's need for their products." New-age authors might be multi-mode threats capable in the world of writing and adept in other media forums, but until the format is further developed, using video and audio in an ebook is too much. As authors become more skilled with these tools, they'll develop a restraint and a respect for the audience.

That being said, the restraint from using digital media and the respect for the audience can be flipped by using a new technique for book development. Either think of the concept and then mine the internet for content (Ugly Christmas Sweater Party) or find your concept (Sh*t My Dad Says) and have the creator turn into the author of a book version, says Emily Witt in her article, Sh*t My Agent Sells: The Art of Turning Instafads Into Tome-blrs.

The changes in form of expression, communication and connection might be creating difficulties in terms of good writing and publications but the digital revolution also provides endless new opportunities. No matter which of the many different forms writers use, successful composition rules remain the same. To put it simply, the three rules to success: write what you know, know your audience, and express yourself.

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