Writing in the Digital Era
Back in the day, before digital media combined audio, video and print, print-journalism was a major influencer. Not just voluminous books, but even weekly and fortnightly publications shaped our minds. These publications did not just provide information, they also analyzed it. Coveted few were given the chance to have their articles published.
Digital revolution democratized the print industry, among others. Anyone can become a publisher or a writer with just a computer and internet connection. There’s a cost for providing material to each individual via the physical print media. In the digital world, a single copy can be potentially shared with infinite readers simultaneously with little additional cost.
Change in platform from physical print to digital media also brought changes in the way information is created. It is imperative that content should be interesting and short. Readers are inundated with information from all sides. They typically spend little time on one article before moving on. Added to that the diversity of tools on which articles are read makes it necessary to keep the information pithy. It can be really difficult to read a 5000 word article on a smartphone.
Different visual aids now supplement a written article. Earlier, a photo was considered sufficient, now you can have videos and other tools that track your activity for an enhanced experience. For example if you are reading an article on a tourist spot, you may be invited for a virtual tour of a hotel in the area.
Writing is also tailored to the medium it is meant for. If a writer is working on a television show, he will try to introduce a cliffhanger in the end to make the viewer come back for more. As a writer for television soaps, you also need to fill your script with redundant events so that the story moves ahead at a snail’s pace, thus increasing the number of episodes to tell the same story.
Digital media also affords a writer to cater to the long tail of readership. Long tail represents the small number of readers that like an author’s writings. They may not be large enough to physically service them, but aggregating them on the internet can make the group large. For example, a writer may just focus on a particular kind of cinema. Before the digital era, it would have been a challenge to market such a publication. On the internet though, there can be enough readers worldwide to make it a viable business.
Though digital media has completely changed the playing field, it has also necessitated changes in the way content is created. Old way of creating and distributing content is passé.
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