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The Right Writing

Spiegro's picture
Submitted by Spiegro(612)
Contributor
June 10, 2011 - 2:53pm

The world -- more specifically the internet -- is at the brink of exploding with written content. With all that information overload, the computer wizards have created plenty of nifty gadgets to help filter out content you aren't interested in. So you can read exactly the same thing every single day, the news and stories you're actually interested in.

You know, that's great. Really. Thanks.

Got anything else?

Despite my particular interests, and my ridiculously complicated filters to give me exactly what I want, I get bored reading this stuff every day.

I'd guess this is why Yahoo! is still relevant as a news source; Yahoo!'s homepage and it's 4-at-a-time news story window display a large variety of news topics and stories. It's usually about the most outrageous story of the moment (or whatever is getting the most hits on it's search engine I'd bet).

But this is still all the same genre of writing, it's still reading the news.

These dandy new features of technology allow me to filter out what I want, but they also put blinders on me and block out things I didn't know existed.

Is it just me, or are we settling for the comfortable topics of conversation too often? Anyone else feel this way?

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Comments

drskillzz
drskillzz46 weeks 5 days ago

Yes, I feel we settle for

Yes, I feel we settle for comfortable topics far too often in every setting, however, I disagree that technology has anything to do with this scenario. In fact, I'd argue that technology has enabled a lot more discussion around a wide variety of topics that may not otherwise receive open or public discourse. At least with technology, there is some perceived level of "anonymity" that mitigates discomfort, for the easily discomforted at least. Not to mention the ease in which you can find people to agree with or disagree with your point of view. The filters we establish online are merely the same filters we're projecting offline, I suspect. Of course, I may have missed your point entirely. Interesting topic... gotta elaborate more.

What is the right writing?

Spiegro
Spiegro46 weeks 4 days ago

Skillz, part of the purpose

Skillz, part of the purpose for this post was me venting about being bored with my Google News filters, and part of this was a longing for something more substantial than news.

I agree that technology is exposing people to bits of culture they might not otherwise notice, but I fear for what it's doing to our attention span, mine in particular.

I think what I miss is reading short stories, fiction mostly, that require a slightly larger time commitment than a long news article but less than a novel.

The day I wrote this, everything I clicked on made me angry or instantly bored. I mean there is so much great art created every day, why do I feel the urge to consume nothing but news?

I really posted this to get some suggestions on fresh reading material... but I guess I should have clarified that a bit.

drskillzz
drskillzz46 weeks 4 days ago

Oh. lol  Yeah, disregard that

Oh. lol 

Yeah, disregard that opening argument. ::runs::

Spiegro
Spiegro46 weeks 4 days ago

::blinking::

::blinking::

JaiyLove
JaiyLove46 weeks 4 days ago

Interesting! I was in Barnes

Interesting! I was in Barnes & Noble last week in hopes of becoming inspired to read a new book.  I, too, have been growing tired of self-help, news, and technology articles.  I was ready for some fiction. Before I got to hard on myself, I realized I was never a fiction book reader.  The first book I purchased myself was "Why You Act The Way You Do" by Tim LaHaye - book on the 4 personality temperaments.  A great reading for a 10 year old :)

Anyways, after walking the entire store, I ended up picking up Frankenstein. I got annoyed because this was my favorite book in high school.  Again, nothing new. I eventually gave up and just picked up the first digital photography magazine I saw.  Peace at last!

Is it a comfort zone? Or is our subconscious directing us to topics that we're currently craving to know more about?

I'm searching for a job, so I've found myself reading more personality type specific books and career based articles.  I also want to find time to take more creative photos.  Is that what led me to the photography magazine?

Interesting question Spiegro! 

Maybe you can try reading books related to your hobbies, like a soccer bio or soccer based fiction.  Put some keywords in Amazon and see what's out there.  Keep us posted with what you decide!

cdrizzle
cdrizzle46 weeks 3 days ago

Shoot, when I walk through

Shoot, when I walk through Barnes and Nobles I suprisingly find myself interested in books/magazines that I never would have imagined, like those dealing with home decor. Yes, home decor, bc there is a creative aspect to it. If you turn to HGTV, you might find yourself watching that channel longer than you think...haha. Maybe not, but the point is, you might find new things you like by exploring among the mass collections of books/magazines found in Barnes and Nobles (or other related stores).   Explore, and pick up the first book/magazine that gets your attention!

Spiegro
Spiegro45 weeks 4 days ago

@cdrizzle: Man you have no

@cdrizzle: Man you have no idea! I used to give my wife a hard time about her addiction to HGTV, until we moved into a house. Now she's got me on plenty of HGTV programs that we'll watch together regularly.

I kept an open mind and in the process discovered another creative outlet in interior design. Most guys might not feel like that's manly, but it's not really all about lacy pillows and soft color tones. If you like to build, create, and design then you can spend days dreaming up home improvements, even for a rental home or apartment.

But you hit on something cdrizzle and I didn't even realize, I often use HGTV and other DIY websites to break up the monotany of the daily news cycle. Good call cuz!

cdrizzle
cdrizzle44 weeks 6 days ago

Thanks Spiegro, and as a

Thanks Spiegro, and as a matter of fact, I started watching HGTV after I bought my house too!  That channel gave me a lot of great ideas for filling a space without it looking cluttered.  Shoot, it got me wanting to do accent walls in my house and other creative off the wall designs.  It is truly a recommended channel for home owners!

Spiegro
Spiegro44 weeks 5 days ago

I'm painting an accent wall

I'm painting an accent wall in my living room (probably) this weekend driz... lol...

Orange.

LOL...

If you'd have asked me two years ago, "Would you ever let anyone paint a wall in your house orange? Just one wall?" I'd have thought you were insane. 

HGTV got me hooked...

cdrizzle
cdrizzle44 weeks 3 days ago

Dang Spiegro! I planned on

Dang Spiegro! I planned on painting an accent wall in my living room too! Guess what color? Pastel Orange!   Creative minds think alike :)