But there’s an upside to this constant exercise in
conciseness that is Twitter. I’m finding my lines of dialog and story
points seem to be cleaner, more straight-forward. There’s not as much beating
around the bush. I’ve always been fairly succinct anyway, but now it comes a
bit more naturally. The fluff falls away naturally.
I wonder, as well, if our spoken language will eventually
become more curtailed? Will we began to drop words that can be assumed?
Technology and social media have brought truly significant and rather drastic
changes with them. It will be interesting to see, in a decade or two, what
effects they will have had on us linguistically.
So, what do you think? Is Twitter affecting your writing?
Yes, Tweeting and texting have affected my writing. I see it in my journal and letters to family, but not in my writing. At least I don't think it's crept into my writing. At least I hope it hasn't crept into my writing.
ReplyDeleteLOL - Everett you made me chuckle. I know the fear, believe me. For me, I think it's improving my writing but I do have a consciousness now as I create as to whether I'm dropping words.
DeleteKathy, I don't tweet enough for it to be affecting my writing at this point but I don't know that it will. I am more of a story teller than a writer and like all good Southern story tellers I put in a LOT of extra words, thoughts and ideas just for effect. It is "our" way. This is probably why I "tweet" less and "facebook" more. I don't like to abbreviate what I have to say. LOL!!!!
ReplyDeleteI am a mouthy thing whether I am talking or writing. It's just my way! ;)
Cheers,
Ardee-ann
Maybe that's why I love to read Southern writers - Pat Conroy and Mark Twain, etc. I enjoy that florid style. Thanks, Ardee-Ann.
DeleteI can see where you are coming from, but language like most things, (except concrete) is fluid. They are always changing. I read this just recently, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/hay-festival/10093089/Hay-Festival-2013-Irritating-silent-letters-could-become-obsolete.html
ReplyDeleteI love David Crystal's ideas and words about words. I want things to change, and regularly, especially words, because we change and so should words and the way we write.
I got over the "rules" about language at about 12 when a teacher insisted we spell develop without an e on the end.(as it's spelled now). I brought an old dictionary to prove it was "supposed" to be spelled develope. She just looked at me and said that this was the OLD way to spell it.
DeleteI just finished reading an article in The New Yorker about the writing life and there was an extended section on all the "rules" of one well-known copy editor and I was disturbed at the archaic and arbitrary nature of what can only be called restraints.
You are totally right - language is what people say, not what they "should" say. Thanks so much, Rob, for your comment. Good reminder.
I was horrified when I saw a memo come through on my daughter's iPhone - a memo for the teachers in the county. "Oh mom, that's the way it is these days. We don't have time to correct grammar, spelling..."
ReplyDeleteTwo years later, I'm on twitter and now I find myself writing just like the "kids." I have to make an effort not to drop words and other atrocities!
I remember a similar instance in my own life. Now I find myself using "u" all the time. Texting is really right up there with Twitter on changing how we say what we say.
DeleteI no longer care about being "correct" while texting or Twittering, I'm just scared I'll write a book that sounds like I'm tweeting and not notice.
I have a sister who was writing in text speak years before texting was even imagined. It drove me crazy then, and still does now. I can't understand why a person would TYPE wld instead of would. It's only two more keystrokes.
ReplyDeleteYes, I find myself using fewer words in my writing, but that isn't always a benefit.
Texting and tweeting have definitely had an effect!
DeleteAfternoon! I can definitely see how Twitter and social media have affected writing. As for my writing, I've always been concise with words so the minimal characters on Twitter hasn't been a problem for me. It'll be interesting to see how our language evolves. I shudder at the thought of "your" becoming "ur" and "see" being "c", but the question is, is it a bad thing? If it saves time and makes communicating more efficient, wouldn't it be a good thing??
ReplyDeleteI definitely think some of those types of changes are on the way. When the shortcuts don't jar us when reading a book or magazine, it will be our language and then no longer a big deal to anyone. I wonder how long that will take though.
DeleteI have the same concern, Kathy. In the days of Facebook, Twitter, texting and online chat, we shorten everything.
ReplyDeleteI notice I do it a lot in virtual interviews. I had one come back to me and say, "Do you really want to put LOL in here? It sounds flippy." Well, I guess it does!
And then, I notice that Twitter and Facebook are distracting me to the point where I can't focus on my writing. When I was writing my first historical romance novel, I didn't have this problem. But, now it is a fact that we have to use it to promote. So, I'm struggling to spend more time writing and less time promoting. But, how can you? Do I have to hire an assistant?
Yeah, I have to correct myself all the time when I'm typing stories, emails or memos. Did I really use slang or almost say SMH or TTYL? I feel like I'm losing my education. I have to try harder, I guess.
I write LOL all the time in texts, emails and online because HaHa has always struck me wrong (I insert snarkiness where none is meant).
DeleteI struggle with managing Social Media's pull on my time, as I think most writers do. Somethings got to go and usually it's my concentration.
I don't think we're really losing anything, but I do think it's tough at times to put our "writer" hat back on and put away our SM personality. The two don't really mix well.