The Future of Writing

I'm reading a book right now called Grown Up Digital, which discusses the changes that are coming because of the first generation to grow up in a digital world. Think of the changes in the world since you were a kid. When I was a kid, if a boy wore a kilt to school, they'd pick up the pieces of him with a broom and a dustpan and put them in a box for his parents. My daughter knows a guy who wears a kilt to school two or three times a year with no problem.

We did homework at the table or desk with a pad of paper, book, and a pen. My daughter and her friends collaborate over the computer, MP3 players and IMs running, or in person at Barnes and Noble, though they're thinking of changing to Panera because of the free wifi and coffee refills.

We listened to the radio or, later, watched MTV, and hoped our favorite song or video would come on. They download the music they like onto their MP3 player or dial up Youtube and go directly to a customized playlist of videos.

The world's changed, and today's new adults know what they want, when they want it, and if it doesn't capture their imagination, they go on to the next thing. They demand quality, integrity, and innovation. They prize collaboration and speed. And the current model of publishing doesn't work that way.

That means the current crisis in publishing would have happened anyway without the economic downturn going on around it. In an era where you can go online and watch every episode of House in a week, if you wanted to, waiting an extra year for a finished work to be bound, printed, and shipped won't cut it. If you wait that long, your audience will move onto the next thing.

What does all that mean? None of us has crystal balls, but if you look at things now, you can maybe start to hazard a guess. We'll start next time.