Why writing is important | Pinnacle Newsletter #2
#2 Why Writing is Important
This week I'd like to explore something close to my heart: why writing remains important.
In my latest post on Alexroddie.com I have shared a handful of things I wish I had known about writing back when I started. But as I clicked 'publish' I realised I hadn't really touched on two big 'why's: why write at all? And why is it important?
The first one is pretty simple in my opinion. Most people who end up becoming writers didn't choose writing – it chose them. Maybe they have been dreaming up characters and stories since childhood but never took that first step of writing anything down. Maybe they've been blogging about their adventures for years and someone tells them they're good enough to take the next step. Very few writers suddenly decide to be a writer – scratch the surface, dig deeper, and you'll find they were always a writer.
Take me, for example. My first memory of writing is from the age of about 14, typing out terrible fantasy stories on an old typewriter (later an old black-and-white compact Mac). But my dad tells me I started to make up elaborate stories not long after I started talking. It seems the madness has been with me for a while.
So why is writing important?
These days, many forms of entertainment and information compete for our time, and it's got to be said that most are more immersive than reading prose. Online, we have bite-size chunks of content on social networks, and video is huge now. Some blogs and other publications are devoting fewer resources to the written word and more to video. Creativity in video has exploded over the last few years.
Offline, reading is crowded out by TV, podcasts, video games, and more. So why stand up for books and magazines?
Even today, the written word has massive advantages:
The barrier to entry is low. If you can read, you can consume the content.
It's a simple medium that can be easily scanned if you don't want to read deeply. While adverts may intrude, you can choose not to look at them – unlike an autoplaying YouTube ad. Text is better than video for many subjects because you might not want to watch an entire video from the beginning to the end just to glean a few facts. We've all been frustrated by YouTube videos that promised much but delivered little. Sometimes text is the right medium for the job.
There's a very special relationship between the words on a page and your imagination. The words themselves are only halfway there. Your brain has to do the rest, which requires a degree of focus and can lead to that magical flow state of deep reading. Other media – with the notable exceptions of audiobooks and radio dramas – spell everything out for you, which isn't always what you want.
Plus there's the visual and conceptual beauty of copy that has been through a rigorous editorial process, then typeset and designed by people who care about what they're doing. Fads will come and go – virtual reality may or may not be the next big thing – but I'd place good money on the written word still being dominant fifty years from now, both online and in print.
So, writing is important. If you want to write, don't feel bad about your decision or waste energy wondering if you'd be better off learning how to shoot and edit video instead. Why not do both? But if you want to write then write. Print is not dead, more people are reading than ever before (in the broadest sense), and writing will always be valued – even if it's never easy!
Recently Published
Things I wish I'd known as a new writer.
The upgrade trap.
Memories of Garbh Choire refuge.
Book review: Walking the Song by Hamish Brown.
My review of the Primal Pantry Protein Bars.
I interviewed Ash Routen on his planned expedition to cross Lake Baikal.
Coming up
Sidetracked Vol.11 is available to pre-order from today. Working on Sidetracked continues to be an absolute pprivilege, and I'm very proud of the work we've all put into this one. The work has paid off. Remember what I said above about a rigorous editorial process and people who care about their work? These values epitomise Sidetracked.
Back to the land
David Lintern wrote a great digital feature for Walkhighlands on 21st-century crofting in the Cairngorms.
That's all for this week. I'm hoping to head to Glen Coe next week to get some snowy hills in, so newsletter #3 may be slightly delayed – but (fingers crossed) I should have some snowy mountain images to make up for it.
Until next time,
Alex
www.alexroddie.com