Journal 1 (Melissa Kimball)

Writing has four basic components; the steps taken to put words on paper, the language used, how writing is distributed, and why people write. At first thought, you wouldn't think that writing in the twenty-first century is much different from writing a millennium ago, but we aren't writing on clay tablets and papyrus anymore. Today, we don't even have to touch pen to paper to get our ideas down. Most of the components of writing have changed in recent times. Forty years ago, you couldn't find a novel in your lap without even leaving the couch. Now you can find the next best-seller in just a few minutes.

When we think technology, we think computers and smart phones that can tell you where the closest Olive Garden is. That is, of course, technology, but so was a fountain pen and ink. Paper and typewriters was the hot, new technology once upon a time. How we get words on paper has changed drastically—we don’t even need paper anymore. In this sense, writing in the twenty-first century is completely different than previous writing experiences. Paper has become white pixels, ink has become Times New Roman size twelve, and publishing houses have turned into a wireless signal.

Language has also changed drastically. Humankind has gone from misspelling during the Dark Age because of illiteracy to misspelling during the Digital Age because "bae is a QT." Slang changes with every generation, and the subjects people write about change with the introduction of new technology. We no longer write about the feudal lord and chamber pots. Who wants to read about a chamber pot when we can read about the new Audi concept car?

The way writing is distributed to its audience is the component that has changed the most. It isn’t only the upper class who can read and write, and books don’t cost a month’s salary. What used to take even a simple sentence several days to travel, we now have access to billions upon billions of articles, novels, comic books, and statuses with just a simple Google search. The audience has become global, and sharing content has become instant.

The only thing that hasn’t changed about writing, is the reasons to put our thoughts into words. We write to inform, we write to persuade, we write to entertain, and, most importantly, we write to communicate. Yes, writing in the twenty-first century is drastically different from writing in previous times, but we are still writing.