When asking my eight-year-old nephew, who was immersed in a game on his iPad, what his favorite book was he gave me the answer that most readers dread to hear: I don’t like to read. Of course, there have always been kids that don’t like to read but there seems to be an increasing number these days.
Is the Nothing from The Neverending Story upon us? Has the imagination begun to diminish as graphics improve? Why visualize when it’s there in 3d, right? With so many other things to do now, it’s hard for books to compete and it’s apparent that fewer and fewer kids will be drawn to reading traditional books. People want information, they want the story, and they want it now.
Book sales from 2015-2016 were down overall except for adult coloring books which became a big sensation. Even E-book sales were down roughly 25%.
People are less patient and that’s what we love about forums, constantly scrolling through new topics just as we scroll through movies and shows on Netflix. We no longer want to be told what to watch or have to fit our lives into a certain schedule.
However, I do sometimes have a love-hate relationship with technology. It seems many of us can't sit still anymore. Our brains are on constant overdrive and that’s why I still like books; to sit outside and listen to the world pass by while I'm immersed in a story. Books help me stay grounded, help me slow down, and when writing is at its best they help me understand myself better as well as humanity as a whole.
But for future generations, who start out at a hundred miles an hour, what will slow them down? Will they be able to stop and look at the stars and wonder what is out there and dream up all kinds of worlds that can only be seen in their imagination? Will they be able to relate to each other or will they simply feel more alone while being bombarded by more media? It’s a tough question but I think innovation will have the answers.
Storytelling will simply be delivered through different mediums and the imagination will thrive in gaming and forums where authors and game developers can get paid providing immediate delivery to their audience. Platforms like Steemit can also provide the social aspect and the networking that seems to be lacking with E-books at the moment.
I sometimes fantasize what it may have been like for the Native Americans sitting around fires telling each other stories to pass the time; those close-knit tribes banded together. Steemit can be the digital version of that bonding experience bringing people of similar interests together to share and help each other thrive as well as help popularize interactive storytelling, just so long as we don’t let greed get in the way.