I’m launching a podcast, it’s called The Active Voice, and it’s about how some of the great thinkers of our time reckon with the only thing in the last 17,000 years to threaten the technological supremacy of writing: the internet.
Hamish I so appreciate what you’ve written here and the conversation you’re bringing to the podcast! It’s a subject which is has been very present on my mind of late, in fact my newsletter last week was on the effects of social media. If you’d perhaps like to read, here it is:
good stuff. I would also love it if you invited writers of tv series or Netflix-streaming services. Today a lot of great stuff gets appears on streaming, these are people who do not necessarily write books. but keep up the good work
Sounds great! And Elizabeth Gilbert would make a great guest! She’s had a complex relationship with the internet/ social media (who doesn’t?!) and she’s actually no longer active on those channels anymore. I’m curious to hear from authors who limit or have gotten off most platforms and how they still manage to promote & sell their work. It’s easy to imagine for a popular author like Gilbert but what about emerging artists? I see this trend of people (myself included!) wanting to spend less time online (especially “social” platforms) but not finding alternative ways to connect, work etc. It’s weird the internet, like money, was meant to be a tool yet it’s become the end-all, be-all. 🤔
Reading the non-fiction book “Content” by Kate Eichhorn, and she say internet writers are the equivalent of day laborers standing outside Home Depot compared to what writers used to be paid by print publications. 😢
Good idea thanks. Interesting we are unlikely to have ongoing chronicles of these plague years as much writing will be subsumed within the ginormous memory hole that is the internet. SubStack provides a better alternative in providing for many types of expression (voice, text, music, visual arts) to be collected within the stacks. The E-book of the future will be fascinating.
Hamish, I think I can contribute. I'm a retired English teacher (high school), journalist and author (and grammar Nazi!). I was originally recruited to teach seniors how to write effective essays in various writing forms ... personal narratives, expository writing, persuasive essays and analyses. Different purposes, different styles. I taught how to navigate through voice (tense), and improve in syntax and precision (diction). I'd be happy to lend my expertise. For examples: jim.geschke@substack.com.
I *love* George Saunders's Substack! It's one of my faves - I also hope you get a hold of Chuck Palahniuk, it would be super interesting to hear his take. Looking forward to all the other episodes, thank you for creating this!
I enjoyed the excerpts from Hamish's interview with George Saunders, but what the heck does this mean: "the only thing in the last 17,000 years to threaten the technological supremacy of writing: the internet."
I can think of several interpretations of this statement, but none of them seem true. Can someone (Hamish?) please explain? Thanks.
Congratulations, Hamish!
Great Name
Great Topic
Great Host
JUICY STUFF!!!
I think Ted Gioia would be a fascenting guest for this podcast.
Good stuff. Keep providing us writers with more and more support, so that we can grow and you can thrive 🎉
The guest list sounds amazing. I'm excited to listen!
Love this, Hamish! You actually spurred me to deactivate my Twitter account today. Mission accomplished!
Hamish I so appreciate what you’ve written here and the conversation you’re bringing to the podcast! It’s a subject which is has been very present on my mind of late, in fact my newsletter last week was on the effects of social media. If you’d perhaps like to read, here it is:
https://open.substack.com/pub/rainedunn/p/is-social-media-rewiring-our-brains?r=sleg5&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
I’m so looking forward to listening. Wishing you great success with the podcast.
good stuff. I would also love it if you invited writers of tv series or Netflix-streaming services. Today a lot of great stuff gets appears on streaming, these are people who do not necessarily write books. but keep up the good work
Sounds great! And Elizabeth Gilbert would make a great guest! She’s had a complex relationship with the internet/ social media (who doesn’t?!) and she’s actually no longer active on those channels anymore. I’m curious to hear from authors who limit or have gotten off most platforms and how they still manage to promote & sell their work. It’s easy to imagine for a popular author like Gilbert but what about emerging artists? I see this trend of people (myself included!) wanting to spend less time online (especially “social” platforms) but not finding alternative ways to connect, work etc. It’s weird the internet, like money, was meant to be a tool yet it’s become the end-all, be-all. 🤔
Please put Dan Rather on the top of your interview list.
Thrilling. Haven't been this excited about a podcast in a long time.
"how great writers reckon with the only thing in the last 17,000 years to challenge the technological supremacy of writing: the internet."
If that sums it up, I'm in. Deciding on length, topic, attention holding techniques, it's TOUGH! Thanks for the assist.
Reading the non-fiction book “Content” by Kate Eichhorn, and she say internet writers are the equivalent of day laborers standing outside Home Depot compared to what writers used to be paid by print publications. 😢
Good idea thanks. Interesting we are unlikely to have ongoing chronicles of these plague years as much writing will be subsumed within the ginormous memory hole that is the internet. SubStack provides a better alternative in providing for many types of expression (voice, text, music, visual arts) to be collected within the stacks. The E-book of the future will be fascinating.
Hamish, I think I can contribute. I'm a retired English teacher (high school), journalist and author (and grammar Nazi!). I was originally recruited to teach seniors how to write effective essays in various writing forms ... personal narratives, expository writing, persuasive essays and analyses. Different purposes, different styles. I taught how to navigate through voice (tense), and improve in syntax and precision (diction). I'd be happy to lend my expertise. For examples: jim.geschke@substack.com.
I *love* George Saunders's Substack! It's one of my faves - I also hope you get a hold of Chuck Palahniuk, it would be super interesting to hear his take. Looking forward to all the other episodes, thank you for creating this!
I'm really rooting for Substack to be successful!
I enjoyed the excerpts from Hamish's interview with George Saunders, but what the heck does this mean: "the only thing in the last 17,000 years to threaten the technological supremacy of writing: the internet."
I can think of several interpretations of this statement, but none of them seem true. Can someone (Hamish?) please explain? Thanks.