 Action/Adventure: August 21, 2019 Issue [#9720] |
This week: Keeping Up With The Times Edited by: Kitti the Red-Nosed Feline  
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As writers, we're supposed to keep up with the modern world. Sometimes, however, that's easier said than done...
This week's Action/Adventure Newsletter is all about the past, the present and the future...
Kitti the Red-Nosed Feline |
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Do you know what “yeet” means? How about “ree”? A while ago it was important to be “on fleek”, but we’ve all moved on from that. I think. It’s difficult to keep up.
I remember when I was a teenager, and I despaired at my parents’ lack of knowledge about the latest songs, movies and, indeed, the latest trends. I couldn’t imagine ever being that out of the loop. How was it even possible? I’d never, ever end up like that, I vowed. Yet, here I am and I haven’t a clue who’s currently in the top 40, or if there even is a top 40 still. I haven’t played the latest games. I don’t own the latest tech. Apparently there are these people now called “influencers” and I don’t know what that’s about except that they post on social media and companies pay them to basically advertise their products whilst they pretend that no, really, they totally actually use those products, no bias whatsoever! And millions of people look up to them. Which, you know, is good for the influencers, but I don’t get it. I’m old.
Not so old, however, that I don’t see the importance of knowing what we’re talking about when we write contemporary pieces. That is especially the case when a story includes younger characters – you’ve got to give them an authentic voice, and that takes interacting with younger people and (please) not trying to be “down with the kids” and making them cringe by going over the top with all the new expressions you’ve learned. You also don’t want to alienate your older readers, so it’s one more thing to balance along with the many other things we’re trying to get right as writers.
The effort is worth it, though. Recently, when recovering from surgery, I had a real need for comfort-reading and got my hands on some novels that I read when I was a child. They were novels from the Malory Towers series, written by Enid Blyton. The series was written well before I was born, so the fact that I loved them as a kid and still find them enjoyable as an adult speaks of their intergenerational appeal. Sure, we don’t now exclaim something to be “wizard” to indicate that it’s awesome, but that doesn’t hinder one’s understanding of the text, nor does it annoy – I would say that the snippets of authenticity add to its charm. If, in comparison, I’d write dialogue that was completely faithful to how some people around me speak it would drive any readers up the wall and, I fear, baffle future generations – there ought to be a limit on how often the word “like” can be used in a single sentence.
As said, then, it’s best to aim for a balance. But language is just a part of it. Technology permeates daily life and unless your characters live off the grid, it’s going to be a part of theirs. They’re likely to use social media. Younger people are likely to follow vloggers and talk about Twitch. They face challenges that we didn’t because of the constant access to the Internet. They are also under more pressure to get into university, because having a degree is more important than ever. They face the gig economy as a result of a decrease in stable employment. They’re likely to live with their parents until they’re in their twenties, and possibly even their 30s, because of the difficulty of getting onto the housing ladder. They’re more politically aware because they have to be. And life has changed for the older generations, too, as you’re no doubt aware. Like me, you may well remember back when we didn’t have a PC, let alone laptops, tablets and smartphones. If you wanted to purchase your favourite artist’s new album, you had to go to a record store. For new movies you either had to go to the cinema, or wait until it was released on video tape. If you were out and about and had to make a phone call, you had to find a phone booth and hope that it worked. Mostly, though, people were fine without being able to contact the other every minute of the day.
I know that it almost sounds like I yearn for the good old days, but I don’t wear rose-tinted glasses. Life wasn’t perfect then and it isn’t perfect now. Besides, it’s not just everything around us that changes – we change, too. Whether we move with the times or not.
Whatever your view on the changes in your life, I hope that you’ll agree with me that it can be fun incorporating the modern world into your writing. If you’re uncertain, perhaps I can encourage you by saying that our writings form a part of history, and contemporary pieces, even if fictional, form a part of an ongoing record of humankind. Just as the work of Enid Blyton offers us a window into the past, your work may offer future generations a glimpse of the here and now. Isn’t that just wizard? 
Wishing you a week filled with inspiration,
Kitti the Red-Nosed Feline
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