Why I'm taking this course: Stepping out of the vacuum

I found out late this summer that this was going to be a digital forms class. If "Readings in Nonfiction: Digital Forms" was listed on an electives list, honestly, I probably wouldn't have signed up for it. Digital media has always fallen into the category of something I "need to learn." Something I "should" know about. Something I kind of always thought I would tackle on my own when the time came. The reason I have always thought I would wait is because I wanted to have a compendium of work--essays, articles, stories etc.--that I felt was worthy of bragging about. That's why I came to an MFA program--to work on my writing. Once I felt I had a substantial amount of work that was publishable, that I was proud of, then I would begin the journey of blogging, twittering (tweeting?), tumbling, and other forms of "hey, look at me."

I don't like to be looked at when I don't feel like I have something really kick-ass to show.

Yet, knowing that a bunch (or just a few; or just one, even) of people are "following" me, "liking" me, linking to me, etc. is a great way to light a fire under the old arse and produce something worthy of sharing. So, I suppose I'm taking this course to transcend from the private and quiet writing life to the public and connected writing life. Being connected via social media--the simple act of starting a blog, acquiring these accounts as we will be doing throughout the semester--is akin to going from "I like to write" to "I am a writer." It's stepping away from thinking about something to just doing it.

I'm mostly just mulling over this for myself, trying to locate what this all means for me. Paige, I think your question that you asked of us on the first day of class is a good one: What is my role in all this? Where is my place in the digital world? What do I want to do with my writing and which of these various outlets will be for me, won't be for me?

Now that I've gotten the metaphysical reasons for taking this course out of the way, let me give some more concrete reasons for taking this class:

1.Publication opportunities.There are some blogs and online-only publications that I love, that I think produce (or find and reprint) fantastic writing. I'm hoping to learn about many more during this course, and, while enjoying some recommended reading, also finding more publication opportunities.

2.Self-presentation. Am I an environmental writer? Am I a generalist? Am I more of a journalist, or am I more of a philosopher? Does my writing tend to go inwards or outwards? Online media gives so many opportunities for creating an image that it becomes really overwhelming to pin down exactly what it is I do. (Which also forces me to pull away from defining myself at all.) I'm hoping within this course to shape an identity, or identities, that incorporate the various types of writing I like to do and aspire to do.

3. Nexus. Half of the reason I don't have a twitter account, don't maintain a blog regularly, or have a social media site is because of the commitment. I think about doing these things, but then an idea for a post goes by, two days, three days. Then it just doesn't seem relevant any more. I am a very slow person. I tend to do things only when it feels very important. Can I really have twitter followers if I only re-tweet things once every three weeks? In order to be part of the network, I have to move at a faster pace, and to move at a faster pace implies, to me, a loss of quality. There's just so much shit out there. Do we really need to be pointing out every little thing that interests us? Yet, I could make the commitment. I think part of this course will be about discipline for me. Doing the daily, or weekly, post. Linking to something I like. Tweeting. This course, I hope, will boost me up to speed.

4. Technology. I'm a pretty quick study. I'll pick this up quickly. The trick is picking it up.

5. Not about me at all. I also see this course as a grand look at what it means to be living in a digital world. What do all these various outlets for writing mean not just for me personally, but what do they mean at all?

5. Personal enrichment. I'm not being snarky here. This course will simply make me more aware. I will read books, articles, blogs, etc. that I wouldn't have. I will be introduced to writers, writing styles, and opportunities.

I'm especially looking forward to the reading list. Great books! Great articles! But I'm also looking forward to being pushed out of my comfort zone a little bit. The first day of class I mentioned that having an online presence can make a person feel vulnerable. I still believe that. But I also think it's worth giving it a shot, even if I think I might look a little stupid. This course will give me the opportunity to try out tools of the trade. When it's over, I can go back and recalibrate, incorporate what was useful, and set some of this stuff (twitter, maybe?) aside. And at least I'll know how to use those tools (if they're still relevant) if I decide to pick them up again.

Looking forward to it! Thanks for being Pitt's virtual classroom pioneer.

Cheers,
Amanda