Tuesday, Feb. 23

Unplug to Create

Writer Jonathan Franzen on the distraction of the Internet:

It’s doubtful that anyone with an internet connection at his workplace is writing good fiction.

Having dropped off of Facebook, Twitter, et. al. for the past two months I can tell you that this is absolutely positively true. I’ve been actively pursuing my own writing projects and can’t for the life of me imagine how someone can do it professionally, full-time, without turning these things off. I have this kind of thought that the reason a lot of movies these days are not that good is because everyone is so distracted by all these micro-blogging services. They can’t maintain a thought long enough to craft a meaningful scene. There is just no way you can concentrate long enough and focus your attention on the craft of writing if you are being interrupted all the time. The quality is just not that good.

I keep coming back because there is a WEALTH of information out there. But when it comes to actually sitting down and writing, that stuff has to go off.

(via GoIntoTheStory)