About the Writer

I’m a sophomore at Virginia Tech, majoring in Communications and English. I love reading, writing, and anything to do with literature. My preferred genre is fiction, but I’ll read anything written well. I myself have been published in some smaller magazines, including Silhouette, Virginia Tech’s literary publication.  My favorite authors are always changing but these comprise a basic list, in no particular order: Whitman, Hemmingway, Emerson, Thoreau, P.B. Shelley, Kerouac, Orwell, Milton, Wordsworth, F.S. Fitzgerald, T. Wolfe, A. Miller, Poe.

In the globalized world of converging mediums and mass communication, I’m overwhelmed by the decline of simple paper. Literature and writing are being fundamentally altered by the internet. Readers no longer flip through pages, but scan over pixels. For better or worse, it’s a daunting situation, and one that I’m determined to explore.

Papers are failing, publication markets are changing, and scores of writers are struggling to adapt to the convergence of media. With reams of interviews with writers- running the gamut from esteemed literary authors, to accomplished magazine journalists- this blog will give you (and hopefully, me as well) invaluable insight into the rapidly changing world of writing. Does the Internet allow for a greater audience, or is it a killing stab to a disseminating art?

I’ll Ask:

• What’s happening to writing and reading today?
• Why is it happening?
• Are writing and reading in danger?
• Are the changes of convergence permanent?
• How are these changes affecting your [the interviewee's] work?
• Do you [the interviewee] think these changes are beneficial or negative?
• Why?

You may notice that none of my favorite authors and writers have had to deal directly with this mass convergence. That may betray my bias; I’m a ‘paper’ man ’till death, and I am (ironically) shocked that people are foregoing books in favor of reading blogs. However, my bias will not affect the questions, or the journalistic interviews that I record. The writers I interview are entitled and encouraged to voice their own opinions, and I aim to have an enlightening discussion (without bias) on this topic, hopefully coming to some sort of conclusion and (inner) peace.

This issue has the gravitas of the ‘.com’ boom, and people are beginning to realize it. The face of writing (the pinnacle of communication) is forever changing, and I’m here to talk about it. Stick around, and let’s see what we can find out.

Some other interests: Bodybuilding, Rugby.
E-mail me at pagestopixels@gmail.com

And please, God Save The Books.

Yours truly,
Christian Harder