Lists: 2004 (?) – 2013

Dear​ Pop Culture Writers,​

Effective immediately, lists will no longer be required online.

Let’s face it, you had a terrific run! You did a GREAT job! Remember “Top 10 Sci-Fi Shows Of All-Time?” No, not that one, the other one. Or how about “10 Greatest Rock Bands?” That was awesome.​ We still remember “10 Worst Endings In Movie History” like it was yesterday. Actually, it was yesterday, the 79th time someone has made a list with that title.

Now, we know this isn’t going to be easy for you. When a writer has nothing to say – or wants to position himself in a certain way and come across as knowledgable and/or hip and/or contrarian – he will make a list. We’ve all done it. Everyone loves lists! Yay! But we’re looking for something from you that isn’t easy, that isn’t quick. Something that doesn’t simply invite readers to “leave a comment below with your picks!” to give the illusion that you’re building a “community” and that everyone’s opinions are equal. We’re looking for, well, writing.

There’s a new season of Arrested Development? What a great time for “10 Best Arrested Development Characters!” No.

Lists were great once, when not every web site and blog did them. When lists had an importance and gravitas because they were so rare and they were written by people who knew what they were talking about. Now everyone does lists, which means that none of them matter anymore. There are so many lists that expertise and meaning just get lost. Someone picks the “The 50 Best Sitcoms of All-Time,” which is fun to read until one month later when that other site does “The 50 Best Sitcoms of All-Time.” And guess what? It’s pretty much the same list! Seinfeld was great! LOL! SEO!!

So that’s the bad news. But it’s OK! There’s still plenty of things to write about. You’ll be amazed at what you can come up with if you just get out of that “list” state of mind. Essays, interviews, comics, features, fiction, you name it!

We are very excited to see what you come up with next. Here’s to a great future.

Thank you,

The Internet

P.S. We know you’ll be tempted to write a “10 Reasons Why Lists Still Matter!” post, but please…don’t.

Funny!

Wanna hear a funny story? It’s the one about the writer who created a monthly snail mail publication called The Letter. He promised to get it out in 2012, but that turned into January 2013. Then he pushed it back until February. Then it was pushed back to April, and then it was pushed back to May 2013, the very month we are in now. The funny part? Now it has been pushed back to June! LET THE LAUGHING COMMENCE.

What, it’s not that funny? Ahem.

Sorry, but it’s coming. I’ve just had a lot of other things taking up my time, or things that made me procrastinate, or things that made me overthink what this should be. What, you expect me to be on Twitter all day long and get work done? But you’ll it in your mailboxes by the middle of June. And thanks again!

Thoughts on Twitter

I still love Twitter.

But.

I’m using it too much. There are days when I keep clicking the “New Tweets” link over and over and over and over again, which can be time-consuming, considering new tweets show up every four seconds. I keep clicking on the “Connect” button, because I MUST KNOW WHO HAS MENTIONED ME OR RETWEETED ME OR LINKED TO ME, AND I HAVE TO KNOW IT NOW.

This is probably a failing on my part. A person can always “just say no” to Twitter when they have to get work done, but these things are so seductive and needed (especially if you’re involved in media and publishing and work online all day) that they grab hold of you, and before you know it you realize that you’ve tweeted more words that day than you’ve written. I have to plug my stuff! I have to retweet this! I have to comment on this other tweet so people know my opinions! I have to congratulate this person on their promotion/birth/great tweet, even if I don’t even know them! I have to make sure I don’t miss anything! I have to plug my stuff again! What’s happening now? And right now?

Twitter has always been my social networking platform of choice because, well, it’s not really social networking. Not in that Facebook/Google+ way. It’s news, information and entertainment from various people, my place for breaking news and links to interesting things. It has become something I need online, like e-mail. But if I’m to be honest – and if a lot of the people on Twitter were to be honest – most of the tweets we send are not only unneccesary, there’s an agenda behind them. If we’re not plugging our stuff, we’re commenting on something that someone else has tweeted, which is really just another way of promoting ourselves.

For a writer, Twitter can be an amazing distraction. I envy the writers who can tweet 20 times a day and still get work done. I’m not one of them.

Yes, I’m going to keep using Twitter. It’s a great way to connect to people I wouldn’t be able to connect to in other ways, and there’s always something fun and interesting to see (always, which is half the problem). My love for what it is hasn’t changed. But the reality is I have to start using it less. A lot less. It can’t be my main destination anymore. I can’t keep it open in a tab anymore so I can constantly keep track of it. Oooooo, there’s a number next to Twitter…someone has posted something! That’s sort of ridiculous. There might even be days where I don’t tweet at all. What a concept!

(By the way, if you want to tweet this post, that’d be great! Have a good weekend.)

One thing we have to do about writing on the web right now

Stop calling it “content.”