Are litblogs going to replace book review pages in the mainstream media? I very much doubt it. Jeff, on the "Overland" blog, ponders that very point. He does make a statement - "A review in a Saturday paper would traditionally reach even the non-bookish -- or, at very least, alert them to the existence of a particular title." - which I'd disagree with, but it's hardly fair pick out one sentence and criticise that. Especially as he later says: "If we care about writing, we need to find ways to make literature relevant to the world around us, to link the books we review to the concerns of others, and to build the litblogging readership into something more general." Which I do agree with.
Sophie Cunningham, editor of "Meanjin", went along to the Byron Bay Writers' festival at the start of August and writes of what she found there.
In a post that is probably of more interest to bloggers than readers, Ariel, on her "Jabberwocky" weblog, asks "Do good blog posts come in small packages?" Some of her Gen Y friends contend that they won't read a long post no matter what it's about. As she says: "I don't know if I agree that form necessarily dictates content. It's true that it's nicer and easier to read long pieces in print; but one of the huge benefits of new technology is that it provides a forum for intelligent discussion and exploration of all kinds of topics, without the writer needing funding to create a platform for communication, or to place their story with the right editor at the right time, with the right angle and style for the chosen publication." Form only dictates content when the form enforces space restrictions. Twitter posts that are restricted to 140 characters are, by necessity, simplistic. Direct and to the point, yes, but it's hard to mount an argument about a topic or alert people to detailed lists in only 140 characters. Some URLs run to more than that. Must write on this more at a later time.
Estelle, of the "3000 Books" weblog is off to the Aireys Inlet Festival of Words this weekend and will then be blogging the Melbourne Writers' Festival on its weblog. Be nice to have that energy again.
