I kind of chuckled when the Create Team came up with this month's challenge. It is true, h2g2 has some amazingly good journals. They should be more widely read. It's a terrific idea to dig up some of the best to enjoy. At the same time, reading the posts attached may give us an idea of why more people don't keep journals on a regular basis.

While it is true that some h2g2ers regard their journals as a way to make sure they tell their friends what they're up to without having to tell each one individually – and while there is certainly nothing wrong with that at all, one would hesitate to visit without an invitation – many of us think journals are a way to entertain and do writing practice. We write little essays and stories in our journal spaces. Anybody is welcome to read them, which is a good thing, since there's no paywall on this site and the internet can be read by anybody.

However, many of us do not write regularly in journals. In fact, we usually only write a journal entry when enough time has passed that we have forgotten what the readership did to the previous journal entry. What did they do?

• They seized upon some irrelevant detail in the story and started a lengthy conversation about that detail, while totally ignoring the main point we were trying to make.
• They ignored the subject completely and hijacked the thread to talk about some pet topic of their own.
• They made enigmatic comments which bore no apparent relation to the topic in the Original Post.
• They flooded the comment thread with links and information dumps, allegedly on-topic, while never, ever commenting on the content of the OP.
• They submitted 'walls of text' on any and all topics, often without even a marginal connection to the OP.

This sort of thing gets wearisome in a very short time. It's as if you had a soiree at your home. You cleaned up the living room, polished all the furniture, locked the cat in the bedroom, and got snacks in. Then everyone turned up at your house, ate, drank, talked to one another, and completely ignored your existence.

Do you remember back twenty years or so ago when the internet first got going good, and user-generated content was a new thing? Pundits touted the era of a 'new republic of letters'. They rejoiced in the prospect of all the intellectual conversations we were going to have, thanks to free wifi and virtual paper. What happened? Trolling. Football discussions. The Youtube comment threads (read at your peril). Flame wars. Whatever it is, it is mostly not intellectual.

We do better, of course. Sometimes, we even manage to stick to the subject. But we can probably all stand to practice better reading and communication skills. We could encourage more journal writing – not only during NaJoPoMo – and make one another a lot happier. The first step might be to read the OP at least twice before replying. Try to comment on what the writer has said, not what the topic immediately suggests to your mind. Try to stay on the subject. Remember to indicate your appreciation for what the original journalist said. Believe it or not, it won't kill you to pay a compliment. You'll appreciate one when your turn comes.

Being appreciative journal readers is something we could all work at. By doing so, we'd help ourselves, each other, and believe it or not, the bloomin' internet. That republic of letters might just happen in our lifetimes.

Writing Right with Dmitri Archive

Dmitri Gheorgheni

04.06.18 Front Page

Back Issue Page