No, I’m not here to spout the evils of reality television. I have no desire to rant about how the prevalence of reality shows are slowly spoiling the cultural appetites of an entire generation. I’ll leave that to the literary and artistic snobs more versed on the topic than I will ever be.
The other day was Kim Kardashian’s birthday and I happily wasted some brain cells by watching a few episodes of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. While watching, I noticed something that disturbed me. Well, I noticed a few things that disturbed me, but that’s not the point. My point is that the entire cast seems to have a cell phone perpetually glued to their hands. No matter what they are doing, a cell phone has at least some part of their attention. Whether they are driving, having dinner or even using the restroom a cell phone is nearby. What disturbed me was that I realized that I often do the same thing. I have the habit of being more involved in the cyber world while out and about, than the real world.
I’ve decided that I need to break the Kardashian habit for the sake of my writing. Writers are by nature studier’s of human behavior. When I’m constantly engaged with my phone, I miss the opportunity to engage with the people around me. I do my artistic creativity a disservice when I perpetually indulge in the singular universe that my cell phone provides. The world around me is ready and waiting for my full attention.
My observance can mean the difference between flat stilted dialogue and dialogue that leaps off the page. It can mean the difference between generic descriptive narrative and a reader’s total immersion in a vision I create. It can mean the difference between true authenticity and regurgitated dribble.
Art imitates life and it’s hard to do that if we’re not studying the real thing. So, cell phones down and heads up. Hello world.
What’s your artistic kryptonite? Let us know in the comments below!
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- Kim Kardashian Admits ‘Keeping Up With The Kardashians’ Is Fake, Didn’t Show How Tough Pregnancy Was On Reality Show (radaronline.com)
- This 25-Year-Old Hasn’t Owned A Cell Phone In 4 Years, And Loves It (businessinsider.com)
- Is the Human Condition Really that Bad? (marcwordsmith.wordpress.com)
- Steve Duin: How do we curb our careless obsession with cell phones in cars? (oregonlive.com)
- 10 Reasons I’m Ditching The Cell Phone! (masterkeyabletsang.wordpress.com)
Faith Simone 
[…] notice that observing the actors without sound was pretty interesting. I’ve mentioned before how important it is as a writer to be aware of the world around you. After a couple of seconds of watching, I was fascinated by how much the actors conveyed with their […]
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