Sunday, January 24, 2010
Chapter Three
Okay, I'm going to vent for a minute. I hate the fact that the author compares writing for multimedia with writing linear pieces in every chapter, down-playing the difficulty of linear writing. In chapter three, the author says: "Multimedia is far more challenging than structuring a linear piece...because multimedia is made up of many discreet units of information that can be connected in a myriad of ways." I understand his point, but can he express it without belittling novelists, essayists, and screenplay writers? Honestly, nearly anyone can set up a decent multimedia website by using a template, but how many people can write a novel and get it published? Judging by the usage errors in the text on the CD, I doubt the textbook's author could. The information in chapter three was interesting, and possibly useful, but without jabs at linear writers, I would have enjoyed the chapter more.
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I couldn't agree more! In my humble opinion, the author of this book is a terrible writer! Maybe he can't write well, therefore, he bags on writers who are using "traditional" formats...I don't know, but this is seriously one of the worst texts I have had to read in college. It's so poorly written and SO utterly redundant, I lose interest in what he is trying to explain. Unfortunately, Ch. 4 is no better...
ReplyDeleteRight on Rob! I am in total agreement with you. Writing a novel or even a short story is not easy and the author does seem to be of the opinion that anyone can write.
ReplyDeletesad, but true. as the adapted text for this course when i joined the dep't, i immediately revamped the syllabus and tried to make the text work. but it sure is BAD.
ReplyDeletei agree with rob's observation here. both types of writing have their own complexities and garrand could have simply stressed on their distinct pecularities. indeed, some typos and local issues are prevalent in the first chapters -- am just glad most of us are in the position to 'repair' such errors as we continue to grapple with its global issues.
as for the numerous iterations, that shouldn't necessarily be entirely bad as the goal is to maximize learning. a true academic has to learn how to digest textual structures that are either agreeable or disagreeable yet maintains a resilient researcher/learner standpoint for the sake of penetrating the discourse community.
I think that the old saying "Jack of all trades, master of none" pretty aptly describes this guy. While there is certainly something to be said for adding width to your abilities, Mr. Garrand seems to discount depth altogether. He ignores the fact that specialization has brought a level of comfort to society that has never been known in the history of the world. I still believe in becoming more self-reliant, and this means widening my abilities. However, if this guy would just work on improving his "linear" writing ability, maybe his book would make more sense.
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