A Dying Medium

I’m not oblivious to the fact that print is a dying medium. I’ve been witness to it since I became a published author, as slowly, magazine’s I once did work for closed their doors for good. It doesn’t bode very well for someone like me with a desire to share the written word and the offside hope that I may be able to make a living doing so. Neither have been easy, and both get harder as the years go by. Granted, the transition from print to digital is taking longer than I had expected, it’s happening none the less.

A generation that grew up without internet, print was how we got our information. Magazine’s, books, newspapers, anything I could get my hands on. What my father couldn’t teach me about fishing I picked up by reading; reading from an actual piece of paper, not a digital screen. To this day there is something satisfying about doing just that.

The articles educated me while the writers inspired me. These guys are the reason I began writing and are directly linked to my love of sharing stories and passing on information. Although there are a couple of writers that stand as major inspiration for me to put pen to paper, every writer in every magazine I ever read played some part in what I do today.

There is a nostalgic sadness arising as print gives way to digital, but as the world progresses so to do I. I had to prove my worth in the world of print, it’s time to do the same for the digital one.

Change isn’t always easy, but it is inevitable, and with comments like ‘why buy a magazine when you can get what you need online’ its obvious that change will come whether I like it or not.

The death of print may not be here yet, but the more I talk to a younger generation the more I fear the end is near. My writing roots are planted in print and I’m not about to let that go. Even as I make the transition, along with everyone else, I will hold out as long as I can. Besides, many of my generation will agree with me when I say that there is just something about thumbing through the glossy pages of a magazine fresh off the press. And as long as there are people who feel that way then hopefully print will always have a place.