Whenever I write online, I do actually think about my audience. Online, there really is no way to actually tell who might come across something you say. With that said, I am much more careful with what I say when I post anything online. I am careful even if I am writing something that I direct toward someone in particular and already anticipate them reading it. When I do not write online, there is either no audience or I know my only audience is my teacher and I therefore write with a voice according to what I hope that particular teacher would prefer.
I do not think there can ever be a distinct online relationship with an audience. Anyone can have access to the content written online. A person can have a general idea of to whom they are speaking, but unless there is a response, there really is no direct relationship.
I do not ever tweet really, but when I do, I would imagine just one of my fourteen followers might see it. When people micro blog, they do it to share their thoughts and whereabouts with as many people as they can at one time. I, however, do not particularly want people to know and do not think they would particularly care about what I would have to say either. That is probably why I could never get into the habit of tweeting or posting statuses online. Perhaps I am too conscious of an audience, and have too much “stage fright” to write anything. The reason for micro blogging is to allow one’s audience a grander scale view about one’s life, without holding their attention for more than five seconds.
Thank you for this interesting post! I'm really intrigued by the point of view you take in this post. Obviously writing online means it's public and anyone can see it, so it makes sense that you should be careful about what you write. But I've never been like that! I'm not sure why. What do you think about people who use online writing as a place to post their private thoughts, vent, or whatever? I ask I've always associated tweeting with a place just to let out any random thought I have.
ReplyDeleteI like this. It sounds like you're talking to your readers directly. It's ironic in fact, that you use such a direct tone online after stating that you do not feel a direct connection to your readers. Would you edit this post if I told you I was sending it to twenty strangers or posting it elsewhere on the web?
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