Technology is affecting the way we live our life and has been breaking boundaries and changing the way we write, read, and perceive literature since the first time it exists until now in the 21st century. In today's modern era, the roles of technology affect the literary world by its progress and advancement. Technology makes it easier for us to be exposed and to access literature. A lot of technological systems such as eBook, audiobook, social media platforms, and so on are tremendously popular among millennial youth. Today, the growth of literature is heavily influenced by technology and it is impossible for us to dismiss the role of technology and its impact on the literary world.

The existence of technology has always been a miracle in human’s life. Modern technology and media have become the platforms that provide all of us to produce literary works. We can produce new ways of writing through them, for example, with different techniques, styles, and etc. In that way, technology can convey or communicate our literary work to readers in accordance with today’s digital era. Even so, it seems that digital literature won’t be the same as traditional literature. It can’t be denied that it can create a new digital culture that has the same emotional, cognitive, sensory experience that provokes readers. (Micunovic, Marčetić, & Krtalić, 2016).

Literature has significantly changed. It follows culture and the literature that we are familiar with today is usually short form writing with contemporary genres. With the pressing needs of time, it is adopted with advanced technical changes. However, contemporary literature can actually spark a question whether it can significantly improve or damage the reputation of a novel. Contemporary literature includes numerous themes about today’s issue. It represents our world and society more than traditional or canon literature. Contemporary works usually discuss issues like race, sexuality, gender, and so on. The great thing about contemporary literature is that they feed the needs, likes and languages of young adults compared to traditional literature like the infamous Shakespeare.

 Talking about accessibility, the development of technology contributed a lot of great advantages for literature development. Back in the day, being a writer became burdensome, we needed tons of paper, pen, ink, etc. Not to mention the process of editing, printing and publishing took plenty of time. Nowadays, writers can write new novels in just a short amount of time. With modern technology, we can write and edit much faster and conveniently.  One of the most obvious examples is the existence of social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, and even websites like Medium that provide authors a place to showcase and promote their work without getting charged at all. They are also able to publicly communicate with their audience.

It is true that authors cannot control how readers convey the message of their work and also react to it. Back in the day, it seems that the relationship between writer and reader is more one-way with the fact that the authors are already dead. Readers can actually find out about them through the internet by searching their name and look up what other people are saying about them. But now, authors are able to explain to readers what message they are trying to bring through their works. With the existence of the internet, the conversation between author and reader is more like a back and forth conversation where readers can ask questions.

Literature is always evolving especially through technology. Understanding this evolution, and what it means for traditional reading and writing, is crucial because of the ever -widening use of the web. (Horning, 2012). Modern technology and digital revolution of the past twenty years has produced a genuine explosion in the number of writers. (Baron, 2009). To put in short, literature has always been developing with modern technology especially through platforms such as eBook, social media, blog, and so on. With the advancement of technology, it makes the writer and reader relationship more interactive. In addition, it helps us to start writing with simplified and better experience.

References

Baron, D. (2009). A Better Pencil: Readers, Writers, and the Digital Revolution. New York: Oxford University Press.

Horning, A. S. (2012). Reading, Writing, and Digitizing: Understanding Literacy in the Electronic Age. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Micunovic, M., Marčetić, H., & Krtalić, M. (2016, May 25). Literature and Writers in the Digital Age: A Small-Scale Survey of Contemporary Croatian Writers’ Organization and Preservation Practices. Preservation, Digital Technology & Culture. doi:https://doi.org/10.1515/pdtc-2015-0028

Writer: Elisabeth Grisella Sampel

Editor: Ias Aprilia