Saturday, December 11, 2010

RING TONES ANYONE?




I knew I would eventually see it, but it was still a surprise when I stopped at an intersection and looked into the car facing me. There were four passengers and all of them had their cell phones pressed to their ears. There was a time when getting together was just that. Your friends had your attention, conversation ensued to some degree or the other, and you experienced what is called companionship.

So what does this have to do with writing, you might wonder. Actually, it has everything to do with writing, which is supposed to reflect what we see and do in the real world.

Cell phones are one of the most marvelous inventions of all time. They have transformed our lives in too many ways to mention – or at least in more ways than you DO mention in your stories. Television programs have jumped into this more than movies. Phone calls interrupt the characters, usually supplying the needed information to solve a crime, stop a wedding, save a life – you name it and it is all there – intruding, condoling, cajoling, altering, but getting the job done. Most people have a love/hate relationship with their cell phone, yet they hang on to them like a child with a pacifier. So the question arises – are you giving the proper respect to the telephone gods in your current WIP? I will hate your guts for doing so, but it is an important element of the world in which we live.