Is this the future of reading?
Read on Instagram The future? The present? We spent hours looking at photographs (or, rather, skimming them). We are dedicated to consuming stories without rhyme or reason, without analysis. During hours .
The consequences of this unbridled consumption are still not clear; It's too soon. But some studies are already venturing and warning about them.
If we ask an adolescent -or not so adolescent- what he reads today, he will include in his speech this social network that gives so much and takes so much away. As if Instagram were at the level of a book, as if it were a study, an informative article or a current headline. Is this the future of reading?
Alice in Wonderland
The ** New York Public Library ** is not waiting to see what will happen and is ahead: if you can't beat them, join them. This is how it is born #InstaNovels , an initiative that encourages read novels through the social network Instagram itself.
"The New York Public Library has recently released three insta novels spectacularly designed in collaboration with renowned designer firm Mother New York; In this way, we try to give the public the opportunity to read literary works in full through the Instagram Stories tool ", he comments to Traveler.es Amy Geduldig , Library Public Relations Management Assistant.
"The project is about promote reading among new audiences and transform our 'Stories' into a reading platform (not just vacation photos...) " ( we sing the mea culpa, Amy ).
"For those who want plus , after reading the latest Insta Novel, we encourage you to explore other books from our collections or to download the Library application, SimplyE , - an e-reader with access to hundreds of thousands of free books to read from your mobile-"
ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND, THE FIRST NOVEL PUBLISHED ON INSTAGRAM
And as if it were an irony, the first classic book in the world published entirely on InstaStories, is the surreal story of a girl trapped in a world of fantasy, of unreality, not always pleasant. Like the life that takes place in social networks.
You will be able to experience this reading and, from now on (from October 3, 2018), The yellow wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The third novel to be published this year will be Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. For now, yes, in English. What better way to practice it?
HOW DOES IT WORK?
When you get into the Instagram account of the NYPL You will see that all the stories are stored neatly in their highlights. One of them is a simple user guide: "press right to go forward and go to the next page; press left to go back to the previous page; keep your finger on the page you are reading". That is to say: it works like any story.
Of course, the finger will never hinder your reading since there is a dedicated "THUMB" space for it. Perhaps the only downside that can be put is that the placement of this free space is designed for right-handers.
HE WILL BE SUCCESSFUL?
"Since the release of Alice in Wonderland , the Library has gained more than 93,000 new followers on Instagram and has seen an increase in the use of the SimplyE application", reports Geduldig.
The Yellow Wallpaper