Notes from Belgrade: is print dead?

Camille Scherrer talks on her augmented reality animations. Beautiful and inspiring 

Rather than talking blindly at the internet I thought today we could try something different. I am going to ask you two questions and it would be nice if we could all have a conversation.

When I set up this blog it was intended to be an outlet for me to talk about books but as it stands it's mostly me shouting things at you and I'm not a huge fan of that. Makes me feel like I'm a bit mad.

So, my first question is, where are you?

I am currently in Belgrade, Serbia at a new media festival called Resonate.

Now I know what your thinking, new media and books, nice oxymoron, moron. Well yes, its true that I am not exactly a new media buff rather more of a campaigner for old medias, but my other half is and as we well know learning is great, so I'm here learning things with him and I've got to say so far its great.

There's something very refreshing about being a complete novice surrounded by experts, i know I'm getting a view if things they can't have, like an innocent baby casting fresh eyes on the world.

There were two talks yesterday that have sparked my interest and that are extremely relevant to the traditional medias us book lovers adore. (Incidentally we need a better collective name than book lovers, suggestions welcome.) So i thought I'd share some thoughts with you, perhaps you'll feel compelled to as well.

Firstly I watched Camille Scherrer (http://chipchip.ch/) An illustrator who lives a fairytale existence drawing in her mountainside cabin in the hills of Sweden. How beautiful that sounds.

She has always harboured an interest in augmented reality and that turned to adding animations to books so as you view the story the pages almost literally come to life, the stuff off dreams.
Which got me thinking in a world where traditionalists battle against kindle supporters what is it we get from the old medias that makes it so much more appealing than the new, or vice versa depending on your opinion.

For me the physical shopping for a book is part of the enjoyment, choosing my stories from all the books in front of me, the smell of a secret old shop, chatting with the shop staff about favorites old and new. It all gives me a child like joy like no other. There is also something to be said of the thought that stories carry their own stories, books passed between hands, down through generations or groups of friends, everyone sharing the same story but each experiencing it in their own way. The fact its a tangible product gives it a life of its own.

So where then, is the place for new medias in books. The kindle hath arrived and taken over most households, is that simply for its accessibility? It takes away so many other aspects of reading in favor of speed and cost, so in my mind digital books only existed to  destroy the industry, or at least the aspects of it I love.

But with Camille's illustrations working with the words and the story have we found a whole new realm of imagination? Stories have the potential to come alive in a new and beautiful way. Camille's projects and animations, which have a very 'where the wild things are' feel to them completely enchanted me, just like a good book and almost everything she does is a beautifully crafted combination of old medias and new, and it seems to me that the future should look to be this kind of a compromise rather than a battle for one or the other, and the question we should be asking is how can new and old work together for the benefit of the consumer.

In the afternoon I watched three speakers discuss their kickstarter funded magazine on the topic 'print is dead.. Or is it?' This is a subject that regularly comes up in conversation in my world. Do physical publications, be that books or magazines and so on, still have a place in a world where web press is so popular, easy and cheap. Holo, the magazine in discussion, will be published bi annually and is a publication for the new media subculture. Interesting then that they decided to go for physical print, but in doing so they outlined exactly why print publications will never cease to exist, which I think was really their point.

People will always want a tangible record of their work or passion. With media online everything is so easily erased or replaced at a click, print gives our work and our lives a chance to exist in the world and leave its mark.

The more relevant question then may be does print only exist as a novelty for small niches, and will it ever be a necessity again. I was almost sure that online medias would eventually replace every aspect of physical print until the Holo gang (gang...? Am I really going to call them that. Yes, I think so) made and excellent point of having found a copy of Arthur C Clarke's 2001 A Space Odyssey in a charity shop that was 50 years old. Yet still, there it is, in full working condition, in an immediate and universally accessible format. That is the beauty of physical print, anyone anywhere that can read can enjoy the stories and tales recorded in books, newspapers, magazines without any special skills or interface, physical books can be shared and loved and cried over and engrossed anywhere, potentially forever.

Part of the reason I love shopping for books in second hand shops is wondering the stories that those stories have seen, a joy you only get with print. They are, in theory, imperishable where as content online is almost entirely disposable.

So my second question then friends, is what do you think? Is print dead, does is exist only for small niches? What is it that keeps you buying books?

Share with me because I think its genuinely interesting to know from every side.

As always opinions are subjective, so try not to hate, and please please go check out Camille (http://chipchip.ch/) and the Holo 'gang', who can be found here (http://holo-magazine.com/) if not for any reason other than they gave me some well wanted inspiration to finally write a post about print publications.

Also check out resonate (www.resonate.io) because if your interested in new media or just learning in anyway its been a great experience so far.

If all that wasn't enough to convince you that Resonate is great, there is also live music in the evenings, that looks like this. 

As a final note, before you say so, I am well aware of the contradiction in posting this on the internet. Its my blog, I can be contrary as I wish.

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

My attention was drawn to this book after many a mention from friends, within the bloggersphere realm or otherwise. Each recommendation heralded it as a revelation, nothing short of genius. Reviews around the globe reiterated the sentiment, Topping many best sellers lists, but I approached with caution.

There is always something of a risk with over hype. We must all have had that deflating feeling, when something comes so highly recommended, you consistently hear "its so wonderful, you simply MUST read it." Which tricks your brain into believing it'll be literally life changing. You must buy this Chloe, life as you know it will never be the same! Only to find, in reality it is well written, but not for you.

This was my worry. So I browsed my local (The Riverside bookshop in London Bridge, I highly recommend it) and I saw it, of course, in the best sellers block, I picked it up to scan the blurb. Admittedly the subject matter sparked my intrigue but I wasn't convinced, it seemed to me like a book written just so it could be a movie. It wasn't until I stumbled upon on a quote from the book on another book lovers blog that I was convinced.

Now, I wouldn't go so far as to say life changing, but I found TFIOS to be engaging, tragic and charming all wrapped up in one emotion filled ball. I enjoyed it so much so I devoured it in two and a half days.

The story follows teenage terminal cancer suffer Hazel Grace and her romance with Augustus. Two teenagers falling in love in the backdrop of a cancer support group, not your usual puppy love tale.
What Green manages to do so well here, is to capture the enchanting charm of teenage innocent love perfectly. Hazel and Augustus impress each other with their wit and for want of a MUCH better word, banter, in conversations that will have you beaming from ear to ear.
The beauty of this tale lies in the feeling of reading them falling for each other, if the characters had been older it wouldn't have been half as charming, its their youth that makes it so lovely.

I'm torn in calling this novel tragic, although I suppose in definition, it is. In actuality, I think, its more of a celebration of the littlest things that make life good, in any circumstance. I can honestly say I spent most of the book smiling like the Cheshire cat and on the verge of tears at the same time and I famously have a heart of stone, so that really is an impressive feat.

So, as you can tell, I loved this book. Why then did it take me so long to write this review? I wanted it to be a sincere representation, but to put it lightly (because this is not a place to over share) this was a subject close to home for me, so on finishing the last page, rather than jumping online to muse to you all about how delightful a read it was, I gave it to my not so literary loving other half. I wanted a less biast  opinion, and I'm not sure I could do that. I was also vaguely suspicious that its a 'girls book.' So I figured what better way to judge than asking a real human boy. Enlighten us Luke..

Luke: IT WAS GOOD, YEAH.

Well, I needn't say any more, that should tell you all you need to know.

In review, TFIOS is not Dickens, its not complex and difficult, it won't leave you with a furrowed brow desperately trying to understand what the last 800 pages were actually about. What it is, is a story. A great story in its simplest form, about humans and their lives. Its beautiful, honest, heart wrenching and funny, such is life.

The end.


For fans of: Mark Watson, David Nichols.
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