Hi, Steve:
Hey, disagree all you want. No sin, believe me. :) But I'm
afraid we're going to have to agree to disagree.
> Doug, I also have to disagree heartily
and
> respectfully with you when you say
> that "to focus on anything else is really to
focus
> on ornamental stuff,
> nothing important." I can't separate form
and
> substance that easily.
> Reading is after all a physical and
tactile
> experience as well, and a book is
> a tangible thing. So, if nothing else
reading
> something in one form can be
> very different than reading it in another form.
A
> book isn't just words -
> its an activity, a thing and an expereience.
Its
> paper, ink, covers, fonts,
> layout, the ability to bend it backwards, stick
it
> in your back pocket,
> scribble in it . . . . I'd feel like I farted
in
> church if I wrote in the
> margins of the LOA volumes. And just wait
until
> ebooks become ubiquitous . .
> .. . Sure, there are many ways to "access"
words,
> but all reading experiences
> are not created equal.
If tomorrow, when you woke up, the only way to get FAREWELL,
MY LOVELY was as an e-text on the internet, would that change
the quality of Chandler's writing? The quality of the story?
No, of course not. It's the same damn thing -- just in a
different form.
I think it's a very good idea to seperate form and substance
when you're talking about art. Or else, next thing you know,
you'll start confusing the two. The quality of a piece of hb
writing stands or falls on the *writing*, not the fact that
it's being published in a cheap paperback edition and has a
painting of a good-looking blonde falling out of her dress on
the cover. As good as those kind of books often are. :)
And man, if you're getting intimidated by your books
--well, fight back! Scribble on those pages! Rip that
flyleaf! Hell, you paid for it -- don't let it run your life!
:)
More seriously, I'll conclude my thoughts on the subject by
restating them slightly -- while obviously things like fonts,
layouts, format, covers, etc. can enhance or detract from a
reading experience, ultimately, in my opinion, they're all
ornamental aspects. The main thing is the writing, in
whatever form.
doug
===== Doug Bassett
dj_bassett@yahoo.com
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