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It's slightly embarrassing to confess, but here goes. A handful of books rest next to my bed, every one only partly read. Inside my mobile device, I'm partway through thirty-six audio novels, which pales next to the 46 digital books I've abandoned on my Kindle. That does not include the increasing stack of pre-release versions next to my living room table, vying for praises, now that I work as a published novelist in my own right.

From Persistent Completion to Deliberate Letting Go

Initially, these numbers might look to support contemporary thoughts about modern focus. One novelist observed a short while ago how simple it is to lose a individual's focus when it is fragmented by digital platforms and the constant updates. They remarked: “It could be as individuals' concentration change the literature will have to change with them.” However as an individual who used to stubbornly complete whatever title I picked up, I now consider it a human right to stop reading a novel that I'm not enjoying.

Life's Short Duration and the Abundance of Options

I do not believe that this tendency is a result of a short concentration – rather more it relates to the feeling of time slipping through my fingers. I've consistently been affected by the spiritual maxim: “Hold the end every day before your eyes.” One idea that we each have a just finite period on this world was as shocking to me as to anyone else. And yet at what different moment in our past have we ever had such instant entry to so many mind-blowing works of art, whenever we desire? A surplus of options awaits me in each bookstore and within any device, and I strive to be intentional about where I channel my attention. Is it possible “abandoning” a story (shorthand in the literary community for Unfinished) be rather than a mark of a weak mind, but a thoughtful one?

Reading for Understanding and Insight

Particularly at a time when book production (and thus, selection) is still controlled by a particular demographic and its issues. Even though reading about individuals different from us can help to develop the muscle for understanding, we also select stories to reflect on our personal journeys and position in the society. Before the titles on the shelves more fully reflect the experiences, stories and concerns of prospective readers, it might be quite hard to maintain their focus.

Modern Writing and Audience Attention

Certainly, some writers are actually effectively crafting for the “today's interest”: the tweet-length prose of selected recent works, the compact sections of different authors, and the brief sections of several modern books are all a impressive example for a briefer form and technique. Additionally there is no shortage of craft tips aimed at capturing a consumer: hone that opening line, enhance that opening chapter, elevate the drama (higher! higher!) and, if creating mystery, put a mystery on the first page. Such advice is entirely solid – a possible publisher, publisher or reader will spend only a few precious moments deciding whether or not to continue. It is no benefit in being difficult, like the writer on a class I joined who, when questioned about the plot of their manuscript, declared that “it all becomes clear about three-fourths of the through the book”. No novelist should force their audience through a sequence of 12 labours in order to be comprehended.

Writing to Be Accessible and Allowing Patience

But I certainly create to be understood, as to the extent as that is achievable. At times that requires holding the consumer's attention, guiding them through the plot step by economical point. Sometimes, I've discovered, comprehension takes patience – and I must give my own self (as well as other creators) the grace of meandering, of building, of digressing, until I find something true. A particular thinker argues for the fiction developing innovative patterns and that, rather than the traditional narrative arc, “other structures might assist us conceive novel methods to craft our tales alive and authentic, persist in making our novels fresh”.

Change of the Story and Contemporary Mediums

Accordingly, the two opinions agree – the novel may have to change to accommodate the contemporary audience, as it has constantly done since it began in the historical period (in the form today). Maybe, like earlier writers, future writers will revert to serialising their works in periodicals. The future such writers may already be releasing their writing, part by part, on online sites like those used by many of frequent readers. Genres change with the times and we should allow them.

Not Just Limited Attention Spans

However we should not say that all shifts are completely because of reduced attention spans. If that were the case, brief fiction collections and micro tales would be viewed considerably more {commercial|profitable|marketable