Image: A different type of Art
A writer’s job is to understand language, the mechanics of words, sentences and structures and how they convey meaning. As writers increasingly operate in the digital space, their stories are intermingled with another language: coding.
If the medium is the message, writers should also have an intimate knowledge of the platforms and devices they are using in order to better understand the symbiotic relationship between the two.
Learning to code can enchance the quality of the presentation of your writing, but it can also boost your profile in the competitive profession. In How to build a portfolio career, Sam Cooney editor-in-chief and publisher of literary magazine The Lifted Brow said having a broad skill set will assist you to secure work in a competitive industry.
‘There is an ever-decreasing possibility for individuals to make a living from creative or literary writing,’ said Cooney.
‘It’s important for writers to be out in the world, doing not-writing activities,’ he added, ‘Broadening a skill set can include learning skills that can complement one’s ability to write.’
As part of the Digital Wrtiters’ Festival 2015, polygot programmer Jack Watson-Hamblin hosted an online event running through the basics of coding and how writers can get the most out if having the skill set.
A tutor of web and mobile coding at General Assembly, Watson-Hamblin said that writers should be learning to code in order to better their existing writing knowledge and skill. Having an understanding of a few basic coding languages – HTML, CSS, JQuery – can enhance your writing and enable you to create interactive stories or experiment with presentation.
This ability to experiment with digital formats is what makes coding so creative, which is another reason why writers should learn, said Watson-Hamblin.
For Watson-Hamblin, coding has nothing to do with the actual mechanical side of learning the languages or the technological aspect, but the fact that he likes to create things and find the answers to various questions.
‘Programming can be fun and creative,’ he said. ‘It is not about the actual code but the ability to create things.’
For writers, it’s important to have their work read, and creating interesting online projects enhanced by some code can get work noticed. ‘As writers, I’m sure you are familiar with the sense of pride when you create something and share something with the world.’
If creating a multimedia story like the New York Times Snow Fall: The Avalance at Tunnel Creek by John Branc seems a little daunting, it may be comforting to hear that Watson-Hamblinis is not advocating that all writers become web developers. As a writer working in the digital space, knowing the basics can help you communicate more effectively when you are working with developers.
Being armed with the basics when enlisting a developer to help create an online portfolio or experimenting with multimedia presentation can give you more control over the process and help you understand how technology works in different ways, said Watson-Hamblin.
It also means you don’t need to pester a developer or pay high fees to make little tweaks to your website.
Coding is not that different to writing – there is a logic to the language and much like developing a story or putting together a feature, coding involves problem solving.
Exploring questions is one of the greatest appeals of coding, said Watson-Hamblin: ‘Coding can enable you to take things a little bit further and answers some questions you wish you could answer.’
Linux Rants blogger Mike Stone said honing the skill of problem solving is why everyone should learn to code.
‘I do think that everybody should learn to code, at least on a basic level,’ he said. ‘It would teach them to break down a problem into small, manageable portions and solve each of those parts logically.
‘It’s actually less about the code itself than solving a problem logically,’ he added. ‘That’s a skill that I think everybody should have.’
Confused about the difference between “front-end” and “back end”, JQuery and JAVA, HTML and CSS? Unlike other foreign languages, it can be very easy to get a basic grasp of coding languages, assured Watson-Hamblin.
It is important not to let the different types of coding languages overwhelm you. Watson-Hamblin recommends familiarising yourself with HTML and CSS to begin with. ‘Start somewhere, don’t fret about the decision because a lot of the programming languages are very similar and you can take some of the things you’ve learned and start to expand.’
Watson-Hamblin said spending just one weekend experimenting with a project can set writers up with the basics. Especially for recent graduates or those still at university who are in a learning mind frame, it can be a very fast learning curve.
The key is to start small: ‘Don’t jump in and dedicate two years to an interactive novel,’ said Watson-Hamblin, ‘don’t’ go that far unless you’re already doing that already.’
‘Just get the basics down and start creating. As soon as you start creating you can work out, “Well, I have this thing, I know this bit, but I’d like to do this” and you start Googling it and once you learn you start knowing where to look at it begins to snowball from there.
The best place to start is to dive in on your own and use the freely available resources online. Watson-Hamblin said Twitter is a great place to ask questions and recommends free online courses such as Code Academy. If it is difficult to sort through all the information on your own. General Assembly offers part time, full time and intensive courses.
But above all, Watson-Hamblin encourages all writers to just start. ‘It’s an incredibly rewarding experience,’ he concluded.
