As a generally technologically stunted person (seriously, it took me way too long to use keyboard shortcuts), social media has helped me become more comfortable in the digital sphere. I now navigate multiple online platforms with ease, and though I still can’t call myself tech-savvy, I know enough to get by. Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, and WordPress are the platforms I am most familiar with, and I’m grateful to know them because they’ll likely end up being a huge part of my job. Social media use has also given me a serious meme addiction — if you see someone dressed up as Evil Kermit for Halloween this year, it’s definitely me.
Me: You should dress up as a mermaid again for Halloween, that would be so cute!
Me to me: Be Evil Kermit, no other costume matters.
But perhaps the most significant impact social media has had on my life is the colloquialism in my writer’s voice. I grew up reading lengthy novels composed in a formal style, and as a result would write sentences that used words such as “scintillating,” “elysian,” and “superfluous.” Now, not only has my voice become a lot more conversational — both from reading online content as well as talking to other users — but I’ll also find myself bringing Internet lingo into my writing, especially if it’s a web piece, which you can see here (note my use of ~inspo~).
However, as much as I like the influence social media has had on my writing, it has made me quite the procrastinator.
Do you think if I eat enough chocolate chip cookies my research paper will magically write itself??? 🙃
— Bridget Hallinan (@bridget_rh) November 12, 2016
Current aesthetic: indiscernible screeches of distress, empty chocolate wrappers, and an article that's only halfway done 🙃
— Bridget Hallinan (@bridget_rh) December 13, 2016
Nobody’s perfect, I guess. I still have a lot to learn with social media, and I’m really excited to grow during this class and optimize my Internet presence. Here’s to a great semester!