eNOTHINGS "#OnTheRoad"

Starting yesterday, for the next week or two I'll be tweeting a meaningful line from Jack Kerouac's legendary novel, "On The Road" every day.

I'm reading "On The Road" again.  I'm pretty sure this is my fourth time around, but have to admit that this time, I'm doing it with a Twist.  I recently purchased the "On The Road, The Original Scroll" (Penguin, 2007).  "On The Road" is basically the original scroll -- right off the typewriter -- as Jack had originally intended the volume to be read.  It even includes real names (Cody is Neal, Allen is Allen and Jack is Jack). 

What's more, there are about 103 full pages of introductions and analyzations of both the creative process (there were actually other starts and stops and even a previous scroll, later published as "Visions of Cody") and the subsequent editing process at the insistance of several editors - and even Allen Ginsberg - in his attempt to get the book published.  As a reader, the process is interesting - as a writer, the process is invaluable.

It makes for GREAT reading, and I find myself feeling much the same as I did after seeing the recent movie "HOWL", then plucking the book off the shelves and tweeting every single line to my followers and to many of their followers too.  It was such fun to share comments and enthusiasm for HOWL.  I feel much the same as I did when I tweeted dozens of Kerouac's American Haiku form...some really lovely work by Kerouac.

It's no secret how I feel about Twitter as an effective communication channel for what was once a distant artistic web of isolated individualists, but is now being slowly transformed into a cohesive and thriving and yes, even BREATHING artistic community.

So, here we go again.  Reading this classic account of rebel America meeting straight America and the constant search for exhilarating "kicks" and the pure joy they feel as they approach maturity.  It's infectious!

Our #OnTheRoad tag begins with the first line:

  

"the only people that interest me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk,..."

You will see more wonderfully open, wild and mad quotes from the novel over the next few weeks.  I'm picking them as I go along so if I miss a line you particularly love, PLEASE feel free to send an email or a comment to this blog entry, and I'll post it on Twitter - OR, do it yourself!

-

Twitter Arts Community

Much has been said in the press and entertainment industry (as well as the office and coffee shops) about Twitter as a phenomenon; both good and bad.  Whether Twitter is just the latest social media fad (or whether social media is just a fad to begin with in some circles) which set out to replace Facebook and MySpace, or a remarkable "Microblogging Marketing Tool" with a record-breaking start, or a numb-nuts vehicle enabling users to "tweet" the most inane thoughts and actions using their new smart phones - is subject to debate.

One thing that can be said for sure, though, is this:

Twitter is the perfect vehicle for quick, to-the-point exchanges of digestible bits of valid and vital information and the transmittal of links to larger sites -- either between individuals, or to a much larger audience.

This statement is showing signs of validation among Poets, Writers, Artists, Musicians, Photographers and others in what is becoming a vital global Arts Community.  eNOTHING began using Twitter as an experiment in 2009.  By promoting Poetry (primarily), Art of all types and genres, and Music we have found ourselves with an audience of over 10,000 devoted followers who in turn follow each other - and all of us tweet and retweet our work, the work of our peers and the work of those who have influenced us in the past.  


Together we have found Tweeting to be an inspiring way of communicating with our peers, fans and others.  eNOTHING has recently taken a close look at our Twitter followers and made the following observations:

• They are artists just as we are.
• They are vital to the revival of the arts in that they are the struggling artists of today.
• Their relevant tweets about arts get re-tweeted to others by their own followers.
• Irrelevant tweets don't spread through this community -- only relevant ones.  I don't know why...
• In addition to artists, there are fan followers, and industry (publishers for example) followers.  This means opportunity.
• There is remarkable commonality GLOBALLY between followers (look at eNOTHING followers -- each one has at least 10-100-1000 or MORE common followers with the next one)

With regards to the poetry and literary world, which is where we reside - eNOTHING is going to make a bold statement -- Twitter has become the Bowery Bar or Village Coffee shop of today - just as the smoke-filled seedy venues of the Beats and the Hippies were many years ago.  Those venues should never be replaced, but Twitter is proving to be a viable venue for discussion and sharing of the arts both by allowing the quick transfer of relevant links - and the 140 character limit is perfect for poetry exchanges and brief descriptions about the "attached link" which carries the body of the work (with the exception of Haiku, for which Twitter is actually perfect).

So Tweeters and wannabe Tweeters, join us to grow the community, revive the arts, and SPREAD THE WORD!

-TH