Aspiring Writers Get Creative With Figment

Figment a new website allows you to post your own stories and interact with other writers.

BY ALYSSA FISHER

In a technology-filled world obsessed with Facebook posting, tweeting and video gaming, many worry about the fate of literature. It’s becoming more common to see people’s noses in their laptops or smart phones rather than a book. To promote those who do wish to keep literature alive, there’s Figment, (www.figment.com) an innovative social networking site for young writers that is harboring a new literary world adapted to the 21^st Century.

As soon as they enter the website, the homepage’s large disclaimer bombards aspiring writers: “Figment is a community where you can share your writing, connect with other readers, and discover new stories and authors. Whatever you’re into, from sonnets to mysteries, from sci-fi stories to cell phone novels, you can find it all here.”

Launched on December 6, 2010, Figment is the brainchild of Jacob Lewis, a former managing editor of The New Yorker, and Dana Goodyear, a current staff writer for the magazine. Their idea for the website stemmed from the strange phenomenon that took Japan by storm – the cell phone novel. In 2008, Goodyear wrote a piece in the New Yorker about young Japanese women who composed fiction stories on their phones, dubbing it “the first literary genre to emerge from the cellular age.”

According to the Times, Lewis and Goodyear’s mission is to revive literature. To prepare for the unveiling of Figment, the duo worked with schools, libraries and literary organizations across the country to recruit several hundred teen writers willing to contribute to the prototype.

“We wanted people to be able to write whatever they wanted in whatever form they wanted,” Lewis said in an interview with The Times. “We give them a piece of paper and say, ‘Go.’ ”

Figment gives these amateur authors an opportunity to expose their writing to the world. Comparable to Facebook, they are able to post their literary piece for other young writers to read and comment on, giving them some publicity. The set up is also really interesting. The free website allows authors to set up their profile (that includes an ‘About Me’ section), upload an avatar and link their profile to Twitter and Facebook. The site is also generally easy to navigate, with a simplistic, yet eye-catching layout.

The site has a friendly atmosphere whether you’re a writer or reader. Writers can choose from multiple genres to represent their work, making it easier to find the specific piece you’re in the mood to read. The system of leaving comments and reviews has separate sections for short comments or in-depth critiques. The badges on the site are also really helpful; writers can earn certain badges for accomplishments, such as “Junior Editor” for leaving two or more reviews or “Cardiologist” for receiving five hearts. Members can give a “heart” to a story they really enjoyed, as well as chose emotions it brought about. The stories with the most hearts are featured on the homepage.

The demographic of the site is mainly teenagers and college students; most of the featured books tend to appeal more to younger writers. Instead of these hopeful authors hounding publishers to bind their novels, publishers are actually seeking them out. Teenagers are reading, which is apparent from Twilight explosion that sold 116 million copies worldwide. Publishers are eager to learn more about teens’ reading habits and what might be the new fad to grab their attention.

“For publishers, this is an amazing opportunity to not only reach your consumers but to find out really valuable information about how they are reading,” Lewis said.

Change is inevitable in this fast-paced generation, and all aspects of our society have to revolutionize to keep up. The same is true for literature; the way we read is different than ever before, but that doesn’t mean that the written word is disappearing all together. With the engaging invention of Figment, literature doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere any time soon.