By: Erin Rose Hennessy and Emily Eileen Moreshead
In this changing world, technology seems to be taking over a lot of things. We write on computers, we order groceries online, and we can even read books on our e-readers. What are the pros and cons of paperbacks vs e-books and which do we prefer?
Erin: I love paperback books. Just the act of holding one brings back memories of sitting in my family’s hammock as a child, reading books on a summer day. I love seeing my bookcases filled with my favorite reads, and I can pull them out again and again. There’s something so real about a book you can touch, experience each page as you turn it and visually see where you are. Plus, the bookmarks I get from my local Half Price bookstore are pretty cool!
Emily: Yes it’s 2019 but I don’t think I have ever read a book other than it being an actual book. I feel, especially, as a writer myself that is important to know everything about a book, and that includes the cover, its art, author’s dedication page, etc. There seems to be more magic that way, at least for me, as if I can almost see the characters and scenes coming to life with each flip of the page!
Erin: I do have a Nook e-reader and a good selection of e-books. I do like the convenience of having my tablet with me when I travel, instead of carrying 6-8 books with me. Because of my love for the written word, I need more than one book on vacation and I can’t imagine stuffing all those paperbacks into my carry-on. I also like my e-books when I’m babysitting or at someone else’s home for the evening. It’s definitely more convenient to have my books, my internet connection, my writing, and my Netflix all in one place!
Emily: I prefer to write on my laptop so technology isn’t all bad. I do still have a few of my hand-written stories but reading a novel I don’t think I could ever do online. Reading is so personal to me, so profound, and perhaps I still have a little of the “internet is never private mentality’.
Erin: If I had to choose, I prefer paperback books, but I enjoy a good e-read once in awhile, too. I think it’s important that we don’t lose sense of the richness of paperback books, that we continue to teach with them in schools, read them, and incorporate them into our daily lives.
Emily: I will agree with Erin in that I hope the world doesn’t stifle the use of books and deem them too archaic for the youth of today and tomorrow and for me I suppose it is also important to get more used to the e-contemporary world.
What about you, readers? Do you prefer to hold a book in your hands or read your stories off a screen?
E & E Writers Enterprise 