Blog 6

This past week, I found that I really enjoyed most of the author's we discussed. The interactive texts, whether paired with audio or artwork, felt particularly vulnerable. I think this sensation comes across as so strong, due to the nature of human connectedness. Unlike reading the words on a bare page, drawings and the author's voice can compel their story in a far more personal light. Shelly Jackson's webpage was beautiful, and presented herself in a way that is comparable to an adolescent diary. She doesn't hold back, and hits every part of her body. I felt almost embarrassed to divulging an individual's view on themself to this degree. Yet, the jumping from piece to piece about her emotions and early memories kept me infatuated. It was like getting to take a glance at the inside of someone's brain. A real person. She wasn't pretending to preach self love, or projecting her self deprivation. It was the most modest way of delivering thoughts about something so close to you. 

Samantha Irby, when just utilizing her words as the vessel, allows the reader to experience all of the things I mentioned with Jackson simply because she addresses the audience like they are an inanimate object in her bedroom. I feel like I am her bedside table with her parentheses, mixed use of uppercase words, asterisks, and quotations. If her style wasn't as casual, I think I would have a difficult time stepping into her mind. 

For me, Lindy West was the least captivating, though I appreciated every word. I did enjoy her lists and frequent page returns. Still, it was something I felt like I had already heard before. Not to diminish her experiences because those are all incredibly valid. I think I just wanted more thoughts rather than just reading the recollection of an event. Then I think, however, that she isn't trying to be poetic. She is just being genuine. And that is also something of value. All this being said, it's clear that Jackson really made the mark for me. The combinations of mediums and having the advantage of color use, or lack there of, was something special.