Writing Cultures and Literary Media

This Pivot investigates the impact of the digital on literary culture through the analysis of selected marketing narratives, social media stories, and reading communities. Drawing on the work of contemporary writers, from Bernardine Evaristo to Patricia Lockwood, each chapter addresses a specific tension arising from the overarching question: How has writing culture changed in this digital age? By examining shifting modes of literary production, this book considers how discourses of writing and publishing and hierarchies of cultural capital circulate in a socially motivated post-digital environment. Writing Cultures and Literary Media combines compelling accounts of book trends, reader reception, and interviews with writers and publishers to reveal fresh insights for students, practitioners, and scholars of writing, publishing, and communications.

“In this engaging and timely account, Kiernan reflects on the prospects for contemporary writing cultures in a post-digital, post-COVID world. Drawing on her own unique and varied experiences of the contemporary arts world as writer, publisher, and critic, Kiernan offers refreshing insights not only into the opening up of the cultural industries, but also their shortcomings. Writing Culture in a Digital Age discusses some of the most innovative writing from recent years, including fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, and draws on a wide range of cultural sources including the author’s own survey of industry insiders.” (Bronwen Thomas, Head of the Narrative, Culture and Community Research Centre at Bournemouth University, UK, and author of Literature and Social Media (2020)) 

“In this thoughtful and wide-ranging book, Anna Kiernan explores the impact of our digital times on writing both on and off the screen. This timely addition to the scholarship on publishing, storytelling, and storytellers is sure to provoke discussion within academia and beyond.” (Sarah Franklin, novelist and Senior Lecturer in Publishing at Oxford International Centre for Publishing Studies, UK)

“An engaging examination by Anna Kiernan of today’s writing cultures. We discover how writers tell their stories in a world of social media, self-publishing, and digital consumption. I very much enjoyed the book.” (Angus Phillips, Director of the Oxford International Centre for Publishing, UK, and author of Inside Book Publishing (1988) and Turning the Page (2014))

“This is a pragmatic and richly informed reflection on what literary writing was, is, and might become—both in relation to technology, and in response to emerging societal configurations. An important read for academics, writers, and publishers alike.” (Danielle Barrios-O’Neill, Head of Information Experience Design,Royal College of Art, UK)

“Kiernan presents a timely perspective of contemporary relationships between reader, author, and text. A must read for writers and editors.” (Amy Lilwall, Novelist and Lecturer in Creative Writing, Lincoln University, USA)

“This fascinating book illuminates a myriad of ways in which digitalization has shaped contemporary literary culture, from criticism and curation to publication and publicity. Kiernan takes a lively, interdisciplinary approach to her subject, referencing a wide range of dynamic writers and thinkers, drawing on her own varied experience in the literary world and offering plenty of valuable insights.” (Ellen Wiles, Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Exeter, UK, novelist, and author of Live Literature: The Experience and Cultural Value of Literary Events from Salons to Festivals (Palgrave Macmillan 2021))

Anna Kiernan is Senior Lecturer in Creativity and Innovation and Director of the MA Creativity: Innovation and Business Strategy at the University of Exeter, UK. She also runs The Literary Platform, a digital publishing consultancy. A former fiction editor at Simon & Schuster, Anna co-founded the MA in Publishing at Kingston University. Anna’s research focuses on writing culture and cultural value.