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British YA spy series 'Cherub' (comes to the big screen. Also in anticipation of the release next week — an update on all things "Percy Jackson." And in case you missed it: another whitewashing episode sparked by the illustrated "Mysterious... Read the rest of this post

Mobile! Mobile! Mobile!

I keep saying it, and every day I'm seeing more examples. The Internet is quickly filling up with bright, hungry writers who are setting the standard for cellphone writing. You should be one of them.

Here are three writers I discovered in the last week, people who can inspire you to try using your cellphone and videocamera as writing tools.

I was reading Galleycat when I spotted Barry Yourgrau (that's his picture) and his mad collection of multimedia stories. He wrote a series of short shorts intended to be read on cellphones and plays with web video writing as well.

Earlier this week, journalist Sarah Meyers stopped by our website. Check out her Consumer Electronics Show coverage for tips on live video and breaking tech news. 

Finally, smojo (a writer with Twitter and webvideo on his site) reminded us about the future implications of all this tech. "Once the picture quality is a little better I can imagine reporters using this kind of technology to go into disaster zones. The news van with the giant satellite tower will no longer be needed."

Anybody else have some bright ideas?

How do you tell stories on a cellphone screen? You should figure it out.

The Poynter Institute has a fascinating article about mobile journalists that are bopping around the world with laptops, cameras, and a notebook. While journalist Pat Walters sees some dangers in the practice, the article links to plenty of sweet storytelling experimentation. Check it out:

"At The News-Press, that means deploying a team of MoJos armed with laptops, cameras and recorders. At the Post, Ahrens says, it means hiring newspaper Web site designer Rob Curley, known nationwide for his groundbreaking work in creating an intensely local and interactive Web site for the Naples (Fla.) Daily News and the Lawrence (Kan.) Journal-World."

For the novelists in the audience, the Wall Street Journal has covered the evolution of mobile phone fiction. In addition, the Institute for the Future of the Book has a great essay about the future of the cellphone novel in  America, speculating if the bitty-text wave could affect us. Read it and weep:

"In other words, improved telcom services in the States wouldn't necessarily translate into a proliferation of cellphone novels, but other mobile media services would undoubtedly start to flourish. Broadband internet access is also pathetically slow in the US compared to countries in Europe and East Asia—the Japanese get service eight to 30 times faster than what we get over here."