Dear Readers,

How’s your day going so far?

I have some disturbing news: emojis are on the attack.

Yes, you can’t escape them.  They are all over blogs, social media, popular texting apps.

(Full discloser: I’m guilty of using emojis in text messages.)

Here’s an example: Today, I’ve received a newsletter from a respected colleague in which the entire text was covered with emojis.  It looked like the letter being hacked by Pacman (remember that video game?) smiling faces that gobbled up real words.

OMG!!!! What’s happened to real written discourse?

I tell you what’s happened; the world of marketing has created a new style of communicating where the writer no longer needs to employ proper writing skills to convey a message.

No more grammar, no more punctuation.

In the future, all forms of communicating will be just a bunch of little animated cartoons spread across the page like dog poop.

I’m curious, who came up with this idea to insert smiley faces into our written communication?

Marketers did because they tell us the average reader will only stay on your blog page or website for three seconds or less.

(Are you still with me?   Your three seconds are up, so feel free to delete this if your attention has waned.)

Maybe for some of you who don’t like to write in English or in your own native tongue, it comes as a relief.  (Warning: you will be putting me and all the other good language coaches out of business.)

I’m currently stuck in this trend of using emojis as add-on expressions in blogging, and it’s killing my passion for writing.

Over the past few years, I’ve taken a few marketing and blogging courses online.  The message is that any social media or blog content makers should quickly grab the attention of a potential client, who apparently has the attention span of a chimpanzee, and solve her problems before her monkey mind bounces away.

I find this fad so nettlesome (try finding an emoji for that adjective) because I’ve been educated and trained to express my thoughts and feelings through a variety of syntax and vocabulary.

Besides, it’s my job to coach my clients to become fluent writers and speakers of proper English.

Words and sentences make a good writer, not pictograms.

To be sure, well-written communication helps define goals, identify problems, and arrive at solutions.  Nearly every professional business will require some degree of written communication skills, whether it’s sending emails, writing memos, or providing reports.

The ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and concretely in writing ensures that everyone understands what you’re telling them, especially in dealing with international companies that use English as the main language.

When emails came along, hand-written or typed letters died and were buried next to the analog phone.

Now emails are being replaced by shorter social media applications where you write just phrases with logograms and emoticons.

I’m not against change.  Language is a living entity and evolves just as culture progresses.

I understand readers want short, punchy sentences instead of long-descriptive sentences.

(Please note, a standard paragraph in blog writing has been axed to one or two sentences max.)

So, what is a writer and language coach to do?

In terms of my impacting popular culture, I’m swimming against a sea of social media influencers.  If I don’t conform to some extent, I’ll drown in my own reluctance.

When I write a blog post or personal email, I now use a few emojis to lighten the conversation.

In professional writing, I advise against using emojis.

Over to you.

Do you like to infuse emojis in your writing or texts?  Do you find them annoying or cute?  I’d love to hear your opinion.

Have a great day!  Paula