For my mentor text, I chose a Spoon University article that falls under the genre of “best of” or “top ten” articles – specifically for the online media format. This specific article is titled “9 Restaurants You Have to Eat at During SXSW in Austin” and is typical of other such online list-articles found on sites, such as Spoon University and Buzzfeed. For example, unlike usual, wordy articles, list-articles are more interspersed with pictures for each list item, followed by a short description, anywhere from one sentence to a short paragraph. For each item, the text also includes other relevant, helpful information, such as hyperlinks, locations, hours, etc. It’s also important to note that these types of lists are usually in one, scrollable page, rather than an encumbersome slideshow that a reader is forced to click through. These types of articles are widely ready by millenials, but also enjoyed by some of the older population. Besides a short introduction, there is not much else; usually, even the number of listed items are short. However, sometimes less is more, and today’s millennials certainly seem to agree. This is exactly why these types of texts are so relevant in today’s world…

Today is different from ever before. We are living in the digital, modern age, where everything is faster, and yet, it seems like we have less time to do everything that we want to do. That is why people nowadays sometimes prefer information that is concise, to the point, and easy to comprehend (thus, the need for pictures). Also, due to information overload, it is often better to present readers of these texts with carefully curated, short lists rather than comprehensive, winding lists. Today, this is how a lot of people get their information, especially for what is seemingly more “trivial” information, such as food, and some even use this format to get their news.

I believe that this text should serve as a mentor for my own writing because it has all of the elements of a successful list-article, especially for a Spoon Texas article, that would capture the attention of UT students, and I, as a member of Spoon Texas, hope to write a series of texts in this genre. It has eye-catching photographs that link to social media accounts, which is very savvy with our social-media-crazed world. Also, the article has consistent formatting. Also, it is written by a community member of Spoon University. This is significant because a lot of these types of articles are written by online community members, as commonly seen in Buzzfeed. Finally, her writing style is impecabble for these types of texts; it’s concise, yet attention-getting and relatable. For example, with lines, such as “…AND [Italic is] open late on Friday and Saturday. Skip the food truck pizza and get Italic after a night of drinking instead”, the author clearly both engages with and understands her audience – which happens to be UT college students, who all can relate to a late night on Sixth.

Dieterich, Elizabeth. “9 Restaurants You Have to Eat at During SXSW 2017.” Spoon University. Spoon University, 12 Mar. 2017. Web. 21 Mar. 2017. <http://spoonuniversity.com/place/9-restaurants-you-have-to-eat-at-during-sxsw-in-austin>.