Oh god- NIGHTMARE about the keyboard. So glad it was an easy fix. I was in a cold sweat for you by proxy when reading this, even though I knew it had a happy ending.
I like to make notes in physical notebooks when I'm in the planning stages, and have played around with drafting longhand, which I occasionally do before something is fully formed.
I nice compromise I have discovered is my Freewrite Traveler, a glorified folding word processor that doesn't allow surfing the web and makes it very difficult to scroll back through what I've written. I love it for early drafts, as it allows me to type, but not edit. I revise on the computer, with the tinkering you mention, but this has been huge for getting words down quickly.
As for fancy notebooks, I have gotten myself to use them, but this is largely because I despise lined paper and most cheap options seem to have lines. I am with you on the A5 size, which I also prefer, but I am all about blank, dotted, or occasionally a grid pattern as long as it is light- Stalogy makes one with lovely paper that is easy to write on. I prefer fountain pens, so I need paper that won't bleed. We deserve good quality tools as writers! I started #fancynotebookchallenge on IG, which I barely hang out on anymore, but got a bunch of people breaking out the good notebooks and enjoying them.
Hope you are happily writing away with the computer back- what a relief!
I second your praise of the Freewrite. I’d hesitated buying one for years because of the cost, but finally bit the bullet just before Christmas. Since then I’ve written over 100,000 words using it. Zero distractions. It’s amazing.
Most of those words are garbage of course, but it's something to work from I guess! And I'd never been able to keep up that sort of a writing habit before getting the Freewrite. I don't know what it says about me that I need to shell out £300+ on a bit of tech in order to get any writing done, but there you go...
It‘s a total godsend for that. I will warn you, it is quite expensive- I backed the kickstarter so got a very good discount. You can get a similar result with an Alphasmart Neo- they‘re no longer made, but do often come up on eBay for about $30-50. I did get one and enjoyed it, but the Freewrite is definitely slicker, and easier to tote around for travel and cafe writing if that makes a difference.
I’m not opposed to gifting myself nice things if it’s worth it, and a cursory look has me quite interested. 2022 has been a year for cutting out distractions (I wrote about the Digital Detox I’ve been undergoing), and this could help with that movement. Thanks!
My pleasure- given how much less travel happened over the past few years, we have been able to justify a few splurges, and I suspect you will find this one worth it.
Learning to write on the Notes app on my phone was a game-changer for me. Helped me to break out of the 'must have perfect conditions/moment/equipment' feedback loop. I agree about reading/editing on paper too. I've just printed my book in its entirety to proofread rather than doing it on screen. Feels wasteful, but also...necessary?
I agree on the Notes app being a game-changer! I love being able to capture ideas on the fly! And I also print things I am proofreading. Definitely necessary.
I enjoy writing in a notebook, and I always have a Rhodia softcover dot A5 with me (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017NEHK76). I discovered this brand a few years ago and love the paper quality. The dots give me freedom to scribble all over. I mostly use this for my everyday jotting down all the things--details of a phone call, a quote I enjoyed, daily tasks. But I review it weekly and transfer anything important into Evernote.
As for writing, I have become a keyboard person. I know that it needs to end up there anyway, so it’s more about efficiency, being able (like you said) to move things around. And I don’t have to sort through a paper journal to find that quote I wanted to write about.
I would, however, like to try freewriting in longhand as a daily practice to see if that helps my ideas. It’s been a while since I did that.
Totally know what you mean about the cheap ring-bound notebook preference, I am the same! I got sent a very posh notebook from Symthson but the reality is I'll never use it, because the PRESSURE! Don't want to 'ruin' it with shit handwriting/shit ideas. Lol! Whereas my ringbound has can be covered with all sorts of things, freely! xo
Yes that's totally part of it! They need to perforate the pages or something so that at least you can write what you want with the awareness that you can easily rip it out. Would be liberating! xx
I like those old marbled composition books (bound w/o rings) because they don’t get snagged. Like you say, it’s personal preference about typing or writing by hand. I’ve done both, either way a lot of editing is involved. I once completely rewrote a typed story by writing in the margins and filling up a legal pad-- I probably wouldn’t have been able to write the story directly on the computer though. I grew up in the time of typewriters and those early computers with green letters etc. so I’m biased, ha!
I'm not glad that your laptop nearly died, but I am glad writing hour is moved as I can make it now!
In my professional life as a journalist, I've also been faithful to reporter's notepads (plus my mum always had one in her handbag when I was a kid and I grew up wanting my own, full of lists and notes and scribbles) only transitioning to a computer when all the interviews are done. For work, I draft entirely on a screen. Partly for speed - transcribing interviews takes long enough without transcribing a handwritten draft too.
BUT I've found with my short story writing and dabbles at playwriting that I always start long hand. I get too distracted on a screen and, like another commenter says, really enjoy seeing all the scribbles and amendments. I've finally broken the spell and will now use posh notebooks alongside 3-for-£1 ringbound notepads and it feels good. I hated that all these beautiful bits of stationery were left unused in a draw, though I agree with Hattie that the ones that don't stay open are, frankly, daft.
You're so right to use them – I have two shoeboxes full of notebooks (mostly from Christmases/birthdays) and I am working my way through them too. I just find that if there's a ring-bound one, I am drawn to it first... So glad you can make it on Sunday!
Fascinating comments... I should own up to being an old guy, so this whole computer thing is not built into my DNA. That said I've been using a Mac for about twenty years and I love it.
I write by hand using a fountain pen (Parker ideally) or a pencil. The pencil more often. There is something about the connection between hand, head and heart that a computer keyboard doesn't give me. Whenever I get stuck, which is frequently, I close the Mac and open my notebook. I find just sitting with my pencil and waiting usually works. Later I will read and then put the words down on the Mac. Who was it who said, "Write like a child, revise like grown up." I am writing a memoir which requires me to really mine my experience, so if I can get a run going with handwriting, I'm happy. I can revise and be grown up on the screen.
So I do the opposite of Hattie - I write then go onto the computer.
I've used various notebooks over the years but have finally settled on Leuchtturm 1917, B5 size which is like an exercise book. I use the softcover version. I like them because the paper quality is good enough for ink, the pages are numbered, there's a contents page and they're big enough to write in, but small enough to get in a bag. Leuchtturm also produce a beautiful pencil called the Drehgriffel, which translates as a twist stylus. It's precision made from aluminium and brass and fits perfectly into my hand.
These are excellent tips, thanks Nicholas. I'm fascinated by the different recommendations that are coming up here – maybe I need to go stationery shopping after all.
Am SO glad you got it fixed Hattie! And as I was reading this I was thinking about The Artists Way - then you mentioned it! I did The Artists Way at the beginning of my creative journey and it was transformational for me, so I still hand write my morning pages every day, and I have developed an unfortunate addiction to Papier notebooks which I use for this purpose. The designs are all so gorgeous (and I definitely don’t keep them for best!)
There’s a beautiful short film (a doc) by Julia Solomonoff entitled “hand, writing.” I know in America you can find it on you.tube— or on the website of The Shed in NYC. Hope you’ll be able to find it across the pond. Too, I don’t allow “devices” in the grad film classes I teach- I insist that students take notes by hand (some get furious with me). I make the case that I’m preserving an esprit de corps and want students present to one another. I also learned subsequently that taking notes by hand increases the odds of remembering— the kinetic action- that mind/body gesture works to etch it onto the emulsion sheet of memory.
Oh god- NIGHTMARE about the keyboard. So glad it was an easy fix. I was in a cold sweat for you by proxy when reading this, even though I knew it had a happy ending.
I like to make notes in physical notebooks when I'm in the planning stages, and have played around with drafting longhand, which I occasionally do before something is fully formed.
I nice compromise I have discovered is my Freewrite Traveler, a glorified folding word processor that doesn't allow surfing the web and makes it very difficult to scroll back through what I've written. I love it for early drafts, as it allows me to type, but not edit. I revise on the computer, with the tinkering you mention, but this has been huge for getting words down quickly.
As for fancy notebooks, I have gotten myself to use them, but this is largely because I despise lined paper and most cheap options seem to have lines. I am with you on the A5 size, which I also prefer, but I am all about blank, dotted, or occasionally a grid pattern as long as it is light- Stalogy makes one with lovely paper that is easy to write on. I prefer fountain pens, so I need paper that won't bleed. We deserve good quality tools as writers! I started #fancynotebookchallenge on IG, which I barely hang out on anymore, but got a bunch of people breaking out the good notebooks and enjoying them.
Hope you are happily writing away with the computer back- what a relief!
I second your praise of the Freewrite. I’d hesitated buying one for years because of the cost, but finally bit the bullet just before Christmas. Since then I’ve written over 100,000 words using it. Zero distractions. It’s amazing.
Yes!!! You’re the second person I‘ve heard of crossing the 100k line with it. 💥
Most of those words are garbage of course, but it's something to work from I guess! And I'd never been able to keep up that sort of a writing habit before getting the Freewrite. I don't know what it says about me that I need to shell out £300+ on a bit of tech in order to get any writing done, but there you go...
Well now I really want a Freewrite.
Caroline and I should be getting a commission! ;)
You definitely should!
I may have to check out this Freewrite Traveler. I enjoy the keyboard these days, but don’t like the distractions on my laptop.
It‘s a total godsend for that. I will warn you, it is quite expensive- I backed the kickstarter so got a very good discount. You can get a similar result with an Alphasmart Neo- they‘re no longer made, but do often come up on eBay for about $30-50. I did get one and enjoyed it, but the Freewrite is definitely slicker, and easier to tote around for travel and cafe writing if that makes a difference.
I’m not opposed to gifting myself nice things if it’s worth it, and a cursory look has me quite interested. 2022 has been a year for cutting out distractions (I wrote about the Digital Detox I’ve been undergoing), and this could help with that movement. Thanks!
My pleasure- given how much less travel happened over the past few years, we have been able to justify a few splurges, and I suspect you will find this one worth it.
Learning to write on the Notes app on my phone was a game-changer for me. Helped me to break out of the 'must have perfect conditions/moment/equipment' feedback loop. I agree about reading/editing on paper too. I've just printed my book in its entirety to proofread rather than doing it on screen. Feels wasteful, but also...necessary?
I agree on the Notes app being a game-changer! I love being able to capture ideas on the fly! And I also print things I am proofreading. Definitely necessary.
Totally necessary for me. I'm looking forward to doing a proper post on this later.
I enjoy writing in a notebook, and I always have a Rhodia softcover dot A5 with me (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017NEHK76). I discovered this brand a few years ago and love the paper quality. The dots give me freedom to scribble all over. I mostly use this for my everyday jotting down all the things--details of a phone call, a quote I enjoyed, daily tasks. But I review it weekly and transfer anything important into Evernote.
As for writing, I have become a keyboard person. I know that it needs to end up there anyway, so it’s more about efficiency, being able (like you said) to move things around. And I don’t have to sort through a paper journal to find that quote I wanted to write about.
I would, however, like to try freewriting in longhand as a daily practice to see if that helps my ideas. It’s been a while since I did that.
Totally know what you mean about the cheap ring-bound notebook preference, I am the same! I got sent a very posh notebook from Symthson but the reality is I'll never use it, because the PRESSURE! Don't want to 'ruin' it with shit handwriting/shit ideas. Lol! Whereas my ringbound has can be covered with all sorts of things, freely! xo
Yes that's totally part of it! They need to perforate the pages or something so that at least you can write what you want with the awareness that you can easily rip it out. Would be liberating! xx
I like those old marbled composition books (bound w/o rings) because they don’t get snagged. Like you say, it’s personal preference about typing or writing by hand. I’ve done both, either way a lot of editing is involved. I once completely rewrote a typed story by writing in the margins and filling up a legal pad-- I probably wouldn’t have been able to write the story directly on the computer though. I grew up in the time of typewriters and those early computers with green letters etc. so I’m biased, ha!
I'm not glad that your laptop nearly died, but I am glad writing hour is moved as I can make it now!
In my professional life as a journalist, I've also been faithful to reporter's notepads (plus my mum always had one in her handbag when I was a kid and I grew up wanting my own, full of lists and notes and scribbles) only transitioning to a computer when all the interviews are done. For work, I draft entirely on a screen. Partly for speed - transcribing interviews takes long enough without transcribing a handwritten draft too.
BUT I've found with my short story writing and dabbles at playwriting that I always start long hand. I get too distracted on a screen and, like another commenter says, really enjoy seeing all the scribbles and amendments. I've finally broken the spell and will now use posh notebooks alongside 3-for-£1 ringbound notepads and it feels good. I hated that all these beautiful bits of stationery were left unused in a draw, though I agree with Hattie that the ones that don't stay open are, frankly, daft.
You're so right to use them – I have two shoeboxes full of notebooks (mostly from Christmases/birthdays) and I am working my way through them too. I just find that if there's a ring-bound one, I am drawn to it first... So glad you can make it on Sunday!
Fascinating comments... I should own up to being an old guy, so this whole computer thing is not built into my DNA. That said I've been using a Mac for about twenty years and I love it.
I write by hand using a fountain pen (Parker ideally) or a pencil. The pencil more often. There is something about the connection between hand, head and heart that a computer keyboard doesn't give me. Whenever I get stuck, which is frequently, I close the Mac and open my notebook. I find just sitting with my pencil and waiting usually works. Later I will read and then put the words down on the Mac. Who was it who said, "Write like a child, revise like grown up." I am writing a memoir which requires me to really mine my experience, so if I can get a run going with handwriting, I'm happy. I can revise and be grown up on the screen.
So I do the opposite of Hattie - I write then go onto the computer.
I've used various notebooks over the years but have finally settled on Leuchtturm 1917, B5 size which is like an exercise book. I use the softcover version. I like them because the paper quality is good enough for ink, the pages are numbered, there's a contents page and they're big enough to write in, but small enough to get in a bag. Leuchtturm also produce a beautiful pencil called the Drehgriffel, which translates as a twist stylus. It's precision made from aluminium and brass and fits perfectly into my hand.
These are excellent tips, thanks Nicholas. I'm fascinated by the different recommendations that are coming up here – maybe I need to go stationery shopping after all.
Am SO glad you got it fixed Hattie! And as I was reading this I was thinking about The Artists Way - then you mentioned it! I did The Artists Way at the beginning of my creative journey and it was transformational for me, so I still hand write my morning pages every day, and I have developed an unfortunate addiction to Papier notebooks which I use for this purpose. The designs are all so gorgeous (and I definitely don’t keep them for best!)
I love that book so much.
Yes, Papier makes gorgeous notebooks – I used them for note-taking on my MA. It's quite nice to have one with your name on the front too!
Yes keyboard nightmare! So glad it’s over.
There’s a beautiful short film (a doc) by Julia Solomonoff entitled “hand, writing.” I know in America you can find it on you.tube— or on the website of The Shed in NYC. Hope you’ll be able to find it across the pond. Too, I don’t allow “devices” in the grad film classes I teach- I insist that students take notes by hand (some get furious with me). I make the case that I’m preserving an esprit de corps and want students present to one another. I also learned subsequently that taking notes by hand increases the odds of remembering— the kinetic action- that mind/body gesture works to etch it onto the emulsion sheet of memory.
Love 'the emulsion sheet of memory', and loved the film – it made me cry! Thank you Gail. I found it here: https://vimeo.com/528436148
I've committed to Clairefontaine's Europa Notemaker. We met in 2005 and that's me done for life. Perforations, ring-bound...
I have a pal who sent me three on my birthday. True friendship :)
shorturl.at/klx26
Yes! These are perfect for me too. Congratulations to you and Clairefontaine on your happy longterm relationship.
Thank you – what a lovely thing to say! So glad you'll be at the writing hour, I'm looking forward to it too.