Paper and Pen or Keyboard?

LilaDubois · Aug 3, 2006

I know it is much more efficient to write at the computer. Most people type faster than they write long hand, it must be typed up eventually anyway and there is handy dandy auto correct for commonly messed up words. I know all of this but there are times that I really like the feeling of sitting with a nice clean sheet of white paper on my lap and writing by hand.

Does anyone else ever do this? Any thoughts?

Sailor Kenshin · Aug 3, 2006

I'm with you.

I've got every single kind of pen, pencil, and paper in creation. I love them all and they're all for different "moods."

Eventually it ends up on the puter, but I always correct and edit by hand too.

scorpiodragon · Aug 3, 2006

I love writing my stories long hand. You can take a pen and a notebook anywhere and unlike a laptop, you don't have to worry about the battery running low.

I use typing my drafts up as an opprotunity to do light editing and to make notes on things I think I might want to rewrite after I finish my rough draft.

TrainofThought · Aug 3, 2006

Yes. I wrote my novel longhand. Of course it is double the work typing it in, but my thoughts refuse to flow staring at a computer screen. Oh well, I am old-school.

We are not alone. It took Emma Thompson 10 years to write “Nanny McPhee” and she writes longhand. So, I guess it will take me a heck of a lot longer to write my novel. Such is life.

aadams73 · Aug 3, 2006

I do some of both. I always carry paper and index cards with me. Come to think of it I have pens and index cards in every room of the house, even in the little holder on my treadmill.

AceTachyon · Aug 3, 2006

Both for me.

Sometimes I'll switch between the two just to be different.

But I do find that sometimes, my thoughts come out faster than I can write them so the longhand stuff is a mix of abbreviations and spelled-out words.

Thomma Lyn · Aug 3, 2006

When I was a kid, I wrote in longhand.

As an adult, I do most of my writing at my laptop computer, but I keep a notepad by the bed and one in my purse for note-taking, inspired scribblings, etc.

scorpiodragon · Aug 3, 2006

TrainofThought said:
Of course it is double the work typing it in, but my thoughts refuse to flow staring at a computer screen. Oh well, I am old-school.

I go through the same thing, computer screens aren't inspiring to me. The process of retyping my work may be time consuming but I think it also helps keep the story fresh in my mind.

AceTachyon · Aug 3, 2006

aadams73 said:
I do some of both. I always carry paper and index cards with me.

Not so much index cards, but I've got a few steno pads in strategeic places (briefcase, satchel/man-purse, nightstand, kitchen counter/mail holder). So one is always within reach to jot down notes.

AceTachyon · Aug 3, 2006

scorpiodragon said:
I go through the same thing, computer screens aren't inspiring to me. The process of retyping my work may be time consuming but I think it also helps keep the story fresh in my mind.

I don't mind composing on the computer. I find that writing out dialogue is easier on the computer than longhand.

ChaosTitan · Aug 3, 2006

I do the majority of my writing on the PC. I type so much faster than I write, so my typing is the only thing that keeps up with my thoughts. My handwriting is also horrible, and sometimes even I can't decipher it.

I keep small notebooks in my purse, so that I can jot down ideas when away from home.

But once in a while, I'll take a legal pad, a pen, and a drink out onto the balcony, sit there for a while, and write a scene longhand. This method works well when I'm having trouble working something out. Bonus points if it's raining or storming. I don't know why, but I always feel most creative during thunderstorms.

UrsusMinor · Aug 3, 2006

I am probably in the minority, but I compose at the computer, exclusively. This is a problem for me becasue I am a two-fingers-and-a-thumb typist. (But this process seems to go about as fast as my neurons fire, so I'm not sure it holds me back.)

I like for my prose to look as close to the finished product as possible, and the look of the words on the page is important to me (density, white space, other intangibles).

I find the look of my handwriting distracting. Not only because it is horrific (it is) but also because it is too specific, nonobjective, quirky. Give me a font any day.

On the other hand, I have to print out pages to edit. Reading on the screen doesn't work for me. So I have the luxury of making notes and slashing out lines in the park if I choose, but the composition is always on the computer, with my back to the window, hunched over and mumbling to myself.

AceTachyon · Aug 3, 2006

chaostitan said:
Bonus points if it's raining or storming. I don't know why, but I always feel most creative during thunderstorms.

I read somewhere that close proximity to running water is great for creativity. Thunderstorms. Also fountains.

Something to do with the presence of negative ions.

Sailor Kenshin · Aug 3, 2006

aadams73 said:
I do some of both. I always carry paper and index cards with me. Come to think of it I have pens and index cards in every room of the house, even in the little holder on my treadmill.

Wow! You have GOT to be good!

I would fall off if I tried that.

Otherwise I keep paper and writing implements everywhere. I'm about two sheets away from being the Collyer brothers. :ROFL:

MajorDrums · Aug 3, 2006

I use typing my drafts up as an opprotunity to do light editing and to make notes on things I think I might want to rewrite after I finish my rough draft.[/quote]

i do this as well.

Jamesaritchie · Aug 3, 2006

longhand

Longhand for first drafts, though these days I most often use a mechanical pencil instead on an ink pen.

Old Hack · Aug 3, 2006

Warning--be careful typing all day at speed. I'm now partially disabled with RSI because of it, in pain all the time, and I even struggle to write longhand. I rely on Dragon Dictate which while good intrudes into my thought processes and takes the edge off my work. Make sure you all take care of yourselves and research ergonomics thoroughly, won't you?

Papa'sLiver · Aug 3, 2006

My writing is just to horrible. I have only three fingers on my right hand, and seven on my left, so it's a bit of chore.

Actually, my writing is really bad, so I work at a laptop. I type fairly fast, so I can keep up with my thoughts, where if I were doing it all long hand, I would be way behind.

Raiyah · Aug 3, 2006

I find that writing longhand frees me from my inner editor, because I am less discouraged to white-out or erase something than I would be on a computer where I could just simply 'delete'. Its quite liberating when I write free hand, and I find that I write more freely and get a lot of progress. I wrote the first draft of my current WIP within two weeks, by long hand but with my last WIP I used my laptop and didn't get very far.

I don't think that it's been double the work for me, because usually the hand-written version is editted while I type it into a document so it comes out better and far more organized, and I usually have a better sense of what it working for the novel, and what isn't. Also I type pretty fast, so it doesn't take up that much time. But mostly, its just wonderful to see your own handwriting crafting up something that may one day become a masterpeice!

byElizabeth · Aug 3, 2006

I don't write long hand on purpose...but when there's an idea generating and I'm already in bed or out somewhere...I always grab my handy-dandy notebook and go for it.

Can't Catch A Break · Aug 3, 2006

Sailor Kenshin said:
I'm with you.

I've got every single kind of pen, pencil, and paper in creation. I love them all and they're all for different "moods."

Eventually it ends up on the puter, but I always correct and edit by hand too.

We are kindred spirits. I'm practically patted down every time I go out because I've got hundreds of pens. I just love them so!

I find that I can just wing it if I'm in front of a keyboard, but usually, I get to a point where my eyes and hands begin to hurt from the screen and finding the letters.

I've switched back to my 5 star notebook and pens format. That way, I won't draw a blank when typing and I can elaborate on details.

LilaDubois · Aug 3, 2006

AceTachyon said:
I don't mind composing on the computer. I find that writing out dialogue is easier on the computer than longhand.

This is true dialogue does seem easier on a PC.

Isanthe · Aug 3, 2006

Usually it's longhand for first drafts, then laptop for everything else unless I feel like I must totally rewrite a section. Longhand feels more therapeutic and pleasurable while typing puts me in a more detail oriented, analytical frame of mind.

allion · Aug 3, 2006

Longhand for the first draft. I can edit on computer, but I prefer doing it on printed paper. It's fun to see the pages bleed after I change everything around.

The act of writing disengages the internal editor somewhat.

Karen

emsuniverse · Aug 3, 2006

I write on the computer, print it out, edit it longhand, then go back and do line by line corrections on the computer. It takes awhile, but I find I catch more errors - it's basically like checking it twice!

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