I’m left-handed so when I write with a pencil, I’ll end the session with the side of my hand that I drag across the page painted graphite silver. Not only that, my fingers are sore from gripping the pencil. I think this is all a good thing: it puts lie to the idea that the world is divided between those that do manual labor and those who work with the mind. It divorce of thinking from doing is false in a lot of ways (Matthew Crawford’s book “Shop Class as Soulcraft” is a good exploration), but being tired and messy after a session of writing with pencil on paper, that feeling of having put in a good day’s work, is a wonderful reminder. It’s also a reminder that thinking clearly is itself a muscle that must be trained.
This! Like when I sit too long when reading my books my ass starts to get sore probably because of the bad chair I'm sitting on. I think this is all good too it really puts lie to the idea that reading is merely mental work I'm also doing physically intensive manual labor just putting my ass on the chair while reading.
Have you tried a Remarkable2? The one I got change my handwriting to the better. But please try it out really good before you commit for a buy if you do. They can be a bit "simple" for your needs. Have a great day!
This is easily solved by learning arabic or hebrew languages. Or training to write with the right hand, which is way easier. But the most simple and best solution is to purchase a smudge free PEN! 😂
I'm left-handed, too. I just want to say that the feeling of pain after a session of writing is from not being taught how to write properly. I've spent the last month relearning how to rewrite from the ground up to stop the physical pain from writing. Now I can write literal pages and barely feel a thing. But I recommend retraining your grip and posture when writing. It makes the act of writing so much more pleasurable when you can do it pain free. 😊
There is another perspective why I use pen & paper for my essays: After completing my essay on the notebook, when I type it on my laptop, I discover new paradigms or improvement opportunities. This doesn't happen when we instantly type and edit on laptop. Good writing is a journey that requires dedication and efforts. Thanks for this great video jared. I didn't know about the books you mentioned. Grateful.
I always write by hand, using a fountain pen. But then rather than typing it in, I use speech-to-text. It helps my editing process hearing how to text sounds read aloud.
@@edenbreckhousethis is the funny thing people very easily consider “electrical” things technology and everything analog as somehow not technology… that is so not true.
@@edenbreckhouse based on the 9 rules that he reads out, a paper and pencil or pen is indeed a form of technology. It is not, however, a NEW piece of technology.
I was convinced as soon as you started that "ease of editing" point. So much putting the cart before the horse when I instantly type out a thought and default to editing what I just wrote rather than thinking about what happens next.
It's funny because just yesterday I did something quite similar, mind you I am not writing a book. For fun, I have been trying, for a long while to write a D&D campaign to play with friends. I consider myself someone half decent at improv and okay at coming up with ideas/characters on the spot, but I found every time I tried to sit down at the computer and type, my mind would be empty. But yesterday (while working mind you haha), I randomly grabbed a little notebook and a pencil and tried writing ideas/themes for a story and it just flowed out of me. I wrote down more in 20mins than I have for the past year or so. As you said, Jared, it might sound "romantic" and to me kind of hipster-ish lol, but there is something to it and I dig it! It has helped me be more creative for sure! Great timing on the video, keep up the great work man! 🙂
In 2017, I had a similar experience and followed by some ideas. I started to do the same, with a pen, not a pencil. I had written a blog post about it. Unfortunately, my blog is no longer active because you know… life happened. I am glad to know I am not alone in such thoughts.
'Cut distraction off at the source' - such a powerful and liberating act! I actually stumbled on this channel while building my analog zettelkasten and have never looked back! Thanks for the video
Jared- while working on my MFA degree in Creative Writing, I got into the habit of ditching the laptop, and using a fountain pen and lots of loose leaf paper, ocassionally on a notebook. It worked out very well for me, and nowadays, I exclusively work with fountain penon paper. Thanks
A year ago, I bought the Kindle Scribe and I love it. Many times I would fire up my laptop and immediately get sidetracked with a system update, virus scan update, etc. By the time all the updates and restarts were done, I lost the flow of what I was going to write. I had to improve my penmanship to get the writing to text translator to work best and this brought me to the fountain pen hobby that provides that little bit of luxury I can still afford to make my life beautiful. I love your channel, it is for those of us who are sick of stupid entertainment and still remember the joy of a good meaningful conversation, where you can learn something more than just a bunch of anecdotes that resonate but have no useful connection to the journey of becoming a better human.
You are very right in my opinion and I will demonstrate my experience. I often have blackouts at home because of the war. At first it caused exclusively negative emotions, but later I even began to expect blackouts to enjoy this moment of peace and quiet, when you can pick up a pen and write something down, when you can read a book without headphones. Ideas come at such moments. I noticed that I began to think much more, build some coherent things in my head at this time, and not when I sit before writing an article (I am a PhD student). The only thing that worried me was that writing by hand is long and inefficient. But I look at your content and you legitimize for me some things that I also came to, but rejected
I love browsing the comments section as much as I love watching your videos 😄 I'm a language teacher (not english haha) and I always tell my students to write by hand. Otherwise they don't recall anything. I wish I had time to find the studies I saw that showed that your brain make connections when your write by hand that it doesn't when you use a computer. I want to do a video about that at some point.
Another aspect is that writing by hand engages your brain in a completely different way than using a laptop. You are accessing different creative processes.
@@jayandgem I think yeah. I've read somewhere that writing by hand slows down our thoughts and helps us be more analytical or at least more intentional about what we're writing, compared to when we do it on a word processor.
That's the most obvious answer. His video is smelling like overthinking! Obviously you need solutude to focus, why did he go on and on about it. Refusing to cover THE most obvious brain development aspect. He's just proving himself as a stereotypical philosopher, out of tough with reality. Making stuff up.
@@mikesamovarov4054I think you’re dead wrong here. He clearly states his reasoning. A different opinion isn’t necessarily a wrong opinion. I agree with him in essentials, but for short form writing, I love the speed of computers.
Miracle. Been looking for another writer who writes with pen and paper. Thank you, thank you thank you!!! I am writing books and hope to bind etc. By hand.
Thank you for reminding me of Wendell Berry whom I read religiously back in the 90s! What a refreshing voice he was then and, no doubt, will be even more so now! I’m delighted to learn that he is still with us which, in itself, is an inspiration. I’ve put a “Hold” on “The World-Ending Fire” from our local library. I can’t wait to read it! Thank you for your common sense, beautifully articulated videos. Talk about refreshing!
I don’t like to write in computers and apps. I’m glad that you too love to write/ journal on paper. My husband is the opposite and he doesn’t understand me, but he respects me! Thanks for your videos! I just found your channel! 😊
3:56 bingo! That's why we can never get through the writing. We're just stunned as to how beautiful we look writing lol if I sit down in a coffee shop with my latte and iced water, unpacking my writing tools, my laptop computer, then look out of the window, that's enough for me. I don't want it to be, but I just take in the moment, reflect about life, then I forget to write. The romanticism of it all is addictive. I still believe I'm hemingway in that famous photo of he outside with the mountains and clouds in the background. One of the most amazing photos ever of a writer. Good luck with it Sir. Great video.
I have recently written (and photographed) for a book about the Namib desert. Solitude was a key theme. The way I did it was exactly as you suggest. I wrote the text in longhand in an A4 notebook, well away from studio and internet. And then typed it up on the computer. All the ideas were there, such as solitude, but could be refined on the computer - and improved on. The fact of writing with a pen and ink took me back and although I struggled with formulating my ideas, I loved the act of writing, which gave me a sense of achievement. I also wrote on one side of the notebook, using the other side to quickly write down ideas that came into my mind. Love your recommendations about Wendell Berry and Like. Very many thanks for confirming that I have been on the right track.
This really resonates with me. Your points reflect the reasons I love writing on an old portable typewriter. I am slower, more deliberate, completely disinterested in editing as I go. I think I am going to experiment with going back to longhand. Thanks for the inspiration! Also, I see you share my love of Palomino Blackwing pencils!
I’m new in journaling. I wish I started a long time ago. I love it. My vocabulary is expanding and my writing is attaining depth. Writing quiets down my soul.
I’ve made the exact same change; I even write my rough code in a sketchbook before I go anywhere near my laptop to program it. Writing by hand really helps me think/focus and get into a “flow” state.
@@vermontmike9800 Easier to read. Refillable. Outlast pencils and one- time-use pens, by over 100 years. I can go on. It's the best tool I've used. Practical. Less stress. Tips won't break. Gives you pride.
@MikeFrazee222 You can also manipulate the thickness of the stroke. Writing becomes an effortless, pleasurable experience. And the result has an aesthetic quality even if you don't have a calligraphic hand.
@silex9837 Yes, totally. I only buy flex nibs nowadays. Gold. I like the bounce they have. Zebra G nibs. I want to try one, but I'm not too skilled at making modifications to pens yet. Bending the nib to fit the feed, I'm not so good at it.
Excellent video. I've considered returning to writing my stories by hand just to see if I'd get more writing done. Nothing fancy, just use lined paper in a three-ring binder, a mechanical pencil, and an eraser. I've found that my computer offers so many distractions that it pulls me away from writing. I used to use a Brother Printwheel Word Processor and I got much more writing done since it was just a word processor with few distracting features. I stopped using it because I was concerned about losing my documents since it saved them in a proprietary format that was incompatible with computers.
Same! I’m 17 I started writing my book when I was 16. I used laptop but hated its feeling - its grotesque mechanic feel just seems to draw the essence and genuineness of writing for me. Hence, I switched to pen and paper, and loved it ever since.
When I read the statement, "It should not replace or disrupt anything good that already exist...", I remember Aristotle in proposing happiness as humanity's greatest pursuit; happiness is attained by doing good, and goodness is attained through fulfilling one's purpose (i.e. Telos / design or function). At the end of this video, I contemplated the thought that a computer/laptop or pencil and pen must serve as an assistant to the writer to fulfill their thinking roles in which they stemmed the concept of being a good writer and resulted in the state of happiness or contentment in their creative endeavor. Either of the two means, what is indispensable is the fulfillment of one's Telos.
Absolutely love this Jared! It comes at a time when I myself am transitioning more and more of my writing to pen and paper, so am super-glad to hear you are doing the same. Makes me feel like I have company :) I find there is a different quality to writing that is done by hand: it tends to be more poetic, simpler, more efficient, and most importantly, like you said in the video: more intentional.
I'm with you on this Jared. I use a mixture of handwriting (that I eventually dictate into an app or type) and I am using a Freewrite Traveler, which is useful for stream of consciousness type stuff and doesn't have any distractions. In many ways it has less distractions than paper, as there is no way of going back efficiently to analyse previous writing. Of course I have a computer ( if I could manage life without I would , but try to also use it as little as possible,). I manage with 2 phones. A dumb phone that only texts and makes calls, and a smartphone that mostly lives in a K-Safe, with a timed lock. I switch the SIM between them. That way I can plan to use it for banking, or various things it's useful for. trips to the city etc. It makes me look a little odd. I prefer that to the alternative.
Loved this. I'm not antitechnology, but to your, I think, point, we need to be circumspect in our use of it, because we then tend to bypass the act of thinking and working deeply.
I’ve just started to relearn handwriting so I can at least read it myself and perhaps to re order my mind. I’d ask you for your address so I could write you a comment in cursive with a fountain pen, but in this digital age, even supplying that has its perils. Perhaps later, when my hand writing improves. For now I’ve subscribed to your channel and bought and bought Berry’s book. I’m 74 and have watched the transformation of the world by technology and it’s not entirely a better place. We can’t undo it nor do we need to. As you say, we just need to decide the mix of the old and the new.
Excellent video. Thanks. I'm a non-fiction writer. I've been writing first drafts in pencil or ballpoint for years as I find I think more clearly when writing by hand. I then dictate that to a computer, and edit it there. I hate typing. Subscribed.
I agree with everything you say in this video -- including about the marvelous Wendell Berry.* However, that approach just doesn't work for how I think. I find writing with pen and paper very laborious, to the point that it stops me from writing. I learned to dislike writing when I was in college many years ago, before there were personal computers. I had to write my papers by hand and on a manual typewriter. Even then, I found myself rewriting and editing as I went... that resulted in the use of a lot of white out and crumpled paper in the trash can. I've often wondered how much better my higher education experience would have been had I had a computer to write with. I am grateful for my computer and the writing applications I have. They haven't made me a better writer, except to the extent that they have encouraged me to write a lot more over the past almost 40 years. This isn't to discourage your approach. I hope it works for you. I wish it could work for me, but it doesn't. *Every writer should read Berry to see essay-writing at its most crystal sharp.
You made me realize this. I went back to look at my book notes where I have written it on my laptop and others where I had written on my notebook and the writing itself is better on my notebook without a doubt. It made me question if I was the one who actually wrote it. Contrary feeling to the laptop written. Wow.
I use my journal as a springboard for all content including poetry, blog posts, prose...and for ongoing personal therapeutic benefit. I have two desks in my office. My desk with computer and a small desk I use for morning journaling which is my main time of writing. It really is helpful to have a specific place for writing, revising and editing- which is my larger desk. And then the smaller desk keeps me focused on the physical act of writing and literally is distraction free...well except for the cats who usually need to be close by. Journal, pen, cats - that's all I write with in the morning. lol. And I loved when I saw you incorporating the journal in an earlier video. I have filled over 300 journals and I have to say the storage of prolific writing and journaling is daunting from the current trend with minimalism. I am over 50 so this basically does not impact me too much...but something to consider if you decide to continue journaling through the ages ( I started in my to save my journals in my twenties). Best wishes for your novel. Love Rilke- and the list from W.B.
Berry also famously had his wife to type up and edit his work after he hand-wrote it. He called her "his word processor" and there was much debate at the time about labor and technology. There are practical benefits to handwriting, but we also shouldn't over-romanticize handwritten text as inherently less work, more ethical, or more authentic.
I actually swapped my note taking on my computer and phone to an ReMarkable 2. It's not as down to earth as my fountain pen (inked with Diamine Prussian Blue) and Leuchtturm Outline, but I use it every day. It is one more gadget, but this gadget sets me a bit more free in an odd way. On the upside I relearn hand writing again. So thank you for a great video!
@@LarsDahlin You're welcome. Just pointing out that you are using both ink and notebook generally marketed as premium stationary items. Plus, ink suggests a fountain pen, and since you have a favorite ink and nice journal likely a nice pen too. Your fondness of a particular color of an ink brand not common where I am suggests having tried multiple inks to settle on one that works well with your pen and paper...research and interest too then. The overall cost and care put into such a statement puts you into the top couple percent of stationary lovers. The vast majority of people I know (professionals, college students, co-workers, family, and friends) or watch online have much simpler tastes. Most of those people have preferences like a blue Bic Stic pen and whatever 25 cent spiral notebook they bought from WalMart. Which I'm not putting down. I keep a wide selection of such products on hand to give away or use without worry of loss. Actually, the Bic Cristal is one of my favorites as are the 50 cent WalMart composition books. I use and do special projects with those all the time. Also the WalMart brand 3x5 spiral bound notebooks at 3 for $1.14 is a steal! 😀 Just enjoying everyone giving love to all forms of writing from the elite to technological. Not a fan of this video saying "hate computers" as that seems a bit harsh.
@@LarsDahlin BTW, forgot to say good on you for the ReMarkable 2. I've wanted to get one. A bit pricy for my collection at the moment. Do you find it worthwhile?
@@lexj1042 Thank you for your reply. Yes, this is some treats I have made for my self. I definitely love great less expensive notebooks, ink and pens. I try to buy on sale and also on online trading sites. I would never frown upon someones gear and I do feel joy for what people use. I do fold a single A4 paper Pocketmod style a couple of times per week. I do enjoy saving some scrap paper and make it a great 8 pages tiny note book.
Interesting idea about the distraction offered. For me, writing using pen or pincil and pad is the only way to get that first draft. Possibly it connects to childhood creativity. Or it may be because I'm old and old school is how I came to love writing.
Thank you for this video! I also prefer writing. Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuhan insisted on the idea that the "medium is the message" which means that the technology we use for specific tasks will influence us in return, and the computer as a writing tool changes the whole experience of writing, sometimes for the worst.
But also possibly for the better. We both shape and are shaped by our tools. The same is true for pencil and paper, which is a disruptive technology. So is written language. A Greek philosopher named Plato wrote in Phaedrus, "But when they came to letters, This, said Theuth, will make the Egyptians wiser and give them better memories; it is a specific both for the memory and for the wit. Thamus replied: O most ingenious Theuth, the parent or inventor of an art is not always the best judge of the utility or inutility of his own inventions to the users of them. And in this instance, you who are the father of letters, from a paternal love of your own children have been led to attribute to them a quality which they cannot have; for this discovery of yours will create forgetfulness in the learners' souls, because they will not use their memories; they will trust to the external written characters and not remember of themselves. The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence, and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth; they will be hearers of many things and will have learned nothing; they will appear to be omniscient and will generally know nothing; they will be tiresome company, having the show of wisdom without the reality."
Another great video, Jared. The pen and paper is so vital to the creative process, and this made me want to use it even more than I already do. I'm working on a video about productivity and creativity right now and I'm definitely gonna cite a couple of your videos in it because you have so much valuable insight. Keep it up!
I know this exact feeling. I started writing a paper that I hope to get a draft done by the end of the year and I’ve started hand writing it in a cheap little “field notes” type notebook with just some rough thoughts and passages, before writing a rough draft in a regular notebook. Then I plan to write it up on the computer. I will say, for stuff I write for work sometimes I don’t know how exactly to phrase something, I’ll just write “the wrong thing” to then take advantage of the quick/easy editing. It’s all trade offs.
I've also found some benefits from typing on the laptop to writing in a notebook. I've been writing a journal on the pc so that I have the freedom to write/think and edit but I have a thought weighing on my mind: "these words I write I am going to handwrite in a notebook for others to read". This encourages me to write with fewer words which have thoughtful depth and the process has a purpose. I like having my notes in physical form, as a sentimental object of my own creation intellectually, and it feels special to give a person a 3,000 word notebook.
Interesting idea! I've been considering using more physical media for writing / note taking / sketching etc. I might try writing my next video script on paper this time!
This would certainly solve a lot of problems. I’m going to go with pen vs pencil as I am a big believer in no editing while writing. I can type super fast so no problem typing everything up once I am done. Thank you 🙏
My job is translation, which consists of taking written text in a language A, and type it in language B. It's all done on computers and the pace we are expected to work at requires computers anyway. The deadlines are just not possible with handwriting. However, sometimes, some sentences are particularly convoluted, poorly written or simply complex. For those tough ones, I always revert to handwriting with several foutain pens of various colours to help my dive into the meaning and get a better grasp of my text. I think, though it may be a bias, that the translations I produced by hand were better than what would come out written on computer.
I just wrote 3 hours using just paper and a pen. In my case, I'm trying to quit writing my first draft on a computer simply because the monitor is killing my eyes. I have a monitor that supposedly has eye strain care tech, but it seems that it is not enough for me. I wrote those 3 hours and my eyes are fine. The funny thing is that I was getting sad because I thought I wouldn't be able to write anymore because my eyes couldn't handle the monitor anymore. And the solution was right there, simple as a pen. Or maybe it's not a solution and my writing will suffer. I don't know. But at least I'm willing to give it a try. Thanks for this video, mate. Subscribed.
yesss!!! I am writing my outline by hand right now and I LOVE it so much more than when Ive tried to do it on the computer in the past. Im now firm on writing the first draft at least by hand as well. But i am stuck...should I write in pen or pencil? Thats why I came here to see if you prefer one or the other.
My favorite writer, Cormac McCarthy, still uses his Olivetti Lettera 22. I am also writing my PhD thesis in a hybrid way, the first and second draft by hand, then just computer (otherwise my supervisors get crazy :D and I have anyway publish it at the end).
My own journey has been kinda the opposite but I'm in the same place as you now. Started with writing stories on my laptop. My goal being finishing the stories more than anything else, the speed of typing helped my make good progress everyday. However I read somewhere about Neitzsche saying that his writing changed when he used a typewriter (nkt sure if I'm remembering it correctly) and so I wanted to see what would happen if I wrote with a pad and pen. And the first two differences I noticed were that my sentences were more drawn out, a bit less tighter. And that I took twice as long to write the same amount of words. And since I had limited time in a day to write, I decided that typing on a laptop would let me at least finish my stories and keep my engines running. And then I started reading about digital addiction, digital minimalism, the slot machines which our computers have become, and decided to write with a pen despite it taking me longer to finish. Though I'll admit that my newfound fascination with fountain pens helped a lot. And now I'm happily writing with a pen whenever I can. And in a way it's more peaceful and less distracting, with no internet browser to pull me away whenever I'm stuck for a while.
Two things upon which we apparently agree: the necessity of reading Wendell Berry AND ... the pleasure of writing with a Blackwing pencil! I enjoy your vids; thank you for posting.
As a hopeless typist myself, who may have to resort to dictation when getting his manuscripts prepared for consultation and potential publication, there is no other more tried and true method than pad and pencil. Good on you.
I find pen or pencil and paper useful for drafts as well. Computers are really good for some things...great for data crunching, for example. I love all the information I have at my fingertips. But I need that time to think where there's not a constant play for my attention. It's similar to the message in A Room of One's Own as well, the need for that space where there aren't other things constantly tugging at your attention.
Very good video. I agree with all of it. My writing is far better when I am writing by hand. I can type too fast and it is too impermanent. Hand writing forces much more thinking before recording the information and when it is recorded, it is a concrete draft and completed thought. On a computer I type a thought that is not formed enough and then start editing it over and over because the draft is not concrete and I don't move through, I behave as if I am creating a final draft sentence by sentence, which is completely not the case. My thinking process starts being bogged down with repeated data entry interrupting it. Meanwhile my eyes are irritated, there are distractions and the machine is not as portable. Pen and paper has infinite battery life, is perfectly portable and causes zero eye fatigue. I could go on. Typing is only better when I need to transmit an idea very quickly.
Neil Gaiman inspired me to do that, and I'm almost done with the second draft of my book. Which is equal to the chapters I finished of a book in college.
I am a film & TV reviewer for, ironically, a website. I hand write everything before typing. I recognise the difficulties computer word programmes pose for writing - the endless spell and grammer checks really impede my flow especially when suggested solutions are wrong
In 2017, I had a similar experience and followed by some ideas. I started to do the same, with a pen, not a pencil. I had written a blog post about it. Unfortunately, my blog is no longer active because you know… life happened. I am glad to know I am not alone in such thoughts.
Writing on a boring laptop gets old after awhile. A mechanical keyboard can liven things up like the qwerkywriter or any blue switch keyboard really. The next best thing would be an actual typewriter which really puts you in a Writing mood like no joke. "All you have to do is sit at a typewriter and bleed." Fountain pens or dip pens are cool too, but hurts my hand after awhile.
Years ago I did that, started with a notebook and then typed it on a computer and there wasn't a day I didn't write, nowadays for time problems I switched to fully write on my laptop and is rare the day I actually write anything, so yeah, I agree with you 100%.
When I started writing I drafted the first few stories by hand. I thought it was a good idea because there was a good deal of editing to the story when I typed the story out, as in I could take large blocks of text and edit them at one time when i typed, without having to erase text, etc. Once I became a better writer I decided to type everything out and skip the pencil and paper thing.
Nice insights!. I want to just add up that the reader should read the essay you propose in conjunction with the next one in the book "“Feminism, the Body, and the Machine”, because both work together in an ethical and political way. Cheers.
Writing my dissertation made me get tired of laptop and screen. I'm trying to write my novel and short stories by hand, because doing research created a terrible habit of having anxiety to finish drafts, following deadlines, being multi task...and writing is basically respect our own time.
Have you considered using a fountain pen for writing your book? I find a fountain pen with the right nib and ink flow to be a real joy to use as it writes effortlessly for many pages. Of course, turning pages with wet ink on them is less than ideal.
I have never been able to write on a computer; I am a terrible typist, and trying to type and continuing to fumble and make a lot of typos is not conducive to (good) writing. Something about having a pen in my hand, dragging it on the page to make my words, puts me in the headspace I need to be in.
As a dyslexic person, for speed it helps to use a laptop. However, I’ve recently started to write things by hand again using a journal and it feels more emotive because I am slowing down and feeling the pen to paper to allow my thoughts to flow out. I might even get a paper diary next.
I am no writer, but this videos was what I needed for my studies, I've been blocked for days and my laptop is being a distraction but also the tool for studying. Maybe I can just study in paper, would be nice. Thanks!
I love writing by hand. But I have chicken scratch for handwriting. I cant even read my own handwriting sometimes. Hand fatigue and pain makes it impossible to keep writing by hand. So I have to type or use my iPad that turns my handwriting to text. It’s the only way for me sadly.
The first book I wrote was done on a computer, but now I’m working on my second and I use pen and notebooks that I bought from CVS. it’s enjoyable and portable. I even carry a smaller Molskine in case a random idea or scene pops up when I’m on the go. When I type up, the story has already been out of my head and then I can polish it up. Pen and paper works better for me.
I wrote a hundred thousand words of my WIP longhand. The first revision (a rewrite, as revisions generally are), I rewrote via computer. I like this model. My one error for this example was waiting so long to start the computer portion. I don't know what's right. In this example, there was a psychological barrier for tackling the revision ... the word count was just so daunting. Regardless ... the first new words really benefit from writing by hand Anyway. Good enough for Berry, Gaimon, and Pat Conroy and countless others, good enough for me.
3:05 I do not share this sentiment. When I'm trying to write well, I feel like I can think about the sentences - or just the gist of what I want to write in a few sentences - much faster than I can even type it, let alone write it by hand. And when I'm done with writing a few sentences or a paragraph. I go back and read it out loud and I often rewrite a few sentences or, change particular words to more context specific words that can enrich the text in my view. If I'm writing something that is really important to me, then I go back to that part of the text essentially every time I open the text editor and I read it again and try to improve it further until I think it is perfect. To do these things on paper would be laborious. Also I would argue, because of the lack of speed, I would often lose words between the time they spark in my head to the time I get to finally rewrite them. It would make for a very messy handwritten text as I would have to cross out words and rewrite them multiple times on top of one another to avoid losing them. Essentially my style of letting my thoughts burst out on paper (or the screen), and refine it with further passes, is a task much better fit for a computer, in my opinion.
Jared, as someone living in a more urban area (Austin TX right?) how do you feel about Berry's call to rural living and farming? Have you taken on organic gardening or other sorts of agrarian or environmental disciplines that Berry commends in the book. I started reading world ending fire because of this video and the recommendations of a professor. It's great!
I have noticed the same thing. I would get distracted by social media, video games, youtube, etc. when writing on my PC. I remember in High School I would write while in class in a notebook, and I wrote far often and consistently back then than I do now.
When writing I prefer pen and ink as well, but have found that an iPad with a textured screensaver and the Pencil is a workable compromise. My 11 inch iPad stashes conveniently into my handbag. Most note apps can convert the writing to text and paste it into a Pages or Word document when you get to that phase of the editing process. Airplane mode reduces distractions and conserves battery. There’s always have enough paper and whichever color of ink that suits my mood at the time.
Something that i have noticed is that typing on phone/computer actually decreases ones writing skills. because modern technology hads made it so easy for us, it has made us lazy to be able to write properly. you have auto correct, auto capital letter and auro dot at the end of the sentence. all of this makes us rely roo much on that, so when we have to write with our hand and pen/pencil it feels like i have to make a much bigger effor to write words and sentences correctly which on my phone would be something i wouldnt even think about. (note: english is not my first language so excuse me for some mistakes. but my point stands for all languages.)
I prefer paper too. I enjoy using the pilot series of Frixion erasable pens and markers. I enjoy a slower pace for thinking. I enjoy them for personal use for my journal and my planner. I also use them in my hobbies like reading sewing and other needlework. I wish I could use them at work.
I've been trying to write a novel on my computer for years. As soon as I switched to pen and paper, my progress skyrocketed. It's kinda crazy actually.
Back in the 90s, I had a dedicated word processing machine that used small word processing disks. Before that, I had an electric typewriter since I was a kid in the 60s. Using these types of technology, I always wrote out my writing by hand first before transferring to typewriter or word processor. It seemed awkward to compose directly into these things without writing by hand first. When I got my first computer in 1998, I continued this way, and once committing my writing into my word processing program, Windows 97, I think, i had to make hard copies right away. I didn't quite trust leaving it as a saved copy on my computer. I was afraid it would vaporize itself and all my hard work would be gone. This actually did happen once; several chapters of a story I've never been able to re-create. But one day, the awkwardness of composing directly to a screen was gone, and writing by hand and then transferring into the computer was cumbersome. Now, I compose directly into my phone's writing program, which is slightly slower than using a keyboard as I'm using only one finger. But I still keep a handwritten journal, as I've been doing since 1975. I think it conveys more of my personality and I take satisfaction seeing my own cursive filling up the pages of my journal volumes
I do, from time to time, write thoughts and opinions that I think are interesting and somewhat original, and small fragments of “novels” and prologues of the same. The former I do for if someday I want to write a book I have interesting things to talk about, the same applies for eventually when I get to go in a podcast to talk about my actual work (games and software development). The latter I do so I can “store” the interesting ideas I have for stories from which some I can, hopefully, eventually, turn into video-games. All of that prefacing just to say I much rather type on the keyboard, where the gap of time between the sentence forming in your head and being “written” is much smaller.
That essay is by Wendell Berry is great! Have you heard the Neil Gaiman interview with Tim Ferriss? He writes like this too and for the same reasons. And have you been taking advice from Cal Newport ? Having a place in your house for your phone is one of his ways of getting deep work done.
I’m left-handed so when I write with a pencil, I’ll end the session with the side of my hand that I drag across the page painted graphite silver. Not only that, my fingers are sore from gripping the pencil. I think this is all a good thing: it puts lie to the idea that the world is divided between those that do manual labor and those who work with the mind. It divorce of thinking from doing is false in a lot of ways (Matthew Crawford’s book “Shop Class as Soulcraft” is a good exploration), but being tired and messy after a session of writing with pencil on paper, that feeling of having put in a good day’s work, is a wonderful reminder. It’s also a reminder that thinking clearly is itself a muscle that must be trained.
This! Like when I sit too long when reading my books my ass starts to get sore probably because of the bad chair I'm sitting on. I think this is all good too it really puts lie to the idea that reading is merely mental work I'm also doing physically intensive manual labor just putting my ass on the chair while reading.
Have you tried a Remarkable2? The one I got change my handwriting to the better.
But please try it out really good before you commit for a buy if you do. They can be a bit "simple" for your needs.
Have a great day!
This is easily solved by learning arabic or hebrew languages. Or training to write with the right hand, which is way easier. But the most simple and best solution is to purchase a smudge free PEN! 😂
I'm left-handed, too. I just want to say that the feeling of pain after a session of writing is from not being taught how to write properly. I've spent the last month relearning how to rewrite from the ground up to stop the physical pain from writing. Now I can write literal pages and barely feel a thing. But I recommend retraining your grip and posture when writing. It makes the act of writing so much more pleasurable when you can do it pain free. 😊
it easy to write on ipad and one smartphone if your phone has an built in stylus
There is another perspective why I use pen & paper for my essays:
After completing my essay on the notebook, when I type it on my laptop, I discover new paradigms or improvement opportunities. This doesn't happen when we instantly type and edit on laptop. Good writing is a journey that requires dedication and efforts.
Thanks for this great video jared. I didn't know about the books you mentioned. Grateful.
I always write by hand, using a fountain pen. But then rather than typing it in, I use speech-to-text. It helps my editing process hearing how to text sounds read aloud.
I love writing. I started journaling approximately 44 years ago. All of my diaries/journals are still with pen and paper.
omg this will so be me
@@sivazona44 Just write you genuinely. Be true to yourself.
@I am me • 25y ago Writing on an honest level is preserving history. Welcome to the historian club.
"We can't just let technology be a default". Very wise and true words.
Isn't a pencil and notebook also a form of technology?
“Sent from my iPad.”
@@edenbreckhousethis is the funny thing people very easily consider “electrical” things technology and everything analog as somehow not technology… that is so not true.
@@emmanuelmacedo1095oh you knkw what he meant
@@edenbreckhouse based on the 9 rules that he reads out, a paper and pencil or pen is indeed a form of technology. It is not, however, a NEW piece of technology.
I was convinced as soon as you started that "ease of editing" point. So much putting the cart before the horse when I instantly type out a thought and default to editing what I just wrote rather than thinking about what happens next.
Kurt Vonnegut would disagree
It's funny because just yesterday I did something quite similar, mind you I am not writing a book. For fun, I have been trying, for a long while to write a D&D campaign to play with friends. I consider myself someone half decent at improv and okay at coming up with ideas/characters on the spot, but I found every time I tried to sit down at the computer and type, my mind would be empty. But yesterday (while working mind you haha), I randomly grabbed a little notebook and a pencil and tried writing ideas/themes for a story and it just flowed out of me. I wrote down more in 20mins than I have for the past year or so. As you said, Jared, it might sound "romantic" and to me kind of hipster-ish lol, but there is something to it and I dig it! It has helped me be more creative for sure! Great timing on the video, keep up the great work man! 🙂
In 2017, I had a similar experience and followed by some ideas. I started to do the same, with a pen, not a pencil. I had written a blog post about it. Unfortunately, my blog is no longer active because you know… life happened. I am glad to know I am not alone in such thoughts.
Me too.
Thank you, Jared. Have a Blessed Easter!
'Cut distraction off at the source' - such a powerful and liberating act! I actually stumbled on this channel while building my analog zettelkasten and have never looked back! Thanks for the video
Jared- while working on my MFA degree in Creative Writing, I got into the habit of ditching the laptop, and using a fountain pen and lots of loose leaf paper, ocassionally on a notebook. It worked out very well for me, and nowadays, I exclusively work with fountain penon paper. Thanks
A year ago, I bought the Kindle Scribe and I love it. Many times I would fire up my laptop and immediately get sidetracked with a system update, virus scan update, etc. By the time all the updates and restarts were done, I lost the flow of what I was going to write. I had to improve my penmanship to get the writing to text translator to work best and this brought me to the fountain pen hobby that provides that little bit of luxury I can still afford to make my life beautiful. I love your channel, it is for those of us who are sick of stupid entertainment and still remember the joy of a good meaningful conversation, where you can learn something more than just a bunch of anecdotes that resonate but have no useful connection to the journey of becoming a better human.
You are very right in my opinion and I will demonstrate my experience. I often have blackouts at home because of the war. At first it caused exclusively negative emotions, but later I even began to expect blackouts to enjoy this moment of peace and quiet, when you can pick up a pen and write something down, when you can read a book without headphones. Ideas come at such moments. I noticed that I began to think much more, build some coherent things in my head at this time, and not when I sit before writing an article (I am a PhD student). The only thing that worried me was that writing by hand is long and inefficient. But I look at your content and you legitimize for me some things that I also came to, but rejected
I love browsing the comments section as much as I love watching your videos 😄
I'm a language teacher (not english haha) and I always tell my students to write by hand. Otherwise they don't recall anything. I wish I had time to find the studies I saw that showed that your brain make connections when your write by hand that it doesn't when you use a computer.
I want to do a video about that at some point.
English is easy enough to learn on your own, it's the easiest language to learn. Figured, you didn't teach English!
Another aspect is that writing by hand engages your brain in a completely different way than using a laptop. You are accessing different creative processes.
@@jayandgem I think yeah. I've read somewhere that writing by hand slows down our thoughts and helps us be more analytical or at least more intentional about what we're writing, compared to when we do it on a word processor.
That's the most obvious answer. His video is smelling like overthinking! Obviously you need solutude to focus, why did he go on and on about it. Refusing to cover THE most obvious brain development aspect. He's just proving himself as a stereotypical philosopher, out of tough with reality. Making stuff up.
@@mikesamovarov4054I think you’re dead wrong here. He clearly states his reasoning. A different opinion isn’t necessarily a wrong opinion. I agree with him in essentials, but for short form writing, I love the speed of computers.
@@jayandgemThere are several studies available, easily found by a Google search
Miracle. Been looking for another writer who writes with pen and paper. Thank you, thank you thank you!!!
I am writing books and hope to bind etc. By hand.
Thank you for reminding me of Wendell Berry whom I read religiously back in the 90s! What a refreshing voice he was then and, no doubt, will be even more so now! I’m delighted to learn that he is still with us which, in itself, is an inspiration. I’ve put a “Hold” on “The World-Ending Fire” from our local library. I can’t wait to read it! Thank you for your common sense, beautifully articulated videos. Talk about refreshing!
I don’t like to write in computers and apps. I’m glad that you too love to write/ journal on paper. My husband is the opposite and he doesn’t understand me, but he respects me! Thanks for your videos! I just found your channel! 😊
3:56 bingo! That's why we can never get through the writing. We're just stunned as to how beautiful we look writing lol if I sit down in a coffee shop with my latte and iced water, unpacking my writing tools, my laptop computer, then look out of the window, that's enough for me. I don't want it to be, but I just take in the moment, reflect about life, then I forget to write. The romanticism of it all is addictive. I still believe I'm hemingway in that famous photo of he outside with the mountains and clouds in the background. One of the most amazing photos ever of a writer. Good luck with it Sir. Great video.
I have recently written (and photographed) for a book about the Namib desert. Solitude was a key theme. The way I did it was exactly as you suggest. I wrote the text in longhand in an A4 notebook, well away from studio and internet. And then typed it up on the computer. All the ideas were there, such as solitude, but could be refined on the computer - and improved on. The fact of writing with a pen and ink took me back and although I struggled with formulating my ideas, I loved the act of writing, which gave me a sense of achievement. I also wrote on one side of the notebook, using the other side to quickly write down ideas that came into my mind. Love your recommendations about Wendell Berry and Like. Very many thanks for confirming that I have been on the right track.
This really resonates with me. Your points reflect the reasons I love writing on an old portable typewriter. I am slower, more deliberate, completely disinterested in editing as I go.
I think I am going to experiment with going back to longhand. Thanks for the inspiration! Also, I see you share my love of Palomino Blackwing pencils!
I’m new in journaling. I wish I started a long time ago. I love it. My vocabulary is expanding and my writing is attaining depth. Writing quiets down my soul.
I’ve made the exact same change; I even write my rough code in a sketchbook before I go anywhere near my laptop to program it. Writing by hand really helps me think/focus and get into a “flow” state.
Fountain Pens. All the way.
Why specifically a fountain pen?
@@vermontmike9800 Easier to read. Refillable. Outlast pencils and one- time-use pens, by over 100 years. I can go on. It's the best tool I've used. Practical. Less stress. Tips won't break. Gives you pride.
@MikeFrazee222 You can also manipulate the thickness of the stroke. Writing becomes an effortless, pleasurable experience. And the result has an aesthetic quality even if you don't have a calligraphic hand.
@silex9837 Yes, totally. I only buy flex nibs nowadays. Gold. I like the bounce they have. Zebra G nibs. I want to try one, but I'm not too skilled at making modifications to pens yet. Bending the nib to fit the feed, I'm not so good at it.
I was totally for a nice fountain pen until someone stole mine off my desk at work one day. So now I use just decent disposable pens
I have come to the same conclusion and have been doing the same for a couple of months. I will get the 2 books that you referred to. Thank you.
Excellent video. I've considered returning to writing my stories by hand just to see if I'd get more writing done. Nothing fancy, just use lined paper in a three-ring binder, a mechanical pencil, and an eraser. I've found that my computer offers so many distractions that it pulls me away from writing. I used to use a Brother Printwheel Word Processor and I got much more writing done since it was just a word processor with few distracting features. I stopped using it because I was concerned about losing my documents since it saved them in a proprietary format that was incompatible with computers.
Same! I’m 17 I started writing my book when I was 16. I used laptop but hated its feeling - its grotesque mechanic feel just seems to draw the essence and genuineness of writing for me. Hence, I switched to pen and paper, and loved it ever since.
When I read the statement, "It should not replace or disrupt anything good that already exist...", I remember Aristotle in proposing happiness as humanity's greatest pursuit; happiness is attained by doing good, and goodness is attained through fulfilling one's purpose (i.e. Telos / design or function). At the end of this video, I contemplated the thought that a computer/laptop or pencil and pen must serve as an assistant to the writer to fulfill their thinking roles in which they stemmed the concept of being a good writer and resulted in the state of happiness or contentment in their creative endeavor. Either of the two means, what is indispensable is the fulfillment of one's Telos.
Absolutely love this Jared! It comes at a time when I myself am transitioning more and more of my writing to pen and paper, so am super-glad to hear you are doing the same. Makes me feel like I have company :) I find there is a different quality to writing that is done by hand: it tends to be more poetic, simpler, more efficient, and most importantly, like you said in the video: more intentional.
I'm with you on this Jared. I use a mixture of handwriting (that I eventually dictate into an app or type) and I am using a Freewrite Traveler, which is useful for stream of consciousness type stuff and doesn't have any distractions. In many ways it has less distractions than paper, as there is no way of going back efficiently to analyse previous writing. Of course I have a computer ( if I could manage life without I would , but try to also use it as little as possible,). I manage with 2 phones. A dumb phone that only texts and makes calls, and a smartphone that mostly lives in a K-Safe, with a timed lock. I switch the SIM between them. That way I can plan to use it for banking, or various things it's useful for. trips to the city etc. It makes me look a little odd. I prefer that to the alternative.
Loved this. I'm not antitechnology, but to your, I think, point, we need to be circumspect in our use of it, because we then tend to bypass the act of thinking and working deeply.
You won me with Rilke. He's one of the greatest. Loved the video!
I’ve just started to relearn handwriting so I can at least read it myself and perhaps to re order my mind. I’d ask you for your address so I could write you a comment in cursive with a fountain pen, but in this digital age, even supplying that has its perils. Perhaps later, when my hand writing improves. For now I’ve subscribed to your channel and bought and bought Berry’s book. I’m 74 and have watched the transformation of the world by technology and it’s not entirely a better place. We can’t undo it nor do we need to. As you say, we just need to decide the mix of the old and the new.
Excellent video. Thanks. I'm a non-fiction writer. I've been writing first drafts in pencil or ballpoint for years as I find I think more clearly when writing by hand. I then dictate that to a computer, and edit it there. I hate typing. Subscribed.
I agree with everything you say in this video -- including about the marvelous Wendell Berry.* However, that approach just doesn't work for how I think. I find writing with pen and paper very laborious, to the point that it stops me from writing. I learned to dislike writing when I was in college many years ago, before there were personal computers. I had to write my papers by hand and on a manual typewriter. Even then, I found myself rewriting and editing as I went... that resulted in the use of a lot of white out and crumpled paper in the trash can. I've often wondered how much better my higher education experience would have been had I had a computer to write with. I am grateful for my computer and the writing applications I have. They haven't made me a better writer, except to the extent that they have encouraged me to write a lot more over the past almost 40 years.
This isn't to discourage your approach. I hope it works for you. I wish it could work for me, but it doesn't.
*Every writer should read Berry to see essay-writing at its most crystal sharp.
You made me realize this. I went back to look at my book notes where I have written it on my laptop and others where I had written on my notebook and the writing itself is better on my notebook without a doubt. It made me question if I was the one who actually wrote it. Contrary feeling to the laptop written. Wow.
I use my journal as a springboard for all content including poetry, blog posts, prose...and for ongoing personal therapeutic benefit. I have two desks in my office. My desk with computer and a small desk I use for morning journaling which is my main time of writing. It really is helpful to have a specific place for writing, revising and editing- which is my larger desk. And then the smaller desk keeps me focused on the physical act of writing and literally is distraction free...well except for the cats who usually need to be close by. Journal, pen, cats - that's all I write with in the morning. lol. And I loved when I saw you incorporating the journal in an earlier video. I have filled over 300 journals and I have to say the storage of prolific writing and journaling is daunting from the current trend with minimalism. I am over 50 so this basically does not impact me too much...but something to consider if you decide to continue journaling through the ages ( I started in my to save my journals in my twenties). Best wishes for your novel. Love Rilke- and the list from W.B.
I think I’m going to try this next time I write a substack post! Great idea!!
Your videos are a breath of fresh air. Keep them coming .😊
The production of this video is just perfect.
Berry also famously had his wife to type up and edit his work after he hand-wrote it. He called her "his word processor" and there was much debate at the time about labor and technology. There are practical benefits to handwriting, but we also shouldn't over-romanticize handwritten text as inherently less work, more ethical, or more authentic.
I actually swapped my note taking on my computer and phone to an ReMarkable 2. It's not as down to earth as my fountain pen (inked with Diamine Prussian Blue) and Leuchtturm Outline, but I use it every day. It is one more gadget, but this gadget sets me a bit more free in an odd way. On the upside I relearn hand writing again. So thank you for a great video!
There is nothing "down to earth" about "Diamine Prussian Blue" or Leuchtturm1917 Outlines notebooks. 😉
@lexj1042 well ok... Thanks for your opinion.
@@LarsDahlin You're welcome. Just pointing out that you are using both ink and notebook generally marketed as premium stationary items. Plus, ink suggests a fountain pen, and since you have a favorite ink and nice journal likely a nice pen too. Your fondness of a particular color of an ink brand not common where I am suggests having tried multiple inks to settle on one that works well with your pen and paper...research and interest too then. The overall cost and care put into such a statement puts you into the top couple percent of stationary lovers. The vast majority of people I know (professionals, college students, co-workers, family, and friends) or watch online have much simpler tastes. Most of those people have preferences like a blue Bic Stic pen and whatever 25 cent spiral notebook they bought from WalMart. Which I'm not putting down. I keep a wide selection of such products on hand to give away or use without worry of loss. Actually, the Bic Cristal is one of my favorites as are the 50 cent WalMart composition books. I use and do special projects with those all the time. Also the WalMart brand 3x5 spiral bound notebooks at 3 for $1.14 is a steal! 😀 Just enjoying everyone giving love to all forms of writing from the elite to technological. Not a fan of this video saying "hate computers" as that seems a bit harsh.
@@LarsDahlin BTW, forgot to say good on you for the ReMarkable 2. I've wanted to get one. A bit pricy for my collection at the moment. Do you find it worthwhile?
@@lexj1042 Thank you for your reply. Yes, this is some treats I have made for my self. I definitely love great less expensive notebooks, ink and pens. I try to buy on sale and also on online trading sites. I would never frown upon someones gear and I do feel joy for what people use.
I do fold a single A4 paper Pocketmod style a couple of times per week. I do enjoy saving some scrap paper and make it a great 8 pages tiny note book.
Sounds like a very sane idea, gonna try to think about and implement it into my life
Interesting idea about the distraction offered.
For me, writing using pen or pincil and pad is the only way to get that first draft. Possibly it connects to childhood creativity. Or it may be because I'm old and old school is how I came to love writing.
Thank you for this video! I also prefer writing. Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuhan insisted on the idea that the "medium is the message" which means that the technology we use for specific tasks will influence us in return, and the computer as a writing tool changes the whole experience of writing, sometimes for the worst.
But also possibly for the better. We both shape and are shaped by our tools. The same is true for pencil and paper, which is a disruptive technology. So is written language. A Greek philosopher named Plato wrote in Phaedrus, "But when they came to letters, This, said Theuth, will make the Egyptians wiser and give them better memories; it is a specific both for the memory and for the wit. Thamus replied: O most ingenious Theuth, the parent or inventor of an art is not always the best judge of the utility or inutility of his own inventions to the users of them. And in this instance, you who are the father of letters, from a paternal love of your own children have been led to attribute to them a quality which they cannot have; for this discovery of yours will create forgetfulness in the learners' souls, because they will not use their memories; they will trust to the external written characters and not remember of themselves. The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence, and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth; they will be hearers of many things and will have learned nothing; they will appear to be omniscient and will generally know nothing; they will be tiresome company, having the show of wisdom without the reality."
Another great video, Jared. The pen and paper is so vital to the creative process, and this made me want to use it even more than I already do. I'm working on a video about productivity and creativity right now and I'm definitely gonna cite a couple of your videos in it because you have so much valuable insight. Keep it up!
I know this exact feeling. I started writing a paper that I hope to get a draft done by the end of the year and I’ve started hand writing it in a cheap little “field notes” type notebook with just some rough thoughts and passages, before writing a rough draft in a regular notebook. Then I plan to write it up on the computer.
I will say, for stuff I write for work sometimes I don’t know how exactly to phrase something, I’ll just write “the wrong thing” to then take advantage of the quick/easy editing. It’s all trade offs.
I've also found some benefits from typing on the laptop to writing in a notebook. I've been writing a journal on the pc so that I have the freedom to write/think and edit but I have a thought weighing on my mind: "these words I write I am going to handwrite in a notebook for others to read". This encourages me to write with fewer words which have thoughtful depth and the process has a purpose. I like having my notes in physical form, as a sentimental object of my own creation intellectually, and it feels special to give a person a 3,000 word notebook.
Interesting idea! I've been considering using more physical media for writing / note taking / sketching etc. I might try writing my next video script on paper this time!
Thanks for making this vid, mate
This would certainly solve a lot of problems. I’m going to go with pen vs pencil as I am a big believer in no editing while writing. I can type super fast so no problem typing everything up once I am done. Thank you 🙏
Freewrite. Not sponsored.
My job is translation, which consists of taking written text in a language A, and type it in language B. It's all done on computers and the pace we are expected to work at requires computers anyway. The deadlines are just not possible with handwriting.
However, sometimes, some sentences are particularly convoluted, poorly written or simply complex. For those tough ones, I always revert to handwriting with several foutain pens of various colours to help my dive into the meaning and get a better grasp of my text. I think, though it may be a bias, that the translations I produced by hand were better than what would come out written on computer.
As a Network Engineer i can not agree more~
I just wrote 3 hours using just paper and a pen. In my case, I'm trying to quit writing my first draft on a computer simply because the monitor is killing my eyes. I have a monitor that supposedly has eye strain care tech, but it seems that it is not enough for me. I wrote those 3 hours and my eyes are fine. The funny thing is that I was getting sad because I thought I wouldn't be able to write anymore because my eyes couldn't handle the monitor anymore. And the solution was right there, simple as a pen. Or maybe it's not a solution and my writing will suffer. I don't know. But at least I'm willing to give it a try. Thanks for this video, mate. Subscribed.
yesss!!! I am writing my outline by hand right now and I LOVE it so much more than when Ive tried to do it on the computer in the past. Im now firm on writing the first draft at least by hand as well. But i am stuck...should I write in pen or pencil? Thats why I came here to see if you prefer one or the other.
i thought i am alone in this world. good i found someone like me.
My favorite writer, Cormac McCarthy, still uses his Olivetti Lettera 22. I am also writing my PhD thesis in a hybrid way, the first and second draft by hand, then just computer (otherwise my supervisors get crazy :D and I have anyway publish it at the end).
My own journey has been kinda the opposite but I'm in the same place as you now.
Started with writing stories on my laptop. My goal being finishing the stories more than anything else, the speed of typing helped my make good progress everyday.
However I read somewhere about Neitzsche saying that his writing changed when he used a typewriter (nkt sure if I'm remembering it correctly) and so I wanted to see what would happen if I wrote with a pad and pen.
And the first two differences I noticed were that my sentences were more drawn out, a bit less tighter. And that I took twice as long to write the same amount of words. And since I had limited time in a day to write, I decided that typing on a laptop would let me at least finish my stories and keep my engines running.
And then I started reading about digital addiction, digital minimalism, the slot machines which our computers have become, and decided to write with a pen despite it taking me longer to finish. Though I'll admit that my newfound fascination with fountain pens helped a lot.
And now I'm happily writing with a pen whenever I can. And in a way it's more peaceful and less distracting, with no internet browser to pull me away whenever I'm stuck for a while.
Two things upon which we apparently agree: the necessity of reading Wendell Berry AND ... the pleasure of writing with a Blackwing pencil! I enjoy your vids; thank you for posting.
As a hopeless typist myself, who may have to resort to dictation when getting his manuscripts prepared for consultation and potential publication, there is no other more tried and true method than pad and pencil. Good on you.
I find pen or pencil and paper useful for drafts as well. Computers are really good for some things...great for data crunching, for example. I love all the information I have at my fingertips. But I need that time to think where there's not a constant play for my attention. It's similar to the message in A Room of One's Own as well, the need for that space where there aren't other things constantly tugging at your attention.
Very good video. I agree with all of it. My writing is far better when I am writing by hand. I can type too fast and it is too impermanent. Hand writing forces much more thinking before recording the information and when it is recorded, it is a concrete draft and completed thought. On a computer I type a thought that is not formed enough and then start editing it over and over because the draft is not concrete and I don't move through, I behave as if I am creating a final draft sentence by sentence, which is completely not the case. My thinking process starts being bogged down with repeated data entry interrupting it. Meanwhile my eyes are irritated, there are distractions and the machine is not as portable. Pen and paper has infinite battery life, is perfectly portable and causes zero eye fatigue. I could go on. Typing is only better when I need to transmit an idea very quickly.
Neil Gaiman inspired me to do that, and I'm almost done with the second draft of my book. Which is equal to the chapters I finished of a book in college.
Nothing beats a nice Blackwing on some smooth paper to light up the inspiration!!! 🥰📜🖋️
My fellow Blackwing-user: greetings. I just noticed that JH also has a Blackwing sharpener :-)
I am a film & TV reviewer for, ironically, a website. I hand write everything before typing. I recognise the difficulties computer word programmes pose for writing - the endless spell and grammer checks really impede my flow especially when suggested solutions are wrong
In 2017, I had a similar experience and followed by some ideas. I started to do the same, with a pen, not a pencil. I had written a blog post about it. Unfortunately, my blog is no longer active because you know… life happened. I am glad to know I am not alone in such thoughts.
Writing on a boring laptop gets old after awhile. A mechanical keyboard can liven things up like the qwerkywriter or any blue switch keyboard really.
The next best thing would be an actual typewriter which really puts you in a Writing mood like no joke.
"All you have to do is sit at a typewriter and bleed."
Fountain pens or dip pens are cool too, but hurts my hand after awhile.
Years ago I did that, started with a notebook and then typed it on a computer and there wasn't a day I didn't write, nowadays for time problems I switched to fully write on my laptop and is rare the day I actually write anything, so yeah, I agree with you 100%.
When I started writing I drafted the first few stories by hand. I thought it was a good idea because there was a good deal of editing to the story when I typed the story out, as in I could take large blocks of text and edit them at one time when i typed, without having to erase text, etc. Once I became a better writer I decided to type everything out and skip the pencil and paper thing.
Nice insights!. I want to just add up that the reader should read the essay you propose in conjunction with the next one in the book "“Feminism, the Body, and the Machine”, because both work together in an ethical and political way. Cheers.
Writing my dissertation made me get tired of laptop and screen. I'm trying to write my novel and short stories by hand, because doing research created a terrible habit of having anxiety to finish drafts, following deadlines, being multi task...and writing is basically respect our own time.
100% agree… its practical benefits are the reason why I use it
Wasnt it Steinbeck that wrote his works with a Blackwing pencil making that pencil famous?
I have been consumed by that essay since I first read it. Plus the humour and sarcasm is just classy.
Have you considered using a fountain pen for writing your book? I find a fountain pen with the right nib and ink flow to be a real joy to use as it writes effortlessly for many pages. Of course, turning pages with wet ink on them is less than ideal.
I have never been able to write on a computer; I am a terrible typist, and trying to type and continuing to fumble and make a lot of typos is not conducive to (good) writing.
Something about having a pen in my hand, dragging it on the page to make my words, puts me in the headspace I need to be in.
As a dyslexic person, for speed it helps to use a laptop. However, I’ve recently started to write things by hand again using a journal and it feels more emotive because I am slowing down and feeling the pen to paper to allow my thoughts to flow out. I might even get a paper diary next.
I am no writer, but this videos was what I needed for my studies, I've been blocked for days and my laptop is being a distraction but also the tool for studying. Maybe I can just study in paper, would be nice. Thanks!
I find author James Clears advice from Atomic Habits.
One device/area one use. I find when I use a laptop, I get distracted by all the uses
I love writing by hand. But I have chicken scratch for handwriting. I cant even read my own handwriting sometimes. Hand fatigue and pain makes it impossible to keep writing by hand. So I have to type or use my iPad that turns my handwriting to text. It’s the only way for me sadly.
PS - you are soooooo close to that silver play button for 100K!!! It’s coming soon I just know it!!!
Here is a challenge for you. I'd recommend getting a typewriter instead using your laptop to type things.
I prefer IBM Selectric, I use mine daily.
The first book I wrote was done on a computer, but now I’m working on my second and I use pen and notebooks that I bought from CVS. it’s enjoyable and portable. I even carry a smaller Molskine in case a random idea or scene pops up when I’m on the go. When I type up, the story has already been out of my head and then I can polish it up. Pen and paper works better for me.
I wrote a hundred thousand words of my WIP longhand. The first revision (a rewrite, as revisions generally are), I rewrote via computer. I like this model. My one error for this example was waiting so long to start the computer portion. I don't know what's right. In this example, there was a psychological barrier for tackling the revision ... the word count was just so daunting. Regardless ... the first new words really benefit from writing by hand
Anyway. Good enough for Berry, Gaimon, and Pat Conroy and countless others, good enough for me.
3:05 I do not share this sentiment. When I'm trying to write well, I feel like I can think about the sentences - or just the gist of what I want to write in a few sentences - much faster than I can even type it, let alone write it by hand. And when I'm done with writing a few sentences or a paragraph. I go back and read it out loud and I often rewrite a few sentences or, change particular words to more context specific words that can enrich the text in my view. If I'm writing something that is really important to me, then I go back to that part of the text essentially every time I open the text editor and I read it again and try to improve it further until I think it is perfect. To do these things on paper would be laborious. Also I would argue, because of the lack of speed, I would often lose words between the time they spark in my head to the time I get to finally rewrite them. It would make for a very messy handwritten text as I would have to cross out words and rewrite them multiple times on top of one another to avoid losing them. Essentially my style of letting my thoughts burst out on paper (or the screen), and refine it with further passes, is a task much better fit for a computer, in my opinion.
Jared, as someone living in a more urban area (Austin TX right?) how do you feel about Berry's call to rural living and farming? Have you taken on organic gardening or other sorts of agrarian or environmental disciplines that Berry commends in the book. I started reading world ending fire because of this video and the recommendations of a professor. It's great!
I might address this in a Q&A video I'm planning on recording. Stay tuned!
I have noticed the same thing. I would get distracted by social media, video games, youtube, etc. when writing on my PC. I remember in High School I would write while in class in a notebook, and I wrote far often and consistently back then than I do now.
This is so true, I find it easier to write into a journal than directly onto my laptop
Consider the book Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television by Jerry Mander (yes, that’s his name). Akin to Wendell Berrys list.
I use it all! ❤
When writing I prefer pen and ink as well, but have found that an iPad with a textured screensaver and the Pencil is a workable compromise. My 11 inch iPad stashes conveniently into my handbag. Most note apps can convert the writing to text and paste it into a Pages or Word document when you get to that phase of the editing process. Airplane mode reduces distractions and conserves battery. There’s always have enough paper and whichever color of ink that suits my mood at the time.
Something that i have noticed is that typing on phone/computer actually decreases ones writing skills. because modern technology hads made it so easy for us, it has made us lazy to be able to write properly. you have auto correct, auto capital letter and auro dot at the end of the sentence. all of this makes us rely roo much on that, so when we have to write with our hand and pen/pencil it feels like i have to make a much bigger effor to write words and sentences correctly which on my phone would be something i wouldnt even think about. (note: english is not my first language so excuse me for some mistakes. but my point stands for all languages.)
I prefer paper too. I enjoy using the pilot series of Frixion erasable pens and markers. I enjoy a slower pace for thinking. I enjoy them for personal use for my journal and my planner. I also use them in my hobbies like reading sewing and other needlework. I wish I could use them at work.
I've been trying to write a novel on my computer for years. As soon as I switched to pen and paper, my progress skyrocketed. It's kinda crazy actually.
You become obsession for me these days
I came across your channel last days and was great find you
Back in the 90s, I had a dedicated word processing machine that used small word processing disks. Before that, I had an electric typewriter since I was a kid in the 60s. Using these types of technology, I always wrote out my writing by hand first before transferring to typewriter or word processor. It seemed awkward to compose directly into these things without writing by hand first.
When I got my first computer in 1998, I continued this way, and once committing my writing into my word processing program, Windows 97, I think, i had to make hard copies right away. I didn't quite trust leaving it as a saved copy on my computer. I was afraid it would vaporize itself and all my hard work would be gone. This actually did happen once; several chapters of a story I've never been able to re-create.
But one day, the awkwardness of composing directly to a screen was gone, and writing by hand and then transferring into the computer was cumbersome. Now, I compose directly into my phone's writing program, which is slightly slower than using a keyboard as I'm using only one finger.
But I still keep a handwritten journal, as I've been doing since 1975. I think it conveys more of my personality and I take satisfaction seeing my own cursive filling up the pages of my journal volumes
Superb ki
I consider the handwriting to be an art of its own. Wouldn't write a novel by hand, wouldn't type an important personal or business letter either.
very good! I have found the manual typewritter to be good. I cannot read my own handwriting.
I do, from time to time, write thoughts and opinions that I think are interesting and somewhat original, and small fragments of “novels” and prologues of the same. The former I do for if someday I want to write a book I have interesting things to talk about, the same applies for eventually when I get to go in a podcast to talk about my actual work (games and software development). The latter I do so I can “store” the interesting ideas I have for stories from which some I can, hopefully, eventually, turn into video-games. All of that prefacing just to say I much rather type on the keyboard, where the gap of time between the sentence forming in your head and being “written” is much smaller.
That essay is by Wendell Berry is great! Have you heard the Neil Gaiman interview with Tim Ferriss? He writes like this too and for the same reasons. And have you been taking advice from Cal Newport ? Having a place in your house for your phone is one of his ways of getting deep work done.