How Do I Write

How Do I Write

Writers have always existed, in every culture, in every society, in every time period. Some have been called historians, others chroniclers, some priests. Some worked for the church, some for the government, some just wrote because they couldn’t do anything else. Throughout history writers have used stone tablets, papyrus, paper, animal skins, any surface they could find where they could make a mark.

When I first began writing I used legal pads and a specific fine tip ink pen. Wherever I was, whenever the urge to write struck I pulled out my pen and tablet and just started writing. This is called free writing. You allow your pen at the end of your hand to just write what it wants to write. Later I would go back and fine tune and hone whatever I wrote.

Eventually I would type what I wrote into my computer so I could edit my work. That made it so much easier. No paper wasted with re-writes. Later I wrote on my computer and printed out my final draft to give it a last visual edit before I submitted what I wrote to an editor or client. These days I rarely print anything unless it’s required or I don’t have my laptop with me. If I’m writing at my regular job I have to do it with paper and ink because I’m not allowed to take my computer into the workplace.

So, you see I have evolved in my use of technology. I know how to use most modern technology, if I see a use to it. But, like I’ve told my children, to the younger generations technology is a toy just waiting to be used and advanced. I’ve watched younger people. They can’t wait to get their hands on a new technology even before it’s released to the public. They are like children on Christmas morning, anxious to tear into their newest toy.

Unlike them I see technology as a tool. I love to see what new technology is invented but not in the same way. In my world, technology does what I tell it to do which means I research new technology to find which ones will serve my needs best. I love that using a laptop means I’m not tied to a desk when I come home from work after spending eight hours tied to my desk. I love that some days I can pack up my laptop with me to go to the library or the bookstore. It means I can take my laptop with me when I visit my daughter who lives in another state and not miss a beat. It means if I’m traveling and I find something to write about I don’t have to wait until I get home because I have my laptop so I can write it while I’m there in the midst of the creative stimulus.

The wonderful thing though is that there are times when I still want to sit down with a legal pad or a notebook and my favorite, fine tip, flowing ink pen and free write. There is something to be said about the tactile experience of just letting the words flow out of your heart, down your arm, out your hand into the pen and onto the paper. It’s just not the same with a computer of any kind. I can always type it up on my computer later but right then, at the moment of inspiration, I can simply grab my pen and paper and let my thoughts flow.

 

So, what’s your favorite way to write? Tell me here.