I dunno how the heck these questions came to me from a writer's (writing?) point-of-view except to say that (and I suppose here's my answer for question # 1, below) I have to write every day. I don't have anything published significantly, but, whether it's something that p&%$es me off in the newspaper, something I learned, an argumentative thought, a revelation (at least a revelation for me), writing is my cigarettes like how cigarettes are to smokers. I write how 9-5ers love to golf (which I USED to do) whenever they have time. And I don't know if I can call writing an addiction, for me because I've felt quite good after ranting on something or even putting to words a happy thought or so . . . so, I guess that makes writing a bit of therapy, too. Addiction and therapy all in one . . . hmmm . . . I'm trying to think of other similar endeavors that might fit the bill as well.

I write a lot in my profession. But, I'm seeing that thing that I've treasured over years is when I've written for me. Between me, my FP, and my moleskine (upon which I prefer writing).

You can write . . . anytime. Anyone who has the capability (I mean, you don't need to know every single word in the dictionary) and has something to get off of their mind or for whatever reason writers have written over the course of time, can write.

There's no real rhyme or reason . . . these questions actually just came to mind -- heh, you can flame me or if you find them interesting, answer 'em. I sure am interested in knowing your response(s):

1) Do you write every day? I mean EVERY day. Even on holidays? If not, as an FP owner (that's the topic of this board, right?), why not? Do you view your pens more as aesthetic pieces with which not to write with and just admire (which is cool in my book)?

2) Are you able to explain the "rules of writing" if asked; if you are unable to answer certain questions, would you surmise that you'd find that lacking in your role as a writer? Would you feel embarrassed or find that as cause to beef up your knowledge?

3) We've all been in school -- if you used an FP there, did you find doing so more enlightening? Did using an FP improve your writing? Or would you be more willing to admit that the use of a computer helped organize your writiing and, above all, helped to bring out your thoughts easier?

Just wondering. Thanks.

1) Do you write every day? I mean EVERY day. Even on holidays? If not, as an FP owner (that's the topic of this board, right?), why not? Do you view your pens more as aesthetic pieces with which not to write with and just admire (which is cool in my book)?

Yyyyyeahhhh.............. even in the car. Though not when I am driving.

Currently most of my pens are the 'writing' variety: cheap, cute, and smoooooth. They are definite workhorses.

2) Are you able to explain the "rules of writing" if asked; if you are unable to answer certain questions, would you surmise that you'd find that lacking in your role as a writer? Would you feel embarrassed or find that as cause to beef up your knowledge?

Uhhhhhhhhhhhh.................

I've said it before: I am dumber than a bag of hammers and have a hard time 'splaining anything to anyone. The one rule I can think of is, don't do anything that would make an editor put your manuscript down.

3) We've all been in school -- if you used an FP there, did you find doing so more enlightening? Did using an FP improve your writing? Or would you be more willing to admit that the use of a computer helped organize your writiing and, above all, helped to bring out your thoughts easier?

Back in school, we used Skrip pens. I really didn't think about them then, other than, "Oh cripes, I hope it doesn't leak all over my pencil case!"

All the use of a computer did, though, is make it easier to edit. I still write first drafts by hand.

1) Do you write every day? I mean EVERY day. Even on holidays? If not, as an FP owner (that's the topic of this board, right?), why not? Do you view your pens more as aesthetic pieces with which not to write with and just admire (which is cool in my book)?

Welll . . . Yes, if you include trifling with the current refugee pen from the flea market. I generally write one day and revise for three and then post the result in a journal. A new inspiration may not come on the fifth or sixth day, in which case I doodle and do penmanship exercises.

2) Are you able to explain the "rules of writing" if asked; if you are unable to answer certain questions, would you surmise that you'd find that lacking in your role as a writer? Would you feel embarrassed or find that as cause to beef up your knowledge?

"Rules of Writing"? What, you mean grammar, spelling, syntax, word usage? If something looks awkward, I may look it up in the "Chicago" just to aggravate myself, but if it looks bad, it is bad.

3) We've all been in school -- if you used an FP there, did you find doing so more enlightening? Did using an FP improve your writing? Or would you be more willing to admit that the use of a computer helped organize your writiing and, above all, helped to bring out your thoughts easier?

In 1956 (fifth grade) they gave me my first FP. It is a Sheaffer school pen. It uses cartridges. I started journaling then, just so I could use that pen more. I still have the pen and use it.

I don't think it is more enlightening to use a FP. When the bulb lights up, it doesn't matter what writing utensil is handy.

I learned to touch type in high school. I have used this skill ever since then - especially after keyboards were plugged into computers. I don't find writing any easier with a keyboard than with a pen. Editing is probably faster with a computer, but it is not more enjoyable. With a pen, I have more time to dwell on my word choices - savor the nuances of meaning more. I would probably write the same things on the computer. My audience would be unaware of the extra enjoyment I got from writing it with a pen.

Paddler

Yes, i write every day...i, too, have to write every day.
However, i should clarify what i mean by 'write'...

I am an artist, not a writer.

I know the "rules of writing" enough to get by fairly well, but i'm much more interested in self expression and 'playing' than i am in serious writing (altho' i totally admire people who can really write!)

I head up the Parent's group at my son's school and often need to write something for a newsletter, or whatever, and that's a 'chore' for me...it doesn't come naturally.

I've had more of a need to write every day since i started using FPs, end of last year. I am totally into inks, colored inks, different nibs, different papers (i'm not that interested in the 'look' of a pen...how fancy it is, or anything).
And i use my pens mainly for writing letters (have a few pen pals here on FPN), writing in my journal, practicing my handwriting (even while doing my grocery lists!), incorporating hand lettering into my artwork, and doodling...i love to doodle!

If, nearing the end of the day, i realize i haven't used my pens...well, it's like i have to get that in before i go to bed.

~Jas

1) Do you write every day? I mean EVERY day. Even on holidays? If not, as an FP owner (that's the topic of this board, right?), why not? Do you view your pens more as aesthetic pieces with which not to write with and just admire (which is cool in my book)?

I write every day - whether by hand or via computer. I write training manuals at work, have a blog online, am currently co-authoring a book, and I write memoirs, etc. in my journal as much as possible. I use all my pens- some more than others, but none are just for show.

2) Are you able to explain the "rules of writing" if asked; if you are unable to answer certain questions, would you surmise that you'd find that lacking in your role as a writer? Would you feel embarrassed or find that as cause to beef up your knowledge?

Not sure what you mean by "rules." I am not a trained writer. I am a high school drop out with no formal college education. I posses 39 years of life experience and do the best I can with what skills I have.

3) We've all been in school -- if you used an FP there, did you find doing so more enlightening? Did using an FP improve your writing? Or would you be more willing to admit that the use of a computer helped organize your writiing and, above all, helped to bring out your thoughts easier?

Did not use a FP in school. Yes - FP's have improved my writing because they cause me less hand fatigue and they allow me to write for longer periods of time.


[/quote]

1) I write every day. Compulsively. Even when it's only trash. I use keyboards and fountain pens and good pencils -- they are my tools, they are not "aesthetic pieces." When necessary (because the ideas come faster than I can write), I dictate (Dragon Naturally Speaking), print it out, and edit by hand.

2) Rules of writing: Write. Tweak. Send off for review by somebody you trust or for publication (if that's what it was written for). Revise to order. Repeat as necessary until sold or until happy with results. There are no other rules that count. Sometimes tweaking can take months or years.

3) No. No. Computers are irrelevant, if not an annoying distraction that is prone to fail and lose all your work. Organization and clarity happen in your head. Sometimes a computer can help you keep track, sometimes index cards work better, sometimes a whiteboard and eraseable markers are better, sometimes a legal pad, sometimes skipping rocks across the pond. But the important stuff happens in your head. Name a great writer in any culture who was published before 1980, and he or she did not have a computer and probably wrote better than people who write now with a computer. And a lot of great writers still do it just the way Chaucer and Shakespeare, Dante and Milton, Thucydides and Lao Tzu, all the way back to whoever made up the Epic of Gilgamesh and whoever taught that author -- in their heads.

My $0.02. It works for me. Every writer is different.

O mai! Another Dragon user!

30 years ago, my secretary was a whiz at Gregg shorthand and wanted to stay that way. So she insisted that I dictate EVERYthing. (It was really clear who was in charge of that office.) And I got spoiled. After I went out on my own, I struggled and whined until the original Dragon came out. Then I struggled and whined with it, version after version, until between learning how to properly train the software and building up a decent profile file, Dragon now gets about 99% of what I say right. Some people hate Dragon and the whole tribe of transcription software. Not me.

When my hands start to seize up, it's a boon. Unfortunately, in allergy season, it refuses to know who I am.

1. Since the fountain pen bug struck a few months ago, I find I have to write by hand every day, throughout the day. The content is not so important; it's mostly the pleasure of handwriting for its own sake. Luckily, my job is such that it looks appropriate for me to be writing in a notebook in between stints on the computer.

2. I'm pretty good on the rules of writing, can even explain most (though I may break a few). I used to be a legal proofreader, now a tech writer (writing that requires much care, less flare). But my wife is a real writer, writes beautiful essays and stories, gets published, all that, and her grammar and punctuation are, as she would admit, challenged. (Not all Catholic schools inculcated the basics.) Luckily she has me around.

3. Back when I was in school (mid-late 1960s--long before computers), the only fp's to be had (that were affordable) were Sheaffer school pens. I liked but didn't love them. They didn't, as I remember, have any particular style or beauty. Too bad.

Wow. Really terrific responses, folks. Thanks for answering!

To think there was a time when I was afraid to actually USE my FPs.

1) I write when I need to write but I use my pens when I do. So they are more than aesthetic they must work. But I don't find excuses to use them, at least lately.

2) DOn't have the foggest idea what the 'rules of writing' are!

3) Didn't use FPs in school but discovered them in college and have been using them ever since.

Kurt

I'm a calligrapher by profession, so I write every day. I take my fountain pens with me on holiday, and write for fun.

caliken

1. Usually something, even if it's a To Do or Grocery list.

2. Probably most of them.

3. I first wrote with a fountain pen in Jr. High (back in the dark ages) and then through High School. I don't know why I didn't use one during college, or maybe I did and don't remember. College was a means to an end, and I try not to remember too much of it. I love every minute of writing with fountain pens. I just wish my writing was worth reading.

So are the rules the rules of grammar, spelling & punctuation or are there meta-rules for the process?

Kurt

Yes. Unless I deliberately take a break to let ideas percolate or to organise what I have finished so far. My writing used to be more erratic - I would write when inspiration struck (not often enough, in other words) and then go through periods when I would hardly write at all. Then I tried something called Club 100 for Writers. That got me into the habit of writing every single day, no matter what, even if it's only a single page in my notebook. I stuck with it, and now I feel strange if I don't write. I don't allow myself to take breaks very often.



As with some other people in this thread, I'm not sure what you mean by rules. If you mean the rules of grammar, the answer is yes. When I make a mistake, it is usually done deliberately. I get into long discussions about spelling and grammar with certain of my friends. Yes, we are nerds. Why do you ask?

If you mean the 'rules' they give you in those books on 'How to Write a _____ Novel', I say there are no rules. There are guidelines and the really hard part is learning when to follow them and when to ignore them. That is an ongoing process and I haven't mastered those particular writing skills yet.



I sporadically used fountain pens when I was in school, by choice. I was always the oddball in the class. I don't think it improved my writing or felt particularly enlightening. School was an ordeal to be endured, no matter what kind of pen I used.

I do find a computer to be useful when I'm writing. My process used to be about half longhand, and half word-processor. For about a year I've been writing everything out longhand, which is a bit of a change for me. I seem to go through phases. The problem with writing it all out in my notebooks and then transcribing it is that I've fallen about four notebooks behind in my transcribing. It's become a bit of a stumbling block. I find it much easier to revise and organise my writing on the computer, probably because of my EXTREMELY non-linear process. I also feel more peace of mind when it's all transcribed and saved on the computer, since I won't lose weeks or months worth of work if I lose or damage a notebook. I *always* have backup copies of my writing even if I haven't bothered to back up anything else.

A very interesting book on Hypergraphia is The Midnight Disease by Alice Weaver Flaherty.

1. I enjoy writing (I'm a writer by profession) but I don't have a compulsion to do it. What I do have a compulsion to do is read.

2. They're more like 'guidelines'. (I have taught fiction writing classes for quite a few years so I know techniques, but I balk at calling them rules. Even grammar, to some extent, is more variable than we often believe. (Love the new Cambridge Grammar!))

3. I've loved writing with fountain pens for a long long time, going back to Shaeffer School pens with italic nibs, but I never had to use them in school. A stronger appreciation for fps grew after the personal computer showed up on the scene. Love both - tech and fps - and will continue to use both.

I should probably mention that while I love writing story notes or research notes in longhand, I find it nearly impossible to write fiction in longhand because I can't write nearly as fast as I can type.

Lemme join in!

1. I write *every frickin' day*. I write in my teaching journals after class every day, and most days, in the class also (if I assign them a freewrite topic, I do it right along with them!) On non-teaching days, it's *my* writin' time. I've got a very stupid novel written mostly for personal catharsis (when I lose place in the plot, someone gets nekkid or mugged, sometimes both) going, and I also do random writing exercises to keep my creative brain from getting a cramp.

2. Rules? If you mean grammar rules, hooo buddy, I gotcha covered. I teach a linguistics course, which means I have to know all that stuff! I periodically have to refresh myself hitting up a grammar review (I like Barron's grammar review workbook and assign it to my grammar-challenged students).

Rules for writing in my case boil down to the advice my mentor gave me whilst dissertating: 'write, not right.'--get it down on the page, THEN monkey with it. Saved mah bacon.

3. I did NOT write in FPs in school. I flunked penmanship until they stopped giving grades in penmanship. I imagine writing in FP would only have made things worse for all of us. When I was in high school, my favorite writing stuff was a rollerball pen (relatively new technology at the time) and a steno notebook. I must have filled a dozen stenos, not to mention those that got themselves gutted in service of my adolescence.

I'm still not sure about the computer/longhand debate. I used to be a huge believer in Longhand to Draft, Type to Revise, but I type WAY faster (70 wpm) than I can write so when I hit my dissertation, I started composing on the computer and only pulling out longhand when I got stuck or lost or needed to have what Southerners call (or at least we did) "a good thinkin'."

Interesting topic!

HK

Just to completely hijack this thread, I suffered from total writer's burnout for three years, during which I could not even force myself at gunpoint to write so much as a single page per day of ANYTHING.

I learned the value of rest. Iz betta nao.

I had a HORRIBLE creative writing teacher in college who ONLY liked realistic contemporary fiction. I write cheez fantasy. I passed his class by writing a story about a girl so depressed by the ruthless critiques by her creative writing professor that she killed herself. Real enough for him, I guess.

After that, I didn't write anything 'creative' for ten years. Truth.

I still hate him. Hate him with the passion normally reserved for former spouses.

HK

Wow. Maybe he was my art Evaluator reincarnated. Same thing happened to me, only wif pitchers instead.

But I don't hate him. I don't have the energy.

My DH's description of the Rules of Writing: "Put one word after another until you have enough for a book."

How to Write Good

# Avoid alliteration. Always.
# Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
# Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
# Employ the vernacular.
# Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
# Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
# It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
# Contractions aren't necessary.
# Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
# One should never generalize.
# Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
# Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
# Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
# Profanity sucks.
# Be more or less specific.
# Understatement is always best.
# Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
# One-word sentences? Eliminate.
# Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
# The passive voice is to be avoided.
# Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
# Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
# Who needs rhetorical questions?

Yup, every day. Some days it's both personal and professional, or just professional, or just personal - but I write with my FPs every day.


I don't worry about it too much. The people that receive handwritten notes from me prefer them to be "me", rather than sterile.


The computer is far worse for me. When writing by hand, I have to *think* - I have to remember how to spell correctly and layout what I want to share. A computer takes away all of that beneficial process for me. When I send out handwritten notes, many people keep them; I've yet to hear the same for one of my email messages. And yes, FP use has dramatically improved my handwriting.

1. I don't write everyday, although I probably should. Writing is like any muscle; it needs to be exercised to be strong. The more I write, the more ideas I get for stories and the faster I can get them on the page. Still, I think it's good for writers to take time off every now and again just to daydream. Plus, I usually spend a week or two researching a short story (more for longer fiction) before putting the first word on the page. I knock the first draft out in a day, then revise, revise, submit, and start researching the next one.

2. If you mean grammar rules, yes, I can. I'm a vocal supporter of the serial comma and have been known to go on long rants about the use of "different than" instead of "different from".

If you mean rules for getting things written, well, I think that differs for everyone. My personal philosophy is "Even if it's cr@p, get it on the page. First drafts don't have to be perfect, they just have to be written."

And I'm mortified when I read something I've written, even in an email to a friend, and notice a typo or grammar mistake.

3. I never used fountain pens in school. In fact, I just started using them earlier this year. Wouldn't trade them for the world.

That said, I've found that different methods work better for me for different types of writing. For fiction, I get more done faster if I write my first drafts longhand. For things like blog posts or website copy, I work better on a computer. For RPG scenarios, I sit my co-author down at the computer and rattle stuff off at him while he types.

Wow---Andi, you are FAST! I thought I was, and it used to take me a week to do a draft.

1) Do you write every day?

Yes, I write every single day...I journal and am working on several fiction pieces. I also blog and have been attempting to do some freelancing. I outline/brainstorm by hand - I am enjoying that process more since my new obsession with fountain pens.

2) Are you able to explain the "rules of writing" if asked; if you are unable to answer certain questions, would you surmise that you'd find that lacking in your role as a writer? Would you feel embarrassed or find that as cause to beef up your knowledge?

Yes, I working towards my credentials to teach high school English, but I myself don't always take the time to abide by them

3) We've all been in school -- if you used an FP there, did you find doing so more enlightening? Did using an FP improve your writing? Or would you be more willing to admit that the use of a computer helped organize your writiing and, above all, helped to bring out your thoughts easier?

I did not use a fountain pen in high school. I have just started seriously using a fountain pen, and I find that I am enjoying the actual process of writing by hand more and more. Now, I just need ink for my newest pen!

I don't write every day. Owning a fountain pen has nothing to do with it. Sometimes I just have nothing to write. I view my pens as tools that work better than the tools that most people use.

I can explain the "rules of writing." You must put something meaningful somewhere and make sure it stays there for a significant amount of time. That's all. If I'm unable to answer something, it's probably because it's outside my specialization. If I found it interesting, I might want to learn more, but that's highly unlikely.

I've always used a fountain pen in school. If my penmanship and writing ability improved, it would be mostly because of my schooling. The influence of writing instruments (including computers) is insignificant in comparison.

1) No. Whenever I don't write it's because I just don't feel like it, although I try to write at least three days a week; but I write with my pens and I don't like the idea of buying them to just look at or have.

2) I have a pretty deficient knowledge of the grammar for any language, but I can explain the basics well. I don't believe in "rules," that make "good," writing. If it's good, it's good, and I don't want to try to quantify it.

3) It has made me slow down when I write, making my writing clearer. The letters themselves are still ugly. I can't write creatively on the computer, and it makes me bored to use a word-processing program, I just get tired of it quickly.

1. No, i don't write every day as some days i'm just too tired from work but i will always write on more days than not. My only fountain pen is a very aesthetic beauty but it is to write with and not just to look at.

2.I don't think i could explain the "rules of writing" to a third party but i dislike poor grammar and spelling and common errors such as confusing 'there' 'they're' 'their' etc annoy me.

3.I went to an English Grammar school in the 1970's and fountain pens were compulsory. Our desks still had inkwells although it was quite a few years since they had been used. Quink in bottles or cartridges were de rigeur with whatever fountain pen we could get cheaply from W.H. Smith. We became experts in bending back nibs that we'd managed to half destroy so you could at least get a line of writing on a page no matter how scratchy. Chewed up pellets of paper soaked in ink and then flicked across the class to fall down someone's neck broke the tedium of latin class.

I don't like writing on a keyboard as i find i'm always having to hit backspace to correct errors. Since i left school i only used biros but in recent years my hands have suffered awful cramps when writing and i found i was writing less and less due entirely to the pains i would get. Earlier this year i had a long service payment from my work and after paying some bills and getting other things into order i felt i wanted to have something special left from the money that i could keep and hand on to someone when i died but would use a great deal myself. A quality fountain pen fitted the bill. I wish i'd have brought one 20 years ago as i've written more with the fountain pen in the last 6 months than i have in the last 6 years. It's shape and ease of use are a pleasure for my hands with no fatigue at all no matter how much i write and looking at each word i write as it leaves the nib wet and dark and dries out and changes shade is a joy to behold. My thoughts flow freely with the ink.