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How Do You Justify Writing With A Fountain Pen In The Digital Age?


Snoutmol

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I teach college and require a significant amount of writing in all my classes. The writing includes both assignments written outside of class and assignments written in class. My experience has been that students tend to write better essays in class.

 

While there are several possible reasons, I believe that one of the big ones is that in class they write on paper and out of class they write on computers. (To date no student has ever used a fountain pen.) Writing requires both thought (reason) and attention (focus). Many of us can write much faster on computer than we can write. That isn't necessarily good as we tend to type faster than we can actually reason. On my students' "typed" essays, i often find myself writing "slow down" as they jump from one idea to another without developing any of them. Additionally, writing (and reading) on computer is more distracting as you are constantly enticed to click away for just a few seconds. Good writing takes focus and computers fragment our focus. (There is a lot of literature/studies on this.)

 

When I write for my job, I use a fountain pen with black ink on a yellow legal pad. I like the contrast of a rich black ink on the yellow paper. I find that I am able to focus on and engage with the material so much better. I find that I am able to eliminate all distractions. I cannot do that with a computer. If you have ever seen the Kevin Costner movie "For the Love of the Game", what happens when I apply pen to paper is similar to when he starts to pitch and is able to shut out all the crowd noise.

 

dave

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When I first read the title of your post, my first response was: I don't. At least not to anyone except myself, and isn't that what matters anyway?

 

 

Then I read all the responses and your clarification that you meant does it make sense? For me it sure does. So much of what I do in my job is typed into a software program of one sort or another, that writing with pen and paper is relaxing. Whether I am writing a letter, a journal entry, notes in a notebook in a meeting or something else. (and so much of what goes into the software program is the same or similar- it stifles creativity, but because of number of issues I deal with daily, I don't have time to do it otherwise.)

 

I tend to remember more when I hand write as well. (whether the tool I use is pencil, ballpoint, roller ball or my favorite the fountain pen) The task dictates the tool sometimes. I majored in accounting (and later taught it for a time) in college. Assignments were often taught using pen/pencil & paper as you learn how the debits and credits work on paper easier than by typing it into say Quickbooks, which is programmed to do things a certain way. Like closing the books at the end of your period (year). Because of the number of transactions a computer is more efficient. But you need to know what the right entries are so it is taught by hand.

 

When was the last time you saw actual handwritten ledger books used in a business for all transactions? My first accounting job in the 1980's was part hand written/part done on the computer because of the way parts of the business was set up. (this was a small manufacturing business that had a retail arm as well. The retail part of the business was done by hand) I know that throughout my accounting career whenever something didn't make a lot of sense I did handwritten T accounts to figure it out. I would tell my students that even if a Big 4 accounting firm partner tells you he doesn't ever do T accounts, I would call BS. Every time. I have never meet an accountant that didn't use them.

 

What does this have to do with what we are talking about? Maybe a lot, maybe a little.

 

I know when I hand write whatever - a report whatever, like others have said, I remember it better, different neural pathways are used and I end up with a better finished product.

Brad

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind" - Rudyard Kipling
"None of us can have as many virtues as the fountain-pen, or half its cussedness; but we can try." - Mark Twain

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On my ultrabook I can reach 110 words/min

On my notepad I can reach I supposed similar results, but I don't need to study.

 

Not needing to study wins out.

 

I can manage about 1 page every 10 mins while typing an essay directly.

I can manage about 3 pages every 10 mins on my note pad and I'm more engaged and less likely to be distracted. (I have a odd fascination to viewing ink dry.)

 

Being productive longer and faster wins out over just directly typing it.

#Nope

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Descriptions of supernatural horrors from the vast depths of space and the madness that grips one through exposure to this knowledge flow better from the tip of a Waterman's 52 than from a keyboard.......or so I'm told in my dreams of vast cyclopean architecture of a most unwholesome geometry submerged in eternal twilight beneath the waves.

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While I don't write books or essays, I generally prefer to write by hand. Often times, the mood also strikes to do some doodling.

 

Of my group of friends, I believe I'm the only that enjoys writing by hand- despite mild arthritis. One of which constantly gives me a hard time about writing with pen and paper "dude you have pen and paper on your phone!". Trying to explain to such a person that the experience is not the same, is like trying to explain a trucks transfer case to someone that doesn't want to listen. Bad analogy, but you get the idea. I'll tell you the biggest shock ever- this dude only has two writing instruments in his entire household! one pen and one pencil- yet no paper. That's how dependent he is on his electronics.

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One of which constantly gives me a hard time about writing with pen and paper "dude you have pen and paper on your phone!". Trying to explain to such a person that the experience is not the same...

 

And an exercise in futility. Tiresome people deserve no more response than a bland, dismissive smile.

Edited by Manalto

James

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I love technology but also embrace the beautiful tactile experience of writing with a fountain pen. It just plain makes me happy!

PAKMAN

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The husband of a friend of mine is an engineer, and their family has long referred to pens as "thinking sticks" - research does seem to show that writing aids memory and thinking.

 

Personally I use both handwriting and typing a lot, but for different purposes.

 

I handwrite my journal, because I specifically want a keepsake - I draw in it with everything from water-soluble pencils to glittery gel pens and also stick small memorabilia in it, none of which you can really do satisfactorily with an app.

 

When planning my novels, nearly everything is handwritten because it's a good way to think through my ideas. I carry around a Midori Passport notebook, one insert of which is dedicated to jotting down ideas - I only resort to electronics when I'm outdoors and it's raining, to avoid the paper getting wet!

 

On the other hand I write the actual text of my novels electronically. I can see the value of pondering each sentence, but that can actually kill a story for me - on the first pass, I just want to get it out of my head and onto the screen, and not worry about whether the writing is any good or not. In fact if anything I write better when I'm in the zone than when labouring over each sentence.

 

The editing process is a mixture. I like to take handwritten notes because it aids analytical thought, and I often use physical index cards to re-outline and restructure the story because it helps me to boil down an entire novel into a few dozen sentences - much easier to wrap your brain around! Then I go back to the electronic draft and implement the changes.

 

I'd hate to have to do without one or the other - but if I had to sacrifice one, it would be typing. Historically, authors often used a secretary for the tedious work of typing up their novels :)

 

As for using a fountain pen for writing, I have no justification beyond the fact that it gives me a great deal of pleasure.

Edited by AnneLyle
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I am very geeky: enjoying maths, computers, programming (although not very good!) ...

 

... but none of those techno-interests give me the transcendent pleasure of the tactile and visual aesthetics of laying beautiful ink onto a deliciously smooth paper with a wonderful fountain pen.

 

What I mean is -- I just enjoy it. My wife doesn't get it; my kids don't get it; but I sure do!

 

Cheers,

David.

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I started using a typewriter years before I discovered fountain pens, so I enjoy composing (let's say) on a keyboard. For me, it is faster.

 

That being said, I also write in a notebook everyday, using one or a few fountain pens. This, too, is very enjoyable and not limited to battery charge or outlet. (My favorite typewriter was an IBM Selectric II, and I choose laptop computers largely (but not solely) by keyboard "feel.")

Pens and keyboards -- both invaluable to me.

_________________

etherX in To Miasto

Fleekair <--French accent.

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In the 1990s, I lost my final year project to Word gremlins a couple of days before the deadline. I ended up using a typewriter (with liberal sprinklings of Tippex) from some handwritten notes, just getting it in on the final day however the grade was not good because I had done the bulk of it on a university computer. About 10 years ago, I took a creative writing course and again, Word chewed up my assignments (just had enough time to get OpenOffice and retype). Handwritten notes don't crash/get corrupted (that is if the handwriting is decipherable).

 

Writing by hand is usually a pleasure for me, whether it is correspondence, stories and poems, to to-do lists.

!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've come full circle. From pen and ink as a student, through a career in information technology, to retired and writing just about everything with pen and ink again.

As a student I had no choice. A "personal" computer would have been science fiction.

Although much or my work has required the use of a keyboard, I never abandoned pens.

I was regarded as slightly eccentric at work for making hand-written notes with a fountain pen ... but then I eschewed the ubiquitous coffee mug in favour of tea with a cup and saucer so I probably am eccentric.

Now that I'm retired I use a pen for most things simply because that's what I find most comfortable and natural.

I've never really felt a need to justify it.

When I write with a pen I feel a personal connection to what goes down on the paper. If I use a computer I can't help feeling slightly disconnected from the process.

Andy sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled ...

(With apologies to Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson)

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I never learned proper typing. When I started high school the only choice of an elective we had was either band class or typing (which I believe is now 'keyboarding'). I lugged my beloved Evette Schaeffer alto saxophone to school and never looked back. All through university, every paper I handed in was hand written.

 

Occasionally I have tried my hand (pun intended) at writing stories. When I try to do it on a keyboard, I use my two finger, hunt-and-peck method of typing. What goes into the word processor program is usually shite as I'm too distracted by finding keys to do a proper job of the narrative. I find that I have to go over it many times doing corrections and trying to make it work. When I write it out, it just flows. Seldom do I have to polish it up. The original work is fine.

 

The same thing usually occurred back in university. When writing an essay, I'd think about what I wanted to say and then I'd put pen to paper. When I was finished writing down what I wanted to say, I'd hand it in.

Ink has something in common with both money and manure. It's only useful if it's spread around.

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Well, apart from what everyone else has said (and with which I agree), I "justify" it because I have RA that affects my hands. I write my drafts by hand (using a fountain pen is very comfortable since I don't have to press at all), use Dragon Naturally Speaking to get the document into Word or other editor, and do the editing on the computer. I avoid having to type everything into Word and save my hands for the editing process.

 

Plus I just really enjoy writing with a fountain pen. :)

 

-Dan

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How do people justify riding horses in the automobile age? I really don't think justification is necessary - well, maybe it is if you have to convince your spouse that you need a fountain pen or a horse. My justification - if I needed one - would be that horses and fountain pens feed my soul.

 

Judybug

So many pens, so little time!

 

http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/5642/postcardde9.png

 

My Blog: Bywater Wisdom

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I will write my documents by hand, then transfer them (with editing) to the digital equivalent of a fountain pen - LaTeX.

 

LaTeX lets you concentrate on the writing and editing without worrying about the finer details of layout. I, and many others, find that when using a full-featured word processor (MS Word, MacWrite, WordPerfect, LibreOffice Writer, Pages and the like) I spend more time on fiddling with the finer details of layout when I should be concentrating on content.

 

Finally, when I run the LaTeX processor and see the results, I can start worrying about layout. LaTeX has the rules of traditional typesetting built in, so it is simpler to get the layout right, and it gives you better results than a traditional word processor.

And I don't denigrate layout. The presentation of your words is, in many cases, as important as their content. If people can't absorb your message because of the layout, then you have wasted your and their time. But, it is the last task, when you are happy with the content.

 

1) Draft

2) Edit

3) Present

 

I enjoy the process more, and I get better results. And to mis-quote JonSzanto, Justification is for Paragraphs.

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“Them as can do has to do for them as can’t.


And someone has to speak up for them as has no voices.”


Granny Aching

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