Since high school, writing has become one of my biggest hobbies and since then, I've written 7 novels I could possibly publish... once I come into the right income and find the right people... I've typed up all 7 on Word.

I've recently started writing this new short story/novel... and ive been doing it on a notepad that I take with me everywhere and I pretty much write in it b4 class and during class breaks.

The things is that I actually like doing that better than

On Word, I can write a lot faster, but I have to worry about going back to fix spelling errors. I don't have the spell check on my notepad, but my thoughts are starting to come off faster.

I wonder if there's an advantage to writing the old fashioned way opposed to using technology

ah, the age old question - scribbling vs. typing.

lots of famous and established writers will say in interviews that they do most of their composing on legal pads, and then turn them over to a typist for a "formal" first draft.

of course, lots of famous and established writers started writing before the ubiquity of computers, so they came from a generation to which typing was not second nature like it is for most folks who are gen x or younger.

i like to type when i do creative writing because i can type faster than i am able to write longhand, and i like to write as fast as i can think - if i'm hearing dialog in my head, i like to type it like i'm doing a transcription.

on the other hand, a spiral notebook is so much more portable. i have a laptop, but it's still a pain in the butt when i'm away from home. i have to let it boot up and that can take a few minutes, when with a spiral notebook all i have to do is open the damn cover.

i think my standard practice is, if i'm running around and i think i might have time to scrawl out some ideas, i take a spiral notebook (i always try to carry one on me anyway). if i'm making a special plan to spend the day writing at a coffee shop, then i will take my laptop with me.

interesting take.

Although, I think this one I'm writing now is different than what I've done b4. I had an idea of which direction I was going to go in... or more or less what the plot was going to be.

I started out with a very vague idea... and I started writing from stream of consciousness, w/e popped into my head. Then I started using my notepad and I think I write better with that method on the notepad.

It might be the project I'm working on that makes this way easier... but I'll have to see what happens. I had just started it a week ago... and I've used 10 pages of Word (and I havent been converting my notepad to computer, I just write where I last left off instead of rewriting it)... and I've filled up 20 pages on my notepad... and im really liking where its going so far

Ah, yeah, that's hard one.

Really, it just depends on my mood when I start. If I start by writin longhand, that's how I'll continue it. If I start by typing, that's how I end it.

I think I like longhand better, because when I get to the point where I type it up, it makes it easier to edit, and I can revise as I'm typing, and decide if that's REALLY how I want to say it or describe it or tell that story or emotion. Writing it longhand and then typing it up gives me a chance to evaluate it and a lot of the time I just pitch it all and start from scratch.

Generally, if I write whatever it is from start to finish at a keyboard, I feel like I'm just stuck with whatever comes out, and most of the time its a rambling mess. But in those instances where rambling mess is what I'm going for, that has its own benefit. It's much easier to get your mental and creative diarrhea out when you're just letting your fingers fly.

ah, this damn "g" key

For me having to transcribe my scribble after already writing it donw is really difficult for me as I am a slow typist. WHen I do write, I do so on my laptop.

i think there is software that can transcribe your scribbles to typeface now.

so your worries are moot

horatio said:

yeah, but the text recognition software is still kinda crap and you have to do a lot of proofreading and reformatting still. plus, when you manually type your handwritten notes, it gives you the added bonus of being able to revise as you type, which kinda kills two birds with one stone. you get to work on an updated draft as you prepare your manuscript.

horatio said:

I'd rather have voice recognition to type as I speak.

superspaceboy said:

I can't speak as fast as I think, that wouldnt work for me.

I think ive pretty much decided that im gonna write it all longhand and type it when its finished... but this will be an interesting experiment. cuz this is the first time ill be writing longhand

Richard Powers, who won the National Book Award in 2006, said that he uses voice recognition technology (or whatever it's called) for his books. I thought that was interesting.

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[Edited 2/6/08 13:02pm]

superspaceboy said:

2the9s said:

[Edited 2/6/08 13:26pm]

i wrote one of the most beautiful poem(that a 16-year old can write) for my school paper on toilet paper with lipstick.
[Edited 2/6/08 13:41pm]

baroque said:

oh




oh




oh

both for me, it is just recently 2007 that i started writing on a comp.

my first 2 books i wrote in notebooks thus there r 2 very full notebooks but with the 3rd i didn't do all of the writing in a notebook.

but it also depends for me on whether im at the comp when inspiration strikes, then ill write on a comp, if not i use a notebook.

but there is something i LOVE bout a pen and paper.
[Edited 2/6/08 14:38pm]

horatio said:

right


right



right..

In college, I wrote and edited everything on the computer and that was great. But now, I write longhand. I think it's partly because I am way over-computerized, as my job involves staring at the computer all day, and I am loathe to get back on it.

Plus, I don't write a lot of fiction. I mostly write in poetry format, and drama. I just need a few words, carefully selected. I work in sound media, so I translate the written word into voice and integrate music and sound effects with it, in which case I am sitting at the computer to edit.

To summarize, I write poems and prose in a spiral notebook and collect it up. Then I draw from this material, shape and create dramatic scenes -- writing them out on a white 8x10 piece of paper. Then I record the words as dialogue and narration. Then get on the computer and "write" (edit) with voice, sounds, and music.

2the9s said:

This idea is attractive to me. Might be especially useful because I write plays.

Right it out by hand first then type it out and edit.

It's not that hard to keep paper in order.