# Who else writes longhand?



## Steerpike (Jan 28, 2013)

I will occasionally type directly into the keyboard, but 99% of the time I write longhand first, and then end up doing a sort of rough edit when I sit down to type it up. Not only do I usually write longhand, I use a fountain pen when I do it, which makes me feel old-fashioned. 

What about the rest of you? My brain works differently depending on whether I am physical moving a pen with my hand or typing on a keyboard.


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## Ireth (Jan 28, 2013)

I used to write longhand a lot more than I do now. The first draft of _Low Road_ is handwritten, and I moved to typing for the second. _Winter's Queen_ and its sequel are entirely typed. The first little bit I have of _Moonhunter_ is in longhand. I like the feel of writing rather than typing -- there's just something nice about feeling the weight of a notebook and seeing the words you've written in your hands. But I like the versatility of typing too; you can move text around a lot easier with a computer program than you can with a pencil and paper. Then again, paper notebooks don't lose their text when your computer crashes, and you don't have to remember to hit Save. XD


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## T.Allen.Smith (Jan 28, 2013)

You're like the MC in Stephen King's The Dark Half... Except he used little nubs of pencils.

Honestly, I could imagine writing that many words, on a daily basis, longhand. I will jot down story ideas in a small journal style book to stash away for later use but that's about it.


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## Steerpike (Jan 28, 2013)

Uh oh. I haven't read The Dark Half, but given that it is by King there is a decent chance things don't go well for the MC.


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## Devor (Jan 28, 2013)

It's easier for me to focus on the computer.  But I do my best brainstorming while my mind wanders at random places, so I'll often stop to write down my thoughts, which can sometimes amount to a few paragraphs, usually the "big moment" in a scene.  Then I sit down and tinker and add to it until I can make it work.


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## Anders Ã„mting (Jan 28, 2013)

It varies a bit, actually. Right now I outline by hand, but I take notes and write the actual story in Open Office.


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## Cheezyb10 (Jan 28, 2013)

I always type, lol.


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## Jabrosky (Jan 28, 2013)

I wonder why the OP writes longhand first. What are the advantages you find that longhand has over typing?


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## T.Allen.Smith (Jan 28, 2013)

Jabrosky said:


> I wonder why the OP writes longhand first. What are the advantages you find that longhand has over typing?



Steerpike stated it was a mental effect.

---- For some reason I really wanted to write Steerpile again. That still makes me laugh.


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## Jabrosky (Jan 28, 2013)

Maybe, but I would have liked to know how his brain works differently when he writes longhand. The reason I ask is that I want to see if it will work for me too.


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## The Writer's Realms (Jan 28, 2013)

I was just thinking about this the other day. I'm going to give longhand a shot on my next story.


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## Devora (Jan 29, 2013)

I've always wrote in simply because i don't know how to write in shorthand. How do you write in shorthand?


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## Dreeparn (Jan 29, 2013)

I always carry a notebook with me for ideas i have when I'm not at home and usually write short scentences as a reminder of the idea but most of my actual writing so far has been on the computer. Which is not really strange considering that I have an horrible handwriting unfortunately.


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## SineNomine (Jan 29, 2013)

I wonder how well this correlates with age.  Some people got started writing long before simple, effective, easy to use word processors were common place, but people in their twenties may have been typing for the vast majority of their life and are more likely to feel technology is natural.  But I could well be wrong.

I personally can't imagine writing in longhand myself.  My hand gets cramped just writing a single page with a pen and paper, but I can type all day with no ill effects.


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## Penpilot (Jan 29, 2013)

I can type faster than I can write, and my writing is like chicken scratches. I find my thoughts flow more smoothly out of a keyboard. If I tried to keep pace with handwriting, what I write down wouldn't be legible. I've written ideas and even scenes down in note books and when I've come back to them, I couldn't read them.

And... ugh... this doesn't have anything to do with age. I didn't use a computer until high school. To date myself, my first computer was a 386 with a 40 meg hard drive and a 4 megs of ram. I learned to type on a electric type writer. I'm old. There I said it. But I do have a comp-sci degree, so working with computers isn't exactly out of my wheelhouse.


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## Jess A (Jan 29, 2013)

My mind works differently when using a pen and keyboard, too. I outline much better with a pen and diagrams. Sometimes I write scenes, sometimes I type them. I have notebooks that I take everywhere with me so I can write or plot or sketch or whatever. Sometimes I prefer to sit on the computer and type, as I type faster than I write (and I write very fast, believe me). It depends on where I am, and my mood. If I'm in a cafe, for instance, I much prefer a pen and paper. That said, I don't carry a lap top around with me either. All through school and university I have used pen and paper.


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## Graylorne (Jan 29, 2013)

Age has nothing to do with it indeed  I was born in the days that computers were things used by the Pentagon in that faraway land across the Atlantic (I remember the coming of t.v. in our home). I've used a fountain pen all my life. In 1999 I got my first, secondhand, pc. And now? I'd go out of my mind at the idea of _writing_ my books literally.

I do make notes, though. Lots of them, with a .5 pencil. But only short ones, for longer notes I use my pc.


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## Chilari (Jan 29, 2013)

I type. I can't handwrite fast enough to keep up with my brain. I can type much faster. I've been typing stories ever since sixth form (so, aged 16), when I could get away with using one of the computers in the sixth form common room for something other than schoolwork if I was writing - they were always in demand and you'd get kicked off if you were playing games when others wanted to do work, and then what could I do? I wasn't exactly social and if it was cold or rainy outside the common room was crammed and I'd struggle to get a chair anywhere. So I wrote stories on computer rather than try and find a clean desk (because the tables were used for eating lunch on) where I could use pen and paper.

It wasn't long after that that I started typing faster than I could handwrite.

Now I can't get the words flowing properly, or my thoughts in order properly, if I'm writing by hand. I can't keep up, I skip words in my attempts to do so, and I forget things before I'm done writing down the idea before it. Okay, I still do that one sometimes when typing, but not so frequently.

In fact it's got to the point where, if I'm out, I find it easier to remember a particular scene if I phantom-type - shut my eyes, use a hard surface, and type the words in my head - than if I make notes in my notebook. I get the structure of the scene right, the individual phrases, without forgetting things as I go along, whereas notes just don't seem as efficient. I still make notes after I've phantom typed, but generally don't need them. The act of phantom typing the scene helps me to get it down right, and then when I get home I can type it properly and generally don't struggle much to remember exactly what I phantom-typed.

So in that way I do think differently when typing compared to handwriting. My thoughts are more structured, less abstract - more like a mechanical process than drawing a squiggly line.


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## advait98 (Jan 29, 2013)

i'm a teenager and I find writing longhand on a notebook relaxing and much ... better. I find words easy to come on a piece of paper rather than a computer. So yeah, definite age is no factor.


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## Butterfly (Jan 29, 2013)

I use a bit of both, longhand and typing, as well as printouts that I scribble all over.

The printouts mean I can see mistakes a lot easier than I do on a screen. I find it helps with editing and proof reading if you change the media you are used to.


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## Steerpike (Jan 29, 2013)

For me, creativity flows better from the point of a pen 9 time out of 10. That's why I do it. When I'm writing a story on the keyboard, I always feel a little more like I'm forcing it and less like the story is just flowing organically. Like I said, I think my brain works differently, which could make sense as different motions and though processes require action from different parts of the brain.

At work, where I'm writing technical documents all day, I type straight into the keyboard. On some occasions, where I have to get creative with things, I'll print the document and write my revisions or additions longhand on the back of the page. Strange, I suppose, but it works for me


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## Zero Angel (Jan 29, 2013)

I do a majority of my writing on the computer, but I'm the same in that writing in pen or pencil is easier (albeit slower). If I'm ever "stuck" in writing something, I can just start doing it on paper. I typically write the beginnings of all my works with a pen before transferring over, editing as I go. I don't know what mental blockages it frees up, but I know it does.


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## RDelaval (Jan 30, 2013)

I find that writing longhand more easily activates a hidden corner of my imagination than when I type. I also use a fountain pen, so that tidbit in Steerpike's post made me smile. For me, it's because of my migraines. There are many days when the ideas are itching to come out and play but my head simply can't stare at a computer screen without the desire to jam an ice pick in my left temple. I'm fairly certain the pain was the original trigger for that hidden corner to be revealed, but like Pavlov's dog, it now comes out when I set pen to paper. 

Most of my research is longhand in notebooks and binders. I just find that easier to use for reference when I'm typing rather than having 15+ windows open on my computer.


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## The Kyngdoms (Jan 30, 2013)

I just couldn't imagine writing in longhand (or shorthand for that matter!).  It would just be so painful.  And what do you do when you want to send something off for publishing?  I don't think any agent/publisher accepts handwritten submissions anymore, unless you're already well established.

I bet it looks beautiful, though!

Personally it's a word processor for me!


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## Steerpike (Jan 30, 2013)

The Kyngdoms said:


> I just couldn't imagine writing in longhand (or shorthand for that matter!).  It would just be so painful.  And what do you do when you want to send something off for publishing?  I don't think any agent/publisher accepts handwritten submissions anymore, unless you're already well established.



The material is typed after being written.


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## topazfire (Jan 30, 2013)

I certainly find that any really emotional piece flows out my head better when I put pen to paper. I always have my netbook in my (very large) purse, so I can pull it out at any moment, but I also never leave home without at least one notebook and a few pens. Much of my dialogue is hand written first, especially as I said, emotional bits such as arguments. There is just something so satisfying about seeing the ink scrawled passionately across the page with exclamation points and squiggled underline! Once it has sat on the page for a bit then I transfer it over to my computer, editing as I go. 

One thing I have noticed is that when I write something longhand and then transfer it to the computer, there is much less re-writing and editing of that section of my work compared to stuff I write directly into the computer. I don't know if anyone else has experienced or notice that. There is something about writing it out that seems to make for a better first draft.


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## The Kyngdoms (Jan 31, 2013)

Steerpike said:


> The material is typed after being written.



Gosh, I couldn't imagine doing that!  Still, you have to go with whatever makes your creative flow work best for you.

I must admit, however, that although I do my writing straight into a word processor, I do print it out for editing.


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## Butterfly (Jan 31, 2013)

Well, by the time you type up what you wrote it's kind of like working through a second draft. Improving it as it you get from one chapter to the next.


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## The Kyngdoms (Feb 1, 2013)

Butterfly said:


> Well, by the time you type up what you wrote it's kind of like working through a second draft. Improving it as it you get from one chapter to the next.



Yes, that's very true.  I hadn't looked at it that way.  I suppose one of the other differences between longhand and word processing is that editing is much more immediate on a word processor - perhaps with longhand you need to be more considered?  Just a thought.


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## Nihal (Feb 1, 2013)

I like to take notes longhand, if there is any kind of related diagram - like when I was brainstorming about hollow arrows and drew some - it's even better. I usually use a custom squared A4 sheet of paper that I print myself, for I like higher grammature layout paper.

I also have a bunch of cheap A5 notebooks laying around. They're cheap because the cheaper ones have bad qualitly, faded lines, haha, and I use mechanical pencils to write. But those notebooks are more like my memory where I constantly take notes of things I must remember, they're not meant to have stories written on them.

I can surely see the advantage of writing stories longhand first, so I can edit it as I type, but they usually have a strange and broken flow. Maybe later, when I take up the writing habit...


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## SeverinR (Feb 1, 2013)

I don't understand why, but if I write longhand, the words don't flow.
Kind of like the dictation program, "I talk it types."
Long hand I think of what to say, then I move my hand to write it, then I switch back to creative mode, and so on.
But when I type directly the words only distract me for a second. Typing allows my words to flow out much faster and 
I can change them alot faster. Also I can read everything I typed, while 10-25% of words I write longhand I might have trouble reading.  My mind goes so fast, it makes my handwriting even worse then usual.


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## JediKnightMuse (Feb 8, 2013)

Before computers became a really big thing (so this is like early-to-mid-90's, basically) when I was younger and writing stories and scripts (with Star Wars characters in them), I would mostly write by hand and fill notebooks up. Then when I got better at using computers, I started typing them more often. I would actually love to write something longhand now, but for some reason any time I try disciplining myself to write something longhand, I end up having to type it. Probably because it's sort of easier/faster that way- my hand doesn't cramp as easily. But one of my goals is to write something longhand, at least a good percentage of it. I have no idea how long that will last, though.


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## Writeking (Jun 24, 2014)

When i started on my novel this past Novel, I worked by typing it out. But by the time I got to 26,000 words, it kind of sputtered, So I switched to writing longhand and from May 10 to Today, I managed to reach 118 pages. As compared to jumping around when i was typing. By writing it longhand I completed almost six full chapters. IMHO, it's better to write it on paper first so that you have a hard copy just in case your computer crashes and you don't have a way to back it up on another device. And this way, I can see the the actual first draft in my hands. But do whatever works best for you.


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## Chessie (Jun 27, 2014)

I enjoy writing my notes out longhand. It gets me into a creative groove that is harder to be distracted from. I've been giving Scrivener a try and (even though its awesome), I think I'm doing more work writing longhand, then typing the notes into scrivener, then writing lol. Anyway, I've handwritten a few stories that way and I've noticed that quirkier ideas pop up for me when I choose to do it that way vs the computer.


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## Khama (Jun 27, 2014)

I've always just gotten distracted when typing a story up. Which is why I just write it in notebooks first, and then from there transfer it onto my computer. While it may not be the most time efficient way of getting things done. I find that it works for me.


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## Mythopoet (Jun 27, 2014)

I write the first draft longhand. I enjoy the tactile sensation of the pen and paper much more than the keyboard. I use a variety of fountain pens (my Shaeffer Ferrari pen is my favorite, inked right now with De Atramentis Johann Sebastian Bach, which is a lovely dark brown/black with reddish/purpleish tones) in different ink colors and good Rhodia or Clairfontaine papers. Yeah, I'm pretty into my pens and papers. 

Then I take what I've written out longhand and type it up, doing light editing as I go. That way I end up with a very clean manuscript.


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## Trick (Jun 27, 2014)

I write everything longhand first. Typing is very unnatural for the imagination stage of the process. Writing with pen and paper can be a problem too, though. I once lost 9 chapters of work that can never be replaced (I console myself by thinking it wasn't very good, which it wasn't, but still). So now I'm very paranoid about knowing where my WIP is and keeping it safe. When I can, I dictate my work with Dragon voice to text because I'm a very slow copy typist. 

I wish I could learn shorthand but have never found the time.


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## J. S. Elliot (Jun 27, 2014)

I tend to write both longhand and write via the computer, although I'm enjoying my new fountain pen quite a bit and am therefore writing more longhand and then typing it up. The benefit to that, for me, is that it's impossible to be distracted by the internet in the meantime. (And, yes, Trick, I'd like to learn shorthand, too.)


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## Steerpike (Jun 27, 2014)

4 benefits of writing by hand - The Week

I could swear I saw a story not long ago on some research that, in addition to the above, creativity was enhanced by writing longhand. I know it makes a difference in my story writing when I switch to my trusty fountain pen.


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## Lace (Jun 27, 2014)

If a doctor and a chicken had a baby, its handwriting would still be better than mine! I can usually read the first paragraph or so, but the longer I write, the less I can read about it when I go back to edit. I keep a notebook beside my bed for dreams and a tiny one in my purse for spur of the moment ideas. I'm pretty bad about leaving my purse and just taking my wallet and purses places though, so I've come to rely on the notes app on my phone. I guess because we had to start typing in school when I was in the first grade I've always been much better at it.


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## Gurkhal (Jun 28, 2014)

I only write longhand due to me not even learning how to write shorthand!

Didn't know that there would be any benefits to actually writting in longhand but I do think that it both improves my language by actually writting out the Words and writting them out correctly, as well as giving me time to think about what to write.

EDITED: And I don't generally like typing since my thoughts can go directly from my mind to my hands and down on the paper, but nothing close to it is possible with the computer.


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## teacup (Jun 28, 2014)

My hand would fall off if I wrote that much in pen/pencil .-.

Definitely typing for me. I tend to be able to think better that way too, and there's being able to edit easily at will.
In my highschool coursework, it had to be written out by hand, so I typed it all up, finished it completely...then spent ages copying it out in pen


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## SM-Dreamer (Jun 28, 2014)

I alternate, and always have. Usually I'll start out writing by hand, like when I'm in class or at work, and then continue it onto the computer when I get home. Occasionally I'll reverse that, though, haha.

I did all of April's Camp NaNo on the computer, but I did all of November's NaNo by hand (then transferred it to the computer - hell of a lot of typing!)

I like both, really. I like the ease of editing on the computer, and how fast I can get everything done. But by hand, there's a tactile sensation that I enjoy. I like adding doodles in the margins, or going back and adding a note next to the margins (yes, I can do it on the computer, but in my notebook I can flip back a page, jot down the note, then flip back to my spot, and it feels different).

So yes, I write longhand (and shorthand; my abbreviations sometimes leave even me confused). Especially for my notes. But it depends on my mood and what's available to me.


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## chrispenycate (Jun 29, 2014)

My typing is slow enough that if I'm on a roll ideas would get lost if I tried to get it into final form directly into electrons. So an A5 block with pencil (and eraser) might leave paragraphs out, or put them in the wrong order, but gets them recorded, so they can't get lost. And when I transfer it into the computer it's put into order, disciplined. 

I tried some dictation software, and the results were really surreal. Poet on acid stuff. I  was expecting some corrections, but this was mind blowing; even comparing it with the notepad sometimes I couldn't work out which bit corresponded to which.


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