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What Do You Write On?

Bruce McKnight

Troubadour
I don't get to sit at a desk and write, so I need something mobile to write on.

I use a Surface Pro tablet for work and like a lot of things except how it is hard to balance the keyboard setup anywhere besides a desk. For writing, I need something with a fixed keyboard so that I can easily pick up and move and write for short periods (which is all I typically have) easily.

I want something small and light with a touchscreen (I got one at worked an was hooked). I didn't think that was a lot to ask until I tried to fine something that worked.

First I tried the Asus C100 Chromebook. This is, by far, the best form chassis of any technology I have ever held and it loads instantly with a great battery. Unfortunately, as amazing as it is for its intended purpose of web browsing, it was impossible to write on for two main reasons:
  1. There's no delete key. I know there is alt-backspace, but the worst design idea was putting the power down button in the upper right where the delete key usually is. Every time I wanted to delete something, I would turn the flippin' thing off. I'm not resilient enough to overcome that habit.
  2. Writing on Google Docs suuuuuhuhuuuuucks royally! I love Google and they nail almost everything, but when I loaded my modest manuscript into Google Docs, it would take over a full minute to load and, even if I left it open, the response on keystrokes (especially if I wanted to delete a few words - which happens often) was unbearable. I kept overshooting my deletes or leaving fragments in there. Then when I started typing, it wouldn't come up fast enough. Microsoft's nonsense bloatware doesn't have this problem, so I'm baffled. C'mon Google, you're better than that.

Because I liked a lot of things about the Asus C100, I next tried the Asus T100, which is the laptop transformer powered by Windows (shame on me) so I can write on the local machine for better response times. This model was awful because the weighting on the unit makes it so that if you put it anywhere besides a desk (like your lap), the thing tips over. Terrible design from the company that created the amazingly sleek C100. Grrr! I could get around how they moved the shift key on me (since delete is where it belongs), but I have to write on the run and that means on my lap. When the thing keeps falling over, I can't get anything done.

Now I'm ticked and I don't know what to try next.

What do you guys write on? Am I the only one who has to confine their writing to bus rides and the couch? How do you pull it off?
 

Letharg

Troubadour
I write on a Asus Zenbook ux305 and I'm wholly satisfied. Works well both when used resting on my knees (bus, train), standing, or sitting at a desk. No touchscreen but light to carry, stiff metal chassis, great response from keyboard with spaced keys that allows for easy typing and a great display that works well in outdoor light. 1,3 kg, 10 hours + battery, fanless etc.

The best laptop I've had so far by a margin.
 

Velka

Sage
11" MacBook Air. It's light and easy to throw into a purse/backpack. Once I got used to the touchpad wizardry and keyboard shortcuts, it's very intuitive and user-friendly. I still have a PC rig for gaming, but when it comes to writing, email, work stuff, and web surfing I'm always on this.

I used to use Pages for writing, but a few years ago I got Scrivner and it was the best $40 I ever spent.
 

Penpilot

Staff
Article Team
I write on a Dell 15" laptop and don't have an issue writing with nothing but my lap to place it on. I do half my writing this way. I find it's the chair and how I cross my legs that matters.

I have short legs so the chair has to have a little cross bar for me to prop up my knees for the most comfortable writing experience. But even then without that bar, if I cross my legs, I can balance the laptop well enough to write. The screen may not be level but it's functional.
 

Demesnedenoir

Myth Weaver
Macbook & Scrivener are my addictions, but I've done only a little writing with an iPad &attached keyboard. Editing & minor revisions mostly.

I'd be a dinosaur but I can't read my own handwriting anymore, heh heh.
 

Heliotrope

Staff
Article Team
I'm a freaking amoeba ;)

I hand write still. I like those large black hard cover sketch books you get at the art store. I HATE notebooks with lines. Hate them. I'm never been an "in the lines" kind of girl. I write like crazy on those big blank white sheets, and I can stick post it notes where ever I want:

"More description here."
"ohhhhh, a theme! Play on this more."
"hmmmmmm, characterization is not coming through…."

Then, when I'm ready to type it all out I use my Macbook pro. Microsoft word.
 

Demesnedenoir

Myth Weaver
In the end, you're Mac girl, that's what matters, ;) Although Scrivener kicks butt. If you haven't try it out.

I'm a freaking amoeba ;)

I hand write still. I like those large black hard cover sketch books you get at the art store. I HATE notebooks with lines. Hate them. I'm never been an "in the lines" kind of girl. I write like crazy on those big blank white sheets, and I can stick post it notes where ever I want:

"More description here."
"ohhhhh, a theme! Play on this more."
"hmmmmmm, characterization is not coming through…."

Then, when I'm ready to type it all out I use my Macbook pro. Microsoft word.
 

Reilith

Sage
I've talked about this in a similar thread a while ago, but I found that it is quite liberating to write on paper. I use a graphic pencil or one of those inky pens and usually decide on a compact A5 notebook for it. Later on I type it onto my PC. I am currently trying to familiarize myself with yWriter, as I am a Win gal. Until I am completely sure in its possibilities, I am also using Word to keep track of random names and thoughts, concepts etc. Same goes for notes on my phone.
 
C

Chessie

Guest
I write in Google Docs on a Samsung tablet with a keyboard. It's light, portable, and uploading files/sending them to readers is ez-pz with Google docs. Occasionally, I'll write on the desktop. It's not a good place for me though. The Steam button is too freaking tempting. The tablet is nice too because my mind is trained to work on it. I sit, open up Pandora, begin to write. And I can take it on the deck and write outside which is sooooo nice in the summertime. Alaskan summers are the best and sitting inside to write is freaking lame when the sun is out past midnight.
 
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Bruce McKnight

Troubadour
I write in Google Docs on a Samsung tablet with a keyboard. It's light, portable, and uploading files/sending them to readers is ez-pz with Google docs.

Do you write in Google Docs for your full manuscript or break up into smaller pieces? Is it not intolerably slow once the doc gets big?
 
C

Chessie

Guest
Oh, goodness yes it's so freaking slow the more the document grows. That's one of the negatives. But yeah, I write the whole thing in there. It's been useful in the past because my readers have been able to insert their thoughts into the manuscript as they read. However, I can upload to digital stores easily with Docs so that's a bonus.
 
I also use google docs, and yeah, I have to segment it into parts until I've finished. I don't mind the slow speed once I'm only doing minor fixes. But it's worth it as I don't own nor have the money to buy Microsoft Word. It comes in handy if I want to share it for others to read or even help edit.

As for my desk/computer, it's an HP laptop, and I the desk I is a big metal rack that was once used to carry egg crates at a factory.
 

Geo

Troubadour
I do a lot of commuting and in the train I like to write on paper. For that I use homemade notebooks. At work, people have this horrifying tendency to print tons of things they forget, or don't care, to pick up from the main printer, so I make notebooks with that paper. I just select the printouts that are single side it. Then all I need is an stapler and done, I feel like a hero to a bunch of trees when writing.

At home, and for transcripts, I use a Mac book pro. Software wise I use Word or LaTeX.
 

kennyc

Inkling
This is where it all starts:

shopping
 
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Took a cue from Brandon Sanderson and started using Word with the navigation panel. Makes things so easy to organize and find quickly.
 
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