This observation -- specifically keyboarding it -- reminds me of the scut work of transcribing taped interviews. The task was slow, but it forced me to study how different people spoke. Each person's "burnt tongue." Having to type the exact, incorrect-but-intentional words of a person gave me a better ear for how speech varies. Such is a key to narrative voice.
DeLillo doesn't even outline. He types 'paragraph at a time so he can see the shape and structure of the words on the page and he prefers the hammer of the keys against the page. He might make notes, he says, on grocery bags on the way home, though, that's about it.
I also know in the recovery programs there’s a certain value to the transfer from the hand to own to page - that it creates a more meaningful connection and flow to the word.
But I also know that during Mel Brooks time a typewriter was permanent. Ink on a page is permanent.
Now we can delete and recover entire novels in a matter of seconds.
Thank you for making me think about this. I’ll be playing with all different ways of writing all day now lol
This reminded me of something Neil Gaiman once said, him talking about the difference he saw in manuscripts once typing caught on and more or less became the default. He said something to the effect that there was more in terms of quantity -- in terms of words/pages -- but that there wasn’t necessarily more in terms of quality.
Chuck, it's how I learn. Maybe you think I'm thinking too much or something and that is why I have been slow with writing lately but that isn't the case. I'm up for any suggestions. Unless you mean I shouldn't comment or something?
Before I disagree, I write notes longhand as much as possible because forming the characters commits them to memory much better than typing them does.
But the good ideas stick anyway. Dont need to write them down.
However, I don't believe that this applies as much to those of us who grew up with computers in school. Seeing it typed doesnt give me any sense of completion, and I type fairly fast. Writing fiction longhand slows me down, and so far, my first drafts arent any better one way or the other. Not as far as I can tell anyway. But everyone is different. Do what works for you.
I should write some more longhand tomorrow. Its been a few months of computer revisions and I could use a break.
Yes, just this year I went back to writing longhand. Sometimes, with the boys running up the walls, it's the only way to get anything down! Then at night, I type it all up. But a lot of times I'll make changes from notebook to typed page, so it's almost like a bonus draft. But yeah, I can see how typing it makes it seem finished. Maybe I'll wait a little longer to type up. One thing for sure, I'm gonna hunt down this article and read the rest. P.S. Chuck--did you happen to receive the message I sent regarding the tour reading? P.S.S. If you haven't received yet, please know, I am definitely IN. And thank you again for that opportunity. Ok back to daydreaming story scenes while doing dishes. :)
I try to keep something with me at all times to write when the mood strikes. I type 100 words a minute by touch and can carry on a whole conversation while I do. My husband thinks this is creepy. I often listen to music and sing while I’m writing my books and no one understands how this works including me. I guess it’s my way of turning off my conscious mind to focus.
an ex got upset with me for reading a plaque in a park while she was talking to me. She said I wasnt paying attention and I rattled off what she had just said. This set off the most preposterous accusations Ive ever heard in my life. It was quite an experience.
But theres no way I could type and talk at the same time. Well, if I already formed the words and was typing them I could talk during the physical part. But not the creation part.
Yeah I used to do that to my ex too but truth be told I wasn't really listening to her 100% 🤣 John sometimes they just want you to hold them. Look them straight in the eyes and just listen to them while part of your soul dies. That is why I'm single.
Erin, that's awesome. I had one computer class in high school and touch typing was part of the class. I excelled at that because I've always wanted to learn.
I'm a bit rusty but I have reached 100 words a minute on rare occasions. But on average, I can do 80 words per minute.
Any writing I've done, it's been longhand. I'm not even sure if I miss typing things out like I used to. The one downside is when I write longhand, I am so painfully slow. I fuss over making everything look neat. I worry about going over margins and trying to fit as many words as I can on a page. I'd have a massive block of text just to try to save space. Any gaps freak me out because I think..."you jackass, you could have written something there!"
You heard it here straight out of Chuck's mouth. If you don't write longhand, you just ain't a real writer. Sorry but thems the facts, kid.
Maybe one day when we're old, we'll all gather round and marvel at our carpel tunnel from writing longhand so many years.
When Mel Brooks and Chuck say it, we might wanna listen here.
But to tell you the truth, to sit in a desk of any kind, with papers and pen ready to go, makes writing feel too official. Too serious. Like I'm doing this 'big thing' only to end up with a bigger mess. Typing makes it more write whatever and move on. It's quicker. Much easier to delete. It helps, for now atleast.
Also, after a few months, I won't be able to recognise what I wrote. My handwriting looks like esoteric invocations taken out of a grimoire. Seriously, that's how much of a bad student I was in school. Could never write the lesson. Mostly took pics of notes.
Discovering the Notability app was liberating. I’m a messy note taker, and I find typing notes restrictive. Writing in notebooks, meant I risked losing them. With this app I can write with a stylus on my iPad. It’s saved immediately. And if I lose the iPad, my notes will still be in the cloud.
Reading the comments, I'm not sure if we are talking about taking NOTES or writing a story. I edit my stories so many times, that my drafts would become incomprehensible if I did it by hand.
When I forget my writing book, I feel like I have left a limb behind. I am a big fan of those decorative blank books at Barnes and Noble. I am also glad I am not alone waking up at night to scribble something down in my book so I don't forget. Have accidentally written over lighter color ink doing this. Whoops.
Been knee deep in designing Pathfinder 2e consumables this summer. Potions, elixers, alchemical bombs, and similar magic items for the game.
Chuck, I can delete the link to "Through the Safety Net" if that's going to cause "issues." Or feel free to delete it on your side. Apologies for any oversteppingses.
I carry one of those small moleskines and 2 molotow liners everywhere. I’m honestly still surprised by how much I’m able to write on my commute or during lunch or while having coffee without even thinking about it consciously. Typing on a computer sucks, it’s never ‘good enough’. But my scribbles on a flimsy page, there might be something there.
This observation -- specifically keyboarding it -- reminds me of the scut work of transcribing taped interviews. The task was slow, but it forced me to study how different people spoke. Each person's "burnt tongue." Having to type the exact, incorrect-but-intentional words of a person gave me a better ear for how speech varies. Such is a key to narrative voice.
“Handwriting is the result of a singular movement of the body, typing is not." -Roland Jouvent
DeLillo doesn't even outline. He types 'paragraph at a time so he can see the shape and structure of the words on the page and he prefers the hammer of the keys against the page. He might make notes, he says, on grocery bags on the way home, though, that's about it.
My writing is so bad I can’t read my own long hand writing
Mine can get frantically sloppy when I've got an idea going faster than my hand!
Dude Kafka had the sloppiest writing and he is like a king to these literary snobs.
I also know in the recovery programs there’s a certain value to the transfer from the hand to own to page - that it creates a more meaningful connection and flow to the word.
But I also know that during Mel Brooks time a typewriter was permanent. Ink on a page is permanent.
Now we can delete and recover entire novels in a matter of seconds.
Thank you for making me think about this. I’ll be playing with all different ways of writing all day now lol
A great security strategy you have there
Forgetting is the best edit.
This reminded me of something Neil Gaiman once said, him talking about the difference he saw in manuscripts once typing caught on and more or less became the default. He said something to the effect that there was more in terms of quantity -- in terms of words/pages -- but that there wasn’t necessarily more in terms of quality.
I take a lot of hand-written notes in workshop and on my drafts.
I see you. Stop.
Chuck, it's how I learn. Maybe you think I'm thinking too much or something and that is why I have been slow with writing lately but that isn't the case. I'm up for any suggestions. Unless you mean I shouldn't comment or something?
Before I disagree, I write notes longhand as much as possible because forming the characters commits them to memory much better than typing them does.
But the good ideas stick anyway. Dont need to write them down.
However, I don't believe that this applies as much to those of us who grew up with computers in school. Seeing it typed doesnt give me any sense of completion, and I type fairly fast. Writing fiction longhand slows me down, and so far, my first drafts arent any better one way or the other. Not as far as I can tell anyway. But everyone is different. Do what works for you.
I should write some more longhand tomorrow. Its been a few months of computer revisions and I could use a break.
Yes, just this year I went back to writing longhand. Sometimes, with the boys running up the walls, it's the only way to get anything down! Then at night, I type it all up. But a lot of times I'll make changes from notebook to typed page, so it's almost like a bonus draft. But yeah, I can see how typing it makes it seem finished. Maybe I'll wait a little longer to type up. One thing for sure, I'm gonna hunt down this article and read the rest. P.S. Chuck--did you happen to receive the message I sent regarding the tour reading? P.S.S. If you haven't received yet, please know, I am definitely IN. And thank you again for that opportunity. Ok back to daydreaming story scenes while doing dishes. :)
I try to keep something with me at all times to write when the mood strikes. I type 100 words a minute by touch and can carry on a whole conversation while I do. My husband thinks this is creepy. I often listen to music and sing while I’m writing my books and no one understands how this works including me. I guess it’s my way of turning off my conscious mind to focus.
now that is some serious skill right there.
an ex got upset with me for reading a plaque in a park while she was talking to me. She said I wasnt paying attention and I rattled off what she had just said. This set off the most preposterous accusations Ive ever heard in my life. It was quite an experience.
But theres no way I could type and talk at the same time. Well, if I already formed the words and was typing them I could talk during the physical part. But not the creation part.
Yeah I used to do that to my ex too but truth be told I wasn't really listening to her 100% 🤣 John sometimes they just want you to hold them. Look them straight in the eyes and just listen to them while part of your soul dies. That is why I'm single.
Erin, that's awesome. I had one computer class in high school and touch typing was part of the class. I excelled at that because I've always wanted to learn.
I'm a bit rusty but I have reached 100 words a minute on rare occasions. But on average, I can do 80 words per minute.
I’ve always struggled with handwriting, and other fine motor tasks.
None of my shoes have laces (except the hiking boots).
Typing is always easier for me, but I do find that I miss so many of my mistakes.
I’ve learned so much from the discord group over the past year, outside perspective is so crucial.
I might try using a weird font on my next draft to see if it looks less finished.
Any writing I've done, it's been longhand. I'm not even sure if I miss typing things out like I used to. The one downside is when I write longhand, I am so painfully slow. I fuss over making everything look neat. I worry about going over margins and trying to fit as many words as I can on a page. I'd have a massive block of text just to try to save space. Any gaps freak me out because I think..."you jackass, you could have written something there!"
You heard it here straight out of Chuck's mouth. If you don't write longhand, you just ain't a real writer. Sorry but thems the facts, kid.
Maybe one day when we're old, we'll all gather round and marvel at our carpel tunnel from writing longhand so many years.
When Mel Brooks and Chuck say it, we might wanna listen here.
But to tell you the truth, to sit in a desk of any kind, with papers and pen ready to go, makes writing feel too official. Too serious. Like I'm doing this 'big thing' only to end up with a bigger mess. Typing makes it more write whatever and move on. It's quicker. Much easier to delete. It helps, for now atleast.
Also, after a few months, I won't be able to recognise what I wrote. My handwriting looks like esoteric invocations taken out of a grimoire. Seriously, that's how much of a bad student I was in school. Could never write the lesson. Mostly took pics of notes.
Discovering the Notability app was liberating. I’m a messy note taker, and I find typing notes restrictive. Writing in notebooks, meant I risked losing them. With this app I can write with a stylus on my iPad. It’s saved immediately. And if I lose the iPad, my notes will still be in the cloud.
You confused me, Chuck. Who is in the picture? Mel Brooks or Max Brooks? You said it was Max but it looks more like Mel lol
Nevermind...they are both in the picture. I didn't know they were related.
I'm a dummy lol
Sorry. I plan to cite Max soon. He told me something precious about writing fiction so this is a set-up for that future post.
Reading the comments, I'm not sure if we are talking about taking NOTES or writing a story. I edit my stories so many times, that my drafts would become incomprehensible if I did it by hand.
Mmmmmmm. See: Joseph Joubert on more on this.
When I forget my writing book, I feel like I have left a limb behind. I am a big fan of those decorative blank books at Barnes and Noble. I am also glad I am not alone waking up at night to scribble something down in my book so I don't forget. Have accidentally written over lighter color ink doing this. Whoops.
Been knee deep in designing Pathfinder 2e consumables this summer. Potions, elixers, alchemical bombs, and similar magic items for the game.
Chuck, I can delete the link to "Through the Safety Net" if that's going to cause "issues." Or feel free to delete it on your side. Apologies for any oversteppingses.
I carry one of those small moleskines and 2 molotow liners everywhere. I’m honestly still surprised by how much I’m able to write on my commute or during lunch or while having coffee without even thinking about it consciously. Typing on a computer sucks, it’s never ‘good enough’. But my scribbles on a flimsy page, there might be something there.