Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Is the Pen Mightier? Just Write!




By Janie Reinart



“Fool,” said my muse to me. 

“Look in thy heart and write.” 
~Philip Sidney


How do you write? Is the pen mightier than the keyboard? When you sit down, do you peck at the keys or cradle a pen and notebook in your hands? Do you wait for your muse to show up?


"The benefits of handwriting have been documented by lots of educational psychologists, who have found that handwriting
engages parts of the brain that typing neglects." 





How many words can you type a minute? Your fingers move quickly when you type. Writing with a pen slows you down and gives you more time.


Other research shows,"When the children composed text by hand, they not only consistently produced more words more quickly than they did on a keyboard, but expressed more ideas."


I wonder if that applies as we get older? How can we express more ideas? Keep our muse showing up? Have you ever tried writing morning pages? Julia Cameron calls this writing "cloud thoughts."




You might be interested in A Writer's Book of Days to spur you on. "To create new or enhance existing stories, poems, or writing of any kind, all you have to do is set a date for writing practice, open your notebook, and begin writing."




Share with us. Do you write with a pen or on a keyboard or a combination.  Do you have a favorite pen or journal that you like to use? 
Do you write morning pages? Do you have a favorite book on the craft of writing
 
Whether you write with a pen, or type 
on a keyboard or use a combination to keep 
your muse happy, keep on writing!






15 comments:

  1. Interesting research, Janie! I tend to write in my notebook first, and then copy to my laptop. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Me too, Tina! I do like to use a "magical" fancy pen !

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  2. I do both, Janie. Depends. My handwriting is so bad and my typing isn't much better. Sometimes I dictate my thoughts via voice to text. I have done Morning Pages and need to get back to it. For that I prefer yellow legal pads - I think the yellow wakes up my brain in the AM. I also like a pen that writes smooth and glides.

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  3. I love to write with my hand, using artistic tools in the form of various pens and pencils. Writing with my hand is a form of art to me.

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    1. I agree. And there is the fun of doodling to get your mind going too!

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  4. First drafts are always with pen and paper. There is something satisfying ion seeing the pages mount up that is missing from a computer. And, the mechanics of typing shut down the creative thoughts. I LOVE to scribble and erase and add on as I go.

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    1. Darlene, I agree. The messy part needs to be there before the good stuff happens.

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  5. For newsy items or reporting on an event I just type it. But for things that require thought - with pen on paper. Not only does writing by hand give me more time to reflect, but it seems to connect with a different part of my brain. Plus it's really hard to doodle on a keyboard.

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    1. Sue you made me laugh--"doodle on a keyboard." I agree using a pen or pencil does seem to connect with a different part of the brain.

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  6. Definitely food for thought, yes. I mix it up between pen and typing. If I'm sitting in the car, I'm more likely to be writing with pen and paper. At home, more likely to be on the computer. Sometimes, I do both at the same time. I will often just write random words or phrases that come to mind by hand and then follow up with typing. I find that if I'm having a creative block, writing by hand helps loosen things up.

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  7. Jilanne, I agree. Writing by hand does get creativity moving.

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  8. I usually just type it all out, but we just moved near a beach - so I've found myself with pen and notebook on many occasions. I felt that I was a bit more creative and could follow ideas a bit more - or maybe it was the sand and sound of the waves, I don't know. =)

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    1. MaDonna, ooooh--lucky you. . ."the sound of the waves." How lovely.

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  9. All manner of tools, including crayon, paint & when I'm at the beach, a stick in the sand. But most often paper for poetry & notes. Keyboard for moving on from there. Lovely to think about all the ways to record our words.

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