# Typing vs. Handwriting



## galaxydreamer90 (Mar 23, 2019)

Having grown up around computers I use to prefer typing my stories on the computer then handwriting them. However, when typing a story on the computer I find myself backspacing a lot so now Im trying handwriting with pens in a composition book so I cant erase what i write or tear out the pages. Even though i find this very old fashion i find im able to get my ideas out quicker and easier this way. I just wish it wasnt so old fashioned. How do you write your stories and what works best for you?


----------



## Sir-KP (Mar 23, 2019)

By carving it on cave wall. I hope it's not that old-fashion.


----------



## Theglasshouse (Mar 24, 2019)

The dilemma of the pen and computer. I think there is no wrong answer. It's something worth trying though my handwriting is terrible, and editing is something I am constantly working on. As I am buying two books on english errors I might make which are elemental.


----------



## K.S. Crooks (Mar 24, 2019)

I like to write on the way to work while on the subway. This makes writing using pen and paper the easier method to use. After ten or more pages I transfer my story tote computer. This acts my first round of editing and makes the editing when the story is complete a little less dreadful.


----------



## JJBuchholz (Mar 24, 2019)

I write my story outlines and make notes with a pen and paper. When it comes to actually writing the story, I switch entirely to the keyboard. It's easier to correct the first draft and make edits in an open document file than scribbling over the paper draft and having to completely rewrite everything.

-JJB


----------



## MichelD (Mar 24, 2019)

I think they each actually employ a different part of the brain.  I just get cramps hand writing so I only do it for journal entries. But sometimess in the evening when I am writing down how my day went, I write a few lines outlining where I may be giong in my WIP the next day. But at the keyboard is where I feel most comfortable.


----------



## PiP (Mar 24, 2019)

I always write in my notebook first and when the outline is complete transfer to my PC. The creative side of my brain cannot connect with text on the screen.


----------



## Ralph Rotten (Mar 24, 2019)

Sir-KP said:


> By carving it on cave wall. I hope it's not that old-fashion.




I remember those days.
So did you prefer to use charcoal or animal blood?
I was always a big fan of fecal material (it ensured no one in the tribe would try to edit it.) 



Really though, I type anything longer than 3 words. I HATE hand writing. It is sooo slow that I forget where I was going with it by time I write it.
But typing, I can hit upwards of 120wpm, using 4 fingers and a thumb. That'll almost keep up with my thoughts.


----------



## Sir-KP (Mar 25, 2019)

Jokes aside, I keep it flexible. Sometimes I bring tiny notepad and pen to write some idea points outdoor. 

It will be cooked over time until I finally write it over the script.

The handwriting quality, of course, is doctor style. Only I can decipher the note. lol


----------



## Megan Pearson (Mar 27, 2019)

I actually liked handwriting my work first--until I spent _four_ months transcribing it onto the computer. Will never do that again. I hate transcribing.

The downfall I'm finding with the computer is, because all of the software these days auto-corrects everything before I have the chance to see that I've misspelled something, I think I am losing the ability to spell. No kidding. (And here I thought I'd be needing bifocals... It's tough growing old in the digital age!) So far this little post looks okay, but give me a scratchpad & not only will it barely be readable, but you'd be scratching your head over what I'd actually written. It's awful! 

We've traded so much for the luxury of technology...I'm actually thinking I may again write something long-hand (it connects me to my idea better), but next time I do, I think I'll hire someone to type it.


----------



## buck06191 (Mar 29, 2019)

I tend to use notepad and pen for early ideas or outlines but writing and transcribing large amounts of text is a pain. 

I've actually found that poetry seem to flow easier when I handwrite though and I tend to mess around with physical structure more, maybe because I can more directly influence how it looks on the page?


----------



## Bardling (Apr 3, 2019)

I hand write notes, general outlines, snippets and brainstorming.  Something about handwriting helps me be more creative.  I generally transfer it to the computer after I get a page or so, though.
Also, when I am really writing - getting scenes down and the like - I prefer the computer because I can modify them more easily.


----------



## PiP (Apr 3, 2019)

Bardling said:


> Something about handwriting helps me be more creative. I generally transfer it to the computer after I get a page or so, though.
> .



I feel the same, Bardling. I like to see all my edits on the page...scribbles and deletions. It's surprising how many times I return to the original idea.


----------



## Chris Stevenson (Apr 4, 2019)

I actually write down my outlines and notes at the beginning of a WIP, and then transpose them to a note file via my PC. If I'm without a keyboard nearby and  inspiration hits, I will write manually so as not to lose the mental thread or details of what I'm thinking about. Prior to 1986, I did handwrite about six novels and later typed them on an IBM Selectric with those little erase papers. I did use a lot of white-out at one time too. Today I try to get it all done via the PC keys so I'm not taking up twice the time to record the same thing.


----------



## JessicaT (Apr 4, 2019)

Great thread and discussion. 

When I first starting getting serious about my writing, I started on computer (Word). That was fine, but when I tried relaxing on the couch with a pen and a blank piece of paper, the creativity seemed to flow so much more naturally. Much like banging out the text on a keyboard, it _happened when it happened_ but the flow seems so much more natural. I'm not so much concerned about the technical aspects of writing as I am getting the thoughts and story line developing real-time in my head from pen to paper (as sloppy as my penmanship can be at times). 

As it's been pointed out here already, the trouble that I, too, find is transcribing my handwritten text to Word. I think I spend more time transcribing than I do actually writing, or maybe it just seems that way because 'pen in hand' seems to go much faster (the clock on the wall is against me!) and the transcription feels more like 'work' than being 'creative'.

My latest story that I've started hasn't seen the computer yet and it's currently 50+ pages of hand written text and counting. I use standard printer paper (cost effective), numbering as I go, and a clipboard. The tv is often on but turned down or a stupid movie in that I've seen so many times I know the dialog by heart. And there's often a cat curled up in my lap.

As someone pointed out earlier, "there is no wrong answer", just whatever best suits your style and temperament.


----------



## Chris Stevenson (Apr 5, 2019)

I do agree that handwriting seems to free me up and give me permission to just lay it all down there. Like I know it is temporary so I don't fret about getting it exactly right. And yet, doing it that way seems to produce some real quality work that I don't change very much when transcribing to pixels. It's also convenient to write just just about anywhere. If I spent a lot of time underwater, I'd use a waterproof clip board and crayons, I would imagine! For now, there is a pad and pencil right by my bed in case some dream or nightmare gets a hold of me and, worse yet, makes perfect sense for a story-line.


----------



## JessicaT (Apr 5, 2019)

*​*


Chris Stevenson said:


> I do agree that handwriting seems to free me up and give me permission to just lay it all down there. Like I know it is temporary so I don't fret about getting it exactly right. And yet, doing it that way seems to produce some real quality work that I don't change very much when transcribing to pixels. It's also convenient to write just just about anywhere. If I spent a lot of time underwater, I'd use a waterproof clip board and crayons, I would imagine! For now, _*there is a pad and pencil right by my bed*_ in case some dream or nightmare gets a hold of me and, worse yet, makes perfect sense for a story-line.



I purchased a 3 subject/120 page notebook yesterday and already have two of the three sections ear-marked for particular stories I'm developing in my head. The idea for this notebook is to jot down little (or big) snippets of stories as they occur to me and, hopefully, one day I can put them all together.

The sad part is that sometimes I can write five pages or more in my head as I'm attempting to go to sleep that never gets recorded.


----------



## Johnnyb1815 (Apr 8, 2019)

I've noticed that I have a totally different writing style with a pen as opposed to a computer. With pen and paper my writing seems to come out more elegant, for lack of better word.


----------



## Chris Stevenson (Apr 8, 2019)

Johnnyb1815 said:


> I've noticed that I have a totally different writing style with a pen as opposed to a computer. With pen and paper my writing seems to come out more elegant, for lack of better word.



I've noticed that I have a dramatic swirl in my handwritten notes. Maybe I'm trying to emphasize how important or relevant it is. Who knows?


----------



## ArrowInTheBowOfTheLord (Apr 10, 2019)

I prefer writing longhand to using a computer, because I nitpick less and can get more out. I also actually really like transcribing from my notebooks to the computer--I know some people have said it feels like work, but for me it's really satisfying, especially if I'm proud of what I've written.


----------



## Chris Stevenson (Apr 16, 2019)

When I transcribe from paper to screen it goes really fast and almost effortlessly. I'll often hesitate at the computer screen which makes me more nervous than sitting over a notebook.


----------



## meegads (Apr 18, 2019)

I'm very much a fan of the computer.  When I'm putting something together it's pretty much WORD VOMIT EVERYWHERE and then I can go back and make notes and refine as needed.  About the only time I do much handwriting is when I'm writing poetry - for some reason, I prefer a pen and paper for that.


----------



## Bard_Daniel (Apr 19, 2019)

I get hand cramps when I write by pencil. It would be my preferred method, but I just can't do it.


----------



## DarkGhost (Apr 19, 2019)

So I actually do both. If it’s just a quick thought I’ll write it on paper but once I start getting into the juicy parts I type.
do both if you want, there is no law that says you can’t!


----------



## dale (Apr 19, 2019)

I once wrote a short story of about 3000 words on napkins and paper towels in a camper while drunk off my ass.
 It actually got published and won an award. lol. I wrote a lot of my prose poetry book on paper with pen. 
To be honest? I really don't think the work was better one way or the other. I just felt when I wrote it on the napkins and paper,
it was more of a pain in the ass because I had to write it twice to copy it on word to submit it.


----------



## Rune (Apr 20, 2019)

I prefer writing my thoughts out on paper. I guess sometimes I get paranoid about sharing my work with other people.
I do type things out sometimes, but it just feels so unnatural for me to do so.

Although, my hand cramps easily. :suspicion:


----------



## Bard_Daniel (Apr 21, 2019)

Rune said:


> Although, my hand cramps easily. :suspicion:



I definitely hear you there! :chargrined:


----------



## kellir3288 (Apr 21, 2019)

I type faster than I write, but there's just something about writing in a leather journal with a pen dipped in ink.  I alternate between both sometimes when I write on paper, I transfer to my computer which gives me an opportunity to add and take away things as needed.


----------



## unveiledartist (Apr 23, 2019)

galaxydreamer90 said:


> Having grown up around computers I use to prefer typing my stories on the computer then handwriting them. However, when typing a story on the computer I find myself backspacing a lot so now Im trying handwriting with pens in a composition book so I cant erase what i write or tear out the pages. Even though i find this very old fashion i find im able to get my ideas out quicker and easier this way. I just wish it wasnt so old fashioned. How do you write your stories and what works best for you?



I write poetry and trying to transfer into writing stories and hopefully a novel. I do it a bit differently. I write it first. A lot of times it ends up in scraps, then I rewrite it til it's fine. And _then _I type it. I read somewhere that writing is more intimate than typing. So, you can get your tone and feelings behind what you write by using pad and pen. If you want to save it or use it somehow, than typing is better. 

A lot of it personal preference. I don't know if I can link anything without permission; but, there is a site I can post of different authors' opinions on whether its best to write on paper or computer. There are quite a few authors who write their books by paper first. A few, which I want to do, have those clunky typewriters. I like those because it's a good medium and I don't have to worry about auto spell-check and pressing backspace to loose all my work.


----------



## JDBentz (Apr 26, 2019)

Before I went down the path of writing fan fiction for way too long, I generally wrote long-hand in a notebook first and then transcribed it to a computer. I started writing solely on a computer when I got my first laptop because I could relax in an armchair instead of hunching over a table or desk. But here's something I've found since moving back towards original writing. Writing on a computer, you get distracted by the Internet or you feel anxious about getting it 'just right'. When it's just you, the pen, and the notebook, the world falls away and the only things left are you, those two items, and the world of ideas that exists in your mind. I've also found that one bounces between story ideas less and focuses on just the project at hand when writing long-hand in a notebook over typing it up on a computer.


----------

