Throughout my adult life, I have oscillated between writing by hand and writing on my laptop. Recently, I have opted for the former. Let me tell you why.
Computers are great when you are on the go. Laptops, tablets and phones mean that we have the ability to jot down notes and lines wherever we are, without having to carry mountains of paper and pens with us. We can write so much faster. They also enable us to organise our work into neat file folders, and back up our work in case the primary file is lost. Probably the biggest plus for digital creation is that it will be ready to go once we have finished – whether than be to an agency, editor, publisher, or direction to Amazon.
But all of that comes at a cost. For starters, typing on a keyboard uses a completely different portion of our brains. Writing by hand enables us to use visual, motor and cognitive pathways simultaneously in ways that typing simply cannot replicate. Writing by hand enables us to tap into the Limbic System, the emotional centre of the brain, making our creative writing so much more powerful.
Another problem with writing on a keyboard is the ever-present temptation to slip into edit mode, rather than allowing ourselves to write freely and without judgement. This has been a huge problem for me over the years, and taken to an extreme, not only does the internal editor kick in, but the internal critic can start grandstanding to the extent that my finger hovers over the delete button and I have to start again.
Writing by hand leaves words on a page which are much more difficult to destroy. We would have to cross them out, line by line, or go to such lengths as burning them in a fire, to completely eradicate them. This gives us time to stop, think, and reconsider.
Finally, there is something so primitive and joyful about writing by hand. I am a self-confessed stationery addict. Every autumn, I indulge the inner-child in me and buy a new pencil case packed full of pens all the colours of the rainbow. I even buy those handwriting pens we first learned to write with in school. I write in scholastic notebooks, and every time I turn the page I am reminded of how much pride, joy, and excitement I felt when I was younger and I had completed a page with my words. Writing by hand helps me feel more connected to something deep inside of me, and to join in with the stream of words that have gone before.
Is it working? I think so. I have got further with my WIP than I have for a very long time. I have experienced joy as I write it. I have got lost in the world I am creating, and, most importantly, I haven’t destroyed what I have written. Let’s see if writing by hand can get me over the line.
What about you? Which do you prefer?
