Don’t Type...Write!

by Nancy Sackheim

           How's that book coming along? You've worn out two keyboards, saved so many drafts that your computer has run out of memory and so have you. Creativity and inspiration are long departed, fickle and fair-weather creatures that they be.

            Maybe it's time to pick up a pencil or pen (remember those?), open up a notebook and try writing old school.  You'd be in good company. Many well-known authors choose to handwrite.  Joyce Carol Oates writes up to eight hours a day in longhand. Toni Morrison writes in pencil on yellow legal pads. J.K. Rowling wrote her first Harry Potter book by hand because she couldn't afford a typewriter.  She still writes by hand. 

            Even if the final draft is typed on a computer, handwriting is considered to be an essential part of the process by a huge number of extremely productive and successful authors.

            Stephen King says writing by hand "makes you think about each word as you write it, and it also gives you more of a chance so that you're able—the sentences compose themselves in your head. It's like hearing music, only it's words. But you see more ahead because you can't go as fast."

            It's time to pull out your old notebooks. You know you still have every one of them.  All those words, all those filled margin and crossed out paragraphs. That's you in there, your creativity and your unique way of expressing it. I guarantee you flipping through those pages will give you far more satisfaction and confidence than scrolling endlessly down a bright white screen filled with black characters.

            Take a break from the keyboard. Go out a buy yourself a brand new notebook and try out a few pens while you're at it. Pick a pen that feels just right. You'll know the one. Go home. Turn off your computer. Finish your novel.