Favorite Writing Tool?
Every writer probably has some indispensable implement that helps make the job a little easier...
The fun and informative Substack Read More Books, had a post recently asking whether writers had a favorite writing utensil. Since I am just a lowly non-paying subscriber, I couldn’t comment on the post, but I thought it was an interesting question, so, I’m going to answer it here. I’m also going modify the question a bit to ask whether fellow writers have a favorite writing tool they employ in their creative process?
My favorite writing tool is not a writing utensil per se; it is an accessory that aids me in writing.
I work a full-time job and manage a farm, so setting aside time to write has always been a challenge (isn’t it for everyone?). I’ve never found it easy to sit down at my laptop and summon genius (or whatever lesser category of creativity I have to make do with in its absence.) For me, inspiration tends to come at the most inopportune times, like when I’m in the shower, as I’m falling asleep, when I’m miles out on a hike, and, of course, when I’m driving. And, before covid, I spent a lot of time driving.
For some reason, I was most creative during my long commutes to and from work, in my car listening to music, taking in the scenery, and performing the habitual tasks of operating a vehicle. Luckily, my commute is fairly straightforward and bland, and during these mostly undemanding moments, my mind would drift to some part of my story and flash upon a scene or hear snippets of dialogue. It was then I most wanted to write… but how? That kind of multitasking would be insane.
I tried using recording devices, but they were clumsy, and I never transcribed them later. I tried dictation apps, but because I write historical fiction with strange terminology, they came out a garbled mess that even I couldn’t make sense of at the end of the day. Then I remembered my kneeboard.
Years ago, I became obsessed with learning to fly a plane. As a teenager, I’d read West With the Night, by Beryl Markham and had romantic notions of private aviation and accessing some inaccessible world through the freedom offered by flight. For anyone unfamiliar with her memoir, Markham was, among other things, a trailblazing adventurer, an accomplished horsewoman, a pioneer in the field of aviation, and a brilliant writer. She lived a remarkable life which is poignantly recounted in the book. It’s one of my favorites.
Anyway, I took flying lessons while in college. And I still had my kneeboard: a clipboard that straps to your thigh so you can take notes without fumbling around or really ever having to look down. I experimented with putting this into service during my commute, obviously keeping my eyes on the road and my hands on the wheel. But at traffic lights and stops, or when a brief thought flashed through my head, I could pick up my pen, jot a quick note without fumbling around, and safely move on.
Being able to scribble notes without becoming distracted or having to take my eyes off the road completely changed my commute and my writing routine. The first draft of nearly my entire series was sketched out (sloppily) in my car, then fleshed out and revised as I typed it onto my computer when I got home. I no longer felt as if that commuting time was downtime. Suddenly, I had time to write! I was able to open the floodgates to that upwelling of creativity without fear it would go to waste. All because of a little clipboard with a velcro strap and some cheap drugstore writing tablets.
If fancy fountain pens are your thing, awesome! If potpourri pencils do it for you, then do it! But if writing your novel on rolls of toilet paper is what you need to do to get the job done, then roll on! We all have our preferred methods and tools—and some of us just make do with whatever is on hand.
So, do you have a favorite writing tool? I’d love to hear about it!
I like to collect notebooks to write in. There’s something about writing things out by hand that sparks my creativity in a different way from typing. I’ve actually written quite a bit in my car, waiting for the kids to get out of school. :)
Journaling has helped me by leaps and bounds. I don’t stay consistent enough with it but ever since I started I’ve noticed my productivity rate skyrocket.