Thread: "Computers" and other technological "feats"

I know this has been discussed at some point but --

Does anyone out there find it a lot easier to write when it's by hand? Not just the fact that without a computer in front of you you are much less likely to go youtube-ing or facebooking or tweeting or the other one, but simply because an electronically displayed screen to type pixels onto is a little too impersonal?

Also, it seems that when I write by hand by writing is increasingly one point, less wordy -- and I make less mistakes because I think more about it before I write it.

This all leading to the reason why I just purchased a typewriter -- seeing if that increases my economy and style. Computers, phones, etc -- have made it too easy to write -- and therefore increased the amount of lazy writers out there.

I have gone further, selling my telephone in order to use smoke signals, and ditching my car in favor of a mule cart. In now watch puppet shows instead of television, a brace and bit instead of a power drill, and will concel my newspaper subscription as soon as I can find a town crier.

Well, for me, it would only do one thing -- and that's increase my admiration for people who actually had to write novels in longhand, or even on a typewriter, for heavens sake. Pretty amazing.

Exactly. Everytime I bitch about anything in the writing process, I think of Shakespeare scratching out his plays using a bird feather dipped in ink and feel like a total punk

The other process that's equally amazing to think about -- hand setting an entire book with lead type, character by character.

Or this guy I used to work with that told me how he used to deal with with type. He'd spec it out by hand on a typed manuscript, send it by courier to the typesetter, get back gallies, which he'd always have to correct and send back to the typesetter. Then when he got it back, it would still have something wrong with it, so he'd have to cut and paste it with an X-acto knife and rubber cement while he was making it "camera ready" for the printer. Of course, he'd regale us with this scenario every single time we complained about anything to do with the computer.

Originally Posted by JosephB

The other process that's equally amazing to think about -- hand setting an entire book with lead type, character by character.

Or this guy I used to work with that told me how he used to deal with with type. He'd spec it out by hand on a typed manuscript, send it by courier to the typesetter, get back gallies, which he'd always have to correct and send back to the typesetter. Then when he got it back, it would still have something wrong with it, so he'd have to cut and paste it with an X-acto knife and rubber cement while he was making it "camera ready" for the printer. Of course, he'd regale us with this scenario every single time we complained about anything to do with the computer.

Jeez. Yeah, maybe we should all complain a little less. I'm sure Shakespeare never complained -- because for him, what else was there?

I did that for years. "Have knife, will travel"
Cutting out a comma and pasting it on copy. Putting WAX on the paper to stick it down to the layout "boards".
Each font a little disk of clear letters on black so light could shine through and expose photosensitive paper. The camer taking negatives twice the size of an open newspaper page, then transferred through more photo emultion to a big sheet of zinc the same size that got put on the press rollers.

Come a long way, baby

If I had to write by hand, I wouldn't write. I gain nothing from the sensation of a pen on paper other than a burning pain in my hand.

I hear you. Worse yet, I wouldn't be able to read what I wrote. I went from cursive to printing years ago, and now can barely red that.
Embarrassing, but there it is.

Originally Posted by C.M.C.

If I had to write by hand, I wouldn't write. I gain nothing from the sensation of a pen on paper other than a burning pain in my hand.

I certainly agree on the burning pain thing.

The one thing I do think I gain from longhand writing is that it's a lot harder to edit on the fly. That means it's easier to plow ahead than start chasing my tail over whether that one sentence that probably won't even make it into the second draft is good enough or not. On a computer, I've got easy delete, undo, redo, edit options to get caught up with.

I am far too prolific with a computer in front of me I'm afraid. I don't think I would be able to write without one anymore because I have become too used to it. Having said that, I often find myself being more creative on paper but I have to transfer it to the screen for ease of use.

I didn't do anything for a printer until '94 and the place where I worked (for a short time) had a really early digital printer. I did produce a lot of stuff that we then had to put together and photograph on to metal plates but the smell of ammonia put me off ever doing that again.

I had a job on press earlier this week. 100,000 of a marketing piece I wrote and designed. A pretty nice one, with some beautiful original photography. There's something very gratifying about seeing something of yours coming off a 6 color press the size of a truck. Also a little scary when they hand you that pen to sign off on it.

I'm doing less and less print these days, for obvious reasons, which is kind of sad for me. I love the tactile experience provided by a really nice printed piece on high quality paper. It's kind of like that good feeling you get when you crack the spine of a new book, and just take in that smell of fresh ink and new paper.

Man, you're not kidding about the Burning Hand. Get only halfway down a page and the Burn has already begun...

When it comes to writing, computers are fantastic (in my opinion of course). It's easier to keep the flow going and to keep it clean. Plus you can edit easily, by cutting pasting and moving/replacing entire sentences in seconds, rather than spending ten minutes and trying to get rid of the smudge marks. While I appreciate the time and effort it takes to write without a PC, I can't imagine writing anything longer than a short story without one.

I've had to do a bit of handwriting in the various writing classes I've done over the past two years. The worst bit is having to read it aloud straight after and not knowing what word I was going for. My handwriting is awful. I call it the decadent scrawl. I'm a fast typer and I get used to getting my ideas down that quickly, I can't seem to slow up when I handwrite. Even when I start out good, it deteriorates hideously. My signature is pretty cool though. I get heaps of practice signing contracts all day.

I can't imagine re-structuring a novel-length work if it were all handwritten. I guess the 'perfect page' editing technique would be the best in that situation.

i tend to write my first draft of anything by hand in a notebook
even if just a few dot points to paper to start with an outline

i love handwriting, i love pens and i love paper