I am always in awe of writers who write out their first drafts by hand.
I can definitely see the practicality in this. I mean, wherever you are, you can just whip out a pen and a notebook and get back to your story. –wheras I would have to lug around my laptop and look for a power source when it starts beeping that the battery is low. Not to mention in the area I work, I’d be much more likely to get trampled by a thug going after my computer than beat up for a notebook and pen.
However, there are three reasons I don’t write out my drafts by hand:
One- While I can type about as fast as I can think and keep at it for hours on end, I definitely lack the same stamina while writing long hand. I’m out of practice. If I have more than one check or envelope to write out while doing bills- I seriously get a cramp. It’s pathetic. And by the third envelope, my penmanship is nearly illegible. I am a handwriting wimp.
Two- Due to reason number one, it takes me a lot longer to write out my thoughts by hand which leaves me far too much time to either: lose my train of thought, hate my sentences before I’ve finished writing it out, or pretty much doubt the entire endeavor. While tapping away on my computer, my hands are too busy spewing out my story to give me time for self-doubt or reflection.
Three- My purse suffers from vanishing pen syndrome. No matter how many times I put a pen in my purse, it’s never there when I need it.
What about you guys? Do you feel comfortable doing your writing by hand? Do you write some of it by hand and some of it on a computer? Or are you like me and hand-writing impaired.
