Pen and Pencil

I like the process of pencil and paper as opposed to a machine. I think the writing is better when it's done in handwriting. — Nelson DeMille

I prefer the pen. There is something elemental about the glide and flow of nib and ink on paper. ― James Robertson

I take pride in using fountain pens. They represent craftsmanship and a love of writing. Biros, on the other hand, represent the throwaway culture of modern society, which exists on microwave ready-meals and instant coffee. ― Fennel Hudson

After the fountain pen debacle, I switched to a ball point pen in my journal. I was still doing my three-minute words in long-hand (also known as cursive writing), but I noticed that the journal I was doing them in was already half full. These journals are supposed to last me a year and it’s only March.

So, I have since started doing my daily words in a lined, three-hole notebook. As you may recall, I have an abundance of notebooks. And, I’ve also abandoned my pens as I prefer using pencils in these notebooks.

I can remember a time when I did all of my writing in long hand, and believe it or not, my favorite writing instrument back then was a fountain pen. Apparently, I was more careful back then, because I still have many of those scribblings, and they’re in pristine shape.

When the writing isn’t going well, I’ll often default to writing longhand. I’ll also often turn to a notebook when I’m composing poetry. There’s just something comforting about using pen and paper. It slows down the process, allows me to think. And using the pencil allows me to make changes without having to scribble things out.

As well as an impressive collection of pens, I also have many pencils. My favorite to write with was a good old fashioned HB pencil, like the ones we used in elementary school. But of course the problem with ordinary pencils is that you have to keep sharpening them.

The dollar store and back to school sales provided me with mechanical pencils in bulk, but despite their convenience I never really liked them – they didn’t leave much of an impression. And by that I mean the leads aren’t as thick, so the writing is lighter.

Finally, I smartened up and stopped buying cheap mechanical pencils. A good mechanical pencil can cost you as much as a good pen, but it’s worth every penny. The leads come in varying thicknesses – my current favorite has a 0.9 mm lead. Anything less than 0.7 is too light for my liking.

The very best thing about using a pencil is that you can take it with you wherever you go and never have to worry about a charger or plugging it in. :-D

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WORDAGE REPORT

After having missed two weeks in a row, I figured it was about time I did a Monday post on the other blog. It wasn’t much of one, but it was something at least.

As for other words . . . yeah, not so much. I had a lot of things on my mind last week, and between that and the dismal weather, I had zero focus for anything else. No progress on my Christmas story, but at least I kept up with my cave story.

NEW WORDS:
Blog Posts – 95+107+138+122+118+99+95=774

Total words: 2,916 words

Three minute words – 127+121+141+145+122+133+131=920

Goals For Next Week:
Get back to wok on the Christmas story, work on journal entries for Elemental Spirit, maybe write a poem.

EDITING:
*looks around innocently, whistling aimlessly* Editing? What editing? Oh, that editing. If I didn’t have enough focus for writing, what makes you think I’d be doing any editing?

Goal For Next Week:
Start the final edits on Magickal Mayhem.

MARKETING MONDAY:
I received an invitation in my email to submit a poem for a local project. There’s no money involved, but it would be wonderful if the poem I sent in is included. I also submitted a flash story to an online e-zine.

I have not heard back regarding any of the stories I’ve sent in thus far.

Goal For Next Week:
Submit two stories and one poem.

TECHNO TUESDAY:
Yeah, this was once again a bust. I texted with one of my sisters for about an hour, and then we were tired of texting so she phoned instead and we talked for another hour and a half. I guess we had a lot to say. :-D

And then I had to clean out the pot drawer in the oven. Apparently, since the mice that have invaded our house can’t get into our new cupboards, they’ve decided to hold their parties in the pot drawer. Can you say ewwww?

So I thoroughly washed all the pots and pans from the drawer, and when they were dry I put them in a plastic bin on the dining room table. The hubby cleaned the remaining mouse droppings out of the drawer, and left a paper plate of mouse bait in their place. I don’t like using traps because it’s not a clean kill

Goal For Next Week:
Set up Paperwhite

CRAFTING:
Woot! I finished the afghan I was working on! And it looks pretty good if I do say so myself.

Goal For Next Week:
Start the embroidery on my granddaughter’s dress.

WHAT I’M READING:
My reading binge has slowed down considerably, although that has not stopped me from ordering a bunch of books from Indigo. I’m still reading Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens, and still not sure I like it.

On the Kindle. I started The Merman’s Kiss by Tamsin Ley and I’m liking this new twist on the whole mermaid legend.

Goal For Next Week:
Continue to stay away from Nora Roberts books so I can hopefully get more writing done.

GOAL REVIEW:
Well, I did great on the crafts and okay on the marketing, but the rest of the goals were pretty much a bust. To be fair, I had a few things on my mind that eroded my ability to focus, but I’m hopeful this won’t be the case for the week to come.

Happy writing.