Experiment #3: Writing longhand

The tools, the method, and how it's going...

Apr 07, 2023

Hi there.

Last week, I mentioned that I had a book idea (yay) and that I’d be giving writing longhand a shot. I promised to report back. Never let it be said that I don’t keep my word. :)

So, to catch those up who haven’t been following along, I’m working on a book proposal, which means writing the opening 30-50 pages of the book. Because morning pages are going so well (I hit 30 days of doing them yesterday!) I thought now would be the perfect time to do the longhand experiment.

First, why longhand?

For me, the morning pages made me want to give it a try because I can see how writing those pages by hand has accessed different things in my brain. And there’s some science to that. Scientists have found that students who take notes by hand learn better than those who were taking notes on a laptop. Writing by hand is resulting in some deeper processing.

Plus, for me, after being in burnout/writer’s block, opening a blank doc in Scrivener produces some anxiety. It feels very official. It feels like pressure. So, I theorized, writing on paper would feel less formal, less like WORK with a capital W.

So, of course, I needed new office supplies to make this happen because…pretty stuff makes me more likely to do the thing.

The supplies

After more research than was probably necessary on which writers used which kinds of notebooks/pads/etc., I decided to write on legal pads. White ones not yellow. In no universe am I writing on bright yellow paper. *shields eyes from the glow*

I like notebooks for my morning pages, but for novel-writing, I wanted more room and no spiral or center binding. I also didn’t want a super nice notebook because then I’d feel like I couldn’t be messy or waste pages. (Neil Gaiman writes his books longhand in nice leather notebooks with fountain pens. That would intimidate me, lol.)

These are my legal pads of choice: TOPS Double Docket Gold Writing Pads. I like these because they’re extra-thick with 100 sheets and they’re hole-punched so I can tear out sheets and put them in a binder afterward.

I mentioned this in a previous newsletter, but I’m using TUL gel ink pens. They write really smoothly. The only downside is they go through ink pretty quickly, but they are refillable.

To house the legal pad, I wanted a nice padfolio that could fold back on itself while I’m writing and didn’t have a clamp at the top. I wanted the back of the legal pad to be able to slide in to hold it in place. This one is perfect. I love it so much. It feels nice in my hands (faux leather), was inexpensive, and is comfortable to work with.

Note: This is the legal pad that came with the padfolio, not the one I’m using.

I also knew I didn’t want to do longhand writing at my desk. My desk is where the typing (and the stress!) happens. I had previously bought (for morning pages), this lapdesk. It was recommended by Wirecutter and I’ve used it every day since I’ve gotten it. It’s very comfortable to work on both for morning pages and for writing.

Lastly, I needed a stand to hold the padfolio when I typed up the handwritten pages. This one had great reviews and, so far, is working perfectly—even if it isn’t the most attractive thing. It’s easily collapsible when you're not using it.

So, how did the writing actually go?

I have been working longhand over the past week and I’m happy to report that…it’s working!

Here’s the process I’ve been following:

In the afternoon, I bring my lap desk and legal pad to the couch and I write longhand. Leonard (my dog) supervises by sleeping and micro-shifting until he’s crowded my legs off the ottoman.
The next morning, I type up what I wrote the day before and edit and embellish as I get the words into a doc.
Then in the afternoon, I leave my office and go back to the couch for more longhand. Leonard alternates between napping and trying to casually chew the corner of my lapdesk.

So far, I’ve gotten 4500 words of the book this way over about four days of actual work. I’m really pleased with that!

What I’m liking about the process

First, I was right about longhand feeling like it has less pressure on it. It doesn’t feel stressful to sit down and write with pen and paper.

Second, the next day, that dreaded feeling of “I should start writing” doesn’t come because all I need to do is type up what I wrote yesterday. That feels like I’m taking on something simple—basic transcription. So it’s not intimidating to start. However, of course, I end up editing and adding to whatever I’ve written, so I end up doing writing as well. It smooths the on-ramp for writing.

Third, I thought it would be awkward—scratching things out, changing things on paper, etc. It’s not really a problem. I just scratch out and move on or draw arrows and write in the margins. I have whole pages Xed out. It’s fine. Writing is messy and doing it on paper shows it. It’s strangely satisfying—seeing the mess. A typed document hides how chaotic the process is and that almost tricks you into thinking it should come out perfect the first time. You don’t see all the messes you’ve already worked through.

Oh, and did I mention the fact that writing on the couch means NO ELECTRONIC DISTRACTIONS? That’s a biggie. No social media. No email. No “ooh let me go research this real quick.” I keep my phone out of reach and my computer is in the next room. I’ve been able to hit true flow for the first time in a long time. The other day I looked up and realized three hours had just *poof* disappeared because I’d been so focused on writing.

What I’ve found interesting

One thing I’ve found kind of fascinating is that after I finish writing by hand, later that night I feel like—oh man, I think that was mostly crap. I think I’m going in the wrong direction. I’ll probably have to throw that stuff out.

But then when I pull out the pages the next day to read through them, I realize, wait, I like this. Writer insecurity or feeling like I’m writing crap isn’t new, but it’s coming at me in a different way. It’s like I’m not trusting that messy longhand, but then when I look at it later, I’m realizing my brain knew what it was doing.

I’m also remembering the story better. My memory is junk normally, and I often forget what I wrote a few days back, but the story is sticking with me more this time. Maybe it’s like that study I linked to above with students remembering better when they take notes by hand.

What Isn’t as Fun

I had one day where I wrote 13 longhand pages, which I think was about 2500 words. My hand is still hurting two days later. So, I’m going to need to figure out how to best deal with that.

For now, I’m trying to write lightly and not push down too hard with the pen (because with gel pens you really don’t need to.) I’m also hoping that, like with any other physical exercise, my hand will strengthen and get more used to the movement. It’s been a while since I’ve asked it to use a pen this much.

Overall

I’m really digging this. Maybe once I get further in the story I’ll want to switch to all typing if I’m on a roll, but right now, this is working, so I’m going to keep at it.

How are things going for you? Doing anything different with your process?

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