Tuesday’s writing tip for authors

Authors are pretty effective tethered to their laptops and personal computers, so it always surprises me when I find myself working offline, using a pen and a pad of yellow-lined paper.

No, I’m not talking about writing a complete book in longhand! But, there are some writing tasks that are simply more fun–or easier–to write in longhand. Here are some of the occasions when I find the tactile pleasures of writing in long hand are especially productive:

• Traveling. I love writing while someone else is driving, or, heaven forbid, flying in an airplane. The minute the plane takes off, I’m suddenly filled with ideas. Problems that were seemingly insurmountable suddenly become obvious, and ideas for articles and new books start flowing.
• When I’m stumped. When temporary writer’s block occurs, I find it helps to take a pad of paper and go somewhere else and re-plan my project from scratch. Sometimes I go to a library, sometimes a coffee shop, sometimes I just go home. But, in every case, the change from typing to writing in long hand, and the lack of “legacy” baggage–i.e., what I’ve already written–helps me to get a fresh start.
• Mind mapping. As I recently described, although I extensively use mind mapping software throughout the day, I typically edit and review printouts of my mind maps offline just before bed. Indeed, many times I begin mind maps offline, working with pen and paper, and recreate them on my computer the next day. The act of recreating it usually is accompanied by numerous improvements.

The more complex the task, the more I find that it can be made doable by distilling it to its essence by hand, on a single sheet of paper.

How about you?

The next time you hit a temporary roadblock on your journey to publishing success, grab a pen and pad and escape from your computer. Go somewhere different, start with a fresh page, and start writing. Chances are, the change will do you good!

Are you a longhand author? Do you ever find it helpful or rewarding to get away from your computer and work on your book in longhand? Share your longhand writing experiences as comments, below.