I like to type in different format every time I come back to same piece of work, and I usually push all the writing asides out of the monitor. It helps me to stay motivated since it seems easiest to brainstorm when you start off seemingly fresh.
Another Question - Fonts? Hi Sorry again for another question... Anyway, I was just wondering, why do publishers normally publish in Courier New or Times New Roman? To me they look very boring. Some books, like I think Orion Publishers, publish with a version of Times New Roman that looks interesting. think by a Why don't they make it more interesting in other publishing? And is the standard size 12? It has suddenly hit me that my books are not novels at all like this!!! Also, is it okay for a stimulus for yourself to use a different font? I don't lack in motivation or anything, I just think that other fonts make it look more interesting when you are writing... Are there any fonts you like to use? Why? Thanks! littleparisdress ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Cogito Ergo Sum
It may be boring, but it's easy to read. I guess it doesn't really matter what font or size you use when writing, but when you submit, you should stick to the guidelines and use Courier/TNR and size 12.
littleparisdress, don't confuse the font that will be used in publising your writing for the font you should use for submitting a manuscript. You should follow the submission guidelines of the publisher you will submit to, but most of them will accept 12 point Courier New (not Times New Roman), double spaced, no leading or trailing vertical spacing between paragraphs, first line of each paragraph indented 0.5 inches. The manuscript should be printed single-sided with 1" margins on all sides. Each page should have the title, author, and page number in the header. Some publisher guidelines will vary slightly from this, but it is the base standard most are derived from.
Word Processor or Pen & Paper I do almost all my writing on a PC. I write very slowly and my handwriting bothers me too much. It just hampers my train of thought. I am a right hander, but I write like a left-hander. That's also a BIG problem...
Typing is my prefered choice. I have terrible handwriting, its a shock that anyone could read my stuff. While typing I am not all self concious about it. I can just simply press the key and know I have a perfectly legible words. I also believe I think better and can actually writer better while typing. Other then school writing assignments, I have only written 1 and a half short stories. But when I typed them up I did alot of reworking of the story. I could think of better ways of describing something better.
If I want to get something out fast I would use the computer. The computer also helps with editing and makes it easy. However, for long term written projects, probably handwriting first would be better, so I'm not so prone to edit until I put it on the computer. There's something sentimental and personal about having notebooks filled with your story. You can take it with you anywhere. It's not as easily deleted. I think that's kind of a good mentality for a long term project. You can also add notes and doodles easily with a notebook or a diary. With the more elaborate looking journals, I would feel bad to waste a whole one on a hit and miss idea. I would want to use it. I use computers all the time, I have several and they're important to me, but sometimes it's much easier and less distracting to just use a notebook. Also I can't share and despair my work online when it's in a notebook.
Both because my work needs to be published and on the computer is a huge disadvantadge as it confines you to one area and position.
You really need to figure out what works best for YOU. Everyone is different - everyones creativity is sparked at different times. My own creativity doesn't seem to hit until I am sitting at my computer. Sure I can brainstorm on paper, but when it comes to writing any of the actual story, I could (and have) sit in front of blank paper for hours without coming up with a scenario. Even when I was younger, with no access to a computer, and had to write some story for English class, I couldn't do it. I could, however, tell my mother what I wanted to happen, and she would write it down for me. So it isn't that I couldn't come up with ideas - I could see the scene in my head, I just couldn't get it down on paper. Now that I have access to a computer (and have actually for years, just never thought I could write a story after that experience mentioned), stories are easier to put down for me. So like I said, all a matter of personal choice. Good luck!
for me, computer most definitely. i can get so much more work done, typing is faster than handwriting for me, there's practically unlimited storage, nothing tangible to get damaged, everything's backed up. formally, i use computer, notepad specifically cause it's quick and easy, but if i have an idea away from the computer i just jot it down somewhere and commit it to memory, mostly in school. but thats the only time i ever handwrite.
Definitely computer. I'm an impatient writer, and I get frustrated if I can't move at the speed that I want to.
*thinks hard* ...paper... trees... keebler elves... cookies... fat kids... gravity... unstable axis... melting icecaps... polar bears. gotcha.
I usually write on the computer, but I've been toying with the idea of writing on paper. The computer is efficient and cleaner, but I think paper would be more accessible as a way to put your inspiration down uninhibited and flowingly. For the next story I write, I'll probably get a notebook and draft it onto paper first.
Laptop? I take mine to the book store to write all the time. Granted, I print out my work for proofreading. hehehe. They are as reliable as the user! (sorry, I had to) - unless it's Windows. Microsoft likes to break their own software on a regular basis. Windows "Updates" cause about 50% of our trouble here where I work.
I do both. I write the first draft on paper and then I type all of it down on the computer. I find that writing by hand helps me a lot, because it forces me to write everything in order. If I hit upon a part that's tricky to get down, I have to solve that problem before I can keep going. When writing on the computer, I can skip those parts and focus on the fun or easy stuff, but that usually leaves holes in my writing that are still a bother to fill in. Basically, I find it easier to motivate myself to get the job done when I write on paper.
I start out typing, then I will print it out to edit it. Sometimes, however, I will write in a notebook and then type it later. I guess it depends on where I feel like writing, at my desk or elsewhere. PonyFeathers
don't have money for that and you're still confined to one position. Can't lay down and work properly with one, but if I had a voice recognition one then that would be heaven.
I always type, because then I include more detail and can get more done faster, rather than writing, getting impatient and skimping on detail.
I have HORRIBLE handwriting (I can' even write in cursive and I can't read it either. I blame the school system. ) so I type everything.
