My wife recently bought me a "typewriter" keyboard, which makes me feel nostalgic and happy and is probably terrible for my fingers and wrists. I'm THAT old.
Yup, I'm with ya. I love writing with fountain pens, especially with italic nibs. And in January, I finally drove to the stationery shop where where they'll help you find the perfect for you pen. And I found it! I've been writing LOTS more by hand since then, and loving it! I haven't picked up any of my "old" fountain pens since then, except by accident, and then my previously favourite pen just felt "ugh" [insert full-body shudder, too]! So, yeah, I get it.
My specifics are about writing spaces. My keyboard is high contrast, since I often write in early am with little light, or late pm (same diff.) But mainly, I like my six-foot table that has room for three screens (I've given up on my MAC mini for now, but it sits there, waiting for me, silent.)
There's a swing-arm lamp that doesn't shine directly on anything - except a quiet digital thermometer which only tells me what I already know: hot, cold, perfect.
But the biggest change is a 20-foot travel trailer shell I'm about to retrofit this summer into a writer's cabin - like Thoreau, but with wireless Internet. Desk, sleeping couch, coffeepot, oilfilled heater for cold nights, and a compromise of an A/C for boiling days. Louvered windows for the in-betweens.
Roll that thing anywhere a thick extension cord can reach. Although, it's possible to run a tiny box (fanless) on a battery that's renewed by solar.
Waiting for the spring-planned events to subside, and start on the re-fit just before the worst humid summer hits.
I love this. One of my friends retrofitted an old airstream and has something similar to what you have. I love the idea of everything being together so that you can just pull it wherever you want it and plug it in!
I sat here chuckling as I read your post, especially when you said you're scouring eBay to buy up your favorite keyboard. I totally agree that I, too, am picky about my tools, and I'm amused at how our tastes are completely opposite.
I am what I've heard as a little "on the spectrum". I have a nervous twitch, I'm constantly bouncing my knee to release my endless energy, and there are specific sounds that release endorphins in my brain: the crispy crunch of an autumn leaf underfoot; the clink of a porcelain when I replace the lid of the sugar bowl; the clackity-click of my mechanical gaming keyboard.
I type about 75 wpm, so when I'm on a roll and my fingers are flying over the keys, it's a rush...a physical sensation of bliss. The clicks are soothing and mean progress. I gotta have my number keypad on the side, though! There is a part of my job when I have to do some accounting and I HATE typing numbers across the top of the keyboard. 10-key sideboard FTW.
The process and rituals we authors discover as we grow into our craft is as diverse as what we create. And I love that diversity while still being able to completely and utterly relate.
I appreciate you sharing this perspective! I tend to be annoyingly picky about certain tools too. I keep 2 keyboards on my desk - a Logitech MX Keys (number pad for spreadsheets & low profile keys) & a Keychron K8 mechanical keyboard.
The Keychron mechanical is my favorite. It reminded me of the 80s IBM style keyboards at first, but the feel was shockingly great. The switches I chose give a satisfying key travel, smooth feel, and light audible click. As soon as my fingers touch it, I feel a massive urge to write.
One thing I “noticed” using my low profile Logitech is that I tend to be a heavy key striker, especially when I’m on a roll writing. I can feel it in my fingertips after typing for a while. The mechanical keys never bottom out so there’s no impact, just a light click halfway through the travel.
I’m also picky about the software I use. The UI/UX are as important as the features. Since I write between my Mac and my iPad Pro, most of my tools need to be ubiquitous - at least in the Apple ecosystem.
This is funny. Especially the software thing, because I remember when we were considering changing software, and one writer, Dave, was having a fit about the colors used in the UI. I was like, “who gives a shit about the COLORS?“ But we writers have to have things just so…
I feel both sides of that argument. For writing drafts, I prefer to use Obsidian because I can connect ideas and supporting information using backlinks. I have an integration that allows me to send any selected text to Ulysses for editing. Once a piece is ready, I can push it from Ulysses directly to WordPress, Ghost, or Medium.
Google Docs is great for collaboration and getting feedback, but I discovered another personal quirk when I started using Ulysses several years ago. I tend to waste too much time and focus on formatting text in tools like Google Docs.
Using markdown was awkward at first, but I realized that it helps me create structure with light formatting (bold, italics, quotes, etc.) without breaking my writing flow.
My wife recently bought me a "typewriter" keyboard, which makes me feel nostalgic and happy and is probably terrible for my fingers and wrists. I'm THAT old.
Amazing!
Yup, I'm with ya. I love writing with fountain pens, especially with italic nibs. And in January, I finally drove to the stationery shop where where they'll help you find the perfect for you pen. And I found it! I've been writing LOTS more by hand since then, and loving it! I haven't picked up any of my "old" fountain pens since then, except by accident, and then my previously favourite pen just felt "ugh" [insert full-body shudder, too]! So, yeah, I get it.
It’s funny how yniversal this is – writers of all stripes sharing their own neurotic rituals that aren’t anything like mine. :-)
My specifics are about writing spaces. My keyboard is high contrast, since I often write in early am with little light, or late pm (same diff.) But mainly, I like my six-foot table that has room for three screens (I've given up on my MAC mini for now, but it sits there, waiting for me, silent.)
There's a swing-arm lamp that doesn't shine directly on anything - except a quiet digital thermometer which only tells me what I already know: hot, cold, perfect.
But the biggest change is a 20-foot travel trailer shell I'm about to retrofit this summer into a writer's cabin - like Thoreau, but with wireless Internet. Desk, sleeping couch, coffeepot, oilfilled heater for cold nights, and a compromise of an A/C for boiling days. Louvered windows for the in-betweens.
Roll that thing anywhere a thick extension cord can reach. Although, it's possible to run a tiny box (fanless) on a battery that's renewed by solar.
Waiting for the spring-planned events to subside, and start on the re-fit just before the worst humid summer hits.
Meaning - you had us at "keyboard".
I love this. One of my friends retrofitted an old airstream and has something similar to what you have. I love the idea of everything being together so that you can just pull it wherever you want it and plug it in!
I sat here chuckling as I read your post, especially when you said you're scouring eBay to buy up your favorite keyboard. I totally agree that I, too, am picky about my tools, and I'm amused at how our tastes are completely opposite.
I am what I've heard as a little "on the spectrum". I have a nervous twitch, I'm constantly bouncing my knee to release my endless energy, and there are specific sounds that release endorphins in my brain: the crispy crunch of an autumn leaf underfoot; the clink of a porcelain when I replace the lid of the sugar bowl; the clackity-click of my mechanical gaming keyboard.
I type about 75 wpm, so when I'm on a roll and my fingers are flying over the keys, it's a rush...a physical sensation of bliss. The clicks are soothing and mean progress. I gotta have my number keypad on the side, though! There is a part of my job when I have to do some accounting and I HATE typing numbers across the top of the keyboard. 10-key sideboard FTW.
The process and rituals we authors discover as we grow into our craft is as diverse as what we create. And I love that diversity while still being able to completely and utterly relate.
Happy writing, Johnny!
P.S. I'm a fellow S&S writer. ;)
That’s hilarious! Everyone is so different. :)
I appreciate you sharing this perspective! I tend to be annoyingly picky about certain tools too. I keep 2 keyboards on my desk - a Logitech MX Keys (number pad for spreadsheets & low profile keys) & a Keychron K8 mechanical keyboard.
The Keychron mechanical is my favorite. It reminded me of the 80s IBM style keyboards at first, but the feel was shockingly great. The switches I chose give a satisfying key travel, smooth feel, and light audible click. As soon as my fingers touch it, I feel a massive urge to write.
One thing I “noticed” using my low profile Logitech is that I tend to be a heavy key striker, especially when I’m on a roll writing. I can feel it in my fingertips after typing for a while. The mechanical keys never bottom out so there’s no impact, just a light click halfway through the travel.
I’m also picky about the software I use. The UI/UX are as important as the features. Since I write between my Mac and my iPad Pro, most of my tools need to be ubiquitous - at least in the Apple ecosystem.
This is funny. Especially the software thing, because I remember when we were considering changing software, and one writer, Dave, was having a fit about the colors used in the UI. I was like, “who gives a shit about the COLORS?“ But we writers have to have things just so…
I feel both sides of that argument. For writing drafts, I prefer to use Obsidian because I can connect ideas and supporting information using backlinks. I have an integration that allows me to send any selected text to Ulysses for editing. Once a piece is ready, I can push it from Ulysses directly to WordPress, Ghost, or Medium.
Google Docs is great for collaboration and getting feedback, but I discovered another personal quirk when I started using Ulysses several years ago. I tend to waste too much time and focus on formatting text in tools like Google Docs.
Using markdown was awkward at first, but I realized that it helps me create structure with light formatting (bold, italics, quotes, etc.) without breaking my writing flow.
Yeah, I just can’t deal with markdown, but I know plenty who do.