I have a problem. I love pens. I own boxes of pens that I rarely use or even look at, but am loathe to throw away, minimalism be damned. They’re pens. It’s like asking me to get rid of books—it’s not going to happen even if they threaten to bury me alive. There is something visceral at work here—the potential of so many words yet to be written. They are there, hovering out of sight, waiting on inspiration. Pens hold that potential. The paper awaits their brilliance. All that’s needed is me.
September rolls around and the sales begin and I find myself grabbing pens and tossing them in my cart. I have to collect them all—pens, pads of paper, highlighters, pencils, erasers. They call to me. Loudly.
The thing is there may be a reason for that temptation. Research shows many clear benefits to writing by hand. Writing by hand is a:
Tactile Experience—The paper, the pen, the indents on the page. It’s tactile. It exists in the world. You can run your and over your pages and feel the writing. Then there’s the sound of the scratching of a fountain pen or pencil that the tapping of a keyboard just can’t match. It may be soothing, but it’s not the same thing. Besides it’s repetitive, where using a pen frees you to insert arrows, diagrams, drawings and so much more. It’s open to possibilities.
Neurological Benefit—There’s a link between the brain and the hand that gets bypassed when we type. This bypass allows us to make connections we can’t when we type. Using a pen forces our brain to work in new ways and forge new pathways and connections. Those connections are mostly absent when taking notes or writing on a computer.
Multitasking Miracle—The act of taking notes by hand forces us to listen and record what we hear. But since few people can transcribe every word, we cannot capture everything. Note taking by hand forces us to listen and condense ideas into larger concepts and prioritize information. We can also draw conclusions and add in artist’s renderings, arrows or other helpful details not easily added on the computer during class.
Psychological Benefit—Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, recommends everyone write three pages each morning about whatever comes to mind. She calls these “morning pages” and insists they be done by hand. Why? Because as she says, “hand-writing puts us in touch with our emotions. Writing by computer is a more shallow practice. It yields us speed and distance, but not the depth that we are looking for.” As writers, we need to mine those deeper emotions and places of our psyche.
Academic Benefit—Studies show that taking notes by hand increases retention of information and leads to higher-quality learning. It also forces us to be strategic in how we take down the information and record it. Taking notes on a computer tends to be closer related to transcription. Students who take notes by hand often out-perform their counterparts who rely on their computers for note taking.
It’s Personal—Everyone knows receiving a handwritten birthday card is way better than getting an email or text. It takes effort to use a pen and paper. It’s personal and, therefore, more meaningful.
Awareness—it is harder to ignore what is being written when you write by hand, which is why retention is higher. The act of writing is a mindful practice. The only way to create letters on a page is to think them into being. Your brain has to be active for your hand to move. It’s a self-conscious process.
Breaks Blockages—Whenever i am blocked or not sure what I want to write, I pick up a pen. The pen forces me to be aware of my thoughts and the words swirling in my brain. It removes that intimidation of the blank screen and offers a path to play. Often I will start writing whatever is on my mind only to find myself eventually working on what needs to be done. Sometimes the act of putting pen to page opens the mind to bigger possibilities.
Now, I can hear some of you tossing out opposing arguments like a defense attorney for laptops, and you are sure to make some good points. Typing has its own set of advantages:
It’s faster
It’s easier on the hands
It’s easier to share with others
It’s more modern
Scholars have shown a link between the ability to type to better results in school. Another study showed proved that students who type often develop better content and concepts than those who cannot. But there are also studies that show students who type their notes in a lecture perform significantly worse on conceptual-application questions because they did not process the information, just recorded it. It’s a toss-up. Ultimately most researchers say that students (and, I’d add: writers) should use what is fastest and most natural.
There is still a place for typing. It’s invaluable and necessary in today’s world. No one is disputing that. But there are times when taking up that pen may make more sense.
When you’re writing your first draft
When you’ve hit a block in your writing
When you want to explore ideas
When you’re taking notes
When you want to be more mindful of what you are writing
As writers, it helps to have many tools at our disposal, not just the obvious ones. Try grabbing some of those beautiful pens and spend some time working things out longhand. You might be surprised by your results.