Comments on: Pen and paper are a must for effective editing

By: Scribbler

Scribbler — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:49:25 +0000

What an interesting post and yet I was thinking about this a month or so ago too. I had just spent a month backpacking in Europe and had been forced to write my blogs long hand rather than use the PC at home. I found my writing was much better when drafted on paper , and more concise too. The visceral pleasure of writing is a great boon as well.

By: » Writing/typing Mozactly

» Writing/typing Mozactly — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 23:27:56 +0000

[...] thought about all this after reading this post on Broadcasting Brain. The author, Mark Dykeman, says he finds that editing on paper with a pen is [...]

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:53:56 +0000

Excellent suggestion about first and last drafts.

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:53:05 +0000

Sounds very cool.

By: Pamela Weir

Pamela Weir — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:46:30 +0000

I agree with you Mark.

For editing, paper is the way to go. You can't truly see the flow of words until you print them and look at the entire document.

It's not easy to make simple editing notes in word processor. It feels natural to put pen to paper and really tear into a first draft. Writing is getting at the words and arranging them in a way that creates an effect and doesn't just put words in the right order.

Sometimes, you can't really see that on the computer screen.

You don't have to print EVERY draft, just the first and last.

Even though I've spent most of my writing career using a computer, I always start and finish with pen and paper. That's where the true writing happens.

Once you strip away everything else and get back to basics, it's just you and the words.

That's the way it's supposed to be.

By: ehelfant

ehelfant — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:44:51 +0000

We do use the tablet to annotate notes but usually we use OneNote 2007 for handwritten notes. We can insert audio notes- even record student response in our notes. We can highlight and add tags. Then our tablet “written” notes are searchable…and if we want to share our notes with students or each other when we collaborate, we can start a shared sessions and write on the same pages.

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 22:50:54 +0000

I actually maintain two notebooks: one for 1 – 2 line ideas and the second to expand on ideas

By: Convert

Convert — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 22:36:17 +0000

Honestly I couldn't go anywhere without my note book (format A5 it is). If I went however where would I write in the ideas that come to my head during day stages. Many of them are so useful but come handy months later. Each book filled is marked with the date and placed on my book shelf.

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:42:45 +0000

Dude, this is one of the better comments that I've gotten in awhile. Great stuff.

Sticky notes, doodles, drawings… make documents bearable, if not fun.

See my comment below to Adam Singer and you'll get an idea of how long ago I was in high school and university…

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:38:58 +0000

Could be a generational thing: laptops didn't appear on the horizon until at least five years after I graduated from high school…