For those of you that write your books out by hand... what kind of paper do you use?

Lined or unlined? Any special type? Loose? In a binder? Notebooks? What kind of notebooks? Why?

I'm considering writing a novel out by hand for the first time, and I'm not sure what paper would be best to use. I'm considering doing loose, as that would allow me to insert and remove scenes easily, but I also think it would be fun to buy a notebook especially for the occasion.

I don't write on paper anymore, unless a computer isn't available. However, for many years I did all my writing on paper.

College ruled notebook paper was my favorite, loose rather than in a notebook. I tried writing in notebooks for years, but eventually decided loose paper was preferable so that the editing wasn't as difficult. I usually just kept the loose paper in a folder rather than a binder. It's probably best to always number the pages with loose paper.

Now I find writing on a computer vastly superior, since it's so much easier to edit.

Lined!!! Lined, lined. I cannot write on unlined paper. My lines go all over, my handwriting gets undecipherable, even to me, and other, bad things happen.

Usually college bound spiral notebooks are what I write in. I've used loose leaf on occasion, but it's too easy for things to get lost. When I started writing seriously (shortly after the completion of my first draft of Prince of Yen) I realized that simply writing in spiral bound notebooks was simplest. I'd have a story, then a list, then a poem, then start a new story, then go back to the old story, and instead of trying to keep sections together I'd just go in order and sort it out later. I also learned pretty quick to try to title and date everything. It helped with sorting.

If I know I'm writing a book when the first sentence comes out of my pen I do things a little differently. I have a collection of hard cover notebooks (most of which are wide ruled, unfortunately) and I'll go pick a couple out and write my novel in those, uncluttered by my random stuff. I'll walk around for a couple of months with two notebooks as a result.

I have some odd habits with my writing. I never use two colored notebooks in a row. I always write in pen, black pen. I simply can't stand colored ink or pencils... no clue why. Call me a crazy fantasy writer.

I prefer to write on a computer but most of the time that isn't possible for me so usually I end up writing on paper. When I write on paper I prefer notebooks, but they have to be lined!!! Otherwise my writings would look more like a roller coaster than a story.
When I'm brainstorming I prefer paper. It helps me think through what I'm doing more than a computer would.

I sometimes write some of my story on paper. Let me warn you, though, it's horrible to have to type it up later - so time-consuming! And another thing: editing is a pain, so try not to make too many mistakes!

Anyhow, as to the type of material, I prefer to use a lined, spiralbound notebook and a mechanical pencil. My current notebook is rather small, with somewhat narrow lines, but I like that particular format. Just something that works for me. The nice thing about a smaller notebook is that, when writing by hand, your mind considers progress in terms of pages, so having shorter pages is a definite plus .

I think that summarizes my preferred writing style admirably!

Phili! I'm surprised! I thought wrote longhand!

I never write my stories on the computer. I like to have a hard draft on paper just in case the computer crashes or the story gets wiped out for some reason. (I mentioned this in the "Notebooks" thread. )

I LOVE college ruled, loose leaf paper, because I like to pick out fun binders to put my story in. I also like the ability to keep adding pages to the binder. It's also handy to snap notes in a binder. I usually keep all my notes specific to one story in the same binder I'm writing in. (Most often in the back or pockets.)

I only use mechanical pencils too. I like always having a sharp edge on the graphite, and it also saves a trip to the pencil sharpener.

My tid bit of experience. ^^

~Calen

Good point. I forgot about to mention that part.


Whenever I tried using mechanical pencils, they always kept breaking. Maybe I just press down too hard. They also leave such thin, light lines, while I prefer the wider, darker lines of a normal pencil. The numerous trips to the pencil sharpener weren't fun, though.

That's when you get one of those little pencil sharpeners that you can keep with your pencil so that you can sharpen it without getting up.

Yet another reason I use pens. Actually, pencils require a great deal of effort to write with, and it slows me down. I'm probably twice as fast with pen than pencil. Edits look interesting, since I can't erase, but I type it all up when I'm done anyway so no one has to decipher them but me.

Yay! Responses! This is happy.

You thought I wrote longhand, Almond? Up until this point, I have been a dedicated computer writer. While I don't want this thread to turn into a "do you write longhand and why" discussion (there's other threads for that!), I will say that the reason I'm trying longhand for once is to see if I can reap any benefits from writing more slowly with the inability to do extensive editing. I figure that typing it up afterwards will be a good opportunity to edit, so that by the time the thing's on the computer in a usable format, it will be well on its way to finalized.

However, once I decided on that, I ran into the question... "So... WHAT am I supposed to write on?" Hence this thread.

Thanks for all the helpful responses! Right now I'm leaning towards loose leaf, so I can rearrange and add scenes at will. (Also, because I don't have a suitable notebook on hand...) Instead of buying a binder, I think I'm going to decorate these two nifty pieces of stiff cardboard I just reclaimed to make a special cover and backcover. I'll keep everything together with some bookrings I've got lying around. I'll let ya know how it goes.

Paper breathes ideas in ways no computer ever could. The leaves of endless whiteness whisper temptingly... The stroke of a black ink pen making a line on the blank page simply exudes mysteries of what has not been written, and what is yet to come...

*cough* Ahem. Beware ye followers: that may well end up as a drabble on my blog. Enough imagining! You may well have guessed I am a lover of the fair pen and its partner, paper.

I use lined, spiral bound notebooks for whatever I happen to write. As a few others have mentioned, my writing would look like errant snail tracks without those precious guiding lines. I also use a fineline black ink pen. Leftover from my arty side; where tracing pencil drawings with black ink works wonders.

I don't write entire novels in notebooks, but I do write excerpts, novel ideas, poetry, six word stories, plotlines, character names, anything and everything that may ever become useful I write in those.

Being a lefthander often has its trials, so being able to open the book and fold it back with the spirals is quite helpful.

Between excerpts/poetry/ideas, I usually leave several blank pages if I plan on coming back to write more. Just in case.

That is the end of my long ramble.

I always try and write all my work by hand first. I once didn't, computer crashed and I lost all my work. Lesson learned. I buy hardback, lined paper books and write all my stories/WIP in them; that way I have it all secure I can type it into the computer when I have finished, but there is no way I can lose it then.

I was starting to get that impression.

I'm not sure why we should beware of a nice drabble being on your blog, though.

College ruled lined paper with black pen in a two inch 3 ring binder is best for me.

It was a heads up, so when you see it there you don't go "Hey! I've read this already!"

Please do.


Yes, but we only got to read part of it. We'll be waiting to read the rest of it.

Yes, we will look forward to reading that.

I really love writing with Sharpies. It's so smooth - no scribbling to get the ink to flow! However, as normal Sharpies bleed, if I use them on plain lined paper, I'll only be able to use one side. Which is not necessarily a bad thing. (I do have some of the new "Sharpie Pens" that bleed less, but I think mine are running low on ink. )

Has anyone ever tried double-spacing while handwriting? If you're using lined paper, you could skip lines, as long as you remember to.

I always double space in the (very, very, infrequent) times I write in longhand. I generally always write first drafts in mechanical pencil, second drafts in Pilot G-2 pens (needless to say, I've never actually written a second draft in longhand, so I haven't written much longhand with pens). I usually use spiral bound or even just normal notebooks. 3 ring binds are good for editing, but then you have to lug this huge binder around. Personally, a book-size moleskin is great! That's what I will be writing the first draft of my realistic fiction novel in.

eru

I used to use composition notebooks with the glued spine and speckled cover until I realized how much faster I could write on a computer (I don't write cursive very well) and the ease of changing names and such.

You mean people still do that?!

*laughing out loud!*

Why yes, quite hard core, in fact.

That was my response too...until I remembered that I'd written an entire novel in hard copy when I was like...seven. Not fun.

*laughs * I was teasing. I've written long hand style before. I just greatly prefer my GearGrinder.

Airianna, dearest, keep it on topic. There are other threads if you want to discuss why or why not to longhand. I want to longhand, but for the life of me I can't figure out what paper to do it on! How pathetic is that? Hence this thread.

You and me both. Finally, someone who understands why I can't write on the computer.

I wish I could find more of those kinds of notebooks that are college ruled. Most of the time I have to choose between tape-wrapped and college ruled, so the college ruled spiral bound usually win.