dsandler.org/wp

Seriously, I thought E was nuts, telling me to
try writing tricky prose in longhand before hitting the computer.

Damn if she wasn’t right (as usual). On the computer, ideas fly out
of my brain as fast as I can come up with them — which is
very much faster than I can sort through and focus
them. On the page, however, writing takes time. I can actually
think ahead a little, and plan my next argument. Also, the page is not
“blessed” with the power of destructive deletion; as I make edits, the
old versions are all there for me to see, informing each new attempt,
giving context to the evolution of the text. The computer,
on the other hand, makes it all too easy to write yourself around in
circles when you can delete words as fast as you can type them.

Also, scribbling things down on dead trees gives me an excuse to use my nice pens,
which in turn makes the
process of writing more fun and helps me stay focused on the words.