Wednesday was World Stationery Day and the aim of the day is to get people all over the world talking and writing about stationery because writing matters. So in the spirit of the day we were both working on our manuscripts.

World Stationery Day is now in its third year and not only does it bring stationery lovers all over the world together through social media like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, it also champions writing by hand. We both write our first-drafts long-hand and type them up. The Pilot V Ball Grip 07 blue is my favourite all time pen for writing by hand. It is a liquid-ink rollerball with a medium cone nib and writes very smoothly without scratching the paper.

Writing something by hand has more impact, especially if you are sending a gift or personal message to someone. It is something that can be treasured and means so much more than a hastily typed message.

In a recent YouGov poll conducted on behalf of National Stationery Week, 92% of adults said it is important to be able to write by hand and 97% said that they felt it is important for children to still be taught handwriting at school. It is also interesting to note that the research has shown that almost a third (29%) had sent a handwritten letter or note in the previous month.

I believe writing with a pen or pencil opens up my brain and enables me to express myself much more fluently than a keyboard.

How do you write your first drafts?

Anita

I also write my first draft long hand. I know, we are so old-fashioned at Papers Pens Poets but using up our supplies of notebooks gives us the perfect excuse to go out and buy some more.

I agree with Anita the words flow more freely from the brain to the page when I use a pen. I also mark up my manuscript with editorial notes before making changes on screen. I do write straight to screen too, but it’s normally adding to an existing draft rather than writing virgin material.

It’s interesting to hear how other writers get the words down on paper so do comment below to let us know and don’t forget you can contact us if you want to be featured on Papers Pens Poets.

Here I am at my desk surrounded by scrunched up pieces of paper which is the sign of a good days work.

Writing matters on #worldstationeryday and every day.

Jo