I don’t do posts like this very often, but I’ve been getting asked a lot by my community what writing tools I use and love. So I thought it would be fun to do a post where I share what I use and why I love it.
Notebooks
If you’re anything like me, you have a slight obsession with notebooks (or more than slight–HA!). I used to spend hours standing in the notebook aisle at Target and Barnes and Noble.
And it was there that I discovered my all-time favorite notebook: Moleskine.
God, I love Moleskines. There’s just something about the feel of it, the way my pen glides across the smooth pages, that gets me all excited. And, as you know, if something feels good, I’m gonna do more of it.
A few years ago, I actually made the decision that I wouldn’t use any other notebook aside from a Moleskine. I even gave away all of the journals and notebooks I had purchased over the years but didn’t use.
And I stuck with that for awhile.
I still buy, love and use Moleskines to this day, but I’ve also started to use this other brand of notebook called Minimalism Art. To be honest, I still like Moleskines better, but I also really like the size and color and style of these Minimalism Art notebooks.
Pens
I’m old-school and I love to write stuff by hand still. I don’t do my actual writing by hand (’cause that would be a little crazy, even for me), but I do all of my notes and brainstorming and planning by hand. And that requires a really good pen.
When I’m looking for a pen, I have the following criteria:
- Easy to hold and write with
- Glides smoothly across the page (this also has to do with the paper in your notebook of choice)
- Feels good to hold it
- I can write with it for hours if I want to and won’t have pain
- Blue ink (it’s a non-negotiable for me)
Not many pens have passed the criteria test. So when I found one that did, I’ve pretty much stuck with it ever since.
My long-time pen of choice has been the Dr. Grip.
I love the feeling of it, and the finger-pad makes it easy to hold it and write with it for hours. I also love that I can refill it and just keep using it. I’ve had the same pen for YEARS!
And I carry ink refills for it in my purse, just in case I’m out and about and I run out of ink (such is the life of a writer!).
Laptops and Such
I got my first MacBook Pro for my 30th birthday and I’ve been hooked ever since. I literally refuse to use any other computer besides a Mac. I’m an Apple girl.
And when my 30th-birthday MacBook Pro died (thanks to someone spilling iced tea under it and not cleaning it up–and no, it wasn’t me), I took it to the computer repair shop to see if they could fix it.
But I also went out and bought myself a brand new MacBook Air. You know, just in case.
And I’ve been using it ever since. I run my entire writing business from it. I travel with it. I love the way it feels to write with it.
The only problem with MacBooks is they’re not always super wallet-friendly.
And that’s why I LOVE Groupon! Last summer, I helped my boyfriend find the perfect MacBook for his creative goals and budget using the offers I found on the Groupon site. He was able to get a really nice, professionally refurbished 13″ MacBook Air for under $500! (If you’re on a budget and in the market for a MacBook, I’d head over there pronto.)
I also have an iPad Pro and two iPhones (an older one and my current phone)–all of which I use for my writing biz in some capacity.
Software
And I wouldn’t have a complete post about my favorite writing tools without mentioning the software I swear by.
There are three different writing softwares I use (four if you also count Pages on my Mac). I have a different reason for using each one.
First up is Scrivener. I love this for writing novels and nonfiction books.
It’s so easy to organize everything and I especially love it because I don’t like writing linearly. I like to jump around, and since I pre-plan my stories and books before I write them, Scrivener allows me to write in a way that works best for me.
The next software I use is FinalDraft. I use this specifically for writing screenplays.
I know you can write a screenplay in Scrivener, it has formatting and templates for it, but I like to embody the identity of who I desire to be.
And who I desire to be is a well-paid screenwriter (among many other things #Multipassionate). So I figured I’d invest in the same software the pros in Hollywood use.
I’ve used it to write four screenplays, so I think it was worth it.
The final software I use for my writing is WriteRoom. It’s an app I found out about from a mentor of mine.
It’s not the most sophisticated software–it’s very bare-bones and doesn’t even have bold/italic formatting or a spelling and grammar checker.
But if you need something to help you write without distractions and keep you motivated when you see the word count piling up, this is a great software.
I mostly use it for journaling and for brainstorming and writing out my thoughts/ideas. It’s also great for brain-dumping.
These are all of the writing tools I use and love!
