I'm sure many bloggers often feel the same; struggling to get ideas down on the digital page. Recently thoughts of posts came and went but when I reflected on them; I couldn't make them work so they were left as scribbles in numerous notebooks.
And this brings me to the theme of this post; the appeal of analogue in these digital days.
I am seldom without my phone but there is something freeing in letting go of our digital devices and going back to the original.
Time
I have an Apple Watch. It’s fun and functional; I can check messages and emails, track my steps and activity, activate my camera: you name it; it does it.
However, recently I’ve been going back to my classic Timex weekender. A simple, minimal face that tells the time. What more could you want from a watch?
Notes
I've had a long and dedicated obsession with stationery, all the way back to school when I would get my new supplies before the start of term. I was wildly protective, rarely lending out pens and heaven help you if you graffitied my file or books.
Stemming from this is my habit of collecting notebooks. Some I use, some I keep pristine, out of fear of ruining them with messy handwriting, spelling errors or nonsensical notes. This, of course, defeats the prime purpose of a notebook.
I often prefer to draft blog posts in a notebook, throwing down ideas, titles and bullet points. Some make it to the blog, many languish unfulfilled due to my laziness, someone else beating me to the idea or they just aren't that interesting to anyone other than me.
This is my favourite (unused) notebook I currently have, a personalised gift from my friend at Christmas. The pen is one of the pieces my dad used to make in his shed so it's something of a family heirloom.
A classic black Moleskine notebook. To many Moleskine represents the premium investment in a notebook, there is a prestige to its pages (if such a thing can be said)
Outside my my comfort zone, this is an A4 size and therefore I am very intimidated by this notebook as I have even more of a blank page to fill. However, I have begun to personalise it with a pen loop and brass pen from my blog shop (hint hint)
I read Adventures in Stationery by James Ward at the end of last year (Yes, I am that into stationery) and one quote struck me on the shared fear some writers have of breaking in a new Moleskine notebook
I picked up a personalised Moleskine notebook in the Moleskine shop in Mitte, Berlin last summer and have yet to sully its pages. The navy Faux-skine is from Sainsbury's and has become my coffee journal.
My love of coffee is hopefully apparent to regular readers of my blog but not every coffee shop I visit or cup of coffee I drink has to be shared. This is where my coffee journal comes in. I take it with me on days out or on holidays and stamp each entry with a coffee ring and include my notes. Geeky? Undoubtedly yes. Anybody else's business? Undoubtedly no.
The notes app on a phone is a poor comparison to the scratch of pen on paper as you frantically try to keep your writing at the pace of your mind.
Free-form journalling, checklists and note-taking have been proven to help with some mental health issues, so don't be afraid to pick up that pad and pour out some thoughts that you need to share or don't want to keep trapped in your head.
Books
I do think it is hard to be a writer or blogger if you are not a reader. I have been an avid reader since childhood; growing up in the countryside with your closest school friend living at least 2 miles away, you had little else to occupy your time other than reading (This was pre-internet, this was when there was only 4 channels on the TV). We had a library van visit every other Friday and after devouring the works of Roald Dahl, Terry Pratchett and classics like Animal Farm, Watership Down and Little Women; I took whatever books I could, ranging from murder mystery to natural history.
I am currently on a natural history and nature writing kick. Not everyone's cup of tea but if you are as fascinated by nature as I am, these are definitely worth checking out.
Clockwise from top: H is for Hawk: Helen MacDonald, The Life of the Robin: David Lack & Wonderland: Brett Westwood and Stephen Moss
I had one of the first Kindles when it was launched, I loved the idea of having a library of books in one place. I took it with me whenever I knew I would have time to spare. It eventually was replaced with a Kindle Fire which was in turn replaced with an iPad Mini. I still use my iPad as a reading device but there is nothing like the tactile pleasure in reading a book.
I tend to have a few books in rotation at once as I am getting fickle in my old age. I hate to leave a book unfinished but will drop one if it isn't grabbing my attention, move on to another and return to the original in due time.
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Are you purely digital or do you enjoy unplugging and embracing some of the things as they were originally designed?
