Technology & Writing

Tip of the Day: My birthday is next week! I'm going to give away a whole bunch 'o' stuff on my blog. It should go live sometime on Sunday. Check it out!

When I was a little kid, I knew I wanted to be a writer. I pulled out my parents' 900 lb. typewriter. I found some really old blank paper that was browning nicely around the edges (my mom hoards paper and pens - it is any wonder I'm a writer?), I measured and cut it to be the same size as a page in a paperback book. I carefully rolled it into the typewriter and pounded out my latest masterpiece.

http://www.spinetinglermag.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/typewriter.jpg

Once I was a little older, like 9 or so, I realized that wasn't how books were made. Instead of wasting my time cutting (I really sucked at using scissors and had to be taught separate from the other kids, using specialized scissors - true story), I filled up page after page after page in notebooks. My parents were pretty tech-forward and I graduated to an Apple IIe soon enough. I printed out pages upon pages of my stories.

(I don't remember my parents even once telling me I was using too much paper - thanks Mom & Dad!)

After high school graduation, I bought my first computer with help from my dad. The rest is history. It couldn't get any better, right? That's what I thought.

Now my writing arsenal is filled with tons of great technology. It's a dream come true.

Today I own an iMac. It's my main hub. I was a PC lover my entire life. While I have to say that I do love my iMac, I really don't find it any more useful than my old PCs. Probably because I was very good with computers (my ex was a computer science engineer - I could build a PC from scratch if I needed to). There wasn't much I didn't know about PCs. But, the iMac makes my integration a tad easier.

I also have an iPad. I convinced my husband I needed it to write. Little did I know how handy it has become. I can write on my iPad with a Bluetooth keyboard. I can easily sync files between my iPad and my iMac.

I also have a Time Capsule, that serves not only as a backup to my computer, but also a wifi router in my house. Now I don't have to worry about losing my work if the iMac dies.

It's so easy for me to write anytime/anyplace with pretty much any of my devices - including my iPhone which I use to take notes (text & voice) when I'm away from home.

Now before you start whining that this sounds like a commercial for Apple, trust me, there are PLENTY of ways to do the same thing with PC devices. I just don't own them and am speaking from personal experience.

Bottom line - There is always a way for me to write, whether I'm at home, on the go, or hanging out in my car waiting for my children. There's no excuses. Now Apple just needs to invent a device that helps me block all of this out so I can have a break once in a while. ;)

Megg, Miss Enchanted ePubber

Technology: your best friend and your worst enemy

Tip of the Day: for all of you social networking fans, there's a newer site called Riffle that Publisher's Weekly has called "the Pinterest of book discovery." Tara Lazar did a good summary post about it here.

This weekend my power was out for almost a full four days, thanks to the storms that passed through the area. Luckily, I already had an extended weekend trip planned, so I missed most of it and it didn't effect me much. But the one day I was home, it was a good reminder of how dependent I am on electricity.

So much so that's it's slightly frightening.Without my iPhone I might have gone crazy with no access to the Internet or email.

Every time we experience a blackout I can't help but think of the book Life As We Know It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, partially because while reading the post apocalyptic book we ironically suffered a blackout in my town and the last half was read using a flashlight in the pitch dark. Every time this happens my mind starts to wonder what life would be like if we were faced with these conditions or at the very least we had no power for an extended period of time.

If I had no power, I have no clue how I could continue writing my novels.

I don't think I could write long hand. I've heard many people speak of the wonders of writing this way, but it isn't for me. I despise writing anything of length with a pen or pencil. Mostly because after two sentences my hand feels like it will fall off. Though typing with the same hand does not effect me that way.

So I suppose if I was without power, I'd have to find an old typewriter. Or I guess maybe just resort to composing stories in my head and be content with sharing those instead of writing them down.

What about you? If you were without power for an extended time, do you think you'd still need to write in some capacity?

--Emily, Miss Querylicious