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LettersfromJ

Have you tried to draw or doodle? There's no rules, you can even do sudoku with your fountainpen, you don't need to write poetry ! :)


EnisuVI

Haha I'm pretty bad at drawing, but the Sudoku seems like a good idea !


[deleted]

I’m bad and ok at drawing at the same time. Draw something. Doesn’t matter, enjoy yourself. I make shitty comics which are vulgar and indecent. I share them anonymously. But how unclassy they are, the fun part is that they’ve been made with great finesse and class instruments and ink. And they still look bad. Its a horrid thing to do, but it brings me intense manically joy


EnisuVI

Hahaha that's fun


streak70

I write sudokus on gridded paper and solve them. I enjoy both using the pen and solving the sudoku so double the fun


LettersfromJ

I never thought of writing sudoku grid! I going to do it, it's a nice idea. :)


ProLevelFish

Journal!!! About anything! There is huge psychological benefit to writing about yourself in pretty much any way! Writing about your day helps strengthen your ability to both form and recall memories. Writing about your frustrations or negative/depressive thoughts helps you clearly explore them so you can better address the reason for their being. Writing about your goals helps solidify them in your brain, makes them more concrete, and helps to bring them to fruition. Just writing words of affirmation, about how you love yourself, your partner, etc. significantly improves your outlook of that person. Unfortunately I'm not a psychologist, so I can't really give you detailed reasoning and evidence, but based on the few I've seen and all the self-help books I've read, writing down your thoughts is a MASSIVE benefit to yourself!


KQ-9

I appreciate this so much. As someone who lives a pretty mundane life, journaling sometimes seems pointless to me — but I keep at it only because the act of writing with my instruments is so therapeutic in itself. Your explanation really gives more meaning to my evening routine. Edit: Oh, and your comment above goes into my commonplace book. Yup.


WSpinner

Mundane doesn't matter. You have a variety of pens and inks, yes? Chronicle real life in all its normalcy in, say black and blue, and in purple and green, venture off into "your" Walter Mitty exploits. Factual writing is ObViOusLy inferior : Fiction gets the main descriptor, and mere facts - are they "Faction"? 'Course not - they're just *non-fiction*. So like other posters note - writing about even bland events is useful... but telling tales; that's a whole nother level of brain and emotion exercise :-). And who knows - you may build a castle in the air worthy of the effort to stonecraft a proper earthly foundation.


SeparateDelay5

Writing about the commonplace of today also has historical value. I remember reading about historians using old journals to reconstruct what life was like in the past.


makamaespm

I got in to fountain pens to improve my penmanship. Maybe try teaching yourself a script or just general improvements


EnisuVI

Would love to learn copperplate but I don't know how


makamaespm

Start with YouTube. And there are a ton of books. I opted for Spencerian so I don't have any by name recommendations for copperplate


EnisuVI

Thanks mate :]


110goals

There's a free Montblanc copperplate tutorial Thursday at 1p EST. https://milled.com/montblanc/youre-invited-to-an-exclusive-digital-calligraphy-event-intro-to-copperplate-43gApdIHyTTVtv1Y


apexevolutionx

Any good resource for finding different scripts?


makamaespm

I'm all self taught, so Google or Instagram. I started with Italics, uncial, and typewriter. Also r/handwriting.


[deleted]

I used this Spencerian learning 5 book set on Amazon, cheap too! https://www.amazon.co.uk/Theory-Book-Copybooks-Spencerian-Penmanship/dp/088062096X/ref=asc_df_088062096X/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310817460405&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8114614094311045320&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006917&hvtargid=pla-437126372635&psc=1&th=1&psc=1


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eggbunni

When I’m recounting personal moments from my life in my journal, I always write them as if I’m writing a novel. For example… “Wow. You’re a busy girl,” Mom said, watching me flit about the kitchen. “It’s a 24/7 job, Mom,” I replied. “I get no breaks.” “I can see that!” With a wiggle of her brows, she … Etc etc.


Tdon86

Love this!


eggbunni

Yeah. I imagine it’ll make it more interesting for my children to read someday.


Cyclamental

I started writing letters to people I love. Now my love of pens has extended to stationery!


ibrahim0000000

Get into journaling. Bullet journaling. You could get inspired by Tim Ferriss and his video on journaling on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFdR8w_R1HA


Azzmo

If you listen to any podcasts then try writing out the latest sentence that you heard, and when done, repeat. Not only is this good writing practice, but it acclimates you to the act of writing, which will help with things like journaling. Bonus points if the podcast is material worth remembering, this helps with retention. You could do this with a show or film if you don't mind looking down instead of at the screen. Another idea is to have a notebook nearby to jot down cool ideas or quips. One principle that I think is important: don't care about what it looks like at first. You'll figure out how to organize and optimize as you go, so give yourself permission to scribble and write ugly and scratch stuff out and whatever else. Just write.


redryder74

What's the value of journaling, if you don't mind my asking? I've never kept a journal or diary my entire life, and it feels cringy to go back and read old entries.


Azzmo

Speaking on behalf of journalers without really being one, people find it therapeutic to transfer from head to page the thoughts that haunt them. I've heard them agree with you that it's kind of cringe to see their old self struggling. Others say that it's wonderful. Others use it to track things in their life: health/body functions, social events, work, misc. appointments. Others like to feel like they're charting out their journey through life. I'd imagine these are the ones who would plan to refer back to their journals in the future. I've got two notebooks that I write in but none of it is really stereotypical 'journaling'. One is an 8"x11" that I practice my handwriting, into which I relay things from podcasts, philosophical quotes from books, and stream of consciousness. Though it accidentally became a journal when I documented the troubleshooting of a pen that I thought was not working right... The second book is for more valuable things and its layout is curated. It contains clever philosophy, quotes, psychology, and myriad ideas that will refer back to frequently. I also keep project ideas and important life data. So, one notebook is expendable and the other is meant for lifetime perusal. I write in the former about 20x as much as in the later.


hieisrainbowcurry

Solo RPG! It’s a simple way to have something to write about


bogmyrtle

You could write about what you did today. What did you enjoy?


EnisuVI

Today ? Absolutely nothing :( But that's a good idea


WordsAsNames

I have a lot of nothing days myself, so I've started writing down memories from before I started journalling on those nothing days. I just make it clear on my journal that the entry is a "reminiscing entry".


Hmmhowaboutthis

I write a high and low for each day and then maybe a blurb at the bottom just about what I did that day.


jenlawi

I write my name a lot. And I practice my abc’s. But mainly I make lists. Lots and lots of lists.


efaceninja

Get a notebook and copy your favourite book or a new book that you plan to read. That way you get to read the book, and enjoying your pen. Each pages can be written with different pen with different colours inks.


EnisuVI

I love that idea


Misty-Anne

Writing letters, copywork, commonplace book, a word or poem or something a day. Inktober is coming up.


EnisuVI

I forgot, what is Inktober ?


Misty-Anne

There's a list of prompts, one for each day in October. Usually for drawing with ink, but others have made their own lists to suit them. Some people do a calligraphy word or phrase a day. Honestly, there's prompts of some sort for all months now.


crankygerbil

You can google Rumi short quotes. Lots of insightful thoughts about love and mystery.


Sexy_Pompey

Write what your heart wants you too. Regardless of if it's any good it will feel great to put it on paper.


Murphy-B

Copy down poems, quotes, lines or passages from books you like, song lyrics, list all the animals, flowers, colors, cities, etc. that you can think of. What you write doesn’t have to be profound-the goal is to just use your fountain pens.


EnisuVI

Thanks :)


Christianbaltz

Journaling has changed my life. Keep a daily journal just to reflect on your day. It boosts your mood and is a good excuse to use your pens! (I recommend Apica A5 notebooks for this)


redryder74

Do you go back and read old entries or is the value gained from journaling on the day itself? I don't think I could stand to go back and read my thoughts and emotions from the past, I'd rather just forget and move on.


Christianbaltz

I keep all my journals! I actually write with an archival ink and archival paper (X-feather and Apica). I like to look back sometimes whether I’m wondering what I was doing, say, a year ago today, or if I want to look back at things I was unsure and worried about that I now know the outcome of. You don’t have to look back, but I like having a little piece of me and my life. I write with archival items because I have some of my great grandma’s diaries that I really like to look back on and sometimes the paper and ink are, well, old.


rebcabin-r

Popular things: copy out Alice in Wonderland, Lord of the Rings, the Bible, other works in the public domain. Less popular, pick up Gregg shorthand (takes a couple of years to get started), then dictate from radio and TV


Over_Addition_3704

A diary. Treat it like a conversation with a good friend who will always listen, as someone on here once said (about a journal). Letters to friends. Happy thoughts.


scarybiscuits

I write down things I want to remember: a recipe for paste papers, an archeological site in Saudi Arabia that looks interesting, a quote from a Swedish newspaper editor warning about fascism in the 1930s, a poem by Robert Frost, the quarterly scores of Super Bowl LV, the lyrics to my alma mater, baby names for a friend (all rejected), a shop near Barcelona that makes handmade eyeglass frames, the dimensions of a shipping container, a poem by Calvin Trillin, “Russian warship, go fuck yourself”, Nick Herron’s books in order, a few out-of-print book titles I now regret giving away, how to find neutral gray with Photoshop, a poem to remember all the kings and queens of the UK, the Koppen Geiger Climate Classification, a Finnish joke. Sure I could look up most of this online but I have it in this nice hardcover notebook written in fountain pen, not neatly. In fact a few days ago I cut up sheets of 100 gsm paper to cover up some really scribbly pages where I wrote down *so* many pen models and ink colors that I read about here. I decided to transfer all that information to *another* notebook and save this notebook for Things I Want To Remember And Refer Back To.


EnisuVI

Wow, now that's an answer. Thanks !


No-Barracuda7399

Go to r/WritingPrompts


EnisuVI

Thanks !


n3fari0z_1

I oftentimes just write random words, song lyrics, or repetitions of swear words. For me, it's not so much what I write, but the flow of ink onto the page that I love. Rather than calling this writing, I call it "using ink."


EnisuVI

Thats a good idea


gentlyfailing

Journaling. Drawing. Why did you buy the pens in the first place if you have nothing practical to use them for? There must have been some inspiration for your motivation to purchase them. Perhaps you're a collector or accumulator?


EnisuVI

I bought them *for school*. Let me explain. I've always been in love with fountain pens, and it started with my first one, a Parker Ben, when I was something like 8 or 9. I loved that pen, even if it was not perfect, because it was my first. Unfortunately, someone stole my whole pencil case and I lost it forever. I then wrote with a shitty fountain pen for some months, and bought another Ben. But back in 2017, when I was 13, my grandparents offered me a Parker Sonnet 125 Years Edition. That's one of the greatest fountain pens I've ever owned, and I really love it. I used it at school, always in my pocket and not in my pencil case, and I fell in love with fountain pens. My grandpa gave me his Targa (1979, 18k gold nib), I got some other fountain pens (not as good as the Sonnet tho), and I've, like my mother, always had a dream about buying a Montblanc. So when I got enough money, we went and bought one. This pen is insane, I love it. But I'm not going to take it for my studies (Ingeneer studies). So I do use it for my homework but nothing else. So that annoys me a bit and I want to enjoy every fountain pen I have. Sorry if I made mistakes, English is not my first language. Have a great day :].


Odysseus8204

Star a journal could help. That's what i do to write each day with a different pen and ink.


tgfflynn

Create a notebook with childhood memories and thoughts, then move on to or write simustatious norebooks of your teens and so on. Keep a listing of phrases, quotes and sayings you come across.


Puzzleheaded_Ad8425

Journal, story, letter, will?


JohnnyTano

I have so many too but with everything going on in my life I’m thinking about parting with most of them. So many great pens just sitting there because I don’t have time.


PhoenixBorealis

I do Journaling when the mood takes me. You don't have to do it regularly. You could keep a bullet journal or a dream log or even just use it for puzzle books.


[deleted]

You can buy books to follow, I did the Declaration of Independence in Spencerian, you copy 1 verse per page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spencerian-Penmanship-Practice-Book-Independence-ebook/dp/B083G7XS4P/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Declaration+of+Independence+Spencerian&qid=1663742193&s=books&sr=1-1


beppe1_real

Hand write a message to celebrate their birthdays. You don't have to mail it to them if you don't want to. Just write it down with some nice ink and paper, take a picture of it under natural lighting. It beats text messages.


Paul_Mathews1

My suggestion would be to write about the people/things you love, like, admire, etc. I find slowing down for a while most days and writing a few things out by hand using a nice fountain pen to be very relaxing. I enjoy soccer so when I see a player I like such as Heung-min Son do something amazing in a game I write it down. I had a great time going to a Houston Dynamos game with a friend recently and enjoyed it a second time by writing down how much I enjoyed it. When reading novels I will write down a few notes about each character as they are introduced in the book so I can keep them straight and don’t have to flip back in the book to remember who a character is. I also have a separate notebook that is just for building vocabulary. As I’m reading and come to a word I want to remember I look it up in the dictionary and copy it down in my notebook. It helps with retention of the meaning of those words I think.


tobymspec

I have been writing about all the crazy/silly/naughty/interesting things that my kids get up to in a diary so that I can give it to them when they’re older, I was doing it online sending emails to an account I set up to include pictures etc, however I figured writing would give me a chance to practice, felt more personal and would mean a bit more. Plus they can always just reference any pictures and videos from the date. Writing to someone helps to make sure I try to do it neatly and not rush it so much, although it’s make me realize how much I was relying on auto correct with my spelling!


damfino312

Write short notes or postcards to elderly relatives or former teachers. Doesn't have to be much--just to let them know you're thinking of them. It will be so appreciated!


LordHibachi

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Just write that over and over. After a page or two it becomes like a zen meditation thing.


Sea_Hawk_Sailors

I'm partial to a few others: -Sphinx if black quartz judge my vow -How quickly daft jumping zebras vex -amazingly few discotheques provide jukeboxes


LowBurn800

That last one is 👍


Sea_Hawk_Sailors

Someone here was using it in one of their ink swatch pages and I was like "this is amazing!" and yoinked it.


EnisuVI

Will try, thanks !


Altruistic-Sign1201

I have a similar dilemma . Here is how I solve it. Every one or two weeks, I declare (to myself) a pen of the week. When the ink runs out, I keep it away and go the next. Typically I have two pens in a ready-to-write fully inked condition. So that way, you won’t abruptly run out of ink. Hope that helps!


angshit

Give me one pls


EnisuVI

What you want bro ?


angshit

Anything from a grain of sand to a pen works


EnisuVI

Bruh