I think it’s fun to show what the work of writing looks like. Here are two samples of the work that went into my post about Bill Griffith’s Photographic Memory .
When I’m writing anything of any length, particularly a review of a book or recording, I always begin by making notes in a notebook (here a Moleskine, 5″ × 8¼″), more notes than I’ll ever use. I then mark with a colored pencil everything I think I want to keep. And then I pull out a legal pad and write a very rough draft, always with a fountain pen (here a Kaweco), putting individual bits where I think they should go. And then I type in iA Writer, always revising along the way. And then I adjust small points here and there. And then I adjust small points here and there. And then I adjust small points here and there. And then I ask Elaine to read what I have. And then I heed her suggestions, virtually all of them (e.g., can not could, the United States not the States ). And then I adjust small points here and there.
[Page 1 of 5.]
[Page 1 of 2.]
I wrote a post like this one in 2021, How I write certain of my blog posts, and I’m not surprised to see that nothing in my workflow, as they call it, has changed. Though it is a different notebook, and a different legal pad, and a different fountain pen. But it’s still the same sloppy handwriting, because it was for my eyes only. Go ahead: just try to read it. I dare ya!
Related reading
Betty Sue Flowers on the madman, architect, carpenter, and judge (Writer’s roles)
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
A workflow sample
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comments: 8
if i really took the time i probably could read it. my dad's writing was much the same and it's just a matter of recognizing letters! i love seeing how people write. i'm still writing on paper first before typing up but in pencil.
kirsten
I've had many bits of my handwriting prove completely unintelligible after they're past their due date, so to speak. I wrote all of this for instant use, so it was still readable to me. In another week or so, I'm not so sure.
And then I put in a comma,
and then I take it out. 😄
No wonder your posts are so coherent. As readers of mine can likely figure out, I pretty much just wade right into writing them.
Usually I have some idea what I’ll be writing about, but sometimes I’m surprised.
Anyway, I love seeing behind the scenes: thanks!
Whatever works!
I get surprised, especially with endings. My original ending sentence here was “Smarter than the average graphic biography,” to reference Yogi Bear. But it occurred to me that 1. there’s no such thing as the average graphic biography, and 2. I was being way too cute. And then I decided to mention the photographs as a return to reality.
Do you write your 4-sentence movie reviews similarly?
I’d imagine so—they are tight little constructions!
I do those straight into iA Writer. The only note-taking I sometimes do is jotting down a line of dialogue. But I do a lot of editing within the four sentences.
I noticed the page numbers and wondered whether you do something similar when you are just reading — trying to understand a piece without having a writing project in mind.
I tend to collect page numbers for future reference on the last page of a book. With notes, I put them in so that I can find my way back to things, esp. to quotations. I have to admit that I do much less marking up as I read since I retired from teaching.
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