Nerds and tinkering go together like pizza and coke. In fact, it's almost as though one cannot exist without the other. In the case of pizza and coke there's no problem, but nerds and tinkering? Hoo boy.

Writings nerds are among the worst when it comes to tinkering. Whether it's a new app to make opening their favorite app a third of a second faster, or a "distraction-free writing environment," there’s always something new and shiny for a writing nerd to play with.

You spend hours, days, weeks trying app after app to find The Perfect Writing App. Finally you stumble across it – and it is beautiful. Black words on a sea of white. Or white words on a sea of black, if that’s more your style.

Only, you notice something strange. There are no words on your screen. Your screen is a sea of nothingness, devoid of any words. You sir, are an idiot staring at a blank screen. Instead of you know, writing, as a writer should do, you've spent your time searching for the ultimate writing tool.

Buying and trying apps can be useful, even fun. But you know what it isn't? It isn't writing. Writing is writing. Sit down at your keyboard, open up whatever writing app you happen to have on your computer, and type. This smart cat once said that words are found in a keyboard, and you just have to bang on it to make the words come out.

I think that is close to the truth, but not quite. The words, you see, are actually in your fingers. Not everyone's fingers have good words in them, and even if your fingers do have good words, they won’t always be good. That's OK, just so long as you start writing. Your fingers have a story to tell. Let them.

You can use any writing app you like, on any device you like.1 The specifics aren't important. Writing is.

Don't be an idiot staring at a blank screen, even if it's the most beautiful blank screen you can imagine.


  1. Well, you should use a Mac or iOS device, but that’s beside the point.