This image, for all you kinderbloggers out there, is called a “typewriter.” You see, back in days of yore, in the “olden days”, computers hadn’t been invented, and when they were finally invented, they filled entire sterile rooms with vacuum tubes, which were little devices we used before transistors and diodes, which meant among other things that it took 90 seconds from the time you turned your radio on until the sound came out. You also didn’t want to drop your radio on the floor… but I digress. Back in these olden days of yore before computer ubiquity, we used these typewriter contraptions with mechanical actions that forced a little “arm” to strike a piece of paper through a carbonized ribbon when you struck a key. Bold? Strike the key a little harder. Edit? Argh. Those erasers always sucked… sometimes it was easier to start over or strikeout your text, depending whether or not it was a your final copy or a rough draft.
For those of you who know what I’m talking about, I learned to type on a big old Underwood, the kind that reporters and office workers used. I’ve still got it, sort of for inspiration. Some authors, like Farley Mowat never did make a switch to computers, continuing to use a manual typewriter long past the days when replacement ribbons became rare as hen’s teeth (If you kinderbloggers are still reading, that’s another olden days expression). By the way, here’s a good tip to keep from getting accosted by “helpful” sales staff in office supply or computer electronics stores — just walk around carrying obviously an old ribbon from a dot-matrix printer. Works like a charm!
Anyway, the point of all this is that I sent a Photoshop file to a couple of journeymates to make sure it opened up properly without any surprises since I use GIMP instead. Preflight came out just fine… which is good, because it’s my book cover! I have vowed to upload the beast today and get my proof shipped out. Check it out — as I mentioned yesterday, the cover art concept is from my wife (wise woman that she is) who insisted I draw it myself. The ghost image in the background is my own touch… it may not be clear here, but the point should come across when you hold the book in your hot little hands. After yesterday’s, uh, transparent post, my wife (wise woman that she is — I have to add that now when I mention her name) said some nice things and made me some eggs for breakfast this morning. She said I’d earned some “husband points.” I can always use more of those! The phrase (at least for us) is from a Sally Forth comic where Sally tells Ted that the roses he bought were “So expensive!” and the thought running though his mind is “No they’re not — not when you measure them in ‘Husband points’.”
Anyhoo. I’m thinking about the end of this project and moving on to another, trying not to forget my book on missional language and remembering that Fear is What Drives Writer’s Block (with which I think I tend to agree, unfortunately). But this one’s done, and permissions have now arrived for some songs I’ve got dropped into the complines as evening canticles. So back to the point. Or the other point. I’ve got a few books sitting behind me on my (other) desk as I type… things like Thomas Merton and Annie Dillard on writing… and I find I’m drawn to movies like Finding Forrester and shows like Men in Trees which feature writers. Unlike me, those people all have agents, publicists, and publishers, but they’re fictional anyway. That’s one way of saying I think there’s a lot about the writer’s life that fails to meet romantic expectations… but the feeling at the end of a project isn’t one of them. So Bill Kinnon sent me a YouTube video in honour of the day… see below (or click through if you’re reading via RSS). And now that you kinderbloggers know what a “typewriter” is, some of the images in this montage should make more sense! Bill’s a fine journeymate, one of a number that I’ve been blessed with. I mean, “with which I’ve been blessed.” Gotta make you think I still remember my grammar. ;^)
So who’s your favorite fictional author? Not author of fiction, but fictional character in a book or on the screen who is an author or writer.
I remember typing a four page paper on one of those manual typewriters back in ninth grade. I used one finger and I couldn’t move it the next day.
Ah the typewriter, it had it’s problems, but at least it didn’t “crash” just when you were finishing something important;-)
I started on an ancient Underwood as well. DING! ZIP!
Favourite fictional writer? Can’t recall any. But I really liked “All The President’s Men”, starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman — one of the best journalism movies of all time, along with “Absence of Malice” starring Paul Newman and Sally Fields (this one wasn’t as inspiring as “President’s Men”, but it was a strong statement on some of the very real pitfalls of modern journalism).
Ah, see what happens when you mention Underwood typewriters to a former Radio, Television & Journalism major? :)
Can’t remember the model or anything but by Mom had this manual typewriter in a kinda aqua-green case that it never came out of. I remember me and my brother pecking around on it and to this day I’ve never had a typing lesson and think some of the “patterns” of my typing were learned on that old typewriter.
Favorite fictional author? Since my mind has gone blank, I’ll just say Bilbo from the LOTR. He wasn’t necessarily an author by trade but he was writing a whopper of a book.
Congratulations!!
My own cover experience was not so nice. I didn’t even know Eerdmans had chosen a cover or indeed that they would do so without any input at all from the author.
In case you are wondering, they do. If you are an author (dealing in traditional publishing) and want any input, you have to speak up or they will just go right on.
I actually looked up my book at Amazon.com to see the cover for the first time.
I’m glad not to be the only one who remembers the the typewriter! We had electric typewriters for college, of course… you could buy a cheap laptop now for less than some of those things cost.
RLP, you inspired me with the story of your remaindered book. Too bad they didn’t ask you about the cover… they could have done better, so now I know it wasn’t your fault! Robbymac’s book is due out — what, Rob, any day? — but Kingsway did give him some input into the cover.
Brian, I think Bilbo is an excellent nomination… writing without some grandiose vision of posterity or self-importance, just writing things down for himself and those who are important to him. Writing like that is always better, I find.
Brian…dude…you absolutely stole my thunder! I was thinking of good old Bilbo and The Red Book myself…and of his having the cheek to write (and recite) about Earendil in Elrond’s house…not to mention his wonderful verses for The Dunadan, “…not all those who wander are lost…”
I actually got very good at correcting typos on both ink ribbon (ugly) and carbon ribbons (easy with a good xacto knife and a steady hand)…it was fixing the carbon copies that was a drag and a smeary mess!…not unlike those purple ditto masters! Ha! I even remember learning how to count out the spaces with the Executive (proportional spacing) typewriters for doing newsprint columns that were right justified. Now that was a lot of work! And those of us who also played piano had much better success because our fingers (especially pinky and ring fingers) were strong already ;^) We used to type the words to popular songs to get into a rhythm (we also used to take shorthand to songs for the same reason)…I was fortunate to have creative instructors!
Yes…The Abbess knows her way around all the ancient office equipment! We picked up a portable manual for my oldest son and have not been able to find a ribbon for it…yet!