The Creative Consp’E’racy

Should Writing on Paper Cease to Remain an Art?

A vehement duel ensues for the umpteenth time in history. The scene is set by a blank canvas paired with an itch; one to see sprawling text as an overtone to its soft edges. In the corner hangs a crooked lack of inspiration by a noose, with broken sentences sheepishly strung together. When will moments like these cease to persist, the writer wonders. When will the odour of reeking rejection on the page be coated with the perfume of success?

It is in this metafictional ploy of writer’s block where exasperated writers encounter real-life embodiments of the very antagonists they penned down. A classic old feud, dating back to as far as 3200 BCE when archaeologists trace the beginning of creative writing. A feud between writers and their persistence to confront the blank…paper? Or screen?

The digital era is rapidly capturing the lifestyles of billions, with astonishing evidences of this in education that plays a significant role in inculcating a predominant writing habit in students. Laptops and tablets are increasingly dominating global classrooms, with “almost 70% of primary and secondary schools in the UK” now utilising a tablet according to ‘Tablets for School’. Amongst these figures, lies the inevitable uncertainty of the future of conventional pen and paper writing techniques. Evidence of this has been documented by an astonishing consensus in 2013 by American institutions that cursive writing be removed from the Common Core Curriculum Standard.

The fundamental driving force of any proficient literary work is creativity, which psychological studies and the claims of renowned literary figures emphasise on by advocating for the pen. Author Lee Rourke recalls that “Writing longhand, the whole process keeps me in touch with writing. It’s a deep-felt, uninterrupted connection between thought and language; evoking the idea of craft”. Experts such as Eduoard Gentaz have established this as “a complex task” and a “precise motor skill” as a Genevian Professor of Development Psychology. Specialist of coding manuscripts, Claire Bustarret elaborates on its “greater graphic freedom with three dimensions” in comparison to a standardised processing software. “Words crossed out, corrected bits scribbled in the margin leave a visual and tactile record of your work in its creative stages” she elucidates.

Whilst many argue that typing is pivotal to engaging in the active cyber revolution, the writing process on paper fuels more organic and empathically raw script and inspiration. The meditative practice of the scratching of pen against paper, relentless and frustrated scratches that birth magnificent prose is a timeless art that cannot be tamed by the mechanics of fibre coated wires. English novelist Niven Govinden states that “A blank screen is not conducive to good writing”, corroborated by Roland Jouvent, as the head of adult psychiatry in a Parisian institution who says that “Operating a keyboard is not the same at all: all you have to do is press the right key. Handwriting is the result of a singular movement of the body, typing is not.”

Scientific studies have displayed remarkable results of the strengthening of neural pathways created by creative writing on paper. Dr. Martin Lotze, from the University of Greifswald, Germany discovered the effects that creative writing on paper had on the hippocampi of his 28 volunteers. The activity of crucial visual processing centres increased, with emphasis on both speech and visual oriented cortexes. It additionally led to the engagement of left-hemisphere brain areas, relating to the “overall success in learning and memory” by this distinguished mental and motor skill.  

“Creativity is a perversely difficult thing to study” concludes Dr. Lotze. Should we allow technological progress to overtake the fundamental institution of writing? Are the simple conveniences of speed and efficiency associated with technology justifiable to overpower writing completely?

---

Written by Tejashwini Prashar