Coolest writer tool EVER!
I recently bought the coolest writer tool ever--a digital voice recorder. No more fumbling in my glove box for a notebook when I'm stopped in traffic. No more having to jump off the treadmill when I think of that perfect line that's been eluding me. No more trying to decipher my notes after a phone call with my agent or editor. And when I'm rehearsing for a book reading, I can have the unparalleled joy of hearing how twangy and Southern I sound, and being able to say, "Please tell me I don't sound like that. Elves with a Southern accent -- jeez!"
And the recorder is incredibly tiny. The manual is twice as thick as the recorder. And it has "bells & whistles" that I'll never come close to using. I'll have to get Derek to show me how to download MP3s. (I hate reading techie manuals.) And the coolest of all cool, just a push of a button and the recorder opens, comes apart, and one half of it plugs right into my USB port to download files.
Though I'll have to be careful how and especially where I use it. If I'm planning an evil character's demise, it'd probably be a bad idea to stand in line at Target and say into the recorder: "How should I kill him? Hmmm, let's see. Oh, I know! Evisceration. Perfect!" Though if I was trying to attract store security, that'd probably do the trick. A good rule of thumb is: Always record responsibly.
So how much use have I gotten out of my great, fabulous and utterly cool new toy? Uh, none. I'm hopelessly addicted to pen and paper.
And the recorder is incredibly tiny. The manual is twice as thick as the recorder. And it has "bells & whistles" that I'll never come close to using. I'll have to get Derek to show me how to download MP3s. (I hate reading techie manuals.) And the coolest of all cool, just a push of a button and the recorder opens, comes apart, and one half of it plugs right into my USB port to download files.
Though I'll have to be careful how and especially where I use it. If I'm planning an evil character's demise, it'd probably be a bad idea to stand in line at Target and say into the recorder: "How should I kill him? Hmmm, let's see. Oh, I know! Evisceration. Perfect!" Though if I was trying to attract store security, that'd probably do the trick. A good rule of thumb is: Always record responsibly.
So how much use have I gotten out of my great, fabulous and utterly cool new toy? Uh, none. I'm hopelessly addicted to pen and paper.
Labels: digital voice recorder
posted by Lisa Shearin at
7:54 AM
5 Comments:
I have one of those, but it's kind of old and hard to use. I still stick with my pen and paper as well. But I'll occasionally remember that I have it. It's in my purse, just in case.
I even bought an aqua leather case for it. Actually it's for an iPod Nano, but it fits. So it looks really good while it's untouched and unused in my purse (aka "the luggage"). I gave up trying to carry one of those tiny, fashionable purses. Mine is fashionable, yet massive. And unlike those teeny things, it's actually useful. Heck, if I dumped everything out, I could get my laptop in there. Hmmmm. . .
::: picks herself up off the floor ::
Sorry. That Target commentary did me in.
I used to have a boss who used a recorder for all his impromptu notes. I tried it. Didn't work. I think I got stagefright. Or maybe micfright?
Eventually I realized that I can't separate myself from plain old pen and paper. I have to see the words, then scratch a few out, try different phrasing, rework the sentence, axe the adverbs [of course][and all this in my next-to-unreadable chicken scratching], until I hit the perfect combination. Not sure how that would translate to voice. I think not well.
And don't get me started on monster purses. When you work 40 miles from home, you do need the kitchen sink to fit in there. Trust me.
Micfright -- that's exactly it! The moment I even think about speaking my ideas aloud, they go bye-bye. Paper and pen is the no-pressure approach. The ideas come, I write them down, scratch them out, revise them, add to them later. . .And then I can holepunch and file all of those notepad pieces of paper in a really cool little zippered binder. Jeez, I have such a weakness for office supplies. ; )
Oh, dang, I gotta get me one of those! It'd come in aweful handy when I'm up to my elbows in raw hamburger (blech! I'm thinking of turning vegetarian) and children are running and screaming everywhere and a scene pops into my head.
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