No New Pens, No New Notebooks, 365 Days
Yes, you read that title correctly. I’m not allowing myself to buy any pens or notebooks for an entire year. Exercising self-control can be a tough lesson, but we all need discipline. I feel I must push distractions aside and focus more on getting things accomplished with my already adequate supply of writing tools.
I’ve been obsessed with notebooks since high school and successfully survived a buy-no-notebooks year several years ago. Fountain pens are definitely a newer weakness for me. I attempted buy-no-fountain-pen years in 2022 and 2023 and failed both times.
The Kaweco Sport in Iridescent Pearl did me in in March 2022, partially because the whole world seemed tempted by that pen. It practically got sold out everywhere just weeks after its release, and because I really liked the look of that pen, I gave in and pounced on it. Now that pen seems to be readily available just about everywhere. The pen market is so weird.
(My Kaweco Sport Iridescent Pearl. It's next to impossible to accurately capture all of those iridescent colors with a camera. This is the best I can manage.)
2023 seemed much better at first. I made it until May, when I bought a Parker at Staples (which was too heavy for me—I regret that purchase). Then I ordered two Jinhao 82s in June because it seemed like something that fit my comfort criteria perfectly, which is pretty rare, so I couldn’t wait. (And I was right—it’s a winner!) Then Kaweco came out with the Toyoma Teal Sport that year. Darn limited edition Kawecos seem to be a weakness for me. But I loved the color! I succumbed. Since I had thoroughly blown it, I just continued buying pens for the remainder of that year. 2023 turned out to be a disaster.
(Left to right is my 2023 haul: Parker IM, two Jinhao 82s, Kaweco Sport Toyoma Teal, Ferris Wheel Press Carousel in Poison Envy, Jinhao 82 Mini, Jinhao 82 in Fluorescent White. Not pictured: Zebra disposable fountain pen and I think I also got a crystal Platinum Preppy. So much for buying no pens.)
2024 is different. After all those pathetic attempts at self control, I decided to double down on my punishment and not allow pens OR notebooks… or ink… or spare nibs… or converters… or pen cases, either. Art supplies are permitted when needed, such as if a Micron or Tombow dries up.
So far, so good! And it’s September! Have there been temptations? Yes. But I got over them. And no, this year’s limited edition Kaweco Sport was not one of those temptations.
I did buy a small sketchbook for $1 at a library book sale that I couldn’t resist. It has The Gross Clinic by Thomas Eakins on the cover. Being an Eakins fan and a history-of-medicine geek, I needed it... although I don’t think that’s the sort of “need” I initially had in mind. Besides, the paper is clearly sketchbook stock. It falls under the category of art supplies. It’s safe. And I got my new planner for next year. But that’s a planner. I need it for survival. And they take me a long time to set up.
(I know the majority of the world probably thinks, "EWWW! You wanted THAT?!" So I did. Oh well.)
Fountain pens are fun and innocent as far as hobbies go. They definitely served as calming distractions during the instability of the last few years and on some occasions when I was unwell. BUT—there comes a time when one needs to wake up and refocus on some goals in life, and that means using those tools to create rather than just hunting for better ones.
My mind has been occupied with other things as of late. This year has been highly experimental and dedicated to better health management (I have multiple conditions—not just RSIs) and finding safer art/writing methodologies. Feeling better and getting more creative work accomplished is absolutely more fulfilling than simply accumulating more things. However, those very things are instrumental in producing creative work, so I cannot be that strict about my pen/notebook avoidance forever.
Here’s looking forward to 2025. (Devious grin.)
