: Re: Why do I feel this about using the computer to write? Whenever I open up a word processor on the computer to write, my fingers freeze and I get nervous. I try to type the opening. I make

@Cody1607638

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From personal experience, I'd say that it's because you're used to using the computer to consume interactive content (e.g. the Web itself). Your mind is literally put in a different mode when you sit down with a pad of paper, likely with very different lighting than the harsh blue glow of the computer.

There's also the issue of input speed. If you're anything like me, you can type a lot faster than when you write longhand. The slow, deliberate nature of writing something down longhand allows the brain to slowly pick through possibilities during the creative process, instead of feeling a sort of deadline pressure for every sentence. Over time I've learned to simply pause and look away from the computer screen as soon as I get a slight hint that the information stream is starting to falter -- in a few seconds it tends to pick up again. Think of it as buffer underflow if that helps at all; sort of a side effect of using the "wrong" medium to write something from scratch.

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