Why Do You Use A Fountain Pen?

[GabrielleDuVent]

None of your options in the poll apply to me.

No one ever notices you using an FP anyway nor do I care what anyone thinks. I use one because it converts a normally tedious task to one with at least a bit of pleasure component.

 

Not even "other"?

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I don't like ballpoints.

[ridiculopathy]

From the shallow end of the pool, I think my fountain pens are pretty, which makes me want to use them (a great motivator for studying!). It was only later that I appreciated their smooth writing and ink shading qualities.

[Jim Holzemer]

I really enjoy composing prayer cards for folks. They really appreciate the personal thought that goes into it. I will often give them several and ask them to pass them along,,

 

A Paramedic in Nursing School who was having a rough moment in one of her practicals took one of my cards and quietly read it calmed herself and finished the testing rather well. I told her thanks, but it was God working through the card that helped..

 

I've also laminated a few and given them to fellow Public Safety folks who have placed them in their protective vests/medic bags..

 

Just love the way one can express words/sentiments..

 

Have collected them for years and appreciate the vintage way they convey the written word.

[Daisy25]

I checked other, but I don't have a clear answer -- even though I've been asking myself that very question. About forty years ago I began keeping a journal. In short order I was very picky about the pens I used. For some reason, I was hooked on spidery thin lines and tried to use rapidiographs for writing. It was a frustrating experience since they clogged all the time, but I kept with them for a few years. Then I just used what was available. About fifteen years ago I tried fountain pens but that didn't work so well. For a while I also got distracted by journaling on the computer, but much as I like the feel of a keyboard, there was still something missing. So here I am with fountain pens and once again really loving writing out journals.

 

So, what is it that makes fountain pens so profoundly satisfying? I'm not quite sure. For one, I like the feel of them in the hand. There's the feeling of real ink. I'm getting into inks now and loving that as well, but I think the central pen experience is just really visceral. Something about the pen in the hand, something about being part of a tradition, too -- so many writers, so many pens, so many pages.

 

I don't know. Love it though.

[marcelo]

I went to primary school in the early 90s, and it was mandatory for us to learn how to use FPs in year 3.

 

I think I'd have enjoyed it.

[Federalist Pens]

Good question......

 

Mainly because I like too!

 

[Steve Teoh]

The fountain pen you write with shows character and emotion of each stroke. Mood dictates the choice of ink, nib and pen. For me I write with Lamy for quick notes, Sonnet for deep thoughts and Sheaffer 100/300 for scribbling ideas.

[pmhudepo]

I like the options in nib shape, size, options in ink.

 

I also checked "I have weak writing pressure." but what I really wanted was "I like to use little pressure when writing"

[JordanN]

I appreciate the low cost of ownership, the variety of ink colors, and most importantly, the way the ink just flows out of the pen. I am SO tired of fighting cheap pens to convince them to write. How many millions of amazing ideas have been lost because someone struggled with a cheap pen and lost his train of thought?

[Moxoftritonytes]

Because I learned how to use them as a kid. My writing becomes a scribbly mess when I use a different writing instrument and be it a pencil. So I stick to fountain pens.

[irrigger]

I basically grew up using them. Nothing fancy was ever in the house, a few Sheaffer school pens, a No-Nonsense or two and a very beat up Wearever. It was just natural to continue using them.

[Vendome]

It does add a certain "je ne sais quoi".

 

Pretentious! Moi?

[requiescat]

Two main reasons:

 

1. I'm a writer and the fountain pen is much kinder to my hand than typing is. I use an ergonomic keyboard (Kinesis Advantage) but I type fast enough that I've already given myself arthritis in one wrist, and I sort of want to avoid injuring myself further. I *do* type things into the computer to revise after I've gotten a rough draft down, but for whatever reason I'm better at pacing myself typing existing material rather than, I suppose, trying to capture ideas in the heat of the moment.

 

2. I like tinkering with fussy things. Maybe some people are lucky enough to have non-fussy fountain pens, but a fair percentage of mine have been a bit fussy--flushing ink, smoothing nibs, etc. etc. I can see, however, where others would find fussy fountain pens a total non-selling point. (If all your fountain pens behave well, carry on!)

[richardandtracy]

Reason for writing with a fountain pen...

Do I need one? I want to write. I dislike any other writing instrument, so an fp it is.

 

My indifference to 'style', 'fashion' and other people's opinions on the matter is monumental. I use a fp because it's comfortable, feels nice and I like it. That's the end of the matter.

 

Regards,

 

Richard

[AndrewThomas]

Port

Out,

Starboard

Home.

 

Wouldn't want a tan, now would you?

 

 

 

Edit: And the reason I use a fountain pen is because it's simply much more pleasant than a ball point or rollerball.

Edited June 15, 2013 by AndrewThomas

[bullfighter]

In the previous poll topic I posted, I asked what people say to you when you use your fountain pen in the public. The reasoning for asking this was because I wanted to see the public's reaction to fountain pens and their users. The common perception is "posh", but what do people think of them, personally? Do they even care?

 

A responder to the forum, jetsam, wrote as a response that this made him ask himself why he uses fountain pens, since we are bombarded with alternative choices, and then suggested I put this pseudo-existential question as a poll as well. I'm sure there are about as many reasons as there are users, but I figured it's worth thinking about it. Fountain pens are high maintenance (compared to alternatives anyway) and are often luxury items, since it's not really necessary to carry out your day-to-day tasks. It's not just for older generations either, since we have teenagers on here.

 

My main reason is because I have very weak writing pressure, and I need ink to flow upon contact, not upon pressure. Not only that, I appreciate the variety of nibs and the colours a fountain pen can bring as options.

 

What are your reasons?

 

 

First, because I hate ballpoint pens. Any writing instrument that you can buy by the boxful to me is violently impersonal and worthless. Sure, all the big pen companies make ballpoints and rollerballs in addition to their lines of fountain pens. But no matter what the price of a Mont Blanc ballpoint or any other big name, they are still only as good as the refill inside. Fountain pens are a highly personal way of expressing oneself. Everybody's penmanship is different and the fountain pen, inexpensive or obscenely priced, is the perfect way of expressing one's individuality. So there.

[The Blue Knight]

I use them because I'm looking for the smoothest most satisfying pen to use which i'm yet to find. Ball point's are simply a tool with no character or fun to them

[jar]

I tried writing with corn cobs and butter beans and yellow squash and both dill and sweet pickles, with hamburgers, pork chops, chamber pots, a kitten and a Louisville Slugger bat, but none worked as well as my fountain pens, but the kitten did offer more entertainment though trying to fill or flush a kitten can be challenging.

[max dog]

I like the smooth yet tactile feel of the nib on paper as it glides laying down a juicy patch of ink that is still wet and begins to dry formulating your thoughts and feelings into words to be permanently etched into reality for others to witness. It can turn the mundane act of writing into a pleasurable experience.

 

"Life is like a fine tuned fountain pen, so perfect and beautiful, yet so delicate and vulnerable too. It needs your patience, love and care."