In the least scientific breakthrough for centuries, the 'writer's tools', paper and pencils, are making an astonishing and unexpected comeback!
Out of vogue since the dawn of the computer age, sales of 'writing instruments' - as pencils were known - have been in steady decline, but new research has shown that, in a revolutionary turnaround, people are turning their backs on the latest computer and phone apps, and starting to jot down notes once more.
The 'digital age' has meant the end for countless old institutions, including vinyl records - though they, too, are now making a comeback! - CDs, books and newspapers, and even television viewing figures are way down because of digitalisation. But something, somewhere in our genetic make-up is fighting back. Emails and texts just don't seem 'personal' enough; sending a friend or family member a 'smiley face' emoticon feels a bit lazy; typing 'lol' just isn't funny anymore.
Handwriting, once a flourishing art, forgotten almost overnight in favour of the keyboard, is waking up, as if from a long sleep. People are writing again: making notes, penning letters, making lists, doodling on scraps of paper, scribbling for fun! It gives one a tremendous feeling of freedom, free from the shackles of a computer keyboard, free from the constraints of a 'workstation', free from the eye-squinting feeling of labouring away for hours at a monitor to produce results that lack any kind of personal touch. Free!
If you feel like me, get yourself out to your local stationery shop - if it still exists! - and buy yourself some pencils and pens, and a couple of good writing pads, and enjoy the freedom! Write!
