WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE OFFICE
They’re often considered dinosaurs of the office. Typewriters. Nobody used them anymore, in
the age of computers, right? WRONG. Many businesses and government offices, too, do, in fact
still use them. They’re needed for filling out preprinted forms, which you can’t do on a
computer, and they’re much handier for addressing envelopes and typing labels and cards, too.
And now it seems antique typewriters are becoming quite popular among collectors. They look
really cool as a decoration piece in an office or a den or a study. The vintage typewriter is also a symbol of an author. Although most authors today (myself included) use computers to do their writing, that symbol remains. And you can still find an author now and then who chooses to use a classic old typewriter to type a manuscript. I have met a few who do, in fact.
The typewriter has had a profound influence in my writing, as I’ve grown up with my dad’s typewriter sales and repair business. The business was dumped in my lap when he passed away, so I’m continuing it for now till the economy will allow me to pursue my dream of a working farm, and hopefully my career as an author will grow to profitable proportions as well. But, anyway, typewriters and authors seem to go hand in hand, and the old dinosaurs have given me tons of inspiration to write. In particular, with repairs it is often necessary to test the machines. Before doing the repairs, you’ve gotta see what’s wrong with the things. Especially if it’s an intermittent problem. Gotta try it out and see what, if anything, is wrong with it. Are certain letters not typing? Is it the space bar? Carrier return? And once it’s been repaired, you’ve gotta try it out before it goes back to the customer. See if all is in working order. Testing a typewriter can be an extremely tedious job. Traditionally you type the sentence “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country” or something like that. Type that over and over and over and over. BORRRRRING!!! Having a more creative nature, I came up with ways to make it un-boring. Instead of typing that insipid phrase over and over, I began to type sentences in foreign languages (since I’m a big language buff). It’s a great way to practice. Some of the characters needed in other languages can be simulated on a typewriter with the standard American English keyboard, such as for the German Umlaut, you type the letter “a” or “o” or “u”, then backspace and type the quotation mark over it. The accent marks used in Romance languages are harder to do, so I just have to pretend they are there. But foreign languages are not all. I also found myself writing stories, just for fun, to test typewriters. It just seemed to happen naturally. I’d write them out a page or two at a time–actually testing the typewriter much more thoroughly than necessary. A boring task suddenly became fun. Something I looked forward to doing. The stories were silly at times, and nobody but me ever read them, but they did help me develop my craft as an author. Parts of them even fit into my Will Nickerson Mysteries once I began to write in earnest. For example, the Prologue of Ranch Park was lifted almost word-for-word out of one of my typewriter-testing exercises.
So you see, typewriters still do have their place after all. New electronic ones are still being manufactured, and although they lack the romance and mystique of a big old black manual model, they do the job and do it well. These dinosaurs are not extinct.
Keep on typing!
the age of computers, right? WRONG. Many businesses and government offices, too, do, in fact
still use them. They’re needed for filling out preprinted forms, which you can’t do on a
computer, and they’re much handier for addressing envelopes and typing labels and cards, too.
And now it seems antique typewriters are becoming quite popular among collectors. They look
really cool as a decoration piece in an office or a den or a study. The vintage typewriter is also a symbol of an author. Although most authors today (myself included) use computers to do their writing, that symbol remains. And you can still find an author now and then who chooses to use a classic old typewriter to type a manuscript. I have met a few who do, in fact.
The typewriter has had a profound influence in my writing, as I’ve grown up with my dad’s typewriter sales and repair business. The business was dumped in my lap when he passed away, so I’m continuing it for now till the economy will allow me to pursue my dream of a working farm, and hopefully my career as an author will grow to profitable proportions as well. But, anyway, typewriters and authors seem to go hand in hand, and the old dinosaurs have given me tons of inspiration to write. In particular, with repairs it is often necessary to test the machines. Before doing the repairs, you’ve gotta see what’s wrong with the things. Especially if it’s an intermittent problem. Gotta try it out and see what, if anything, is wrong with it. Are certain letters not typing? Is it the space bar? Carrier return? And once it’s been repaired, you’ve gotta try it out before it goes back to the customer. See if all is in working order. Testing a typewriter can be an extremely tedious job. Traditionally you type the sentence “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country” or something like that. Type that over and over and over and over. BORRRRRING!!! Having a more creative nature, I came up with ways to make it un-boring. Instead of typing that insipid phrase over and over, I began to type sentences in foreign languages (since I’m a big language buff). It’s a great way to practice. Some of the characters needed in other languages can be simulated on a typewriter with the standard American English keyboard, such as for the German Umlaut, you type the letter “a” or “o” or “u”, then backspace and type the quotation mark over it. The accent marks used in Romance languages are harder to do, so I just have to pretend they are there. But foreign languages are not all. I also found myself writing stories, just for fun, to test typewriters. It just seemed to happen naturally. I’d write them out a page or two at a time–actually testing the typewriter much more thoroughly than necessary. A boring task suddenly became fun. Something I looked forward to doing. The stories were silly at times, and nobody but me ever read them, but they did help me develop my craft as an author. Parts of them even fit into my Will Nickerson Mysteries once I began to write in earnest. For example, the Prologue of Ranch Park was lifted almost word-for-word out of one of my typewriter-testing exercises.
So you see, typewriters still do have their place after all. New electronic ones are still being manufactured, and although they lack the romance and mystique of a big old black manual model, they do the job and do it well. These dinosaurs are not extinct.
Keep on typing!
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