Let me make this very clear: You are not buying from me! These are links to Amazon, but these are not affiliate links! I get no benefit from this. None. I am simply showing you the things I use and the things I find useful. Why don’t I at least use affiliate links when I could make a little side cash?

I want you to know for sure that the only reason I am recommending something is because it is something I use all the time and I find it indispensable for my writing! No other reason. I have nothing to gain from you purchasing the item. I will never recommend a more expensive item so I get a bigger cut. I’m not getting any cut. If I’m recommending something it’s because I can’t imagine going without it! Buy it. Don’t buy it. I won’t know and it won’t affect me whatsoever. I am simply sharing these things to help fellow writers!

1. My #1 Favorite Pen: Uniball Vision Elite in 0.5mm. If you like a little more of a bold line, go with the 0.8mm. True story, my handwriting kind of stinks when I’m not using my Uniball pens or my Pentel RSVP pens! I highly recommend this pen for anyone dealing with carpal tunnel. That’s actually how I first discovered this pen. In college, I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel and needed to find pens that would flow easily. Now that I have rheumatoid arthritis, my Vision Elite pens are an absolute must. I have a very limited time for how long I can write by hand, but I can write longer with my Vision Elites than I can with any other pen. The Uniball Vision Elite flows beautifully, doesn’t skip, and it’s waterproof. Hello? No more worries about coffee spilling on your notes or your water bottle opening up in your bag! A spill could still happen and your notebook will be soggy, but your notes will still be legible!

2. Second Favorite Pen: Pentel RSVP. This is a classic! Sometimes you need a ballpoint pen instead of the flowing ink of a roller ball. It’s also good to keep a less expensive pen on hand for when someone asks to borrow a pen! Whenever someone borrows my Vision Elites, they never come back. I don’t mind if someone walks off with an RSVP pen. They’re easy to find in local stores. Even though they’re easy to find, I still buy them in bulk so I have plenty on hand!

3. Favorite Editing Pens: Staedtler Triplus Fineliner Pens, 0.3mm. Oh, these pens! I love them. I love, love, love them. I fell in love with using a fineliner style pen for editing when I stole my husband’s red drafting pen for editing one time. It’s so much more enjoyable than editing with a ballpoint pen! And it didn’t feel like the page was bleeding like it did when I edited with a red roller ball or gel pen. There’s something subtle about the physical feedback you get with a fineliner. Yes, I’m getting into the nuances of the feel while using different pens for editing. Not sorry! Anyway, I kept running around the house looking for my husband’s red drafting pens for editing, but so many of them would have the points worn down because my husband was using them for his architectural work. How dare he use his drafting pens for architectural work! I need those for my editing! Actually, I have to give credit to my husband. Whenever I’d panic because I couldn’t find one of his pens with a good tip, he’d drop whatever he was doing and rummage through his supplies to find not one, but two or three red drafting pens that still had good tips. He loves me! After a while, I finally decided to order my own red fineliner pens and went with a brand I already liked from using other stationary supplies. They. Are. Glorious! It actually makes editing enjoyable! The ink is deep, bright, and bold, but it doesn’t feel like the page is bleeding. There’s a good feel to using this pen. You won’t miss the mark. It’s there! But it’s also precise, so you won’t be wondering where you really intended to put that editing mark.

4. Favorite Highlighters: Sharpie. Classic. Whatever they’re called! I’ve tried a lot of different highlighters over the years and have always, always come back to the thin, classic Sharpie highlighters. They’re bold, but they still let the text come through crystal clear. They’re the least likely to cause smudging (at least in my experience). They stay crisp and fresh for a very, very long time. I found one that had a loose cap for I don’t know how long. It was fine. I can’t promise all Sharpie highlighters will be like that, but they’ve been the best highlighters I’ve found! Now, if you really want to go fancy with highlighters? Go for Zebra Mildliners! Tons of colors!

5. Clipboard: Officemate Slim Clipboard Storage Box. I use this clipboard a lot! I love it because it has two storage compartments: One for paper in the big section, and one for about 3 wide pens or highlighters in the bottom. The other thing I like about it is that it’s narrow enough that I can still clip on a Mighty Bright Book Light!

6. Notebooks: Picadilly. I don’t have a link for this because I pick mine up for just a few dollars off the sale rack at Barnes & Noble! They’re just basic A5 lined notebooks. I’ve had a genuine Moleskin. Honestly, Moleskins are great, but it really wasn’t all that different than my $6 Picadilly.

7. Binder: Avery Heavy Duty. I edit better when I’m looking at a hard copy. Have you ever dropped a binder, the rings popped open, and everything went everywhere? Disaster! Avery Heavy Duty binders have multiple protections against that happening. Or what about when you’re using a binder so much that the binder starts falling apart? It’s the worst. I love Avery binders. They last forever and I use them from one project to another to another. I’ve had the same Avery binders for years and years, and they’re practically as good as new! Also, if you have carpal tunnel, rheumatoid arthritis, or any other issues with your hands, Avery’s Heavy Duty binders have an easy-open tab for the rings!

8. 3 Hole Punch: Ergonomic! I can’t find a link showing the one I have, but if you’re going to print out your manuscript and put it in a binder for editing, make sure the 3 hole punch you have is good quality (sharp!) and ergonomic! Otherwise, it’s going to do a number on your hand and wrist. Yikes! To make sure it’s sharp, first make sure it’s new. Do not rely on a hand-me-down old hole punch! Second, if you are purchasing one, look for a 3 hole punch that says it can handle a high paper count. Hole punches will tell you how many pages they can handle at a time. Personally, I wouldn’t drop a lot of cash on a super fancy hole punch that can do a very high volume of paper, but err on the side of getting a hole punch that can handle a higher paper count.

9. Paper Baskets: Any that fit the standard paper size for where you live! Here’s an example of one that fits an 8.5×11″ sheet of paper that’s standard for the United States. These are fantastic for holding, collecting, and carrying things! My paper baskets also make my work mobile! I’ll show you a picture in a moment, but let me share one other thing that will make the picture even better.

Here’s how to really take things up a notch: (1) Get some dry erase playing cards. (2) Grab some Velcro dots. (3) Pick up some wet erase markers. Now you can label your bins! Yes, this ends up being a lot of supplies for just a few baskets, but you can use the dry erase card + Velcro dot + wet erase marker system to label a lot of things! The wet erase markers mean you can change the label on the card. The Velcro dots mean you can shuffle the cards around! Also, I know there are cheaper wet erase markers. Please trust me and go with the Staedtler ones! I’ve tried other wet erase markers. If you’re planning to leave something written long term and then want to erase it, you want the Staedtler markers. Cheaper wet erase markers will stain! I’ve had red Staedtler (wet erase) wipe perfectly clean off of cheap laminate after it was left on for over a year. It’s worth it!

Please excuse my sloppy handwriting, but here’s what this looks like! See? This is a basket on the move! During the day, I work upstairs. In the evening, my husband said he was going to be working on some architectural things downstairs. So, I stacked my baskets, threw some pens in my top basket, grabbed my clipboard, and headed downstairs so we could hang out and be work buddies!

10. The Protein Bar! One (brand) Protein Bar in Birthday Cake Flavor. I can’t give a list of recommendations and not recommend this protein bar! Writers are busy people! A lot of writers have full time jobs outside of the home. Plenty of writers are full time parents taking care of littles inside the home. It’s easy for all of us to get so caught up with life and/or writing that we forget a meal or just don’t have time for one. I’ve got you covered! This is a super yummy protein bar with 210 calories, 20g of protein, 1g of sugar, and it’s certified gluten free. And it has sprinkles! If you just came from one of my other pages, you might have heard me say exactly the same thing. Yes. It has sprinkles. Yes, I’m going to keep saying that. It. Has. Sprinkles!!

So… there you have it. These are a few of my favorite things!
– Emlyn