For the majority of my stories, I wrote them on looseleaf paper during class back in high school. I lost all of the manuscripts, as I so lovingly called them. The past couple of stories I've done however, I decided to type directly on my iMac. Then one day, I pulled out my Moleskine and a pencil and I began to write part of a chapter while my students took their nap. Later on, when I typed it up, I realized that my paragraphs were longer with more depth to them. I carry my Moleskine journal everywhere with me, and when the mood strikes, I'm able to write down whatever tickles my fancy.
My penmanship has gotten horrible over the years, but I try and make it a point to hand write something every day. I feel it's important. I also used to write actual letters (with stamps!) to my son's father. He never opened them (his father was an engineer and there was literally a computer or laptop in every room). Everyday in high school I used to write a kind of a start the day letter to my then boyfriend. He read them religiously (he did not own a computer).
I wish I had someone to write letters to now. I was thinking of getting a campaign started, write a letter save the US post office or something. Perhaps the hippies would get mad for wasting paper. It's funny because I have actually forgone getting an iPad, because an actual book is just so much more tangible. The smell of the paper, the feel of it, the act of physically turning a page, pulling a worn title off the shelf and opening it. There is just something so magical about it. I know that's probably how Hermione Granger would describe books. What's really scary is the fact that I own several bottles of ink and quill pens, as well as calligraphy pens, and my daily pen that I keep in my bag is a Pentel fountain pen from France. It's petit et tres joli!
Anyway, I think from now on, I'm going to continue to write my stories in my journal. It is perhaps more meditative, and it probably saves my eyes.