When I turned on CBS Sunday Morning, I caught the last part of Bill Geist's segment on, of all things, typewriters. It fitted right in with Marilyn Meredith's blog post about her publishing journey that started on a typewriter. Mine started there as well, so I was fascinated by the Geist tale, especially when one of the young people he interviewed said he thought it was a new invention!
"A new invention." I loved the thought. Especially since throughout our house I have a wide variety of typewriters stashed away. There's the very old Underwood that belonged to my father. Somewhere I have the Royal electric typewriter on which I wrote my first stories for the Richmond News Leader. Hidden away in a closet, I have my portable electric typewriter on which I typed the early drafts of my first novel. That was before I got my first computer, an Apple IIGS that has the signature "Woz" written above the words, "limited edition".
The Geist segment mentioned "type-ins" which I didn't quite get. He said sales are brisk at a New York flea market. Someone said that writing on a typewriter made them feel like a real author. One man commented that there is something romantic about writing a letter on a typewriter. A young woman enjoyed the dinging sound at the end of each line.
A bright green typewriter was considered beautiful, and the keys were smooth and "sexy". Some of these sentiments may be carrying things a little too far. I was never too fond of having to go back and erase my mistakes. Even after erasing, the manuscript always looked a little messy. At least to me.
It is fun to know that appreciation of typewriters may be actually growing. And Geist reported some of these antiques are selling for as much as $500. Wow!
Showing posts with label Bill Geist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bill Geist. Show all posts
Monday, February 6, 2012
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