The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 708 - Writing on a Banana With Biro

A wild Field Notes appears.

You know that feeling, right? What, you mean you’ve never written on a Banana Peel? If you haven’t, just go grab some Stone Paper and a ballpoint and it’s pretty much the same thing.

Elsewhere, Myke and I are falling for the Sailor Que Sera hype, and question the continued Kaweco TITAN marketing train. And, I went to New Orleans and lived to tell the tale!

Show Notes & Download Links

This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:

Enigma Stationery: Unique items, top brands and hard-to-find imports. Get $10 off.

Penedex: The penultimate app to track and catalog your pens, inks, and what you've got ink'd up. Download now.

Stationery for a Writing Weekend

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

My writing projects have a habit of scattering themselves across multiple notebooks. A novella-in-progress in one notebook, short stories in another, a novel in a different notebook, brainstorming in yet another, etc. Compartmentalizing the projects has its advantages. Portability isn't one of them.

On a daily basis, I only carry the commonplace book. All my thoughts, ideas, or story bits go in there, and then that writing gets transferred to its project the next time I'm working on it. The rest of the writing ecosystem stays on my desk.

If I'm focusing on one specific project, I'll bring the brainstorm book and that project's notebook. That works well for an afternoon of writing at a coffee shop or a writing group after work. But what about a longer writing retreat?

I'm spending a long weekend in Madison this week with one of my writing friends. It's likely I'll finish my current short story writing, and I need to work on my novella, and I want to work on my novel, but I also need to work on a project that has already entered the digital realm, and before you know it, I'm packing more for a long weekend than I would for a weeklong vacation. My system that works perfectly for daily use is not perfect for longer outings. When I write at the lake, I do bring it all, because I anticipate significant progress on everything. This weekend won't just be for writing. There will also be knitting and outings involved, so it doesn't make sense to relocate my entire office.

Someone who doesn't know me very well might say that the obvious solution is to just go fully digital with my writing, but I would much rather carry my analog writing around on a pack mule than draft my stories on a screen. So we can rule that out.

Another option is to just bring the brainstorm book as if it were an afternoon out, and do all the work in there, transferring it like usual (though in much higher volume). And that's likely what I'll do. But it does raise the question: why don't I always only have one notebook, then? Why compartmentalize at all?

I suppose the answer is because I like to keep each project organized. Those full notebooks get shelved in my own personal archive, and it's nice to be able to find the original drafts of each piece.

I'll try bringing a lighter load this trip. It's possible we'll spend as much time catching up as we do writing, anyway! But I'm curious about your solutions for writing on the go. If you're going away and plan to write at least 5-10 thousand words across multiple projects in that time, what's your preferred kit?

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Meet Your Maker: Jason Olson, Write Turnz

(Caroline Foty's first fountain pen was a 1970s Sheaffer No Nonsense that still writes perfectly. Since she discovered pens by independent makers, she wants "one of each, please" and wants to meet all the makers. Maybe you do, too. She lives in Baltimore with pens, cats, and all kinds of fiber arts supplies.)

A stroke of adversity provided the incentive Jason Olson needed to take his hobby to the next level. “I was a product manager, and they showed me the door.”

Being laid off changed the role of pen making in his life. “I needed to take my fun and profitable hobby and move it forward quickly.”

Olson received a good education in the industrial arts in high school – woodworking, welding, industrial design, and even some landscape design. He built furniture, like tables and desks, including the rolltop desk his daughter currently uses to do homework. Pens were not initially part of this repertoire of making, although they were definitely something he paid attention to. “I always wanted to have cool pens to take on business trips. Retro 51s were the gateway pen.”

Then, a friend got a free wood lathe from a work colleague, that came with some pen kits. “I kept going over to use his lathe until he said, ‘So, are you going to order a lathe, or what?’ And one turned into two, turned into a metal lathe, and a drill press… We can’t park anything in the garage.”

Olson emphasizes the use of unusual materials in his pens. “Fossils, fordite, anything that’s different. I search weird websites looking for materials, you have to buy it when you see it or it’s gone.” Among his scores have been bits of material from a space shuttle, the Hundred Acre Wood, Folsom prison, Apollo 11, and the Copa Room floor from Howard Hughes’ Sands Casino in Las Vegas. “I did a group of gambling themed pens, with a stand and a $100 clay poker chip from the Sands.” Because he so often uses unusual woods, his garage also contains a vacuum chamber to stabilize his wood pieces.

With a stash of such materials, inspiration is basically found by looking through his storage drawers. Sometimes people who are commissioning pens provide materials as well. “People bring us materials that are important to them. I like telling stories in commissions.”

Olson does cast his own materials. “When I need something specific to match a fossil or other piece, I will. Learning to cast is one of the things that got me to meet some of the other makers. But casting has exploded with people who are much better at it than I am.”

Olson’s main trademark is the metal work on his pens. “I don’t make pens without clips. I did a few pens without clips at the beginning…but everyone else did, too.” He was mentored by Tim Cullen (of Hooligan Georgia) and David Broadwell, both masters of metal. “It took awhile for me to find my niche as a guy who does metal work and uses interesting materials. That’s my lane, I try to stay in my lane.” He is planning to attend a one week engraving school in Missouri, to add to his repertoire of metal skills. “I was scheduled for the school, but there was a hurricane that week…”

One master of metal knows another. Olson’s favorite pen he didn’t make himself was made by the late Greg Hardy. “He made me a pen representing a hot rod I rebuilt. I cast the material to match the car. He etched the grille of the car on the clip, and racing stripes in the cap. It’s amazing.”

Each new project presents Olson with new opportunities for creativity. “I enjoy envisioning and developing a design and building it into a piece I can hold in my hand. There are challenges each material and design give me. The weirder it gets, the more challenging it becomes.” And this ensures there is always growth. “Different metals, different techniques, I’m always trying something. There will be an ‘aha’ moment – why haven’t I always done this?? If you’re not going forward, you’re going backward.”

Jason Olson’s work can be seen on his Instagram @writeturnz, his website writeturnz.com, and at pen shows in California, Baltimore, Miami, Orlando, Dallas, DC, and maybe San Francisco and New York.

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!