A stationery look-back, 2025

Posted on by Lee S

I tried about a hundred different inks, somehow. Lots of Diamine, Colorverse, and Sailor as usual. But I ventured into some new lines.

Taccia standard inks are inexpensive, saturated, and bright. I tried Aka Red, Daidai Orange, Momo Pink, Ao Blue, Midori Green, and Murasaki Purple. I’ll eventually want bottles of all of them. They behave well in the pens I’ve tried. No shading or sheen, just full color. That’s what I want to cheer me up.

I tried more Nagasawa Kobe inks. There are so many colors, and they’re not all for me. But some were big hits for me: East Park Torch Orange and Hyogo Pansy. They behave well like I’d expect Sailor inks to.

J. Herbin standard inks don’t seem to get a lot of hype, but they work super well in a wet pen. Some of their colors are a bit pale and unsaturated for me, but I was very impressed by the colors I tried last year: Eclat de Saphir, Vert Amazone, Vert Metropolitain, and Iris Sagesse.

Other new-to-me inks I especially enjoyed last year include Diamine Sargasso Sea, Sailor Shikiori Irori, Taccia Ukiyo-e Utamaro Benizakura, Sailor Ink Studio 750, and Teranishi Guitar Orchestra Tangerine.

I confirmed that while I like shimmer inks, they just don’t behave as well as standard ones, and I only have a quarter to a third of my pens inked with them. So that will inform my future purchasing decisions.

Last year was the year I bought 3 Pilot Customs, all with broad nibs. They lay down a nice thick line and feel super smooth. At the time they ran about $150 apiece, which is hard to find now. The one complaint I have with them is that they put so much ink out that air bubbles form in the ink chamber. This may just be that I write very fast with a broad nib, though. Anyway, I always have one of these inked up now, and usually two.

Other discoveries included the Sailor TUZU, Leonardo Momento Zero, and Pelikan Pina Colada. The TUZU and Pina Colada are nice budget pens. I bought the TUZU because I like an occasional pencil feel in the nib and it comes in broad (the line is still narrower than many of my non-Japanese mediums). The Pina Colada is a pen I bought to travel with and it has a nice nib and unfussy body. A bit narrower than a Pelikano, but easier to use a standard cartridge with despite the lack of ink window.

As for the Momento Zero, it’s an Endless Limited exclusive by Micahfinds called Rainbow Ice Candy. I wanted to try out Leonardo, and this is my two favorite colors plus a fun green one. It turned out to be a medium-weight nicely-tuned pen. I’m super happy I got it, but I don’t think I need another.

Photo of Leonardo x Micahfinds Rainbow Ice Candy fountain pen

I feel like I’m pretty set with what I have at this point. There are still some inks I own that I haven’t tried yet, and inks that I haven’t used in years that will feel like new! I look forward to experiencing the majesty of colors.

Drafting a novel by hand

Posted on by Lee S

My first novel, Razor Strike, was drafted with a word processor. For my second novel, I wrote about half the first draft with pen and paper. Drafting by hand is a lot slower for me, but it offered other benefits that meant I could finish the draft in nine months. The process feels more chill than typing on a computer. I can usually output a thousand words in an hour while on the computer, but then I’m pretty much done.

I draft in an A4 or 8.5×11″ lined notebook, ideally 8mm. My handwriting is big, because I have poor fine motor control. I write with a variety of fountain pens using different color inks. I switch pens every paragraph or two to change up my grip, which helps me avoid hand cramps. This process isn’t fast and usually doesn’t yield more than 750 words per writing session, but I find I can do it when my eyes are tired of screens. Which is most days, due to my employment as a software developer.

In the end, I get more words out and I get to use plenty of fountain pen ink.

First draft complete, with many thousands of words

Posted on by Lee S

I finished the first draft of my current novel in October, after nine months of drafting. It weighs in at 90k words, with an additional 10k words that I’ve decided should go into the sequel. The working title is To Warp Fate, and it’s a planetary heist adventure featuring smugglers and space wizards.

I spent several years feeling very unmotivated to write after I published Razor Strike. I worked on a sequel before eventually shelving 40k words. I also wrote 80k words of a first draft of a visual novel and then revised the first 25k. Then I shelved that because I didn’t think I’d feel satisfied taking the visual novel through several more rounds of drafts.

I’m happy to say I wrote a draft this time that I look forward to revising. The inspiration for To Warp Fate came from several places, including a Starfinder TTRPG campaign and the Love and Deepspace gacha visual novel. So maybe this is fan fiction. Maybe not? I filed most of the serial numbers off.

When I finished the first draft of Razor Strike, I knew I had plenty of parts I needed to fix, but I wasn’t sure what they were or in what order to tackle them. I ended up taking a class at Grub Street by Randy Susan Meyers in person and a longer class by Holly Lisle online (Lisle died last year, so I’m not sure if the classes are still running with someone else’s instruction). They gave me a set of tools that took a while for me to get comfortable with, but I’m ready to use them again.

This time, the prose is rubbish, some of the scenes need to be refactored, and there’s a ton of world-building information that isn’t in the draft. But that means I know most of what I need to do. My tentative goal is to have the second draft ready by the beginning of July. Wish me luck!

About this ink: Taccia Sora Sky Blue

Posted on by Lee S

Taccia are currently owned by Nakabayashi in Japan. They were founded in California, though. Taccia have several lines of ink, including the Ukiyo-e collection (complex colors with shading), the Roughna collection (supposedly for sketching), the Lipstick collection, and the Jeans collection. But I’m really in love with their standard inks, which are $14/40ml in the US and cheaper in Asia. I haven’t seen prices in other countries. I bought a sample from Anderson Pens (now closed) a year and a half ago.

Sora Sky Blue (or just Sora, which is Japanese for sky) is a vibrant and saturated turquoise. Similar colors I’ve tried include

  • Diamine Havasu Turquoise
  • Waterman Inspired Blue

It doesn’t shade, but also doesn’t change color or vibrancy after a long writing session. It keeps up well with my fast writing in a TWSBI Diamond 580. I have only three writing samples for now.

Taccia Sora Sky Blue - TWSBI Diamond 580 M nib on Clairefontaine Triomphe writing sample
Clairefontaine Triomphe

Lines are crisp.

Taccia Sora Sky Blue - TWSBI Diamond 580 M nib on Kokuyo Campus paper writing sample
Kokuyo Campus loose leaf

I am aware I need to photograph samples on flatter surfaces in the future (you can see the bending at the edges of the photographs distorting the letters). I took these photos on a music stand in a binder So I wouldn’t get my shadows all over them. Not ideal, but better than nothing.

Taccia Sora Sky Blue - TWSBI Diamond 580 M nib on Cosmo Air Light writing sample
Cosmo Air Light

The ink’s strength for me is its consistency. Sometimes I want an ink that remains one saturated color, and Sora is well-behaved. I’ll buy a bottle for my sky blue needs once I’ve finished this sample and my bottle of Havasu Turquoise.

About this ink: J. Herbin Vert Métropolitain

Posted on by Lee S

J. Herbin is a French company with rich history and a great set of core inks (since 1700 with all-natural dyes, they boast). I’m sure the formulation has changed a bit over time, but they’re very well-behaved. In 2024 J. Herbin debuted their Les couleurs de Paris collection, which are priced the same as the La Perle des Ecres (standard) collection and come in the same bottles. These inks are very competitively priced in the EU: 4.5 Euros for 10ml or 9.5 Euros for 30ml including VAT. In East Asia they are about $12/30ml plus tax. In the US they are more: $7/10ml or $15/30ml plus sales tax. I bought a 10ml bottle from Stilo e Stile in late 2024.

Similar inks I’ve tried include

  • Diamine Delamere Green
  • Monteverde California Teal
  • Yoseka Origin No. 1 by Ink Institute

Herbin inks can sometimes feel a little dry to me, so I used Vert Metropolitain in a Pelikan M200 Medium. It was a wet noodle, in a good way! Took a while to dry, which is unusual for a Herbin ink in my experience.

J. Herbin Vert Metropolitain with Pelikan M200M on Clairefontaine Triomphe
Clairefontaine Triomphe

I misattributed the color in several of these writing samples.

J. Herbin Vert Metropolitain with Pelikan M200M on Maruman Loose Leaf
Maruman Loose Leaf
J. Herbin Vert Metropolitain with Pelikan M200M on Kokuyo Campus Loose Leaf
Kokuyo Campus

It took more than 20s to dry on Iroful.

J. Herbin Vert Metropolitain with Pelikan M200M on Iroful
Iroful

J. Herbin Vert Metropolitain with Pelikan M200M on Cosmo Air Light
Cosmo Air Light

Vert Métropolitain is a blue-green that shades to dark green, one of my new favorite greens. The feeling of writing with it in a Pelikan was smooth and luscious. Dry time was on the slow side, but I was laying down a lot of the ink with the Pelikan nib. I’ll try this color in drier pen for more data.

I look forward to trying Vert Métropolitain in other pens: perhaps it will dry in a more timely fashion. I anticipate finishing this small bottle myself (not giving away any samples) and then ordering a 30ml one someday.

About this ink: Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple

Posted on by Lee S

This ink is exclusive to Yoseka Stationery in Brooklyn and made by a Taiwanese company, Ink Institute. They were originally best known for their custom-order inks, and you can still order those by providing an RGB value if you’re willing to pay for shipping from Taiwan. The price for Qing Purple is $20 USD for 30ml. Yoseka will also sell you samples if they’re in stock. I bought a sample when I visited in-store.

I noted when I tried the ink at Yoseka that it seemed muted and dusky, not usually my thing but worth trying. I didn’t get the green sheen displayed on their site in writing. It’s a very dark purple, and I don’t think I’ve tried anything quite like it. The undertones are grayer on some paper, and warmer on others. The closest inks I’ve tried are shimmer inks:

  • Diamine Deck the Halls
  • Diamine Mystique

Here are writing samples with a Leonardo Momento Zero M nib.

Writing sample of Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple with a Leonardo Momento Zero M on Clairefontaine Triomphe
Clairefontaine Triomphe
Writing sample of Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple with a Leonardo Momento Zero M on Maruman Loose Leaf
Maruman Loose Leaf

If you zoom in, you’ll notice the lines aren’t crisp/filled.

Writing sample of Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple with a Leonardo Momento Zero M on Kokuyo Loose Leaf
Kokuyo Loose Leaf

Iroful paper really brings out the richness of the color.

Writing sample of Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple with a Leonardo Momento Zero M on Iroful
Sakae TP Iroful
Writing sample of Yoseka Ceramics x Ink Institute Qing Purple with a Leonardo Momento Zero M on Cosmo Air Light
Cosmo Air Light

The ink is definitely eggplant-colored but less saturated than I prefer. The smear comes from disturbing the paper about five seconds after I wrote the sample. Otherwise, it’s average flow and doesn’t feather or bleed. Dry time is faster than I expected. I don’t think I need a full bottle, but it was fun to play with!

About this ink: Kala Sweet Potato Balls

Posted on by Lee S

Kala are a Taiwanese ink brand, best known for their water-resistant pigmented Nostalgia. Sweet Potato Balls is a standard dye-based fountain pen ink from their Island No. 38 line. In Taiwan it’s about $8USD/30ml, in the US it’s $21. I assume it’s more expensive in Europe/South America. I bought this ink almost four years ago from JetPens, when a bottle was $13.

Sweet Potato Balls is a shading orange, slightly muted and unsaturated. Similar inks I’ve tried include

  • Lamy Bronze

Here are samples with a Benu Euphoria B on these papers:

Writing sample of Kala Ink Sweet Potato Balls with a Benu Euphoria B on Clairefontaine Triomphe
Clairefontaine Triomphe
Writing sample of Kala Ink Sweet Potato Balls with a Benu Euphoria B on Maruman loose leaf
Maruman loose leaf
Writing sample of Kala Ink Sweet Potato Balls with a Benu Euphoria B on Kokuyo Campus loose leaf
Kokuyo Campus loose leaf
Writing sample of Kala Ink Sweet Potato Balls with a Benu Euphoria B on Iroful paper
Sakae TP Iroful
Writing sample of Kala Ink Sweet Potato Balls with a Benu Euphoria B on Cosmo Air Light
Cosmo Air Light

This ink is on the dryer side and shades very well. It does feather a bit on some paper, and the cost has gone up significantly, so I don’t think I’ll be re-purchasing it.

About this ink: Tom’s Studio Juniper

Posted on by Lee S

Tom’s Studio is a relatively new British stationery brand. I am almost certain their inks are made by Diamine, as the ink bottles for Tom’s Studio are the same as for Diamine Shimmertastics. Tom’s Studio inks currently retail for $20/50ml bottle in the US. I assume they are cheaper in the UK/Europe, but I can’t currently find that price. I bought my bottle in person from Tiny Turns Paperie.

Juniper is a dark purple-black. Business purple, if you will. Comparable inks I’ve tried include:

  • Sailor Shikiori Shigure (more expensive in the US, cheaper in Asia)
  • Diamine Scribble Purple (cheaper, more sheen)
  • Dominant Industry Tanzanite (more blue undertones)

I tried Juniper in my TWSBI Diamond 580 M on Maruman loose leaf paper first, and the results were almost black. It got a little dry, I think because the feed can have a tough time keeping up with how fast I write and Maruman loose leaf isn’t very slick. You can also tell that the lines aren’t very crisp.

Writing Sample of Tom's Studio Juniper in a TWSBI Diamond 580 on Maruman Loose Leaf

I prefer to see the color better, so I tried it in a Platinum Preppy M. Results were more to my liking on Maruman loose leaf, it’s a little lighter.

Writing Sample of Tom's Studio Juniper in a Platinum Preppy Medium on Maruman loose leaf paper

Kokuyo Campus is a little less toothy of a paper, so results continued to be brighter.

Writing Sample of Tom's Studio Juniper in a Platinum Preppy Medium on Kokyuo Campus paper

On Iroful you can see some gold sheen and it really brings out the purple. Additionally, the lines are much bigger. It dries a little slower on Iroful, so I smudged it a bit.

Writing Sample of Tom's Studio Juniper in a Platinum Preppy Medium on Sakae Technical Iroful paper
On Sakae TP Iroful
Writing Sample of Tom's Studio Juniper in a Platinum Preppy Medium on Clairefontaine Triomphe paper
On Clairefontaine Triomphe

I bought a bottle without knowing how dark the ink would look for my use cases. The ink doesn’t smear or feather and is well-behaved, if not crisp. Dry time was less than I expected on most paper. I think I’ll try Juniper in an AL-Star next. I don’t think I’d buy another bottle, but I’ll use this ink once in a while, especially if I’m writing on Iroful.

fountain pens and inks: last year’s obsession

Posted on by Lee S

A little over a year ago, Mr. Saturn finally got me into fountain pens and inks. The advantage is that I don’t need to press on the paper at all, just glide the pen over it. Fountain pens are not an expensive habit unless you’re in it for fashion/jewelry. Some of my favorite pens are under $15 and they should last me many years. A fill of ink will cost anywhere from fifteen cents to seventy-five cents. That tends to last me at least ten pages, given that I use medium or bold nibs. I keep a half dozen pens so I can alternate between colors (useful for editing). My biggest expense in writing longhand continues to be paper, as I like pretty covers and shiny paper. But CVS puts out some worthwhile spiral-bound notebooks that I can use fountain pens with.

If you’re not sure if you want a pick up a Pilot Varsity for $3.50 (in the US). It’s disposable, and then if you like it, you can explore further. My favorite value for money is the Platinum Prefounte. $12, refillable, and a comfortable experience. The only problem is that an ink converter so you can use bottled ink is an additional $9.

I started writing longhand to see if I wrote different words when I had a different kinesthetic experience. What I found was that it is very difficult to fast draft by hand, but it’s more restful to write background material and plan timelines, plots, and scenes without looking at a screen. I’ll continue with this hybrid approach more this year as I get back to drafting.

publishing fiction vs. releasing music

Posted on by Lee S

I published Razor Strike, a cyberpunk novel with romantic elements, on 15 May 2022. A year later, I’ve worked on some drafting for a VN and another novel, but I haven’t made any progress beyond that. Instead, I’ve been working on music. I joined the band Thou Merciless Graves and worked on activities I’d trained for decades ago: music arrangement, engineering, and performance. I am sorry to my readers that I do not have any material with a near-future release.

I’m an extravert. I love to read and play solo video games. But I get my energy from activities with other humans. Writing takes alone-time. It’s lonely work, and I have to spend more time at my primary job than I used to. Also, finding a reader is more difficult than finding a listener. To get a listener, I can point them to a single song that will take them several minutes, which is a block of time humans in most modern societies are willing to budget for.

A consumer sees a book as a several hour active commitment, as opposed to a several-minute potentially fun thing, and a concert may be several hours but it isn’t as active a commitment as reading. During a music show, the attendee can plot themselves into a location and spend several hours letting it wash over them. They do not have to engage with the material as actively as they would if they had to read it. I do this myself: I’ll go to a concert where four or five bands are performing and sometimes just take in the vibes. If I like them, I buy the music.

Music is also a smaller commitment timewise for me because I can compose, record, and produce a song in a few months’ time. When I’m working primarily as an arranger instead of a songwriter, this can go down to several weeks’ turnaround. I haven’t been able to write short stories that I want to share. My first novel took me seven years to finish, and I anticipate further ones will take four. While I like big projects and the level of planning needed for them, it’s still a very long time for me to spend in isolation before getting to really talk about the project with anyone.

I recently finished up the post-production of our band’s forthcoming EP. As for writing, I’m back to re-reading the first draft of a near-future visual novel I wrote last year. If I think it’s something that merits publishing, I’ll continue revising it. Otherwise, I will continue scribbling various scenes in my notebook and pick up another old draft to review.