Use your hands

This chapter is speaking to me, or to many like me who spend most of their day in front of a computer. We create from A to Z using the computer, from writing to graphics, and everything in between. The author is asking us to step away from the computer for a while and get used to using our hands once more. It’s another way of saying bring back analog into your life, and incorporate analog into your creative process.

He gives several examples. One example is creating a hand sketch, scanning it, and then finishing it up on your computer. Be hands-on away from the computer, have fun creating, touch, feel, and then finish up on the computer. This may also include creating on other devices and connecting to your computer, for example, sketching on a tablet and uploading to your computer.

This one is right up my alley because I love drawing. However, I dropped my pencils immediately after I finished high school decades ago. I’ve been daydreaming of returning to drawing and keeping that side of my brain active, but I’ve never really gotten back to it. I have created artwork using the computer but not with my hands. So now, I have decided to go back to hand sketching, have fun, and regain my creative freedom. And then finish up on the computer. Who knows, I may become an accomplished artist.

It may be something different for you. The general idea is to step away from your screen and be yourself. Then bring back what you have created and marry both together, analog and digital.

He suggests creating an analog workbench alongside or opposite your computer desk. For some, this may not work due to space constraints. However you execute it does not matter, as long as there is communication between your analog and digital worlds so that you can present your complete work to the world.