Which pen do you use to write?

I spend my days surrounded by fountain pens because that's my day job. As I've worked with high-value writing instruments pretty much all of my working life, I pay a lot of attention to the pen I use. I enjoy to touch them; I enjoy to write with them; and I don't like to use cheap throw-away ballpens you can get at every corner. I ban them from my house, much to the chagrin of my husband who hardly ever notices what he's writing with.

Understanding my passion, though, he offered me a particularly nice fountain pen for my birthday, the Special Edition Indian Summer from Pelikan which is now sold out. Its barrel shows autumn leaves as my birthday is in autumn; it has gorgous colors that make me happy even if the weather is so bland it brings me down, and it writes like a dream. I filled it with "brilliant brown" ink as the finishing touch - and now I enjoy taking notes more than ever.



Besides my fountain pen, I love pencils. They are so . . . forgiving. And flexible. I like that concept of erasing things and starting again. If you look at the tools a writer has to have, a keyboard is certainly more important than a pen . . . but we all take notes whereever we go; we all love to have pen and paper within reach to make sure our darting ideas don't escape before we catch them.



However, I can't write with rollerballs. I slant the pen too much. And I don't like to write with ball pens because you have to use so much pressure.

How about you? Do you write with fountain pens at all? Do you prefer rollerballs or ball pens? Or even pencils? Do you have a much-loved pen that you never want to lose? Or it it all the same to you as long as the thing writes?

Beate Boeker is a USA Today bestselling author with a passion for books that brim over with mischief & humor. Many of her sweet romances and cozy mysteries are set in beautiful Italy.

She's a global marketing manager with a degree in International Business Administration, and her daily experience in marketing continuously provides her with a wide range of fodder for her novels, be it hilarious or cynical.

While 'Boeker' means 'books' in a German dialect, her first name Beate can be translated as ‘Happy’ . . . and with a name that reads ‘Happy Books’, what else could she do but write novels with a happy end?

You can learn more about Beate at her website

Graduation by Angela Benson

Writing is definitely my passion, but I also have a passion for teaching.   Earlier this month, one of my doctoral students, Kristi Garrett, became Dr. Kristi Garrett.  The graduation ceremony is a special time for graduates and their families, but it does draw long since the time in the spotlight for any one graduate is pretty short.

Doctoral graduates have to be hooded so Kristi and I both had to walk across the stage.  When they called her name, I walked on stage behind her, stood on a block about four-to-six inches high and draped her doctoral hood over her head.  Since Kristi is a bit taller than me and she has big hair, she had to stoop a little so I could do my job.  After she was hooded, we proceeded across the stage where we shook hands with the Dean of the Graduate School and the President of the University.  The path back to our seats took Kristi by the official graduation photographer, where she had her official picture made.  And that was it for me and Kristi.  Then we sat and waited while over 1000 graduates and undergraduates experienced their time in the spotlight.  Kristi and I took the selfie you see while we waited for the ceremony to end.


Our celebration didn't end with the ceremony though.  Kristi (left) and two of her fellow graduates, Becky (right) and Veronica (middle), hosted a graduation luncheon at the conference center across the street from the coliseum where the graduation was held.  So while Kristi stood in line to get her actual diploma (she only got the cover when she walked across the stage), I made the short walk to the conference center to join her family and friends in celebration.

It was a lovely event.  The graduates went all out in decorating the room.  There were three rectangular tables in front that were loaded with gifts and door prizes.  Then there were about 15 round tables, each designated for immediate family, special guests or committee. As Kristi's advisor and dissertation director, I sat at the committee table with my colleagues, Dr. Wright (Becky's advisor) and Dr. Rice (Veronica's advisor), along with the other members of the three committees and the Dean of the Graduate School.

Having everyone seated at designated tables made it easy to meet folks.  For example, I chatted quite a while with Kristi's mom and her two brothers and their families who were seated at the table designated for Kristi's immediate family. 

Before lunch, the graduates hosted a short program where each one of them gave shared words of thanks and appreciation and presented gifts.  In a touching moment each of them presented bound copies of their dissertations to their parents.  You can imagine how proud and happy those parents were.  I was surprised when they also presented tokens of appreciation to their advisors.

I'm not a touchy-feelly kind of person.  Drs. Wright and Rice are known among the students in our program for being huggers while I'm the one who'll shake your hand.  Well, when Kristi, and later, Veronica, called me to the front of the room and thanked me for supporting them throughout their doctoral program, I suddenly became a hugger.  I remain surprised at how much the moment moved me.  Students always thank you for supporting them but I've never taken the time to reflect on it until that moment.  It was a bit overwhelming.

Chairing a student's dissertation committee has its ups and downs.  At some point tension arises between the student and the faculty member.  It's inevitable, but it's also worth it.  Bonds are forged that will last a lifetime.  I consider myself fortunate to know the three ladies who graduated and to have played a role in helping them achieving their dreams.  

I feel about my students the way I feel about my readers.  I'm amazed and humbled by the letters that tell how a story that I wrote encouraged somebody, gave them insight into a situation in their own lives, or just gave them a few hours of entertainment.

So, thanks to Kristi, Veronica and Becky, for allowing me to share in their lives over last four-plus years, and thanks to all the readers who have invited me and my stories into their lives.  I appreciate you all!

Angela Benson is the award winning and bestselling author of fourteen novels, two novellas and a non-fiction writing book.  Her most recent book is Delilah’s Daughters (Avon, 2014).  Her next book, The Summer of Me, will be released by Avon in August 2015.  While you’re waiting for Angela’s new title, be sure to check out her backlist recently released in eBook format.  Join Angela on Facebook or her website.