#a5 2018

[pebblezone]

About to serve absolutely abysmal cunt

[sarroora]

Sarroora's Art and Fanfiction Update

I feel really guilty guys for being so late updating you all on what I’ve been doing art and writing-wise!

I don't want to come across as making excuses, but I admit I’m very, very preoccupied with the collapsing economy in my country - as we’re literally free-falling from what you’d call middle class…

Case in point, our pound has dropped 47.60 to 1 USD. This will only slip further down into catastrophic inflation if no major reforms are made.

And then there’s the genocide happening right next door to our neighbors in Palestine literally kilometers away.

This all really affects your work, mental state and priorities.

Anyway, here’s a summary of A)the projects I've been working on, and B)what I’m getting back into slowly:

Projects I’ve been working on the past months:

I got a spot at a bazaar in early March, at a university. It was a lotta work but a very good experience. I was so touched by the students’ feedback on my designs - they genuinely liked most of them. The stickers and sketchbooks were especially popular

Illustration, patterns and and design for stationery and general-use items e.g Notebooks, sketchbooks, mugs, keychains, coasters, stickers, etc. Some of the manufacturing I have to delegate to the professionals with the machines necessary. Other stuff I’m finally beginning to do myself to save cost. Like stickers and sketchbooks. However, I’m making veeery small quantities, coz I’m not selling much. Everyone is struggling financially

Once I’ve figured out international shipping, I might be able to offer great pricing, especially if you have a good currency. A 28-page, A5 80gsm blank sketchbook may end up costing around $1.5-$2, which I hear is much cheaper than say, buying it from a general stationery store in the US

However the trick is to figure out how to make shipping cheap so that it’s worth it!

On a fanfiction-related note, I’ve begun writing Chapter 3 of the sequel of my Detroit: Become Human fanfic, The Only Truth that Sticks. FINALLY. I've missed writing it so much. The working title (so far) is A Graveyard of Connors. Consider that a hint.

Cleaning up a few things in my Top Cat fanfic, Cats Gangs and Leaders, and migrating it slowly to AO3.

Other Stuff I’m resuming:

Drafting Chapter 12 of CGaL. This image I posted last week was a hint

Sketches/concept art for some scenes from CGaL

The polls winner illustration (Donald Duck)

The 3 Cabs 2024 redraw (redrawing one of my 2018 sketches)

Wednesday Addams (a Jenna portrait)

That’s the stuff on the top of the list. There’s more but for later.

[a-study-in-dante]

January 13th, 2023 | For the first time ever since I started bullet journaling (2015 if you believe it!), I started a new bujo on January 1st and I changed my layout. I needed a fresh start from my former system. Also very happy that I found my next journal, an A5 Leuchtturm in light grey! I'm obsessed and can't wait to write again in such a notebook – first and last time I kept my daily journal in one was in 2018-2019 already!

[striveattemptfail]

🎉🥳 Happy 10 Year Tumblr Anniversary 🥳🎉 (shitposting celebrating 10 years on main!)

This blog has existed for 10 whole years and to celebrate I'm hosting a give-away \o/ Per my poll, all winners will receive a FREE art commission. PLUS, winners can also choose to opt-in and receive free physical prizes, shipping included*!!

Blacklist #SAF Anniversary GA to block this post.

Give-away runs from Aug. 13–23, 2023~!

RULES

Must be following me @striveattemptfail​​​​​ BEFORE Aug. 18, 11:59pm EST. > I will be checking!

Bonus entry for following my sideblog @jercythesiscrying

Unlimited reblogs + likes. Sideblogs allowed! > Please note in the tags/reblogs what blog you are following from. If I cannot find the URL in my followers list you will be disqualified.

Ask box and/or Tumblr DMs must be OPEN.

All ages** allowed to enter!

WINNERS

1ST PLACE Choice of:

1 full-body character OR up to 3 full-body chibis with detailed background (value CA$60+)

PLUS choice to opt-in for first dibs on physical prizes

2ND PLACE Choice of:

1 waist-up character OR up to 2 full-body chibis with semi-detailed background (value CA$40+)

PLUS choice to opt-in for leftovers on physical prizes

3RD PLACE Choice of:

1 bust icon with simple background, character or chibi style (value CA$20+)

PLUS choice to opt-in for leftovers on physical prizes

Super Secret 4th Place If none of the top 3 winners opt-in, I'll do a bonus draw for someone else to receive the physical prizes instead!

COMMISSION PRIZES

High-res A5 illustration to be given as PNG and PDF (unless otherwise requested)

SFW ONLY! — Suggestive themes and partial nudity OK but anything more explicit is not allowed

Art is for personal use only

Open to any/all fandoms or OCs! — References needed for OCs or fandoms I'm unfamiliar with. List of my fandoms under the cut with full disclaimer

No complex poses, backgrounds, mecha

Animals/furries OK as long as it follows the above parameters. (Examples here: one, two, three)

I reserve the right to turn down or modify requests. (See disclaimer under the cut for more details)

PHYSICAL PRIZES***

Karasuno First Years Zine (2018) > Full colour Haikyuu!! fanbook > Perfect bind, 80+ pages, 5.5x8.5" > Valued at CA$25

Batblob Pack (Winter 2023) > Includes unreleased screenprinted 5x7" art print and 1/8 zine of various Batblobs > Printed on ~55gsm paper > Valued at CA$15

the lazy zine. (19/23) > Part of the (unreleased) 19/23 series > Original art: screenprint quarter zine of lazy animals > Valued at CA$7

Plus bonus things...? 👀

All prizes (both illustrated and physical) will be fulfilled before the end of 2023 barring any external circumstances and emergencies.

DEADLINE

Give-away runs from Aug. 13, 9:00pm EST – Aug 23, 11:59pm EST. Winners will be contacted immediately and given 24 hrs to respond. If a winner fails to respond within that time another person will be chosen and given the same deadline. Winners will be announced on this blog by Aug. 28 with their respective prizes.

🎉🥳 Good luck and happy anniversary to me! 🥳🎉

– • – • – • – • – • – • – • – • – • – • –

NOTES / DISCLAIMER

This give-away is not affiliated with Tumblr or any franchises mentioned anywhere within this post. It is being independently hosted by me and I am bearing the responsibility of fulfilling all prizes. As mentioned above, I reserve the right to turn down or modify requests based on my schedule and capabilities once the give-away ends and production begins. Keep scrolling down for a list of fandoms I'm familiar with!

* I am shipping from Canada. If your country does not allow mail/packages from Canada, I cannot ship your prize until it does. You may be subject to customs fees or import taxes once the package arrives to your country. Barring other circumstances, all prizes will be shipped before the end of November 2023. I cannot guarantee that your package won’t go missing or will arrive undamaged, but feel free to contact me if anything goes wrong~!

** If you are a minor you MUST have permission from your guardian(s) to provide me a valid mailing address. I want to keep this give-away open to as many people as possible, but you MUST be willing to share some personal information at your safest discretion. I guarantee that your information will never be used outside of this give-away nor will be shared with anyone except myself. I will NOT be responsible for any issues that may arise if you choose to ignore this disclaimer.

*** Physical prizes might not look like the pictured examples. Prizes may not be in mint condition due to storage and shipping conditions. They may also include other imperfections due to the nature of the screenprinting process. Aside from the Karasuno First Years Zine, all other physical prizes are artworks I’ve made throughout the years, which are great for art/publication collectors but not necessarily fan/merch collectors.

For the record, this isn’t a “foIIow 4 foIIow!! i WaNt MoRe FoLIOwErS!!” kinda deal. I just want folks who've stuck around for a long time to get a better chance at receiving something in return for watching this blog grow and evolve along with me. This is as much a celebration for y'all as it is me actually maintaining this thing for so long LOL ¯\_😂_/¯

– • – • – • – • – • –

Fandoms

Below is just a very short list of fandoms I've previously created for. Again: I'm open to OCs and fandoms I'm not familiar with but references must be given 😌👍

Comics

Check, Please!

Marvel – MCU and comics only

DC Comics – comics only

and a metric ton of manga

Anime

Yuri!!! on ice

Haikyuu!!

Kuroko no Basuke

Gakuen Babysitters

Tanaka is Always Listless

and many, many more

Western Cartoons

Avatar: the Last Airbender / Legend of Korra

RWBY

Gravity Falls

plus many more

Misc.

Glee

Twilight

Star Wars – all movies and shows (no comics/novels)

IRL people (e.g. YouTubers, celebrities, etc) – TBD on case to case basis

[the-monkey-ruler]

Journey to the West: The Great Buddha Temple (2018) 西游之决战大佛寺

Director: Make Starring: Tang Fei / Dou Xinhao / Wang Zhe / Fan Zihao / Jin Zi Genre: Drama / Fantasy Country of production: Mainland China Language: Mandarin Date: 2018-02-01 (Mainland China) Duration: 73 minutes Type: Retelling

Summary:

"Journey to the West: Little Treasures Conquer Demons: The Great Buddha Temple" is a movie script based on the classic novel "Journey to the West". It tells the story of Tang Monk and his four disciples who transformed into cute babies to punish evil and promote good. Sun Wukong and his brothers reincarnated as cute babies to conquer demons and establish their power, but unexpectedly lost his golden hoop stick, so they started a thrilling struggle with the demon who stole the golden hoop stick. In the end, they recovered the golden hoop stick, defeated the demon, and saved the child. This is the Chinese version of "Home Alone", but the cute babies in Journey to the West not only have to defend their homes, but also save the world! Through the wonderful adventure stories of cute babies, the script conveys truth, goodness and beauty to children, teaches them to do more good deeds, spread positive energy, and promote the core values ​​of socialism.

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/30148222/

Link: https://www.iq.com/album/%E8%A5%BF%E6%B8%B8%E4%B9%8B%E5%86%B3%E6%88%98%E5%A4%A7%E4%BD%9B%E5%AF%BA-2018-19rrfowgug?lang=zh_cn

[waycaseuk]

The **evolution of the iPhone** since its introduction in 2007 has been a defining journey in the world of smartphones, with significant advancements in design, performance, and features. Here's a brief overview of key milestones in iPhone evolution:

### 1. **iPhone (2007)**

- **Notable Features**: 3.5" touchscreen, 2 MP camera, 4GB/8GB storage.

- **Innovation**: The first touchscreen-only smartphone, removing the physical keyboard seen in other phones at the time. It introduced multi-touch technology and mobile internet.

### 2. **iPhone 3G (2008)**

- **Notable Features**: 3G network support, App Store.

- **Innovation**: Faster internet browsing with 3G connectivity and the launch of the App Store, which opened the door to third-party apps.

### 3. **iPhone 3GS (2009)**

- **Notable Features**: Faster processor, video recording, voice control.

- **Innovation**: Significant speed improvements ("S" stands for speed) and better camera capabilities, including video recording.

### 4. **iPhone 4 (2010)**

- **Notable Features**: Retina Display, FaceTime, 5 MP camera, glass design.

- **Innovation**: A major redesign with a stainless steel frame and glass front/back, and the introduction of the Retina Display, which had higher pixel density for crisper visuals.

### 5. **iPhone 4S (2011)**

- **Notable Features**: Siri, 8 MP camera, A5 chip.

- **Innovation**: Siri, the first virtual assistant on an iPhone, was introduced, along with significant camera and processor upgrades.

### 6. **iPhone 5 (2012)**

- **Notable Features**: 4" display, Lightning connector, LTE support.

- **Innovation**: The iPhone grew in size to a 4-inch screen and introduced the Lightning connector, replacing the 30-pin dock.

### 7. **iPhone 5S & 5C (2013)**

- **Notable Features (5S)**: Touch ID, 64-bit architecture.

- **Notable Features (5C)**: Colorful plastic body.

- **Innovation**: The iPhone 5S brought Touch ID for fingerprint authentication and a powerful 64-bit A7 chip. The 5C was a more affordable model with colorful designs.

### 8. **iPhone 6 & 6 Plus (2014)**

- **Notable Features**: 4.7" & 5.5" displays, Apple Pay.

- **Innovation**: Apple entered the "phablet" market with larger displays, along with introducing Apple Pay, the company's mobile payment system.

### 9. **iPhone 6S & 6S Plus (2015)**

- **Notable Features**: 3D Touch, 12 MP camera, 4K video.

- **Innovation**: The introduction of 3D Touch, which allowed the screen to detect varying levels of pressure, creating new ways to interact with the phone.

### 10. **iPhone SE (2016)**

- **Notable Features**: 4" screen, A9 chip (same as iPhone 6S).

- **Innovation**: A smaller, more affordable model, resembling the iPhone 5S but with the internal power of the iPhone 6S.

### 11. **iPhone 7 & 7 Plus (2016)**

- **Notable Features**: Dual cameras (7 Plus), no headphone jack, water resistance.

- **Innovation**: The removal of the headphone jack was controversial, and Apple also introduced dual cameras on the 7 Plus for improved zoom and portrait photography.

### 12. **iPhone 8 & 8 Plus (2017)**

- **Notable Features**: Wireless charging, glass back, True Tone display.

- **Innovation**: While similar to the iPhone 7, the 8 series introduced wireless charging through the glass back and enhanced display technology with True Tone.

### 13. **iPhone X (2017)**

- **Notable Features**: Edge-to-edge OLED display, Face ID, no home button.

- **Innovation**: A radical redesign that removed the home button and Touch ID, replacing it with Face ID, Apple’s facial recognition technology. It also introduced the first OLED display in an iPhone.

### 14. **iPhone XS, XS Max, & XR (2018)**

- **Notable Features**: Larger OLED display (XS Max), Liquid Retina display (XR), A12 chip.

- **Innovation**: The XS Max brought a massive 6.5" screen, while the XR offered a more affordable option with an LCD display but the same powerful internals.

### 15. **iPhone 11, 11 Pro, & 11 Pro Max (2019)**

- **Notable Features**: Ultra-wide camera, night mode, A13 chip.

- **Innovation**: A triple-camera system on the Pro models enhanced photography, including better low-light performance with night mode.

### 16. **iPhone SE (2nd Gen) (2020)**

- **Notable Features**: A13 chip, 4.7" display, Touch ID.

- **Innovation**: Like the original SE, this model combined older iPhone design (resembling the iPhone 8) with powerful internals from newer models, offering a budget-friendly option.

### 17. **iPhone 12 Mini, 12, 12 Pro, & 12 Pro Max (2020)**

- **Notable Features**: 5G support, MagSafe, Ceramic Shield.

- **Innovation**: The iPhone 12 series introduced 5G connectivity and the MagSafe system for attaching accessories. Ceramic Shield provided increased drop protection.

### 18. **iPhone 13 Mini, 13, 13 Pro, & 13 Pro Max (2021)**

- **Notable Features**: Smaller notch, ProMotion 120Hz display (Pro models), Cinematic Mode.

- **Innovation**: Focused on camera improvements, including Cinematic Mode for video recording, and higher refresh rate displays on the Pro models for smoother performance.

### 19. **iPhone SE (3rd Gen) (2022)**

- **Notable Features**: A15 chip, 5G, improved battery life.

- **Innovation**: Continuation of the budget-friendly SE line with more powerful internals.

### 20. **iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, & 14 Pro Max (2022)**

- **Notable Features**: Dynamic Island (Pro models), 48 MP camera (Pro), Always-On Display (Pro), satellite SOS.

- **Innovation**: The Pro models introduced the Dynamic Island, a new interactive notification area, along with the powerful 48 MP main camera and satellite communication for emergencies.

### 21. **iPhone 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro, & 15 Pro Max (2023)**

- **Notable Features**: USB-C port, A17 Pro chip, Action Button (Pro models).

- **Innovation**: The transition from Lightning to USB-C for universal charging, along with enhanced performance and camera upgrades.

The iPhone's journey reflects major technological strides and design shifts, focusing on improving usability, camera quality, and processing power with each iteration.

[bricoles-du-bois-perdu]

Linogravure format A5, autoportrait de @ortie-pnk, 2018

Série numérotée de 25 exemplaires, il reste une 10 aine disponible

[arttsuka]

Two things, first,

I hope you have a good day,

and second,

when did you start drawing small?

(I love your art, and I would like to know more about you ♡)

First, thank you very much, I did have a good day. Hope you have a good day too :)

Second, my drawings started being smaller (and I started drawing more in general) around 2018. Before that I was too 'young' and while I liked drawing I wasn't actively doing it to improve etc. I also started actively doodling more in school at that time (rip all the school books and textbooks) and with the space being smaller I 'learned' to do smaller drawings. Now I'm at a point where I feel like I can't use a paper bigger than A5. I'm trying to make them a bit bigger because the smaller the drawing the less details I can put in.

I talk about it some more here but in general, my drawings tend to range from 2-11 cm, depending on what I'm drawing.

[matapelangi]

WAHHH ADA BUKU MENARIK😋

“Menjadi Muslimah bukan hanya tentang bagaimana hidup bahagia sendiri, tetapi bagaimana keberadaan kita memberikan manfaat. Dengan cara apa? Dengan karya yang menginspirasi..." Kesan Kak Ramli (delegasi majelis sastra asia tenggara 2018) yang merupakan salah satu pembaca awal karya satu ini. ✨

Buku "Menjadi Muslimah Most Wanted" karya dari @septinasn ini akan menyuguhkan cerita dua arah antara pembaca dengan penulisnya. Berdiskusi bersama mengenai sosok muslimah yang terbaik di mata sang Pencipta. Selain itu banyak hal inspiratif dan berdasarkan kisah nyata yang diceritakan oleh Kak Septi kepada kita semua. ☺️

Open Pre Order (PO) Buku "Menjadi Muslimah Most Wanted" dimulai 3 Oktober hingga 10 Oktober 2023, dengan rincian:

• Jumlah hal: 153 hal

• Ukuran: A5 Softkover

• Jumlah bab: 19 Bab

Selama masa PO, teman-teman akan mendapatkan harga khusus, lho! Yuk buruan dipesan dengan klik link pemesanan di nomer 087851864312 (Septina)

#Buku #Openpreorder #motivasi #muslimah

[vocalsynthbdays]

happy birthday Hupo Xu Yan(mupa) !!!!!!!!!!!! [jul 23]

Hupo Xu Yan is a chinese synth developed by Gowild, and released on 11 jun 2018. her character birthday is today thoguh. she is 167cm tall and her age is a secret. shes the second synth released for the desktop version of muta. i cannot seem to find who voiced or illustrated her. it seems you could talk with hupo, in like an ai chatbot kind of way (??) which also looked at your facial expression using the pyramid-like device ? https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%90%A5%E7%8F%80%C2%B7%E8%99%9A%E9%A2%9C/20169662 translated with google translate- "Amber Xuyan is an "artificial intelligence virtual life" based on the artificial intelligence "GAVE" engine developed by Gowild Intelligent Technology. Through face recognition and memory functions, it forms the memory and judgment ability of user preferences; it has personal knowledge maps, interests and hobbies, tasks and work, and autonomous emotional changes. Users can talk to Amber Xuyan and give different instructions to Amber Xuyan. Your attitude towards Amber Xuyan will also lead to changes in Amber Xuyan's attitude towards you." the mupa engine is discontinued and most of what i can find about hupo is in chinese (some of it is even just screen shots of pages, so i cant copy them into a translator) so if anyone who knows chinese would be willing to help me find anything more about her for next year, or to correct anything i got wrong, id really appreciate it !!

the pyramid-like thing

alt design

some art

3d model i yhink

[aviaposter]

Airbus A320 QantasLink operated by Network Aviation

Registration: VH-VQS Named: Kangaroo Paw Type: A320-232 Engines: 2 × IAE V2527-A5 Serial Number: 2515 First flight: Jul 26, 2005

Network Aviation is an airline based in Perth, Western Australia, which was founded by Lindsay Evans in 1998. From humble beginnings operating the Cessna 310, the Cessna 441 Conquest and the Beechcraft Super King Air 200, Network experienced significant growth shortly after it's foundation later introducing the Embraer 120 Brasilia in 2000 and the Fokker 100 in 2008. In 2011 Network Aviation became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Qantas Group. Network Aviation operates a fleet of Airbus A320, A319 and Fokker 100 aircraft throughout Western Australia and beyond providing Regular Public Transport flights as well as charter flights, predominantly to support the 'Fly In Fly Out' (FIFO) resources industry on behalf of QantasLink. In 2016, Network Aviation became an affiliate member of the Oneworld Alliance. The first Network Aviation A320, VH-VQS arrived in Perth in February 2018 and commenced passenger services in April 2018.

Poster for Aviators. aviaposter.com

[kaz-plasticmoon]

COMIC MARKET 95発行　同人誌「幻想少女硝子店」

ビン型のオールカラー小冊子

色々な小物と少女達の「一瞬＝永遠」をビンの中に閉じ込める…というコンセプトで描きました

私のイラストに合わせて、成瀬 滸様に素敵なショートストーリーをご寄稿いただきました

実物こんな感じです

BOOTH

デザインは氷雨さんにお願いしました

蝋引き加工のタグも氷雨さんこだわり仕様

[fcble]

mingeun 18 + 19 🫡🥰

A PEEK INSIDE...

18.     “secret” hiding spot.

Mingeun’s hiding spot is an Amazon cardboard box he keeps in the back of his closet. Its contents are as follows:

His current journal, the A5 Leuchtturm1917 in black

His old journal, a worn composition book

The pen he uses to write, the 0.5mm Dong-A U-Knock gel pen in black

A haphazard stack of polaroid photos of himself and the rest of Fable

A signed copy of Teen Top’s second full album, High Five

The only items he really wants to keep secret are the journals. Everything else is there because it fits or he doesn’t have anywhere else to put it.

19.     five most recent in contact list. 

He doesn’t talk to very many people. The same handful of his contacts are shuffled and reordered as the days pass. Right now, Mingeun has recently spoken with:

Eunsu, of course. 

His girlfriend.

His older sister, Minah.

Haksu.

Fable’s manager. He added the “(manager)” description to remind himself way back in 2018. He has yet to change it or the default icon.

[roguetiger-ao3]

Lone Wolf woes

I made what could quite possibly be the foolish decision that Lone Wolf is the next one of my fanfics that I want to bind. And this is foolish on a massive scale as that it works out at over 1500 A5 pages -_-

Now I've got a choice to make while splitting it... should I just go for around 400-500ish pages per book for splitting it or try and work out where there are natural breaks in the story?

The first option is possibly the easiest while the second might make more sense but is also more difficult as I haven't read it since it was finished in 2018 and, strange to say, I can't remember a lot of what I put in it -_-

Editing some of the grammar and spelling mistakes out at the moment so I have time to work it out.

[gabrielfolli]

Vues de mon leporello format a5 appartenant au projet éditorial AVALANCHE 4 @avalanche_4.0, 5 faces recto (Sans titre #1 à #5, 2022, technique mixte sur papier, 29,7 x 21 cm) et 5 faces verso (archives photographiques personnelles, textes écrits en 2022 et 2023, coupure de presse etc.).

Projet @aisnestreetprojects (2018 - en cours) porté sur l'histoire récente de mon département d'origine, l'Aisne, principalement les territoires de Tergnier, Beautor, La Fère et Chauny. Un grand merci au @fracpicardie @bourdetti @miratmasson, les artistes participants, la DRAC Hauts-de-France, l'Artothèque de Tergnier, et les médiathèques de Tergnier, Condren et Sinceny.

Le projet @aisnestreetprojects sera en partie visible à Laon dès janvier 2024 dans le cadre de mon exposition personnelle CE QU'IL FAUT SAUVER, à la Maison des Arts et Loisirs, en partenariat avec le @fracpicardie !

Coordination graphique : Mirat-Masson

Crédit photographique : Gabriel Folli

[elismor]

Pen and Paper

I’ve lost it now, but I recently saw a post go by talking about Moleskine notebooks and how terrible their paper actually is (so true!), so I thought I would pass along some recs on notebooks I like and pens I love to use.

PAPER

Leuchtturm 1917 is a good alternative to Moleskine. They make soft and hardcover notebooks with good quality paper that is easy to write on and takes the weight of ballpoint, gel, and rollerball quite well IMO. I do not use fountain pens personally, so I can’t really speak to that--except to say that my latest (failed) experiment with them was not the fault of the paper in any way. I just do not have a handwriting style that is conducive to fountain pens.

I use these in hardcover as a sort of journal/everything book that I carry around with me and they hold up well to being tossed in bags, dropped on the driveway, and spattered by rain from windows left open.

I use these in softcover as my work notebook for to-do lists and meeting notes and often fill them entirely over the course of a couple of years. They also hold up well to sitting on desks, being sat upon by cats, and being written in with everything from colored pencil to sharpie (though the sharpie will bleed).

They come in lined, unlined, grid, and dot--which I confess I do not understand at all.

Clairefontaine has great, smooth paper. Years ago a friend and I would send circle journals back and forth and this was our go-to brand. They take ink well and will also handle having things like ticket stubs stapled or glued in with aplomb. The ones we used got mailed from coast to coast in the US many times over and came out a little battered, but the covers are board and flex a little, so it only added character.

I think the ones we had were A5 and i know they were lined, but here’s a link to the collection. Ours had stitched spines because spiral is not great for mailing, but they opened well and went reasonably flat to write in.

I have been using Decomposition Notebooks to hand-write fic lately. What can I say? I’m an analog writer living in the digital world. Anyway. The paper is not the same quality as either of those above, but it takes ballpoint (my go-to) quite well and the cardboard covers hold up against what I throw at them. I like lined paper, but accidentally picked up one that is blank and the paper in it is a little heavier, which is nice. Plus? Recycled. Save the trees. If you are in the US, Target sometimes sells them--campus bookstores almost always do (where I get mine) and they are cheaper than either of the above.

Target also sells some Leuchtturm and Moleskine, too.

PENS

OMG, I could write a treatise on pens--as I suspect most people who write could--but I’ll spare you my ramblings and get to the point.

I used to be a Cross girl pretty exclusively because they are fairly easy to find in shops like Staples and the big name bookstores and are better than your standard Bic or Biro. I, personally, like a medium-thick barrel with some weight to it, so I tend toward the Bailey or the Calais.

But then I was in Paris in 2018 and picked up a Parker IM Premium Ballpoint and now I will never go back. I actually have several different pens from the IM line -all ballpoint--but the IM Vibrant Rings might be my favorite of them. My current go-to is the Urban Ballpoint Twist, though. The bulbous barrel is just amazingly comfortable to use for multiple-pages at a time.

One of the reasons I switched to Parker is that their ink--specifically the QUINKFlow ballpoint (I like blue medium point, but mileage varies) flows really well as compared to the Cross ink, which I find to be a little..sticky, maybe? IDK. It drags across the page rather than flows.

My husband says I have too many pens. I say there is no such thing.