Choosing the Right Pen for Fieldwork Note-taking: Part One
Part one: Types of Pens
Note-taking is at the core of fieldwork practice. Typed transcription and audio/video recordings have their place, of course, but the most reliable tools are the simplest: the humble pen and notebook.
Ball-point pen cross-section diagram from 1946 patent application
When I was younger I avoided note-taking as much as possible as part of my larger struggle with dysgraphia, but over time I realized that when I was able to take notes by hand it changed my relationship to the information I was absorbing in a dramatically positive fashion. This led me to approach note-taking in a much more intentional fashion, and one of the first steps of that intentionality was figuring out what sort of writing implement I was most comfortable with.
A full day of fieldwork can easily entail several hour-long sessions of vigorously scribbling notes while maintaining a heightened level of focused attention. It’s mentally and physically taxing in a way that only the people who have done it can truly understand. We don’t always have the luxury of choosing where and how we have to do our note-taking, but we can choose our tools. So let’s talk about choosing a pen.
Choosing the right pen is a mix of the practical and the personal. Style and aesthetics play as much of a role as the basic mechanics of how a pen lays down a line. The way a pen feels and looks on paper may not be something that many of us think about unprompted, so let’s begin with a vocabulary pf pen-types.
There are four viable types of pens to consider for fieldwork note-taking: ballpoint, rollerball, gel, and felt-tip. Fountain pens don’t really lend themselves to writing rapidly for extended periods so I’m excluding them from this conversation.
Ballpoint: The classic since 1945. It was a breakthrough for writing when it came out, and it’s one of the main reasons why it’s no longer necessary to teach cursive script in schools. Ballpoint pens use an oil-based ink, so the ink sits on top of the paper instead of soaking into it (which is helpful in avoiding bleed-through). The nature of the interaction between the ink and the rolling ball mechanism means that this type of pen actually writes better when the tip has something to catch on, like a rougher and/or cheaper paper. The downside of this is that you have to push it a little harder than other types of pens when you’re writing. This may seem like a little thing, but with sustained writing it definitely affects your grip and your hand tension, which increases the likelihood of hand craps and fatigue on days where you’re doing a lot of note-taking. Generally, ballpoints are the most affordable and long-lasting type of pen, and the oil-based ink also is more resistant to freezing if you happen to be working in low temperature environments.
Personal favorites: The classic BIC Clic Stic workhorse, and the Uni-Ball Jetstream (which uses a hybrid ink that flows a bit more smoothly than a traditional ballpoint, but also costs a good bit more).
Rollerball: Although the mechanism is similar to that of a ballpoint, the rollerball category of pens uses water-based ink. This makes for a much looser and more fluid ink, and a much smoother writing experience. As a reesult, rollerball pens put out more ink as you write, and the ink spreads out a bit more on the page, so a .5mm rollerball will make a thicker line than a .5mm ballpoint. Some bleed-through and spidering of the lines is also possible as the ink is absorbed into the paper - especially cheaper/rougher paper. The ink also can take a little longer to dry, which makes smearing a bit more of a challenge (especially for us lefties). They definitely write well, and the easy ink-flow can help you develop a smoother, faster writing style, but the downside is that they’re not well-suited for writing on non-porous surfaces, or under wet conditions.
Personal favorites: The Pilot V5 and the Uni-Ball Vision.
Gel pen: This is essentially the same mechanism as a rollerball pen, but the ink has thickening agents added to it to increase viscosity. This cuts down on bleed-through and spidering, while retaining much of the smoothness of the rollerball writing experience. The higher viscosity also facilitates inks with more pigment and enables more vivid colors and more color options. It’s also more water resistant when dry, though waterproof qualities and performance under wet conditions can vary by brand and model.
Personal favorites: The Pilot G2
Felt-tip: Though most people think of the classic marker-type conical nibs when they picture felt-tip pens, this category of pen also includes precision plastic nibs that are very well suited to high-speed/high-volume note-taking. Precision nibs perform well on a wide range of papers and other surfaces, though this can vary by brand and model as felt-tip inks come in several different water, oil, and alcohol-based varieties. One big upside is that in addition to lending themselves to very smooth and precise writing, they’re also excellent for line-drawing and drafting. The big downside is that the nibs tend to wear out with heavy usage, especially when using rough paper and/or a heavy writing hand, so they don’t last as long. This, combined with their generally higher per-pen sticker price, means that committing to this style of pen will probably end up costing you a good bit more in the long-run.
Personal favorites: The Sharpie fine point felt-tip pen has been my go-to for the past two years, and they also make it in a thicker “Grip” version for those who find that helpful for comfort and ease of use.
Now that we’ve established a baseline vocabulary, stay tuned for part 2, where we dig deeper into the five factors you should keep in mind when choosing the right pen for fieldwork note-taking.
