What’s the worth of your writing tools?
When you spend significant time writing, it helps if your writing tools work for you, not against you.
For the past year, my desk chair’s been fighting me. Once it was fully adjustable for height, seatback angle, and seat angle. But months ago, the seat adjustment quit working. Several times each day I’d adjust the angle. Each time, it would quickly return to a position that felt wrong.
If I were deeply involved in a project, I could ignore the chair. But other times, it distracted me.
Likewise, I’ve been getting by with the absolute minimum of photo and graphics tools. While I’ve been renting for $20 per month the latest edition of Adobe InDesign, I’ve been making do with lesser graphics and photo-editing programs.
That was fine when little of my work dealt with graphics. But since I’ve been devoting most of my time to a 64-page, full-color magazine, I needed better tools.
This weekend, I stopped being too frugal. Adobe offered a sale of just $40 per month for their full suite of photo and graphics tools. I suspect I’ll save that much in improved efficiency.
I also replaced my office chair. I saw one I liked, tested it, and liked it. Just the right height, just the right angle. Even better, I got it for a 25 percent discount. Not the $20 the people with the garage sale first asked, but only $15.
A good tool’s even better when you buy it at a bargain.
