Welcome again to our “WordPress.com Favorites” collection! In these interviews, we’ll be highlighting bloggers about their ardour undertaking. Warning: contents assured to be inspiring.
As we speak’s featured weblog, The Pelikan’s Perch, dives deeply into a distinct segment of a distinct segment: proprietor Joshua Danley writes solely about Pelikan-brand fountain pens.
Even in case you’ve by no means written with a fountain pen and know nothing about this graphological pastime, you’ll be captivated by Joshua’s interview under.
1. Inform us slightly bit about your self. What do you do for a dwelling? What do you write about? How lengthy have you ever been running a blog?
At the start, I’m a father to 2 candy and rambunctious little boys and a husband to an incredible spouse. More often than not, you will discover me working at a group hospital within the Philadelphia suburbs. I’m a pulmonary and significant care doctor by commerce, working in each in-patient and out-patient settings in addition to serving because the medical director of my hospital’s ICU. As you’ll be able to think about, my days could be lengthy and intense, by no means extra so than since COVID-19 landed on our doorstep.
It would shock some, then, to be taught that my weblog has nothing to do with medication or household. As an alternative, I write solely concerning the Pelikan model of fountain pens, a model that’s almost 184 years outdated.
I launched my weblog, The Pelikan’s Perch, on September 1, 2014, however I’ve been amassing fountain pens since 2012. Whereas learning for my inner medication boards, I’d take breaks from learning by researching my small however rising assortment of pens. It was an effective way to decompress. I discovered plenty of nice info, nevertheless it was fragmented and extensively distributed throughout the various corners of the web. I spent plenty of time piecing all of it collectively, actually for nothing greater than my very own edification.
In some unspecified time in the future, it struck me that others would possibly get pleasure from and profit from the data that I used to be gathering for myself. That was the catalyst for the weblog. I’ve no formal writing expertise, although I all the time excelled in my English courses. I sought to mix a colloquial, conversational language that was simple to entry whereas nonetheless making use of a extra rigorous scientific method to the analysis behind each bit.
2. Why Pelikan particularly? What makes the model so particular? Why not write about fountain pens extra broadly?
I obtained my first fountain pen in 2009 however have solely been amassing them in earnest since 2012. I first collected a broad swath of manufacturers and skilled many distinctive filling techniques, dabbling in something that caught my eye. It was an important schooling within the historical past and design of fountain pens.
It wasn’t till 2013 that I acquired my first Pelikan, a frivolously used white M205. It was love at first sight. The M205 was my first higher-end, piston-filled fountain pen and it stood out for its clear design and excellent steadiness when posted. It was sufficient to make me begin searching for out different Pelikans. Don’t get me improper, it wasn’t like I made a snap choice on the spot to dedicate myself solely to 1 model, however as I started to gravitate increasingly more in direction of Pelikan, I began to forsake the entire others.
My assortment of Pelikans would develop with the addition of an old-style Black/Inexperienced M600 after which an M400 Tortoiseshell White. A medical resident’s wage isn’t a lot to talk about, so I began promoting off my earlier non-Pelikan acquisitions to fund my new habit, a choice that I’ve but to remorse all these years later.
What makes the model so particular is that Pelikan pens have an indescribable high quality, a personality and a self-discipline, that makes proudly owning and utilizing them a pleasure that transcends the sum of their elements. There’s a wealthy historical past and heritage behind the model that basically captivates the creativeness whenever you begin digging into it. I don’t write about fountain pens extra broadly just because there are plenty of wonderful folks already working in that house and placing out nice content material. I wished my voice to be distinctive, so I sought out a distinct segment inside a distinct segment. I believe that laser focus has allowed me to deliver high-quality content material to the weblog that may not in any other case be potential if I used to be extra broadly targeted.
3. You write inside a distinct segment of a distinct segment. Do you ever really feel constrained or such as you would possibly run out of concepts? Is it simple to give you new content material concepts?
Time. Time is what I’m constrained by, particularly the woeful lack of it. My day job retains me very busy, so my running a blog is shoehorned into the odd hours of the evening, a minimum of after I’m in a position to keep awake. Quite a lot of analysis goes into a lot of my items, and it’s time-consuming to try to get issues proper. It’s not the subject material that constrains, a minimum of not but. The Pelikan model traces its roots again to 1838 and so they have been making fountain pens since 1929. That’s 184 years of firm heritage and 93 years of pen making, which implies that there’s loads of fodder there to jot down about — if solely my time and creativeness have been equally expansive. It has been an actual blast having the ability to deliver a few of the extra esoteric and buried details about the model and its pens to the floor. I’ve much more concepts that I’m simply ready to have the ability to discover.
4. What are the advantages of writing with a fountain pen? What would you say to somebody who’s by no means written with one to be able to get them to attempt?
First, I discover the act of utilizing a fountain pen considerably cathartic. We’re so linked and device-oriented today. There’s something particular about unplugging and placing pen to paper. That tactile suggestions, the nib gliding on a clean line of ink, seeing your phrases come to life, that’s one thing very rewarding. It will possibly actually unlock your creativity in a approach our digital gadgets can’t.
It additionally connects us to the previous. Whereas there are many new, fashionable pens available, there are simply as many classic fashions on the market. Selecting one up can’t assist however evoke pictures of who may need owned it and what would possibly they’ve written with it. It’s a enjoyable train of the creativeness.
The summary apart, I believe utilizing a fountain pen helps enhance retention and generally is a stress reliever. Additionally, it may be very rewarding for those who like to jot down and ship letters. When a lot of our mail is junk, receiving a handwritten letter from somebody is a uncommon deal with and a particular present that anybody can provide. That’s not a fountain pen–particular exercise, however the train is extra satisfying than when utilizing a ballpoint.
5. There’s a sturdy group of fountain pen lovers on the market. What are a few of your favourite assets, for people who could be eager about exploring this huge world?
Once I was given my first fountain pen in 2009, I crashed and burned. I had no concept what I used to be doing, and I didn’t know the place to look. That lesson in frustration turned me off to the idea and it took three years earlier than I’d discover my approach again. The second go-round was way more profitable, largely because of websites like The Fountain Pen Community and Fountain Pen Geeks which have been very influential for me in my early days. I believe they’re nonetheless nice repositories of knowledge and there’s a lot there for a novice to discover and unpack.
Different websites are nice too, comparable to r/fountainpens over on Reddit. These are simply a few of the greater boards and dialogue boards. It might take approach an excessive amount of house to checklist the entire different nice bloggers and different assets on the market that even have nice info. The boards make for a very good place to begin although.
6. Do you’ve gotten any ideas for aspiring bloggers, writers, and/or hobbyists? What has saved you going all these years?
Discover your personal area of interest inside a distinct segment. Write about one thing you like, one thing near the center. That can hold you going.
Preserve at it however don’t sweat posting day by day or each week. Do what you’ll be able to, when you’ll be able to. When it begins to really feel like work and you start to wrestle, step away from it. It shouldn’t be a chore.
For me, the weblog has been a remedy of types. It’s a refuge the place I can go to unplug from the stress of my day job and get misplaced in a world that has nothing to do with medication. That stress reliever has been invaluable to my psychological well being.
In the event you assume you’ve found your personal area of interest inside a distinct segment, however are slightly caught in getting your web site off the bottom, try our free, self-paced Intro to Running a blog course.
Additionally be sure you learn the primary two options on this WordPress.com Favorites collection: The Journey Architect writes all about touring and doesn’t slender in on a single geographic space or journey matter; Empish Thomas writes about all types of issues, from incapacity advocacy, to ebook/podcast opinions, to why she loves writing.
Editor’s observe: This interview has been frivolously edited for readability.
