Editing The Pen Addict 671/transcript (section)

== Early stationery memories and childhood experiences ==

* Yeah, you know, something that I've liked for a long time, I remember, you know, being in elementary school and like, the Sakura jelly roll was a big deal. Like, I wanted those. And, you know, doing like back to school shopping, going to the office supply store was like a highlight every year. So I've liked pens and stationery for a long time. And when it comes to fountain pens, like, I think I started that maybe in middle school, my friend had a Waterman laureate. And after that, I just started using fountain pens nonstop. And it's been, I don't know, almost 25 years I've been a fountain pen user. Nice, nice. So would you use the fountain pens actually at school, like for schoolwork or in the school environment, like even in middle school, high school? I would. It wouldn't always go well, because you have to deal with varying paper quality. And yeah, I don't, you know, what's funny, I don't feel like I ever got made fun of for using fountain pens in school. But when I started working, it's like, what is this? Man, I know those conversations so well. And I do think it was, it was more like, noticeable, like in like the workforce, you know, when you start bringing around something that, you know, someone didn't grab out of the office supply cabinet. They're like, what are you doing? Yeah, totally.
* When did you realize there was like an escalation in like in your fountain pens, right? Like, you know, you could use whatever through high school and college and later and even starting in the workforce. When did you make that like step up after like those first entry level pens? When did you start like shopping for like something really cool for yourself to use? Yeah, so you know, I grew up in like the Seattle area. And at the time, like, it was pretty, like spoiled with stationery stores. Like we had some really nice stores. We also had like one of the first, or like very early, like online pen retailers, which was called World Lux. So like, I got to see some like high end pens, like right out the gate, I couldn't afford any of them. But like, I would say it escalated pretty quickly. Like I had a Visconti, I think it was called like the, the Percolese or something like that is the like a Roman general and his it was like named after his like, helmet, but it was a steel nib pen, but it was very expensive to me. So I started with some nice pens right away. I mean, I think the first one I had was a Schaefer No Nonsense. But then after that, it was like, okay, we're in like the 50 to like $70 range, and then $100 range. And I kind of plateaued at like the $300 range for like maybe 10 years. And then I dipped over. Yeah, the things of escrow. Believe me, we have a we have a list to talk about in a video to go along with that. But yeah, we're this actually like hearing you say about that Visconti at the time, like, okay, that actually makes sense with where you're at now with some of the things that you like, like, we like what we like. And actually, I want to, we're going to specifically talk about this later in the show. About one of the recent videos you put up. And I think it's important to have like, hey, this is this is what I like. And this is what why I like it. And like, it's okay, if you don't like it, but I really like it. And that's one of the cool things about this stationery hobby is like, there's something out there for everyone, right? Like, it's really fun to just kind of dabble and figure out what's what's out there for you and share that with other people, which you did with the unroyal warrant. So what made you want to start blogging about pens? Yeah, so I started that in like 2013. And at the time, I had just, I've gone on sabbatical, I was working at a big CPA firm. And I was like, you know, this kind of line of work wasn't right for me. So I took some time off to travel and someone was like, Oh, you should start a travel blog. And I was like, I don't know if I could do that. But I could do a pen blog. And that's kind of what I did. And, you know, I went to Japan for the first time. And I traveled, you know, a decent amount through Europe and just all the stationery stuff there. There was like, just so much content that was so much fun. And yeah, that's really how that started. Yeah, so I remember seeing your post and it was it was kind of different for me at the time. That was still real early in my fountain pen journey. Like I'd been writing the pen addict since 2007. But I really only started getting into fountain pens like in, I don't know, that 2010 to 2012 range where I was starting to think about it a little bit more. And then I was watching, I was reading your blog and just going, Whoa, look at what look at what this guy's doing. Look at these pens. This is so cool. Like it actually really made an impression on me at the time, which in 2013, like there still wasn't like a huge amount of pen blogs at the time. And how long did the unroyal warrant last? Because I know it didn't last forever. It's not necessarily still going on today, but you're, you're, other things we'll get to. But how long did that, how long did that last? I think it lasted maybe three or four years, maybe I, you know, eventually I had to go back to work. And then I started working in tech, but I, it became too much with like the amount that I was working. And I just, I had to let it, it go, unfortunately. Yeah. So I think it lasted maybe three or four years. Okay. So back at work blogs kind of on the side, but you obviously still have like the desire, like the stationery desire to get into fountain pens even more than you were at the time. So when did you decide to make a YouTube channel into, you know, what's now a lot of people might know as Blake's broadcast on YouTube? Um, what made you decide to start getting back into that and sharing, sharing your thoughts on pens? Yeah. So this was, you know, I think during, you know, when we were kind of locked down, I was working from home, um, and I needed something to do. And I, you know, I considered doing the blog, but I thought, you know, let's try video. I like some of like the more unscripted type of content where writing a blog, I don't know. I always found that actually pretty hard. I always wanted to be, you know, great at writing, but it never happened. After I took some classes on that, it was like, well, this just isn't clicking. Let's do the video. And, um, that was really fun. And, you know, to my surprise, people have been so, so nice. Um, like you just don't really expect that on the internet, but the pen community is so nice and like, they just made it so much fun. So I just kept doing it. Yeah. Yeah. One of the great things about the pen community is again, they may like or dislike what you're reviewing, but they're always inquisitive. Right. And it comes from like a place of curiosity, I think. And we're all like trying to discover things. And, you know, to have someone like yourself, like sharing, like what you like, that helps other people figure out what they might like, might dislike, you know, things like that. So do you got this? I'm putting you on the spot here. Do you know how many videos you've done on your channel by chance? I want to say it's, I think I'm under 300, but I'm not a hundred percent sure. Yeah. That's a lot. That's a good number. That's I had no idea what the number would be. Yeah. I've consistently done like at least one a week for, yeah, I think three ish years now. But I try to do more when I, when I can. Let's dig into the channel a little bit more because I have quite, I'm, I watch a lot of YouTube videos, but I don't necessarily create YouTube content. Like I, I dump my Twitch stream VODs over there that like, that doesn't count. Like I'm not making anything for YouTube. Sure. What's that process like for you? Like one, one video a week in, for someone who's just like consuming content, that seems like a small number, but I sit there and go, OMG, like that's a ton that, that feels like a lot to me. So like, what's that process like of, of making a video? Like how much time are you putting into that? Because I know it has to be a lot. Yeah. I mean, I kind of try to come up with like a list of reviews that I want to do and kind of put together and I'll, I'll shoot like probably four at a time. Okay. Um, and then I'll edit, you know, maybe two at a time and, and release them. You know, it takes probably two ish hours to do it to one video. Um, it's not, it's not a huge amount of time. Like I know people do scripted, um, videos. I tried that and I'm like, I can't, I can't read a teleprompter. I can't read off a piece of paper. Um, I just, you know, try to think about what I am going to say, you know, ahead of time and make sure that like, if I'm reviewing a product, like I want to like really use the product. Um, it only if I, if somebody gives me like a time crunch, will I be like, all right, I can do it for, I can do a review. And like, after just one week of using a product, but I'll also say for the most part, I only review the things that, I want the 99% of the stuff that I review is stuff that I've bought with my own money. Like I don't have people sending me stuff all the time. That's not really how my channel is set up. Mm-hmm. And would you say it's mostly like on the things that you like, right? So if we're focusing on like what you're the most interested in, are you then trying to like review that product as, as you use it and just tell people like what to expect from this pen, what your experience has been like? Is it kind of that like experiential review type of content that people can expect on the channel? Yeah, definitely. It's, you know, how does it feel in the hand? How does the nib write? How well put together is it? And then, you know, I do measurements and stuff like that for people. And I do, you know, a writing sample, um, just so people can really see what the pen is like. Um, that is one of the benefits of video too. Yeah. You get more of like a real picture of what the pen is like. Yeah, that's a really good point. And honestly, that's how, why I started the, my blog back when I did is because I wanted to buy a pen, but I kind of wanted to see what it looked like when you write with it. And like no one was doing that. And even in videos, it's hard to sometimes capture that writing experience because it's still, it's so dependent on the user, but I think it's good context. And good information. So I, I, we're going to talk about a couple of videos later in, in this episode and they're not like the peer review videos. Like you're done, you know, some, you know, fountain pen brands tier list. We're going to dig into you did your personal pens list. We're going to dig into. Um, but I'm more wondering just in the general sense of the channel, is there anything you want to do that you haven't really like dug into yet? Or like you pretty content with where you're at now with the channel? I, yeah, I mean, I really do like where, where the channel is. I mean, I don't have it set up such that it's going to like explode in growth. It's the things that I like. I have been doing more like top five lists and, you know, I, I want to do like a video that shows, you know, like my pen cases because I've had so many pen cases. I got to do a review on that. But, um, but I, I like the, I do like the way that it, it, it is right now. Um, but yeah, maybe some more, not just straight reviews, just kind of general talking about fountain pens. I want to see it, see if people like that. I just, I, I do love like just the conversational style like that you do. It's, it's really good and it's enjoyable to watch. So we'll obviously have links in the show notes to your channel, but, uh, I know you have a bunch of followers listening to this show, but hopefully you, some other people will go in and check this out. I want to dig into a little bit of the selling side of what you're doing on doing over there at the paper mine, making things alongside having your YouTube channel. But first let me talk about another store that sells things. And that's our good friends over at Enigma stationery. This episode of the pen addict is brought to you by Enigma stationery. Enigma stationery offers unique items made from in-house designs, along with top brands and hard to find imports. Enigma would like to take time this week to thank all their customers who have purchased Enigma pride collection products or made direct donations to the Trevor project as part of team Enigma stationery. So far this year, as a special thank you to those making direct donations to the Trevor project, as part of their fundraising team, they created a wallpaper pack featuring a collage of pride nib sticker designs. So you can celebrate pride and your love of stationery on all your devices. And that's all to say, thanks for your help as they continue to work towards their goal to raise $10,000 in 2025. And if you want to donate and get that awesome wallpaper pack, just go to give.thetrevorproject.org slash Enigma stationery 2025. That's give.thetrevorproject.org slash Enigma stationery 2025. And if you want to shop their amazing selection of products, head over to enigmastationery.com slash pen addict. Plus, when you enter the code penaddict25, you'll get a free gift and free U.S. shipping on orders of $50 or more. Our thanks to Enigma stationery for their support of this show and all of Relay.