Gifts for Writers: The Best Presents for People Who Love to Write
Writers are simultaneously the easiest and hardest people to buy for. Easy, because they have a category of thing they love and use constantly. Hard, because they already have opinions about what they use, and the wrong version of the right gift can be worse than no gift at all.
This guide to gifts for writers is for the people who love to write: novelists and journalists, yes, but also the person who keeps a journal, the friend who still sends handwritten letters, the colleague who covers notebooks in annotations, the family member whose desk is always covered in beautiful chaos. Anyone, in short, for whom writing is something they care about doing properly. Whether you are shopping for a birthday, Christmas or the end of a long project, there is something here for every kind of writer.
How to Choose a Gift for a Writer
Upgrade the tools they already use. Most writers make do with whatever notebook and pen are to hand. A better version of either is noticed every single day.
Notice how they write. A novelist who drafts longhand, a journaller who writes each morning and a letter writer with a long list of correspondents all need slightly different things. A little attention goes a long way.
Choose quality over novelty. Writers tend to be wary of gimmicks. A beautifully made, genuinely useful object will always be the better choice.
A Notebook They Would Never Buy Themselves
The essential object. The notebook is the writer's essential object, and the gap between a notebook they are making do with and one they genuinely love is larger than non-writers appreciate.
What matters. A lay-flat binding that stays open without wrestling, paper that takes ink well, and a size that works both at a desk and in a bag. Our lay-flat A5 notebooks are designed around all three: sewn binding, 100gsm ivory paper, available in blank and ruled. The Vol 15 Ivory and Vol 16 Ochre are quietly classic covers, each with 300 blank pages.
Blank or ruled? Blank suits writers who think visually or whose work spills in several directions at once. Ruled suits those who write in straight lines and want the discipline of the page.
Best for. Novelists, journalists, diarists, anyone who goes through notebooks quickly and deserves a better one.
Gifts for Writers
A Fountain Pen Worth Writing With
A noticeable change. For a writer who cares about the experience of putting words on paper, a fountain pen is the gift that changes things. The line is different, the flow is different, the relationship between hand and page is different.
Our pick. The Hightide Marbled Fountain Pen in Navy has a marbled body, a fine nib and gold-plated finishings, takes standard European cartridges, and comes in a paper gift box. Browse more in our luxury fountain pens and pens.
Gift tip. Pair it with a lay-flat notebook. Our notebooks are fountain pen friendly, and our piece on the best paper for fountain pens explains why paper matters.
Gifts for Letter Writers
For the correspondent. Some writers are specifically letter writers: people who maintain proper correspondence, who write to friends and family on good paper, and who understand that a handwritten letter is a different category of communication from an email.
What to give. Notecards and envelopes are the most considered gift you can give this person. The 6pk Typewriter Notecards come with gold foil and ivory envelopes in a glassine sleeve, and the Assorted Pack of Vintage Type Notecards offers a little variety. Browse our correspondence collection and letter writing sets for more.
Thoughtful extras. A Brass Letter Opener for the replies, a Correspondence Storage Box to keep treasured letters, and a set of 1st Class Large Letter Stamps so the first letter can go straight in the post.
Gifts for Journallers and Diarists
A daily ritual. For the person who writes every morning or every night, the notebook becomes a companion. A blank lay-flat notebook gives a journaller room to write, list and sketch without constraint.
For the planner. Many journallers also love to plan. Our weekly planners are A5, undated and lay-flat, with a week-to-view layout and monthly pages, so they can begin any week of the year. Try the Weekly Planner in Desert.
For the Writer Who Edits on Paper
The pencil stage. Many writers, particularly those working on longer pieces, edit on printed pages rather than on screen. It is a more deliberate process, and a good pencil is a tool worth having.
What to give. The Penco Passers Mate Pencil in Dark Green and the Extract Flint 2B Pencil are lovely to use. Add Index Point Sticky Notes for marking pages and Gold Plated Paper Clips for holding drafts together.
Christmas Gifts for Writers
The season for writing. December is when most of us write more by hand than at any other time of year, which makes Christmas a natural moment for gifts for writers. A new notebook to begin the year, a fountain pen for writing Christmas cards, or a planner for the year's writing goals are all well timed.
Stocking fillers for writers. Pencils, sticky notes, paper clips and a pack of notecards all make good small gifts. Our Christmas stocking filler ideas for stationery lovers has many more, and our luxury Christmas gifts for stationery lovers covers bigger presents.
Wrap it well. A writer will notice the details. Our Christmas gift wrapping and ribbons finish the gift beautifully.
Building a Writer's Gift Set
The complete writing kit. Lay-flat notebook, fountain pen and a pack of notecards. Everything needed for a serious writing session, presented together.
The correspondent's gift. Notecards, a brass letter opener, a correspondence storage box and stamps. For the writer who communicates as much on paper as on screen.
The editor's desk. Ruled notebook, pencils, sticky notes and paper clips. For the writer whose desk is their world.
All of the above can be wrapped in our luxury wrapping paper, which, for a writer who cares about beautiful things, is part of the gift. Browse our full gift ideas for the writer collection for more.
A Card Worth Keeping
Choose it as carefully as the gift. Whatever you give, the card matters, particularly for a writer, who will notice it more than most people and is more likely to keep it. Browse our card collection for designs that feel genuinely chosen. Teachers often make wonderful recipients for writing gifts too: see our teacher Christmas gift ideas.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good gift for a writer?
A better version of something they use every day. A lay-flat notebook, a fountain pen or a pack of good notecards will be used constantly and appreciated every time.
What do you buy someone who loves writing letters?
Notecards and envelopes, a brass letter opener, a box to keep their correspondence in, and a few stamps so they can post the first letter straight away.
What are good Christmas gifts for writers?
A new notebook for the year ahead, a fountain pen for writing Christmas cards, or an undated weekly planner for setting writing goals. Pencils and sticky notes make good stocking fillers.
Should I choose a blank or ruled notebook for a writer?
Blank suits writers who sketch or think in several directions; ruled suits those who prefer straight lines. If you are unsure, consider how they write now.
Are your notebooks good for fountain pens?
Our lay-flat notebooks use 100gsm ivory paper and are fountain pen friendly.
The Most Important Thing
Writing is a private act, and the tools it requires are intimate objects. A gift that improves those tools improves the writing itself, however slightly. For someone who writes because it is how they make sense of the world, that is a meaningful thing to give. It says: I see what you do, and I think it is worth doing properly.
Explore our gifts for the writer, lay-flat notebooks, correspondence and fountain pens. Our own stationery is designed in our North London studio and made in England.