Nichols puts the paper back in the typewriter and works it across, or up/down, many times. Underwood: Nichols was the $5 winning bidder on eBay for this Underwood, which she purchased in 2011.

When New Yorker staff writer Rachel Syme bought an old-school typewriter, she thought it might be fun to send friends and family letters they could hold in their hands.

She works across the entire sheet of paper. “You write a whole document on the typewriter,” says Nichols. “I think of a person as a whole document.” ...