Editing Writer (section)

====Scribe====
[[File:The Letter Writer.jpg|thumb|Scribe in India taking instructions from a client]]
{{Main|Scribe}}

A scribe writes ideas and information on behalf of another, sometimes copying from another document, sometimes from oral instruction on behalf of an illiterate person, sometimes transcribing from another medium such as a [[Reel-to-reel audio tape recording|tape recording]], [[shorthand]], or personal notes.

Being able to write was a rare achievement for over 500 years in Western Europe so monks who copied texts were scribes responsible for saving many texts from first times. The monasteries, where monks who knew how to read and write lived, provided an environment stable enough for writing. Irish monks, for example, came to Europe in about 600 and "found manuscripts in places like [[Tours]] and [[Toulouse]]" which they copied.<ref name=Clark>{{cite book|last=Clark|first=Kenneth|title=Civilisation|year=1969|publisher=Penguin Books|location=London|isbn=0-14-016589-4|pages=28–29}}</ref> The monastic writers also illustrated their books with highly skilled art work using gold and rare colors.