Is there any difference in meaning if at all between "to write IN pen" and "to write WITH a pen"?

I would like to know whether there is any difference in meaning if at all between "to write IN pen" and "to write WITH a pen"

Answer

Although to write with a pen and in pen mean more or less the same thing, I do draw a distinction.

Speaking generally, to write with something (where with indicates agency and not accompaniment) usually relates something about the writer, the writer's tools, or the writing process; I can write

• with a feather quill


• with a flourish


• with the memory still fresh in my mind


• with a dictionary & thesaurus and a Red Bull & vodka

To write in something (where in denotes a method or style, not location or position) is to describe some characteristic intrinsic to the writing itself:

• in cursive


• in Russian


• in blood


• in riddles

In is more exclusive; to say I write with metaphors means you employ metaphors in your writing, whereas to say I write in metaphors means your writing is characterized by the use of metaphors (or even universally comprised of metaphors). To say I write with Latin words similarly means you include Latin words in your writing; to say I write in Latin words means you use Latin words to the exclusion of any others.

I would say that in is more common in expressions, e.g. something written

• in stone — utterly immutable (more often set, carved, or etched in stone): There will be absolutely no extensions; the deadline is set in stone.


• in Greek — incomprehensible: IKEA may be Swedish, but these instructions are written in Greek.


• in crayon — amateurish, shoddy, or primitive, as if produced by children. This sales proposal is written in crayon.


• in blood — created, enforced, or characterized by violence or death or the threat of something equally serious: The history of modern Europe is written in blood.


• in pen (or, as StoneyB notes, more commonly in ink) — permanent, in contrast to something written in pencil which can be or is even expected to be changed. The new appointments are written in ink; after the 1st, you'll need executive approval to change them. (while written in ink has always been far more popular than written in pen, the latter usage is not unknown)