They both commented that much of their work is detective work and noted the importance of keeping records of the working process, not simply the materials and techniques that were used but what motivates the work and what we are thinking as we create it. If that type of information is not recorded, it will most likely be lost to future historians. I find this type of lecture and discussion symposium beneficial. It is never a waste of time to talk with one's peers. This is a moot point to some of us who make books for a living.
Several scribes see their role as master of, rather than servant to, the text.
Father Boyle spoke of the development of free flowing writing forms using Rustic capitals as a model, then working through the other more written hands, such as Uncial and Half-uncial, to the humanistic Carolingian hands. It all made for lively and spirited discussion, though many wondered if scholars and artists had anything in common. Ewan Clayton, a scribe and presenter, pointed out, with a show of hands from the audience, that all scribes present studied historical forms and relied on the work of scholars to bring manuscripts and their insights into light. Several scholars were unfamiliar with the technique of lettering and were enlightened as to the manner in which manuscripts were quickly decorated with a quill and paint in an overhead demonstration during Donald Jackson's lecture. As a group we never really did get to the crux of why we were there - the text.