This article considers how using technology for writing might be theorised in ways that account for the lived experiences of writing and learning. The article presents one dimension of a larger study that employed principles of pragmatism and in-depth qualitative work to explore how uses of surfaces and implements relate to writerly ways of thinking, among expert and university student writers. Drawing from that study, this article introduces a view of writing as thinking to capture what distinguishes the practices and development of writing, and to frame how research into using technology for writing might capture the full potential. Cases of university student writers, relying on self-reported data, are presented to illustrate the range of ways technology is used for thinking and the roles that learning processes and learning environments play. The article concludes by proposing how we might think about using technology, specifically, for thinking for writing.