This post is part of our interview series to answer the question: who uses Bear? What do they want out of a notes app? How does Bear fit into their work or play? Do they prefer coffee or tea? We’re on a mission to ask these and other burning questions from interesting people. Then we share their answers with you.

For today, we talked to Bradley Deacon, an Australian lawyer, government cyber investigator, and an author working on multiple books in Bear on his iPhone. Yes, you read that right.

Check out Bradley’s interview below. Then catch us on Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook to let us know who else we should interview for future posts!

Tell us about yourself and what you do for a living?

I am an Australian qualified lawyer, and a former Federal Agent who now works in a dynamic cyber investigations team for a government agency.

To keep my brain active and up to date with the ever changing world of cyber law, I am a visiting academic at a leading Australian law school. I also plan to volunteer in the evenings at a community legal centre to provide pro-bono legal assistance to victims of cyber abuse.

How about for fun?

Instagram is my escape from the negativity I see on a daily basis within social media. I love to take photos on my walks and within unique coffee shops. As I travel quite a bit, walking and exploring cities and towns is my way of getting to know the feel of the area.

I love chatting to locals in rural towns to gain an appreciation of the heartland of the country. This is where Bear comes in handy. I use it to note what comes to mind in each town and categorize the notes with #tags for each town or city.

How did you hear about Bear, and how long have you been using it?

I recall reading an article on Bear in the New York Times about three years ago and have been hooked ever since.

You’re writing a book in Bear, that’s amazing! Can you share a little about your process?

“Effinmoments” is a unique book, where I hope to shed light on how the minor frustrations we experience in everyday life are, in fact, experienced by us all.

Each frustration gets recorded in Bear when I experience it. Bear has enabled me to complete 98% of the book within the app, then export it to DOCX so I can upload it to my publisher’s web site.

The whole process has been seamless and, for a busy person like me, this is paramount for my after hours workflow.

The features of Bear inspired me to capture all of the book’s creative content on a daily basis. I don’t think I could have written such a book without it.

Where do you usually like to write?

Usually whilst having a coffee, or on public transport. Anywhere, really, that I have down time and it enables me to keep my brain active and capture ideas.

As a big picture thinker, I like the ability to jump right into Bear and put down thoughts, whether it be for my current book or two others that I have planned. I even turn to Bear during the middle of the night if a thought comes to mind.

Given one of my upcoming books is on coffee, Bear is the perfect place to write it.

Do you use Bear for other tasks?

As we live in a world of information overload, Bear is perfect for retaining articles I’ve read and want to share with my 27,000 Twitter followers or with my students in my cyber law units.

Additionally, it is great for producing grocery shopping and todo lists.

What is one of your favorite tricks or features when working in Bear?

Definitely the # and ability to categorise and search via # tags.

What is a feature you’d like to see added?

I would like the #tags to retain colour when exporting to PDF and DOCX.

Now for some other questions

What has been your hibernation routine for quarantine?

I was fortunate to turn a negative into a positive during quarantine. When the pandemic really hit in March, I was on vacation in an amazing ocean view apartment. Due to state borders closing down, they let me stay for four months at a quarter of the daily rate.

During this time I got up at 4am, walked along the surf beach, had coffee, added my daily thoughts to Bear, and worked from ‘home’ during the day with an amazing view. In my down time, I mostly worked on my Effinmoments book (in Bear, of course).

This routine, along with healthy eating enabled me to lose 25kg, and again Bear helped me track what I was eating on my quarantine journey.

Do you usually prefer the book, film, comic, or video game?

Nothing like a good Netflix series, film, and a paperback book since I work all day on computers. This is where Bear is so good for writing my book, as it takes me away from the computer screen.

We know where you stand on ‘coffee or tea’

Yes. As a 4am riser, it has to be a good strong extra hot latte.

Where can people follow you online?

Twitter @bradleywdeacon Instagram @bradleywdeacon or connect professionally on LinkedIn.

Anything else you’d like to share

I look forward to producing a range of books written solely in Bear. I want people to see that anyone can achieve anything as long as they have an iPhone and Bear.