Abstract: Control inputs are provided to an application executing on a mobile computing device by moving the mobile computing device in certain recognizable patterns. The control inputs may execute various functions in the application such as starting or stopping audio playback or navigating through a menu. A writing gesture made by a user on a writing surface using a smart pen device is digitally captured. This gesture may be, for example, a tap or a stroke of the smart pen device on the writing surface. A control on the writing surface is identified, where the control at least partially corresponds to a location of the writing gesture on the writing surface. A control input is determined based on the identified control and the writing gesture. Responsive to the control input, a command is executed in an application running on the smart pen device or an attached computing system.