Is the pine you use soft? Southern Pine is too soft for a desk or most parts of an office. You could write on it and the letters would be visible in the wood.
It’s great for framing but I’ve been hesitant to use it for my beginner woodworking stuff.
A blotter/desk pad is a great solution to this problem. I built my wife a pandemic desk, and pine was what I could get locally. I have no illusions that it'll hold up as well as, say, oak or ash, but it's done alright over the last couple of months.
She also prefers rollerball or gel ink pens to regular ballpoints. As they require less pressure, that's likely helping.
Hah yes pine is pretty infamous for denting easily. I actually received a pine desk surface today that I'm staining/oiling. It's nicer quality pine than what I used for the skirting boards by far and seems pretty tough so far. I could probably give it a properly tough surface by using a two-part plastic finish (like the sort of stuff they use for bar-tops), but I've never used it so I'm sticking with Danish oil for this, as I can always sand it back and refinish it if it gets truly dire.
I like working with pine, particularly because it's cheap enough that you can make mistakes when learning and not feel too bad. But it is much more variable than other woods, I find, and the species vary by country.
It’s great for framing but I’ve been hesitant to use it for my beginner woodworking stuff.