After researching it in the laboratory, you can build a papermill to automatically turn wood into paper.
Steel pickaxes are produced in the blacksmith near calbridge stronghold. It works the same way as with any other resource on the overview map, you need the building and all required materials, then it'll automatically be produced. Keep in mind that it is also automacitally consumed for further production that require it. So maybe you already produced some steel pickaxes, but they were used for something else by the time you checked your storage.