I Hate My Handwriting.

[Pierce]

http://pierce.tv/uploads/writing3.jpg

 

I think I am still killing this r, new flavour rasbenny...

[*david*]

@ caliken: Of course there were bad players in free-form music, as there are bad players in every area of music.

 

Absolutely everyone who writes, has a writing style. Every good writer has a consistent style through most of his writing. And most good writers have a low but noticeable level of inconsistency, sometimes intentional sometimes not.

 

If you want to be a good writer, therefore, you have to use a consistent model. You can choose to use a traditional one or you can create your own and use that. However, a high level of accidental inconsistency (or of deliberate capricious inconsistency) defines bad handwriting.

 

 

@ Pierce: if your writing doesn't represent what you want it to represent, find a sample of writing that does represent you, and copy it exactly. It's seriously that simple. The work is long, and maybe sometimes irritating, but it isn't hard. (Well, if anything about it is hard, it would be simply having to sit there and practice when you'd rather be doing something else.) Pick a standard well-known type of writing, unless you want to be seen as quirky. Being quirky is good; but projecting a quirky image through your writing style is something that should only be done intentionally - plus the fact that adoption of quirky writing styles is a common trait of eleven-year-old girls, something adults might not want as part of their image.

[Pierce]

Im not quite looking to dot my i's with hearts....

[*david*]

Im not quite looking to dot my i's with hearts....

 

That's just as well.

 

But the adult equivalents, styles with stand-out features other than the aforementioned heart-shaped i-dots, are equally to be avoided for everyday writing. The bravest of all handwriting is the handwriting that is good enough quality to continually risk being boring.

 

Of course the people who know you will notice that you've changed your writing, and hopefully they'll appreciate it. But when someone you don't know and haven't written to before receives something from you, they should ideally notice nothing at all about your style - they should just read what you wrote!

 

** This only applies to a person's ordinary writing. Calligraphy is meant to get its letters noticed, "writing as art". And sometimes good simple ordinary writing draws attention to itself just because people are surprised to see something decent for a change, or even because they're surprised to see handwriting at all. Nothing we can do about that - except smile.

[caliken]

Pierce,

 

I think that you're too hard on yourself. Your handwriting is already good, and I echo the sound advice you've been given here.

 

I definitely think that you would benefit greatly and quickly if you practiced for a while, on paper with slope lines and I agree that your slope looks a little excessive at present. Also, as others have said, increasing the inter-line spacing would clear away the 'cluttered' look, you mentioned.

 

I would try your original r again, but try to make it closer to the Spencerian style which would avoid it looking a bit like the letter n.

 

Copperplate is on the left : Spencerian on the right.

If you compare the middle stroke of both letters, you'll see that the Spencerian n slopes down considerably compared to the Copperplate which is horizontal. It's also worth noting that the Spencerian r is quite narrow.

I think that it would fit well with your writing. At the moment, your r is closer to the Copperplate, but tends to be a little wider.

 

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd289/caliken_2007/arrs500.jpg

 

 

Ken

Edited April 10, 2012 by caliken

[Celerity-dad]

I can relate to the frustration in creating a decent r. I'm sticking with a Spencerian or copperplate type r because I like it but it has been difficult. Writing the word mirror, river, order and others many times as practice has helped. The transition from the letter o to the letter r is not for those short on patience. It seems no matter how many I've written the result is just wrong. Currently I'm working on a list of words that help me group similar letter forms to create rhythm. Like saga and little.

 

I've really enjoyed this forum because where I work and among my friends there's little focus on handwriting anything. Here I know I'm not alone in this endeavor.

 

Mark

Edited April 12, 2012 by Bogusman99

[Pierce]

Clairefontain paper

 

http://pierce.tv/uploads/writing4.jpg

 

Getting there I am liking it better.

[Pierce]

About half way down the page I start to think about what I am doing and it goes crooked.

[caliken]

http://pierce.tv/uploads/writing4.jpg

Getting there I am liking it better.

 

The top half of your sample, is even and easy to read - and your r's are taking shape nicely.

 

Ken

[DanF]

Wow, I see great improvement, although I could read the first post too. One thing about using notebooks, is that it does get harder to write, starting around halfway down the page, due to the "step" between the paper and the surface it's resting on. It's a little easier with just a few sheets and no "step". I'm currently working on Spencerian too, which I think is a beautiful script. The whole arm thing is really difficult for me, and probably not really necessary to be adhered to 100%. But I think it is necessary to find a way to keep the arm moving smoothly to the right, which is where it seems the crowdedness and inconsistent slant comes from, as we try to cram more letters into one arm position, then move over a bit and do the same thing again.

 

Dan

[bernardo]

I wish I could write as nicely as you can!

[Pierce]

Thank you so much for your kind comments.

 

I dug up a book of notes from my final year of university and looking back my writing was quite nice, I must take a picture and upload it. (22/23 years of age)

 

Then for some reason it went horribly wrong for a period of time. (28 this month!).

 

The first page was a result of practice I have put in since December when I got an M600, I still wasn't happy at that point. But now I am really starting to enjoy it.

 

I still find it hard at work, at times, to neatly fill out a docket for goods outwards or notes on goods inwards. Possibly the paper quality/lack of a good pen, but a caran d'ache ballpoint is super smooth and almost like an FP.

 

The darker inks help a lot, but I have a very soft spot for Edelstein Topaz.

 

Thank you so much again, and its because of all your posts in the penmanship forum that spur me on.

 

Pierce

[Pierce]

an update.

 

http://pierce.tv/uploads/writing5.jpg

[Stompie]

Sheeze, what a different script!!! Well done!!!!

 

One suggestion - don't write on every line, miss a line and you'll be surprised how much more clearer your writing will become - it's not like there ain't enough trees to go round so don't worry about the amount of paper you will use :ltcapd:

Edited July 8, 2012 by Stompie

[Pierce]

Sheeze, what a different script!!! Well done!!!!

 

One suggestion - don't write on every line, miss a line and you'll be surprised how much more clearer your writing will become - it's not like there ain't enough trees to go round so don't worry about the amount of paper you will use :ltcapd:

 

Thank you Stompie.

 

The hardest thing now is the 50/32 angles getting them close each time. I guess its going to be the same process of practice and experience that will eventually pay off. I dont even mind the line spacing personally because it is so much neater now.

 

My block script is now very legible which is the script that gets daily use on customer reciepts. (Id love to write them with this script but I might get a note from a customer saying 1932 wants its penmanship back LOL. Maybe someday Ill do it for fun!)

 

Thanks again! And I love your project and work with dip pens. Totally awesome!

[Pierce]

A years progress:

 

1st of Janurary

http://pierce.tv/uploads/2012start.jpg

 

 

Today:

 

http://pierce.tv/uploads/2012end.jpg

 

Again, a massive thank you to everybody on FPN for their advise and support.

 

Pierce

[guilhermejf]

That looks really nice. Congratulations!

 

I've been trying to improve my handwriting for about 5+ years. It used to be childish and written with an overwriter position, forming a hook. Then it became something girly and round with a slightly better underwriter position. That was before I discovered business writing, spencerian, fountain pens, FPN and so on.

Although at this moment improvement is a bit slower, regularity has been coming nicely.

[Pierce]

That looks really nice. Congratulations!

 

I've been trying to improve my handwriting for about 5+ years. It used to be childish and written with an overwriter position, forming a hook. Then it became something girly and round with a slightly better underwriter position. That was before I discovered business writing, spencerian, fountain pens, FPN and so on.

Although at this moment improvement is a bit slower, regularity has been coming nicely.

 

I know and understand exactly how you feel.

 

How many years have I been doing it? Oh I am in my late twenties now, and have not cared much for it till about November last year. I felt it did not represent me or do me any justice.

 

I've always struggled with it though and I am going to blame the teachers, pick up the pen and start tracing out letters, that is not how to write! Teaching somebody to write is not a passive subject and it should be made a "testable" and "examinable" course in school(they can do it for typing! they can do it for writing!).

 

Either way when I have kids, hopefully I can pass on this pleasurable knowledge to them so they don't suffer.

 

Thanks for your kind words!

 

Pierce

[dickydotcom]

Congratulations.

I must say I thought it looked ok in the first place, but it has definitely developed.

It looks great. Well done.

 

Dick D

[Stompie]

Huge improvement mate, Well Done!!!!!