Fastest handwriting style (except shorthand)?

[Tintenfisch]

So the thing is, I want to write more by hand in my daily job. Of course I have to use the keyboard for emails, shared documents etc, but at least for personal brainstorming and jotting down notes, handwriting is my preferred method, which I shall employ more often.

This however means the faster I can write, the better for catching as many thoughts as possible on paper.

 

So which handwriting style would allow for the fastest note-taking – while still looking somewhat legible?

From my research so far I have concluded:

• cursive is generally faster than print (depending on the person, some people can write print pretty fast, but I can't)
• muscular movement allows for faster, less fatiguing writing and better stamina (= movement coming mostly from your arm/shoulder instead of the finger muscles)
• I use fountain pens obviously, but I have only 6 FPs, most are Pilot 14k nibs in F or EF

 

But there are so many cursive handwriting styles which utilize the muscular movement: Spencerian, Palmer, Behrensmeyer, New American Cursive, ...

Which one would you recommend for my desired purposes?

 

PS: I am writing in German, but since 99% of the letters are the same (except ä, ö, ü, ß), it should also work with a handwriting style developed in US/England.

[knarflj]

This is not what you'll hear most places, but I have timed myself writing print, business hand, and italic, and my print script is actually my fastest.  When I write quickly, I tend to join at least some letters in any script, so even my "print" script becomes a semi-cursive at speed.  Since my print script is upright and rounded, it also tends to be the most readable, even when I scribble.  

 

I'm not sure that everyone would have the same results, though.  I suspect that print is my fastest script because over the years it's the one I used the most (I've never taken notes any other way, since above all I want my notes to be clearly legible!).  So my theory is that the style you've practiced the most will be the one you write fastest.

[cellmatrix]

Italic was my main writing style for years, but after learning the monoline cursive business penmanship style (as per Palmer Mills Bailey etc) my writing is so much faster. Not having to pick up and put down the pen in the middle of words as you are writing saves you a lot of time. 

[Tintenfisch]

On 4/22/2025 at 11:58 PM, knarflj said:

This is not what you'll hear most places, but I have timed myself writing print, business hand, and italic, and my print script is actually my fastest.  When I write quickly, I tend to join at least some letters in any script, so even my "print" script becomes a semi-cursive at speed.  Since my print script is upright and rounded, it also tends to be the most readable, even when I scribble.  

 

I'm not sure that everyone would have the same results, though.  I suspect that print is my fastest script because over the years it's the one I used the most (I've never taken notes any other way, since above all I want my notes to be clearly legible!).  So my theory is that the style you've practiced the most will be the one you write fastest.

 

Interesting to know! I have heard that many people nowadays write print faster than cursive. Still, I think learning cursive might give me a slight speed boost since connecting the letters I can do faster than lifting the pen after a character and putting it down again for the next.

But I guess you're right, practice makes you fast. So I guess I will start practicing more cursive writing!

 

On 4/27/2025 at 2:12 AM, cellmatrix said:

Italic was my main writing style for years, but after learning the monoline cursive business penmanship style (as per Palmer Mills Bailey etc) my writing is so much faster. Not having to pick up and put down the pen in the middle of words as you are writing saves you a lot of time. 

 

Thank you for sharing your experience! I have begun with Palmer method in the meantime and while the letters are still far from the book specimen obviously, the daily oval and push-pull drills now come completely from the shoulder/arm muscles.

It really feels nice and more "in-the-flow" to use these movements and makes writing fun!

[Karmachanic]

Furious cursive scribble works for me.