My handwriting is atrocious, and, as atavistic as it may be in this day and age, I'd love to improve it. Anyone have any useful resources?
Thanks.
Thanks.
Penmanship
- Thread starter Obsessed
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Try using a fountain pen. It forces you to concentrate on your penmanship.
"teach yourself better handwriting"
http://www.amazon.com/Yourself-Better-Handwriting-Rosemary-Sassoon/dp/0071419713/ref=pd_sim_dbs_b_6
good practical approach, but it requires a lot of time and tedium as an adult
http://www.amazon.com/Yourself-Better-Handwriting-Rosemary-Sassoon/dp/0071419713/ref=pd_sim_dbs_b_6
good practical approach, but it requires a lot of time and tedium as an adult
Atavistic, funny as we spend hours doing the same atavistic activity everyday! My Grandmother took a course in caligraphy and her writing improved no end. As for me I'm a lost cause. I should have been a Doctor!
Yes! Yes! Yes!
My handwriting was truly abysmal, and I used to joike when peole complained that they couldn't read my writing, that it was "their problem." Being the boss means you can get away with stuff like that. however, I knew the truth--my handwriting has been shockingly bad since elementary school. Learning to type in high school was truly my salvation, and I can go at 120 wpm on a computer. I flunked penmanship every time, and it was truly a disaster.
The denoument came about two years ago when I finally reached the point that I couldn't read something I had written just the day before. So, I bought a book called "Write Now!" for the princely sum of $17, and began working on it. By the end of the first day, I had better handwriting than I had ever had in my life. I practiced every single day, learning to make the strokes, and this time, because it's an entirely different system than I learned as a child, it worked! My handwriting still won't win any calligraphy prizes, but it is neat and readable, and I love writing letters by hand. I have expanded my collection of fountain pens (another AD, I'm afraid,) and have loads of fun with italic nibs. I have taken to journal writing with a vengeance and write pages every single evening. I've learned how much fun writing can be, and if you're willing to invest the $17 (there's even a DVD that goes along with it. ) I got my book here , look under "Reference Books" then "Penmanship" and it will open right to the book.
You can do it. If I could, anyone can.
My handwriting was truly abysmal, and I used to joike when peole complained that they couldn't read my writing, that it was "their problem." Being the boss means you can get away with stuff like that. however, I knew the truth--my handwriting has been shockingly bad since elementary school. Learning to type in high school was truly my salvation, and I can go at 120 wpm on a computer. I flunked penmanship every time, and it was truly a disaster.
The denoument came about two years ago when I finally reached the point that I couldn't read something I had written just the day before. So, I bought a book called "Write Now!" for the princely sum of $17, and began working on it. By the end of the first day, I had better handwriting than I had ever had in my life. I practiced every single day, learning to make the strokes, and this time, because it's an entirely different system than I learned as a child, it worked! My handwriting still won't win any calligraphy prizes, but it is neat and readable, and I love writing letters by hand. I have expanded my collection of fountain pens (another AD, I'm afraid,) and have loads of fun with italic nibs. I have taken to journal writing with a vengeance and write pages every single evening. I've learned how much fun writing can be, and if you're willing to invest the $17 (there's even a DVD that goes along with it. ) I got my book here , look under "Reference Books" then "Penmanship" and it will open right to the book.
You can do it. If I could, anyone can.
My father IS a doctor and I think penmanship was high amongst the genes he passed on to me. My writing sucks, in plain language.
Dad's wife writes beautifully, like she took courses in caligraphy. I've often thought about doing that.
The write now book is much more helpful than teach yourself better handwriting.
in my opinion.
Also look up some books by Tim Gourdie and Fred Eager
main thing is just to practice, and learn to slow down.
Anyone except me that is. I'm ashamed of my writing
and I dont think I have enough free time in my life to change it sadly. It's great to hear you have set yourself somewhat free though. 
Well done.My handwriting looks kind of like a kid's learning to handwrite I think, but it's also very legible and I've never heard from anyone that it was difficult to read. My dad's is funny, basically he just writes the first letter of the word and then it's kind of scribbles after that.
I think you just have to take your time at first. I write slowly, I struggled with exams in university sometimes when we had time limits on essays and such, it was really more just that I can't physically fly across the page leaving lines and lines of print like others can. I think being left handed has something to do with it as well, writing as you pull your hand away from what you've just written is I think a more natural and smooth motion than having to push forward as you go, I find you have a certain range of motion by moving your fingers, but for a longer word sometimes I have to pick up my hand mid-word and finish it off after I set it down.
I'd say just take a look at those little charts they show you in elementary, get a sense of how each letter is supposed to look, and then concentrate really hard on making each one readily visible and distinguishable. I think a lot of people write overwhelmingly just for themselves to look at later, so they aren't concerned about whether it is legible for others. But pretend that every thing you are writing needs to be legible to even the most unable to read handwriting person.
It's probably hard though, very little becomes as hard wired and a part of you as your writing I think. Though I want to know the biological reason why girls always write in really big circular and bubbly letters, it's very interesting I think.
I think you just have to take your time at first. I write slowly, I struggled with exams in university sometimes when we had time limits on essays and such, it was really more just that I can't physically fly across the page leaving lines and lines of print like others can. I think being left handed has something to do with it as well, writing as you pull your hand away from what you've just written is I think a more natural and smooth motion than having to push forward as you go, I find you have a certain range of motion by moving your fingers, but for a longer word sometimes I have to pick up my hand mid-word and finish it off after I set it down.
I'd say just take a look at those little charts they show you in elementary, get a sense of how each letter is supposed to look, and then concentrate really hard on making each one readily visible and distinguishable. I think a lot of people write overwhelmingly just for themselves to look at later, so they aren't concerned about whether it is legible for others. But pretend that every thing you are writing needs to be legible to even the most unable to read handwriting person.
It's probably hard though, very little becomes as hard wired and a part of you as your writing I think. Though I want to know the biological reason why girls always write in really big circular and bubbly letters, it's very interesting I think.
haha I get a kick out of that, how no matter what, no matter where you go, what country, which doctor, every single prescription filled out has to be in some completely unreadable chicken scratch. But - apparantly pharmacists all spend one year of their education learning to decipher the code.
That's why getting away with forging prescriptions is next to impossible because if you can read what you're asking him for, you failed, the alarm is raised.
That's why getting away with forging prescriptions is next to impossible because if you can read what you're asking him for, you failed, the alarm is raised.
They had to revert to this system after the war when there was a shortage of wind talkers.
My writing is horrible...even with a fountain pen. Going slow helps but my hand simply lacks the elegance to create attractive penmanship...workman like is the best I can do.
Its more likely to make a horrible mess.
Take a look at this article in Slate about modern handwriting, and how to fix it.
A couple of years ago, I had a hard time decoding some important notes that I made. That was the last straw. I picked up Write Now and worked through it pretty seriously. I need to do some maintenance training every now and then but my handwriting has improved enormously.
Unlike you guys, I actually have a reason for bad handwriting, thanks to a birth defect that doesn't let me bend my thumb. So, to compensate, I write in cursive and have created my own form of shorthand. Less words to decode, the easier it is!
Take up Spencerian ornamental penmanship. It is fun and artistic and will make your regular handwriting much better, particularly throught practice, etc., but partly because using an oblique nib like they do for this stuff forces you to learn control. Fun stuff. I did not stick with it, but intend to try to get back to it.
My handwriting is horrible.
My handwriting is horrible.
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- #20
Actually, the desire to use a fountain pen is one reason I want to improve my handwriting. And right now it probably would be a mess. Here's what we're up against: in my freshman or sophomore year of college, I stopped being able to read my notes, so I switched from cursive to print. I'm right-handed, but for whatever reason, when I print, I write like a lefty, that is, with my wrist bent instead of straight, and with the paper titled the wrong way, my hand often goes over what I wrote. I think a fountain pen would cause a smudging disaster. When I sign my name, however, which is obviously still in cursive, my hand is in the correct (or at least approximately correct) position. Weird.
Thanks for the book recommendations. I'll check them out.
(I'm also a terrible typist, but that's another thread.)
