Handwriting Improvement.

[STEVIEBOY1]

Does anyone have suggestions how I can improve my handwriting, it has always been bad, I am having to apply for a new job and feel this may hold me back, I am not sure of the best way to do this. Many Tks., Steve.

 

[Steven180]

Practice, practice, practice.

About ten years ago I too had the same goal. I wanted a return to writing letters for friends and family instead of the impersonal feel and delivery of digits. I had the occasion, so I began writing correspondence. Difficult at first, but I could see improvement with time and some patient application.

Take your time and make it fun. Find a decent pen that you enjoy the feel of (does not have to be expensive) and put on some good music. Get your mind in focus and let the words flow. I think this helps me a great deal. If you're out of practice you will find your hand cramp at times, take a break to let your hand relax again and then get back into it. This is just from the fact that we press buttons nowadays instead of the written word.

Maybe there's someone out there with more technical advice, but this is what worked for me and I think my penmanship has improved a great deal, and I do enjoy writing script.

Stay with it. The written hand is a very personal act that is different from anyone else. And so few do it these days.
Good luck.
M.

 

[Stray Cat]

Hey there..
I've been working on my handwriting for a long time. My mom's writing was always great, so what I did.. I copied it. (She had a class in school called "good handwriting")

There's this site:
http://www.paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html

Enjoy!

 

[MikeBravo]

Yes, I think this like nearly anything needs to be practiced if you want to improve. Also, as the above link states, write with your whole hand, not just the fingers

My handwriting is atrocious, although a lot better than it used to be. I decided to improve by practicing. I also went back over each line or word after I had written it and looked for any sloppy letters, I then went back and wrote over the poorly formed letter.

That way you practice on the letter you actually have trouble with, rather than every letter in the alphabet! There's also the subconscious thought that "it's a pain to go over the letters again, so why not get it right in the first place."

I think people had better handwriting in the old days because you got a rap over the knuckles with a wooden ruler if you got it wrong! Let us know how you get on

 

[Kitty_Sheridan]

A nice pen, it doesn't have to be pricy but my writing is so much nicer with an ink fountain pen than a bic!

K

 

[Stray Cat]

Yes, I think this like nearly anything needs to be practiced if you want to improve.
That way you practice on the letter you actually have trouble with, rather than every letter in the alphabet!
I think people had better handwriting in the old days because you got a rap over the knuckles with a wooden ruler if you got it wrong! Let us know how you get on

I don't think it was just the "ruler-on-the-head" that helped in the old days.. it was this: THEY WROTE BY HAND. So many people now have HORRIBLE handwriting because they use only keyboard to write. (OK, it's more eco-friendly not to waste paper)
.. but, hey.. I still write a journal.
On the paper. With a pen.. and I take good care of HOW I write.

Good pen is important. Yes, my handwriting does change if I use low-end pen and bad quality paper.

Practice makes perfect!

 

[LoveMyHats2]

My hand writing stinks to high heaven but I write instead of using cursive I print and make it at least to where you can read what I have written. It seems to be less a mess.

 

[C-dot]

A nice pen, it doesn't have to be pricy but my writing is so much nicer with an ink fountain pen than a bic!

K

Ooh, yes! Even a nice, sharply pointed pen will do in a pinch.

I have grand loopy handwriting which people are always complimenting. It probably wouldn't be that way if I didn't practise my "cursive" writing as a kid. It took a few years of diligent use to get it right, so I second the suggestion to practise, and also to copy a style you like - Try using a letraset

 

[Steven180]

There's this site:
http://www.paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html

Enjoy!

Thanks for the site Stray Cat - good information period. These are the good technical points that can help.

I think people had better handwriting in the old days because you got a rap over the knuckles with a wooden ruler if you got it wrong! Let us know how you get on

I would not be opposed to this in some respects...

... it was this: THEY WROTE BY HAND. So many people now have HORRIBLE handwriting because they use only keyboard to write. (OK, it's more eco-friendly not to waste paper).. but, hey.. I still write a journal.

Practice makes perfect!

STEVIEBOY1 there seems to be a theme here; I'll stay in the fight for good penmanship with ya!
M.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

Thanks for the site Stray Cat - good information period. These are the good technical points that can help.



I would not be opposed to this in some respects...



STEVIEBOY1 there seems to be a theme here; I'll stay in the fight for good penmanship with ya!
M.

Thank you, I will try and find my old fountain pen, or buy a new one and start to practice.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

That way you practice on the letter you actually have trouble with, rather than every letter in the alphabet! There's also the subconscious thought that "it's a pain to go over the letters again, so why not get it right in the first place."

I think people had better handwriting in the old days because you got a rap over the knuckles with a wooden ruler if you got it wrong! Let us know how you get on

Yes we still had of school masters that used the wooden ruler method, it was very painful, but in some ways worked, as after getting that a couple of times I always paid attention in their lessons. Mind you in those days,here in the UK, the schoolmasters and headmaster stilll used the cane as well and I am sure that the general standards were better then. They also used to give out punishment lines and in some ways that was worse, doing 500 lines or more, took ages to do staying back after school and was very very tedious.

 

[Stray Cat]

I'll stay in the fight for good penmanship with ya!
M.

Yay! Keeping the written word alive! lol

They also used to give out punishment lines and in some ways that was worse, doing 500 lines or more, took ages to do staying back after school and was very very tedious.

..but very, very worth it!
(My teachers never gave me those.. I had it at home, with my mom)

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

Yay! Keeping the written word alive! lol



..but very, very worth it!
(My teachers never gave me those.. I had it at home, with my mom)

Oh poor you, I am glad my parents never made me do those, it was bad enough getting lines punishment in school, let alone at home. I am not sure if they do that in British schools now, although I think they may do still in North America and Asia. They are far less strict than they used to be in the UK now. My godson who is 12 or 13, was complaining to me how he had annoyed one of his teachers a while back and he had been kept in after school for ten minutes! That's nothing, hardly worth bothering about compared to when I was in school in the 1960s and 1970s, 1 or 2 hours was the norm then, doing above mentioned lines, or a long essay or some hard maths. How times change and not always for the better IMO.


Anway, back to the original topic, i'll have a look through some old odds and ends as I do recall seeing a good fountain pen a while back, not seen it for ages though. Rgds Steve.

 

[Stray Cat]

a good fountain pen

Ah, my mom was a master of writing with a fountain pen. BUT, before that.. she had dip pens. She had one with a tip made of GOLD. She ONLY wrote with pens, never a ball-pen. As she claims: pens made her handwriting good, while all else made it bad-looking.

Me, I have trouble finding good pens. So, I have to use a ballpoint pen, like all the other mortals. lol But, recently (about a month ago, for my birthday) I received a pen.. I still haven't tried it out, yet.

 

[Terry292]

I've found using a fountain pen forces me to slow down and take my time when writing. Just make sure you find a proper nib and a good ink. I never use anything but fountain pens anymore. My collection runs the gamut from vintage Parkers and Sheaffers to cheap disposable pens like the Itoya Blade. In my opinion, a good beginners pen is the Pilot Vanishing Point. It has the convenience of a ballpoint (retractable nib) and the ease of a fountain pen. My favorite pens are an old Parker Duofold and a Sheaffer PFM. A good fountain pen glides across the page and requires little effort on my part.

 

[SGT Rocket]

I've been trying to improve my handwriting over the last several months as well. I'm using my entire arm to write, giving my whole body enough space to write, and slowing down my writing. All of these seem to be helping my handwriting a great deal.

My wife and I went to the James J. Hill house in St. Paul, Minn. this past weekend. There was a Union army unit's civil war journal (it had the list of officers and men, promotions, etc...). The handwriting was amazing. I was flabbergasted by the clarity and style.

 

[Stormy]

Hate to be negative, but 90% of my 12th-grade English students have horrible penmanship. And they could care less.

 

[Kirk H.]

I too have had atrocious handwriting for most of my life. It was so bad at times that when we used to have to handwrite reports (before PC’s were popular) I had supervisors call my writing hieroglyphics. A few years ago I made the decision to try to improve my handwriting. I found a book called “Write Now, The Complete Program for Better Handwriting” by Barbara Getty and Inga Dubay. All I can say is that is has worked for me. I also agree with what others said about getting a good writing pen.

Just my two cents worth and good luck with improving your handwriting.

Kirk H.

 

[Yeps]

I find the best thing for my handwriting is a pen which I do not have to press down to write with. My writing with a bic is illegible, barely legible with a nicer ballpoint, better with one of those free ink rollers, and actually looks alright with a felt tip. Relaxation is key.

 

[Yeps]

Hate to be negative, but 90% of my 12th-grade English students have horrible penmanship. And they could care less.

Honestly, handwriting is largely unimportant. I had one teacher who insisted on handwritten assignments, and even the other teachers thought it was a dumb idea. I haven't had a teacher since that would except a handwritten assignment, or a professor whose handwriting on my papers I could read.