Scruffy hand-writing

[FoxtrotOscar1]

I am a lefty. Also use capital letters randomly. Never noticed it until the other half started laughing at me for it. I would say its due to the only time I write anything is usually notes / instructions on drawings so needs to be easily readable by anyone.

[CubanPete]

My handwriting was legible, but not much better.

I am left handed too...

A few years ago I had biliateral brachial plexus neuritis (not great...) and my left hand dooesn't work as well as it once did, my handwriting was pretty illegible for a while till I re-learnt!

I write a lot in block capitals now, it's slower, but I don't have to concentrate on forming the letters as much.

[DuncB7]

I write only in block capitals. Years of drawing boards and strict 6mm (IIRC) tall capital letters has become somewhat ingrained.

I can write in lower case but this requires deep concentration. The results can only be described as infant quality.

[r-kid]

Mine is certainly noticeably worse when I write with a pencil or a ball point, this was written with my fountain pen and is quite legible.




Going to have to look at that fountain pen thread now

[NAS]

All of these are so neat compared to mine...

[talksthetorque]

Could I ask those who have written their sentence like this - why does the fox now jump over a hedge and not a lazy dog?
Is this a Post-fox-hunting-with-Dogs-ban change?
And for posterity, here is my note taking speed scrawl, complete with unnecessary capitalised B

[Einion Yrth]

Nothing I've seen posted comes even close to being illegible; sometimes the problem may lie with the audience?

[Robbo 27]

A fox can jump wizards too, all the alphabet is used I hope.


Edit - I should have put an S on Jump

[Einion Yrth]

Robbo 27 said:

A fox can jump wizards too, all the alphabet is used I hope.


Edit - I should have put an S on Jump

Bizarrely, while probably a more "attractive" hand, that's the closest to illegible I've seen.

[Robbo 27]

Einion Yrth said:

Bizarrely, while probably a more "attractive" hand, that's the closest to illegible I've seen.

The width of the nib is a significant factor. The top line is a 1.1m stub, the second line is no more than 0.3mm. A stub is there for effect and for the benefit of the writer, not for everyone.

[Prohibiting]

Considering I barely need to use a pen these days, it's not too bad . Although I am trying to use more.

[otolith]

My handwriting is so bad that I had to get a PhD so that I could at least claim that as a doctor I am entitled to it.

My father's handwriting is quite distinctive - he's right handed, but writes backhand because he learned to write copying his older left handed brother.

[Desiato]

This is a couple of examples of mine. I tend to find I don't seem to hold the pen in one constant grip. Similarly I struggle when my hands are cold to hold the pen and write properly.

[kiethton]

RizzoTheRat said:

I make notes in meetings and then look at them half an hour later and have no idea what it says.

This is why I moved to an iPad mini with evernote - a far better system to actually integrate your notes into your work too!

[King Herald]

Zammy said:

marksx said:

My handwriting is terrible. I work for a pharma company, where most documents are checked by someone else and I'm always getting complaints.

That's not bad at all, wish mine was more like that. From what has been said on here I am going to buy myself a fountain pen and practise every day (he says). Hopefully might see some improvement,

I'd be fkin' ecstatic if my scribble looked like that!

I'm pretty sure a lot of our 'entrants' are just unhappy because their writing is not perfect, rather than because it is utter shyte!

[RizzoTheRat]

I've been experimenting with pens. I do prefer writing with a fountain pen but I'm not sure it's actually makes any difference to my handwriting. I guess I need to actually do some writing practice to try and improve it

Edited by RizzoTheRat on Thursday 23 February 18:45

[speedchick]

Another lefty here, apparently when I started learning to write I copied what everyone else was doing and wrote backwards, basically right handed people write 'across' their bodies, (left to right) so I did the same.... right to left! Also had teachers that tried to get me to write with my right hand, that writing resembles the spider jumping out of the ink pot, my writing with my left hand is just about legible, but although most of our work is computer based, I still have to hand write incident reports for my supervisor to type up, so I have to make an effort to make it readable, there have been times when he has struggled to make out what I was saying, but as he knows me, he can generally figure out what it says.

I am also one of those lefties that doesn't hold the pen in the funny way that some do, which did account for me being covered in ink at school when we had to use cartridge pens.

[Robbo 27]

speedchick said:

Another lefty here, apparently when I started learning to write I copied what everyone else was doing and wrote backwards, basically right handed people write 'across' their bodies, (left to right) so I did the same.... right to left! Also had teachers that tried to get me to write with my right hand, that writing resembles the spider jumping out of the ink pot, my writing with my left hand is just about legible, but although most of our work is computer based, I still have to hand write incident reports for my supervisor to type up, so I have to make an effort to make it readable, there have been times when he has struggled to make out what I was saying, but as he knows me, he can generally figure out what it says.

I am also one of those lefties that doesn't hold the pen in the funny way that some do, which did account for me being covered in ink at school when we had to use cartridge pens.

There is a whole world of stylish writing instruments out there for people who have problems with wet ink and who care about what they write with, wanting something a bit different. Vintage mechanical pencils look great and right now are still off the collectors radar.

Left to right.

Early 50s Sheaffer mechanical pencil
Parker Vacumatic pencil from 1946
Techniclick pencil, highly sort after by designers/draftsmen
Sheaffer Javelin mechanical pencil from the 90s
Fisher space pen from 1967, the only ball pen with a pressurised ink supply and was used in space missions.

Edited by Robbo 27 on Thursday 23 February 20:47

[ecsrobin]

RizzoTheRat said:

I've been experimenting with pens. I do prefer writing with a fountain pen but I'm not sure it's actually makes any difference to my handwriting. I guess I need to actually do some writing practice to try and improve it

Edited by RizzoTheRat on Thursday 23 February 18:45

I think this is the first one posted that I can't read!

[AlexC1981]

This is some of mine. Posted in the pen thread originally to show how different nibs write. Since I have started using fountain pens and making an effort, I have noticed a definite improvement.