Why does everyone have such nice handwriting and I don't?

[Bilberry]

I can have the craziest handwriting at times. It depends on how my gut is doing. I have colitis. When the gut is grumpy, my handwriting is illegible. When I'm healthy and doing well with the gut, I have wonderful, stylish I don't know how to describe it other than nice looking writing. It's quite frustrating at times. Recently I was at a new dentist. I needed to fill out some forms. The gut was grumpy and as a result the handwriting was causing the receptionist squint and ask lots of questions.

I have a nephew that is going to attend a handwriting course this summer. The nephew is a genius. In 7th grade he scored high enough to qualify for many top Universities. Why he is going to take a handwriting course is a mystery to me. My guess though there is a girl involved.

 

[goofyernmost]

What is srsly????

That would be bad handwriting for Seriously. I have the same problem. I went to Catholic Schools in the 50's and they were brutal about handwriting, however, it didn't matter I was still bad no matter how much I tried. My father had beautiful handwriting that almost everyone that saw it always commented on how beautiful it was. It contained a lot of swirls and neat organization. I, however, could never read it. After he passed away about 20 years ago I had to go though a lot of his papers and if I could read half it was a miracle.

Personally I did develop a very nice printing ability and that made up for it. I got compliments on that just like he did on his cursive. I tend to write very fast too, so that might have something to do with the lack of clarity.

 

[dotfurio]

I have awful print and my cursive is illegible. And yes, I was taught and graded on it in school. I blame it on being a lefty I was a straight A student generally yet never got above a C in penmanship, and even at that I think the teachers were being kind. It takes me FOREVER to write a nice handwritten note because I have to write very s l o w l y. . . . My personal philosophy on good handwriting?

 

[dashofsunshine]

I'm a visual artist, and when I was in middle/high school I perfected my script. People always say I have lovely handwriting, although ironically I had one teacher in college who said she couldn't read it (? One teacher over 8 years of higher education makes me think it might have been her issue, though ).

My signature isn't exactly legible but is very unique (I guess? That's what I've heard. I don't spend much time on it anymore and it's never exactly the same twice, lol, although I do sign a lot of canvases, so I'm not sure.)

It's definitely a practice thing!!

 

[MickeySP]

Mine is bad so they can't figure out who signed anything. If they can't figure who signed it they can't get you in trouble.

and sometimes it is the last martini.

 

[CPanther95]

Srsly. It's not fair My handwriting looks like Chernobyl happened in my pen

Less cartoons and more vowels and your writing will look just as good as ours.

 

[Tigerlulu]

I practiced as a kid. When I saw classmates with writing that I liked, I went home and practiced and practiced. I probably spent hours doing it.

 

[jzuzphreek]

I have awful print and my cursive is illegible. And yes, I was taught and graded on it in school. I blame it on being a lefty I was a straight A student generally yet never got above a C in penmanship, and even at that I think the teachers were being kind. It takes me FOREVER to write a nice handwritten note because I have to write very s l o w l y. . . . My personal philosophy on good handwriting?

One of the most famous calligraphers in the world is a lefty - http://www.clas.co.uk/left-handers.html

Where there's a will there's a way - http://time.com/3107557/top-10-lefties/

(Some people smarter than me believe that Leonardo da Vinci was a lefty. Whether he was or wasn't, it is known than many of his most famous drawings were done left-handed.)

 

[FlightlessDuck]

My handwriting sucks. So does my son's.

 

[RedAngie]

. Because I'm a Catholic school refuge. Back in the day when Nuns wore full Habits and were legally allowed to massacre little children. 12 years of Catholic school including a 3year stint with Sr. Mary Alice who could wield a ruler like a Jedi lightsaber.

Bad penmanship was akin to saying the Pope wore a dress. It was not allowed.

Exactly!! Good penmanship was a priority in Catholic school, and we were graded on it. I don't think anybody would have to repeat a grade due to poor penmanship, but you were labeled a troublemaker, a sinner, an overall "bad kid."

Yes, the nuns would sometimes rap you on the knuckles with a ruler if your handwriting was sloppy.

Poor little guy would have had his knuckles rapped with a ruler until they bled, back in the old days where nice cursive handwriting was considered a necessary skill, and things like being left handed were considered evil curses and demonic possession!!!
QUOTE]

My mother was a lefty, and she was forced to switch to writing with her right hand by the nuns. By the time I went to school they had stopped that nonsense.

 

[MamaLema]

My mom used to watch over every letter I wrote and hit my hand with a ruler if it wasn't perfect. People compliment all the time, even now.

 

[Magpie]

I tutor kids in reading and writing.

If you want nice, legible handwriting, just slow down, take your time, and practice for a few minutes on lined paper every day. Pay attention to how your letters slant, and try to keep them all going in the same direction (straight up and down is just fine!). You'll be slow at first, but if you keep at it, you'll get faster. If you aren't sure how the letters are formed, you can find guides online. Though, being consistent is always more important than being "correct".

If you are left handed, tilt your paper the other way (unless you're already used to writing with a "hook"). There's no reason you can't write nicely if you're a lefty.

Signatures are often not the same as your handwriting. Spend as much or as little time as you like on perfecting yours - it really doesn't matter, so long as it's reasonably consistent across all your documents.

Btw, I had to get therapy in school because my handwriting was so appalling. And yes, I was taught by nuns. The therapy was useless, because I honestly had no interest in learning to write nicely. I took pride in my messy handwriting!

Later, when I started teaching kids myself, I learned to "draw" my letters, in order to properly demonstrate them to my students. With time and practice, I've improved immensely. Now I get compliments on my penmanship. I'm sure the nuns would be astonished, if they could see my writing now.

No rulers needed.

 

[jzuzphreek]

If you want nice, legible handwriting, just slow down, take your time, and practice for a few minutes on lined paper every day. Pay attention to how your letters slant, and try to keep them all going in the same direction (straight up and down is just fine!). You'll be slow at first, but if you keep at it, you'll get faster. If you aren't sure how the letters are formed, you can find guides online. Though, being consistent is always more important than being "correct".

+1

Consistent writing, even if it's not perfectly neat, is generally considered to be "prettier." Sloppy handwriting looks that way because letters are turned all which ways, and the same letter may be drawn 4 different ways in one paragraph. Even if your handwriting isn't the best, just practicing to make your letter shapes have a consistent look may be all you need.

The key, though, as many have said, is practicing. You've taught yourself writing habits for the amount of time that has passed since you first began writing. The bad habits won't go away because you wish them away (unless your Fairy Godmother is just that awesome and kind). Like others have suggested, find some nice quiet time (HAHAHA!!), some quality lined paper, (and a fountain pen!), slow down, and practice.

I was diagnosed, last year, with essential tremor. Unfortunately, I LOVE fountain pens, and have been working to perfect my writing since about 2012. My hands are very shaky, but I've found that when I work very deliberately on something like cards or letters, despite the shaky quality of my lettering, I still get a lot of compliments. If I can do it... ANYONE can!

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I have good handwriting because, at age 10 or 11, I sat down, decided what I wanted each letter to look like, and I practiced. You, too, could have good handwriting!

 

[DisneyOma]

I have a nephew that is going to attend a handwriting course this summer. The nephew is a genius. In 7th grade he scored high enough to qualify for many top Universities. Why he is going to take a handwriting course is a mystery to me. My guess though there is a girl involved.

Doesn't matter if he is a genius if no one can read what he has written? Maybe it's something he sucks at!

 

[Bilberry]

Doesn't matter if he is a genius if no one can read what he has written? Maybe it's something he sucks at!

Yes, of course. He actually has nice handwriting now. I'm not entirely sure why he is taking the course. It for some reason it has his attention though. The handwriting school is out state on the east coast. He lives in the mid-west. I heard this morning too that he has begun practicing to learn with his other hand. I'm not sure what this entirely means, but he might be getting ready to be able to write perfectly with both hands. I don't know. What young man doesn't want to spend summer days in hand writing class? It sounds so Chinese with the practice they can put into drawing their characters.

 

[7165red]

I have always had good penmanship. I was also taught calligraphy in school by the nuns.

I have good penmanship too. I have the nuns to thank. I also took classes in calligraphy.

 

[jzuzphreek]

I have a nephew that is going to attend a handwriting course this summer. The nephew is a genius. In 7th grade he scored high enough to qualify for many top Universities. Why he is going to take a handwriting course is a mystery to me. My guess though there is a girl involved.

Doesn't matter if he is a genius if no one can read what he has written? Maybe it's something he sucks at!

Yes, of course. He actually has nice handwriting now. I'm not entirely sure why he is taking the course. It for some reason it has his attention though. The handwriting school is out state on the east coast. He lives in the mid-west. I heard this morning too that he has begun practicing to learn with his other hand. I'm not sure what this entirely means, but he might be getting ready to be able to write perfectly with both hands. I don't know. What young man doesn't want to spend summer days in hand writing class? It sounds so Chinese with the practice they can put into drawing their characters.

That's basically what this guy did. He would opt to practice his handwriting instead of go out to recess in his grade school days.

 

[PigletsPal2]

I went to school in the dark ages when handwriting was actually a scheduled activity, jut like arithmetic and reading. We were taught the Palmer Method, and everyone's handwriting looked the same. I received lots of compliments on my writing right up until the time I was diagnosed with a neurological illness that affects handwriting. I went from lovely flowing letters to tiny crabbed scratches. I can start out a word being legible, but by the time I get to the last letter, even on the shortest words, it's a mess. My signature is about all I can write fairly legibly. I don't send holiday cards anymore, and my DDs address birthday cards, the bills I pay by mail and fill out any forms I need to fill out for any reason. DH has the same problem, but his is due to a mild stroke a couple of years ago. Between the two of us, not much writing going on in our house.

Queen Colleen

 

[Bilberry]

Thanks Kzuzphreek for the video. That was neat to see! I passed it into my nephews.