Handwriting Spacing

[Blade Runner]

I had the pleasure of seeing the works of Beatrix Potter. The exhibition included a selection of her letters, and I was struck by their pleasing format, most notably the generous spacing between words and sentences. This imparted a sense of calm, clarity and thoughfulness.

 

 

The following may not be a letter, but it gives some idea.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/Beatrix_zps65c9dd64.jpg

Edited February 20, 2015 by Blade Runner

[ac12]

I use a 4 line guidesheet for a somewhat similar reason.

I found that on regular lined paper I was crashing into the decenders, and especially when an ascending letter like k runs into a decender like y, it looks MESSY. So for my letter writing on blank paper I now use a 4 line setup; ascender, x-height, baseline, descender. The decender line from the text line above is the same as the ascender line from the text below.

[Blade Runner]

That's right, it does look messy and is more difficult to read. I think packing words and lines close together also makes it less conducive for the recipient to fully consider each sentence, to pause, reflect and savor. I am planning to place more "breathing space" in my correspondence and will try to provide more quality than quantity.

Edited February 21, 2015 by Blade Runner

[ac12]

I tend to flourish my decenders, which is why I went with my 4-line guidesheet. On regular lines papers, my descender will sometimes reach the baseline of the line below, which makes it look even more messy.

 

I saw a post about an old German style of writing, and read that they use a 2-1-2 spacing between ascender and x-height and baseline and decender. That gave me the idea of expanding my descenders, because I have a hard time keeping the descenders in the 4-4-4 mm spacing that I currently use. a 4-4-8 mm sounds interesting. But even a 6-3-6 mm to emulate that German style might be neat. I got to try making up a guide sheet like that and playing with it. But first to find a software or site that will do that odd line spacing.

Edited February 21, 2015 by ac12

[knarflj]

Thanks for sharing this, Blade Runner. I tend to be a "space saver" by nature or habit, but this is causing me to consider how perhaps I might try to change that, at least when I'm writing for others.

 

Jenny

[Blade Runner]

You're welcome Jenny. I like your term, "space saver". I too have made that a habit, but I'm discovering that it isn't very attractive unless one's cursive is undeniably beautiful, and mine is not. I recently experimented with this wide spacing by penning a fictitious letter to myself, and it is really quite an improvement.

 

Here's a letter of Potter's that shows more of her spacing (and charming drawings).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v233/jelb/potter2_zps7b426a04.jpg

Edited February 21, 2015 by Blade Runner

[prf5]

I tend to flourish my decenders, which is why I went with my 4-line guidesheet. On regular lines papers, my descender will sometimes reach the baseline of the line below, which makes it look even more messy.

 

I saw a post about an old German style of writing, and read that they use a 2-1-2 spacing between ascender and x-height and baseline and decender. That gave me the idea of expanding my descenders, because I have a hard time keeping the descenders in the 4-4-4 mm spacing that I currently use. a 4-4-8 mm sounds interesting. But even a 6-3-6 mm to emulate that German style might be neat. I got to try making up a guide sheet like that and playing with it. But first to find a software or site that will do that odd line spacing.

 

There are some excellent websites that discuss the subject of typography, which includes line spacing, opentype attributes, and software. You might also want to contact a foundry for information about suitable typefaces. BTW, Beatrix Potter was an illustrator first and foremost and her works have a pastoral sensibility. If you have the opportunity, do have a look at a rendering of William Blake's works. He was a writer and also an engraver and illustrator.

[Randal6393]

+ 1 on William Blake's work. Very vigorous writing, his illustration supports his writing. Where Potter's writing seems to support her illustration. Interesting to me.

 

Enjoy,

[knarflj]

The Potter reproductions are delightful. And I see that the Complete Illuminated Works of Blake are on the shelf at the library, so I will pick that up on Monday and look forward to browsing through it. Thanks!

 

Jenny

[DaveBj]

I use a 4 line guidesheet for a somewhat similar reason.

I found that on regular lined paper I was crashing into the decenders, and especially when an ascending letter like k runs into a decender like y, it looks MESSY. So for my letter writing on blank paper I now use a 4 line setup; ascender, x-height, baseline, descender. The decender line from the text line above is the same as the ascender line from the text below.

 

Could you (or anyone else) possibly provide a scan (or a link to an illustration) of what you're talking about? I'm much more a visual person than a verbal-description person. Thanks in advance

[BBU]

 

Could you (or anyone else) possibly provide a scan (or a link to an illustration) of what you're talking about? I'm much more a visual person than a verbal-description person. Thanks in advance

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascender_%28typography%29

 

He's saying that if each line on a page is divided into those four (cap height excluded) components, and each has its own sub-line, he can prevent the descenders from one line from interfering with the ascenders of the line below.

 

eg. here you can see some overlap due to close spacing: https://joeyfullystated.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/handwriting1.jpg

 

You can make your own multi-line sheets here (with angles too!):

 

http://www.allunderone.org/calligraphy2/calligraphy.php

http://calligraffiti.in/rulings

 

I think we could all benefit from extra space to let the writing breathe, but it isn't easy for people who ramble. I usually make an estimate with respect to spacing and margins based on how much I need to write, paper size, the number of sheets, and whatever I think flatters my handwriting size and proportions the most. Once I figure out the ideal numbers, I intend to stick with that style. Well, maybe trying to "figure out numbers" is part of the problem to begin with.

[DaveBj]

Thanks, BBU, that was interesting. I almost always write on college-ruled paper (or on blank paper with a college-ruled guide-sheet), so my ascenders and descenders clash pretty regularly. Moreover, I tend to crowd my words horizontally.

 

Today I wrote in InCoWriMo letter, and I made a conscious effort to increase the horizontal space between my words. It made a significant difference (in a positive direction). The two line-generating sites that you linked are a little more complex than I can handle. They calculate line spacing on the basis of nib width, and I write with a wide variety of nibs, from 0.2mm to 1.1mm. I may try generating my own, with bold and thin lines, using WordPerfect.

[ac12]

I use wide ruled paper, and was getting really tired of crashing into the descenders. And it looked much worse than the example that BBU linked to. When the ascender of a letter like k crashes into the descender from a letter like g, it looks MESSY.

So I got the idea to use a 4 line guide sheet from reading something, so not my original idea. Obviously I can only do this with blank paper, so my journal is still written on wide ruled paper and suffer the ascender/descender crash problem, but my letters are now done with the 4 line guide sheet which makes it look much better. But it does use up more paper space with blank space, so some can say it is inefficient use of space.

[DaveBj]

I use wide ruled paper, and was getting really tired of crashing into the descenders. And it looked much worse than the example that BBU linked to. When the ascender of a letter like k crashes into the descender from a letter like g, it looks MESSY.

So I got the idea to use a 4 line guide sheet from reading something, so not my original idea. Obviously I can only do this with blank paper, so my journal is still written on wide ruled paper and suffer the ascender/descender crash problem, but my letters are now done with the 4 line guide sheet which makes it look much better. But it does use up more paper space with blank space, so some can say it is inefficient use of space.

 

Is this what you're talking about?

 

http://www.teachingideas.co.uk/paperbank/_files/handwritinglineslarge.pdf

[johnboz]

This space between words really appeals to me. As of today, I'm going to try to stop being a "space-saver".

 

Thinking back, I'm pretty sure my grandmother used to include a bit of extra padding around her words when she wrote letters. Looks like I need to track down some of her writing to see if she did!

[Douglas Johnson]

I use a 4 line guidesheet for a somewhat similar reason.

I found that on regular lined paper I was crashing into the decenders, and especially when an ascending letter like k runs into a decender like y, it looks MESSY. So for my letter writing on blank paper I now use a 4 line setup; ascender, x-height, baseline, descender. The decender line from the text line above is the same as the ascender line from the text below.

What is x-height? What is baseline?

[DaveBj]

What is x-height? What is baseline?

 

The baseline would be the line that is the base for the line of handwriting. All the letters sit on this line, except for letters like y or p that have a descender that goes below the line. The x-height line is the line that shows where the top of the letter x (or a, or c, etc.) would be. The only marks that would go above the x-height line would be the ascenders for b, d, f, etc.

[pavoni]

What a thoughtful post.

 

Thank you Bladerunner for raising the topic. Thanks also to Douglas Johnson for asking the questions and to DaveBJ for the clear and thoughtful answers.

 

I hadn't previously realised the extent to which I have a tendency towards 'space saving', even to the point of using flourishes to ensure the right-side of my text is properly aligned!

 

However, after reading Bladerunner's comments in post 3 above: '...packing words and lines close together also makes it less conducive for the recipient to fully consider each sentence, to pause, reflect and savor.' I find myself curiously attracted to this notion of space between words, and really love the thought of enabling words sufficient space to breathe!

 

Whilst I will never be a writer of any repute, I would certainly much prefer it if the layout of my letters encouraged the reader to pause, reflect and savour, rather than to hope for a vain appreciation of my ornate blocks of text

 

Great observation Bladerunner. I will pick up Randal's useful hint on Blake. Thank you.

 

Pavoni.

[prf5]

'...packing words and lines close together also makes it less conducive for the recipient to fully consider each sentence, to pause, reflect and savor.' I find myself curiously attracted to this notion of space between words, and really love the thought of enabling words sufficient space to breathe! I will pick up Randal's useful hint on Blake.

 

 

I wonder if there is an inverse relationship between the importance of a document and the looseness of the text. Compare Beatrix Potter's leisurely Peter Rabbit to the imminence of Blake's Songs of Experience and Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Another tightly-packed document, well known in the U.S., comes to mind that seems to have promoted a fair amount of reflection.

[pepsiplease69]

I tend to flourish my decenders, which is why I went with my 4-line guidesheet. On regular lines papers, my descender will sometimes reach the baseline of the line below, which makes it look even more messy.

 

I saw a post about an old German style of writing, and read that they use a 2-1-2 spacing between ascender and x-height and baseline and decender. That gave me the idea of expanding my descenders, because I have a hard time keeping the descenders in the 4-4-4 mm spacing that I currently use. a 4-4-8 mm sounds interesting. But even a 6-3-6 mm to emulate that German style might be neat. I got to try making up a guide sheet like that and playing with it. But first to find a software or site that will do that odd line spacing.

 

I'm starting to get into making my own guide sheets.

 

I discovered this nifty little tool called Aames Lettering guide. It's used by architects for drafting. Never heard of it till recently, but its very handy.

 

Check it out here on amazon.

 

It gives you some degree of flexibility when you want to create oddly spaced lines like the 6-3-6 you mentioned.

 

There's a nice youtube here which explains how to use it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing this, Blade Runner. I tend to be a "space saver" by nature or habit, but this is causing me to consider how perhaps I might try to change that, at least when I'm writing for others.

 

Jenny

 

 

 

I'm also guilty here of being a "space-saver" not sure why, though. On the one hand I want to get into being a bit wasteful with real-estate by using rubberstamp imprints to decorate my pages. And on the other hand slightly congested without being messy, is, somewhat aesthetically appealing to me.

 

Check out this ecerpt:

 

 

 

Personally I try to "dodge-the-descenders" by placing my words more spaced out horizontally.

 

For example: fourth line from the bottom, first two words "ink and" are a bit more spaced out because I'm avoiding the descender from above from the word "slight".

 

I do that constantly.

 

I know this is a bit jammed together, no breathing room, but aesthetically I do this without incurring any loss in legibility.

 

Let me know your thoughts on this.