Hey, it’s National Handwriting Day!
The Writing Implement Manufacturers Association justifies this one-day respite from electronic communication thusly: “There’s something poetic about grasping a writing instrument and feeling it hit the paper as your thoughts flow through your fingers and pour into words.”
A more cynical person might see this as a clever ploy to keep that industry in black ink. But
![[info]](https://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
suggests there’s something sensual and artistically honest about writing with a pen, which is why she’s waging a longer-term War on QWERTY.
Seems as if there’s a trend about this in the ether. My latest SisterDivas column covers it in the context of one of my New Year’s resolutions: “Rediscovering the Lost Art of Letter Writing.”
What about you? How fluid are your thoughts when you use ink? Do you prefer writing in cursive or at your keyboard?
I CAN’T BELIEVE I DIDN’T KNOW THIS! I work for a Handwriting company!!!!!!!
Both ways of communicating have their merits. I believe that each mean puts one in a different state of mind. Email is wonderful, but a handwritten letter is magical, almost.
You must go straightaway to inform your employers of this fact! Be sure to credit your source. 🙂
I, too, believe a hand-written letter is magical. A personal letter from Posy inspired my column and my New Year’s resolution.
Oops! Just went to the intranet site. They’re WELL aware of what today is!
Celebrate the Power of Handwriting
January 23 is the birthday of John Hancock, a man whose large signature on the Declaration of Independence led to his name becoming synonymous with the act of signing one’s name.
Not coincidentally, January 23 also marks the start of National Handwriting Week, celebrated by Zaner-Bloser, the nation’s leading publisher of handwriting programs for students in grades K-8. Zaner-Bloser has assisted in the learning process of students in handwriting, spelling, reading, and language arts for more than 117 years.
Research shows that good handwriting skills are still valuable to students, despite the prevalence of computer-based communication. Learning handwriting also supports the development of reading development in young children, and contributes to development of hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and perceptual ability.
Yay.
Oops! Just went to the intranet site. They’re WELL aware of what today is!
Celebrate the Power of Handwriting
January 23 is the birthday of John Hancock, a man whose large signature on the Declaration of Independence led to his name becoming synonymous with the act of signing one’s name.
Not coincidentally, January 23 also marks the start of National Handwriting Week, celebrated by Zaner-Bloser, the nation’s leading publisher of handwriting programs for students in grades K-8. Zaner-Bloser has assisted in the learning process of students in handwriting, spelling, reading, and language arts for more than 117 years.
Research shows that good handwriting skills are still valuable to students, despite the prevalence of computer-based communication. Learning handwriting also supports the development of reading development in young children, and contributes to development of hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and perceptual ability.
Yay.
You must go straightaway to inform your employers of this fact! Be sure to credit your source. 🙂
I, too, believe a hand-written letter is magical. A personal letter from Posy inspired my column and my New Year’s resolution.
I CAN’T BELIEVE I DIDN’T KNOW THIS! I work for a Handwriting company!!!!!!!
Both ways of communicating have their merits. I believe that each mean puts one in a different state of mind. Email is wonderful, but a handwritten letter is magical, almost.
I can’t write in cursive except to sign my name. I created some bizarre hybrid of printing that connects certain letters so that I can still write pretty quickly, though. Sometimes I have to write by hand because I feel a stronger connection to the work I’m creating but other times I must compose on the keyboard. It seems to change from project to project.
I much prefer a handwritten note to one computer-generated. Feels much more personal.
Me, too! I never was terrific at penmanship, but now…let’s just say I need some practice.
As I mention in my column, I really believe hand-written notes are precious treasures. I just need to learn how to write well enough that they’ll be legible.
Um, yeah. I’ve had a few “I’m my mother” moments in which I couldn’t read my own writing. That’s scary!
You need practice? Let’s exchange letters! 🙂 Do you want to?
Ha! You go first. 🙂
HAHA!!!
Ha! You go first. 🙂
I can’t write in cursive except to sign my name. I created some bizarre hybrid of printing that connects certain letters so that I can still write pretty quickly, though. Sometimes I have to write by hand because I feel a stronger connection to the work I’m creating but other times I must compose on the keyboard. It seems to change from project to project.
I much prefer a handwritten note to one computer-generated. Feels much more personal.
Back in the good ol’ grade school days, our report cards were set up with a numbering system. 1 for poor, all the way up to a 5 for excellent. I mostly got 4s and 5s except for in printing and handwriting. In those I got the dreaded 1s. I love my keyboard.
I can’t count the number of times I had to re-do my worksheets in grade school because they were too sloppy. My mind moved faster than my hand could write…still does.
Back in the good ol’ grade school days, our report cards were set up with a numbering system. 1 for poor, all the way up to a 5 for excellent. I mostly got 4s and 5s except for in printing and handwriting. In those I got the dreaded 1s. I love my keyboard.
It’s true that I love to write with a pen/pencil sometimes…just love the feel of it. but when I’m writing my novels, my thoughts flow too quickly for pen and paper — sometimes I can barely type fast enough 😉
I’m that way, too! But I can actually think of very few times I prefer pen/pencil…mainly because my handwriting’s so messy. I found a book that should help, though, if only I’d find time to practice. Pfft. 🙂
I like a mix of both! Split, just like my personality ha!
I must admit, with reserve, that I prefer the keyboard. This is primarily because I can no longer write fast enough to keep up with my thoughts. In college, when I didn’t have a computer, I was swift with the pen. I literally took enough notes in my literature and history courses, that I could have taught the course.
That said, I’ve always loved writing with pens–especially the ones that fit perfectly in your hand and roll along the pages like silk. 🙂 Letters are not the same typed on a computer. I still believe a heartfelt “Thank You” or anything personal is best scribed with ink.
Yes to lovely, silky-inked fountain pens. I adore my Mont Blanc…even if it doesn’t really make my handwriting LOOK any better, it feels good.
Yes to lovely, silky-inked fountain pens. I adore my Mont Blanc…even if it doesn’t really make my handwriting LOOK any better, it feels good.
I used to love to write by hand–journals especially, though never in cursive. I liked pencils because I could get different shades for different poems and thoughts. But then, some years ago, my hand started cramping up even after a few words. Thank god for the keyboard! 🙂
My hands cramp up, too, but my mind really seizes up when I have to make it slow down to match the pace of my handwriting. But, it’s worth the effort, right? RIGHT?!?
My hands cramp up, too, but my mind really seizes up when I have to make it slow down to match the pace of my handwriting. But, it’s worth the effort, right? RIGHT?!?
My hand cramped just thinking about this.
See above. We’re on the same page.
Hehe, anyway…I prefer handwriting with a pen and paper. E-mail is fast and great, but pen and paper is so much more personal. I’ve had a penpal for 10 years now and I have hundreds of handwritten letters from her which are great. We’ve chatted online a lot, but there’s nothing else like getting an envelope with your name and address on it and knowing that someone took time out to sit down and write you a letter =)
OMG, how did you do that? A lovely handwritten note por moi? I’m touched! 🙂
My point exactly. The letter that inspired my column was/is a treasure for that very reason.
Hehe, I handwrote (is that a word?) it on one of my purple post-its here. You can’t really tell its purple tho. Ah, wonders of the camera phone =)
Hi!!! 🙂 Fancy meeting you here!
Hey there Miss Ronni! What’s going on?
PEN-sively Yours
You are so cute. I wish I could pen a more witty response but this headache is not letting me ink straight. Er, THINK straight.
Seriously, I am on Migraine Watch. It blows.
I had no idea today was a National Holiday. This is my kind of day. Buy me a pen!
It’s so sad how little time we spend USING pens and our handwriting. I sent something to tamarak (are you out there, T?) a few days ago and I included a quick note in the envelope. I mean QUICK. And her sweet response to me online after getting what I sent? “NICE HANDWRITING.”
Swear to g-d she made my day.
What would make my day today? To be nausea-free. {} Are those fluid-enough thoughts? That’s all I have today. :{
-Pamela, ugh ugh ugh
Re: PEN-sively Yours
Hilarious. Your words, not the headache.
Imitrex time? Does that work for you? I hope you have a quick remedy, ’cause I KNOW how those migraines KILL. I had one yesterday because of the Santa Ana (dry) winds. oooowwwww!
Pretend this is a handwritten get-well card.
Now, go curl up under an afghan and get some sleep.
PEN-sively Yours
You are so cute. I wish I could pen a more witty response but this headache is not letting me ink straight. Er, THINK straight.
Seriously, I am on Migraine Watch. It blows.
I had no idea today was a National Holiday. This is my kind of day. Buy me a pen!
It’s so sad how little time we spend USING pens and our handwriting. I sent something to tamarak (are you out there, T?) a few days ago and I included a quick note in the envelope. I mean QUICK. And her sweet response to me online after getting what I sent? “NICE HANDWRITING.”
Swear to g-d she made my day.
What would make my day today? To be nausea-free. {} Are those fluid-enough thoughts? That’s all I have today. :{
-Pamela, ugh ugh ugh
When I’m in the keyboard zone, the thoughts flow from my mind through my fingers. If I didn’t have a keyboard, I would lose a lot of good ideas. My cursive hand cannot keep up with the pace of my mind. My keyboarding hands can’t either, but they sure get closer.
I’m with you, Jonathan. I am seriously slowed down when I don’t have a computer available to capture my ideas.
I’m with you, Jonathan. I am seriously slowed down when I don’t have a computer available to capture my ideas.
I love it all. I love the feeling of a pen that’s a good fit for my hand. I love beautiful journals made of nice heavy paper. I love holding that journal and the weight of it. I handwrite mostly, but I print too. When I’m taking notes at a conference and I’m deep in thought, I’ll go back and forth between cursive and printing without even noticing..
I also love my computer. I transcribe miserably SLLOOOOWWW so I mostly write my novels at the keyboard. When I’m trying to really get into a character’s head, I’ll write in a journal in first person, then I’ll go to the keyboard to write the scene.
I have a tendency to morph cursive and printing into one (almost) illegible blob. I’m working on that, though, ’cause I really admire people who can and do write letters by hand. And beautiful pens and stationery…mmmmm, love ’em lots! I feel rich when I write with my Mont Blanc, even if my poor penmanship betrays that image. Heh.
I have a tendency to morph cursive and printing into one (almost) illegible blob. I’m working on that, though, ’cause I really admire people who can and do write letters by hand. And beautiful pens and stationery…mmmmm, love ’em lots! I feel rich when I write with my Mont Blanc, even if my poor penmanship betrays that image. Heh.
I love it all. I love the feeling of a pen that’s a good fit for my hand. I love beautiful journals made of nice heavy paper. I love holding that journal and the weight of it. I handwrite mostly, but I print too. When I’m taking notes at a conference and I’m deep in thought, I’ll go back and forth between cursive and printing without even noticing..
I also love my computer. I transcribe miserably SLLOOOOWWW so I mostly write my novels at the keyboard. When I’m trying to really get into a character’s head, I’ll write in a journal in first person, then I’ll go to the keyboard to write the scene.
Oh, mine too!!!
Oh, mine too!!!
I used to love delicious paper and using my calligraphy pens to effect, but arthritis is destroying my ability to write more than a couple lines in calligraphy without long hand rest, so I am reluctantly going over to typed letters all the time. But time was, fer sure.
I write fluid thoughts onto paper into my dark blue leather bound journal. I love curling up with it at the end of the day. Then for making sense of everything – out comes the laptop and my tapping….
As New Year’s presents for ourselves, my co-worker and I ordered many many nice pens from the catalog for folks at work and for ourselves. I passed them out with colorful sticky notes, nice notebooks, etc. I love seeing the neatly stacked pens and paper on the lab tables or the professors’ desks.
They provide a sense of permanence.
Writing
I write in books that I share with my friends…..I write in birthday cards…..otherwise, I had rather talk……
If I email my on-line students, I use a minimum number of words….
You lower Alabama buddy!!!!
Writing
I write in books that I share with my friends…..I write in birthday cards…..otherwise, I had rather talk……
If I email my on-line students, I use a minimum number of words….
You lower Alabama buddy!!!!
I love writing! I have a Mont Blanc, too, and I love the way it feels in my hand.
I have another wonderful pen, too, that dear hubby got me for Christmas — it was the only thing I wanted.
As for my writing, I’ve found it works best if I write out all my ideas, make my outlines, even the first drafts sometimes, in journals. Then I can transcribe everything onto the computer and do a bit of revising as I go. There’s just something about holding the pen in hand that involves “more” of me in the creative process.
I love! pens.
Of course, then there’s that annoying little part of the whole thing — my writing is horrible. Oh sure, people will look at it and say “Ooo, how pretty!” but it’s followed immediately by “what does it say?”
At least I can read it (most of the time!)