Calligraphy (Greek for “beautiful writing”) is a decorative writing art form that has developed over thousands of years and has been practiced in many different cultures. While calligraphy in the past primarily served religion in the West, now it can be used for a variety of purposes. If you want to learn to write calligraphy fonts, you can try the following methods.

Writing Process

Outline the font outline, and you can write words of any size anywhere on the paper. You don’t need to follow the grid. You can also design the grid and layout of the entire page yourself.

• Use a ruler to draw ruled lines, imitating good calligraphy or your favorite calligraphy.

Use writing tools correctly. The way to hold a brush is different from that of a pen. There are also different ways to hold the pen when writing Eastern characters and Western letters. Holding the pen correctly is the first step to writing well.

• When writing Chinese characters, the pen should be straight, with the index finger, middle finger, and ring finger holding the front of the pen steady. The lower your grip, the more stable your writing will be. At the same time, your elbows should be raised and your hands should be steady, with only your fingers driving the brush.
• When writing Western calligraphy, you hold the brush in a similar way to a paintbrush, allowing you to write rounder, smoother letters than you would with a fountain pen.
• For writing Western letters and Arabic letters, the pen can be tilted at 30-60 degrees with the pen tip pointing outward and to the upper left. The closer the wide part of the pen tip is to the paper, the thicker the lines it will write, and vice versa. The same is true for quill pens.

Just start writing, pay attention to the way you use the pen, control the width of the lines, and keep the gestures smooth and balanced.

• Don’t write too full, as pausing will cause the ink to concentrate at one point, causing it to bleed and make the lines uneven.
• Allow the ink to dry before touching it to prevent smearing on the font.

Master the technique of force to make the lines beautiful, with different widths and variable forms. These can be achieved by changing the angle of the brush and using different forces. For thicker lines, just use a little more force, and for thinner lines, just use a lighter stroke.

• Different pen tips will also result in lines of different thicknesses. There are many kinds of pens on the market, some of which are suitable for calligraphy.

Follow the correct stroke order. Each character is composed of different parts. These components are completed in one stroke, so it is called one stroke. Different stroke orders will have different effects.

• Different calligraphy fonts have different stroke sequences. For details, please refer to relevant books and information. For Western letters, the usual stroke order can be used, such as vertical first and then horizontal.
• Following the stroke order not only makes the combination of each part more compact but also has philosophical significance!

Keep the roll surface neat and tidy, be careful not to get smeared, and be careful not to touch it with your hands when the ink is still dry. If you have applied hand cream on your hands, it may be printed on the paper. If that doesn’t work, put an extra piece of paper under your hand.

After the ink is dry, decorate, illustrate, color, apply gold powder, etc. Make your calligraphy more personalized!

Practice Makes Perfect

Be bold and casual when practicing. You can even scratch anything on the paper at any time. The purpose of the exercise is to keep your hands stable and the thickness and width of your lines beautiful. Free practice is not limited by time and place and can effectively help you find your feelings.

If you want to write in a more formal and neat font, you can use grid paper. You can also draw the grid yourself with a pencil, equalizing the length and width, and then fill in the words and practice until you know that the drawing is stable and neat.

Study other people’s work and try to recreate it. Find pictures from the Internet or books and trace them yourself. You can add your own ideas and modifications in the process. If you are tracing a book, be careful as the ink may bleed onto the pages.

• To prevent damage to precious books caused by ink leakage, it is recommended to photocopy the pages first and then trace the photocopied version.

Writing as If There Is a Spirit

Determine the writing font according to your own preferences and reasons for learning calligraphy.

• Western calligraphy forms are familiar to people in many English-speaking countries and are derived from Latin scriptures, the most common of which are the Bible and hand-written expository editions (with illustrations).
• There are various forms of Eastern calligraphy, including Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, and are often used to compose poetry and inscribe paintings or other artworks.
• Arabic calligraphy is very religious and popular in Islamic areas. Muslims believe that creating art forms that resemble reality is disrespectful to God, and calligraphy as an art form was born accordingly.

Before starting a new work, outline your ideas, including what you want as well as the structure, location, etc. First, make a quick draft (use pencil or pen on scratch paper). Once you have a rough outline, you can start writing.

Choose the paper that works best for you. This could be printer paper or premium calligraphy paper. Almost all types of paper can be purchased at office supply stores, craft supply stores, or specialty paper supply stores.

• Paper with a smooth surface is better for smooth writing, but don’t buy paper with an oily or waxy surface, as such paper won’t absorb ink.
• Try to buy acid-free paper or archival paper to ensure that the paper does not discolor over time. Also, look for paper that doesn’t bleed easily.

Buy a writing instrument that suits you. Although any pen can produce good results, there are definitely pros and cons. The pen you choose depends on your font style and your personal feel.

• Dip pens are mainly used in Western calligraphy and Arabic calligraphy, but can also be used in Eastern calligraphy. This kind of pen writes by dipping the pen tip into ink. Each time the pen tip is dipped in ink, a certain amount of ink will be stored in the small groove of the pen tip.
• Common fountain pens are similar to dip pens, but there is a container for storing ink in the pen barrel, which reduces the trouble of repeated dipping.
• Brush brushes are common in both Eastern and Western calligraphy. There are many types of brushes, similar in shape but uneven in size and thickness. Brush writing mainly relies on exerting force and controlling the direction of the pen to produce changes in lines.

Choose the ink that suits you best, mainly based on the pen you use. There are many colors of ink, usually black is used for calligraphy, but you can choose the color you like.

• Strip ink is usually used with an inkstone and needs to be ground with water to produce the ink. This is a favorite of many calligraphers because adding different amounts of water can result in different tones of ink from the same strip of ink. Tiao Mo is available in many Asian stores and online.
• Boxed (canned) ink is a very commonly used calligraphy ink. It is ink that has been ground in advance and can be used immediately when writing. India ink is also very common and can be found in art supply stores.
• The ink of the fountain pen is different. There is a special ink for the fountain pen, and other inks must not be used, as it will clog the pen. There are special pen refills, and you can also refill them yourself.

Use a ruler or other tool to help you write more regularly, or you may need to refer to standard line drawings.

Use tape to secure the paper, or use a paperweight. You can also use tools such as clips and drawing boards to help secure the paper to prevent it from moving while writing.

• Be careful not to use tape that is too sticky to avoid damaging the paper when you tear it off. Painting tape is better.