Write out this sentence in your normal, everyday style: A quick brown fox jumps

over the lazy dog. (Dont worry if you use a mix of printing and cursive. By high
school, more than two-thirds of people combine them, according to writing
specialist Steve Graham.) So how does it look? If its a scrawled mess, start by
slowing down. In addition to that general rule, experts recommend focusing on five
target areas to improve the appearance and the legibility of your handwriting. Read
their advice, and study which example they say is the model style (the last sample,
in each case). The goal? Script that is easier to readeven note-worthy.
If your writing is faint, like a bad photocopy, simply focus on pressing harder. If you
pressed so hard that your fingers got sore, correct your grip: Try to hold the pen
between the pads of your middle finger and thumb, with your index finger resting
on top. If you have trouble retraining yourself, try using an ergonomic pencil grip
($2, pencilgrip.com).
Does your sentence tilt up or down on the page? If the answer is yes, use an index
card to guide you when you write on unlined paper. Use the top of the note card as
the base for each line of writing. And use the space between the lines on the card
as a reference for the amount of space you should leave between the lines of your
note
To straighten up a bit, adjust the angle of the paper. Think of your writing space as a
clock, with 12 oclock straight ahead. If youre right-handed, rotate the page so that
the bottom-right corner is at 4 oclock and the top-left one is at 10 oclock. For
lefties, the bottom-left corner should fall at 8 and the upper-right corner at 2.
If your letters and words are too close together, they blend into one another. Too far
apart and they get lost in space. Imagine a lowercase o split vertically in half. Thats
the correct amount of space to leave between each letter. A full lowercase o should
fit between words.
Everyone has a letter or two that manage to get mangled in daily penmanship.
Lowercase letters, especially vowels, are the usual suspects. Look at what you wrote
and circle the letters that arent completely closed or are missing stems. Be more
mindful of them and slow down.
Gather the best materials. All you need is a piece of paper and either a pen or a
pencil it seems simple enough, right? However, poor quality materials can make
a significant impact on the legibility of your writing.
The page should be smooth not rough enough to catch the tip of your pen and
create snags in the line of your letters, and not so smooth that the tip of your pen
goes sliding about without your control.
Use lined paper sized appropriately for your comfort level wide-ruled if you write
large letters, college-ruled if you write small letters.
Note that in many professional contexts, adults are expected to write within the
limits of college-ruled paper, but feel free to use wide-ruled if you are still young
and in school.

Experiment with different types of pens to see which one works best for you. There
are several styles, each with their own benefits and drawbacks.[1]
Fountain pens use liquid ink and have a flexible writing tip that allows for stylized
handwriting. While it delivers a beautiful line, a good fountain pen can be pricy, and
it takes a good deal of practice to perfect fountain pen technique.
Ballpoint pens use a paste ink which some find unappealing compared to liquid ink;
however, they can be extremely inexpensive. Note that youll get what you pay for
with ballpoint pens a cheap pen will deliver poor handwriting, so it may be worth
it to spend a little extra money.
Rollerball pens have a ball delivery system much like a ballpoint pen, but many
people prefer them because they use the higher quality liquid rather than paste ink.
However, they dont last as long as ballpoint pen do.
The gel ink used in gel ink pens is thicker than liquid ink, and results in a smooth
feel and line that many people enjoy. Gel ink pens come in a wide variety of colors,
but can dry out quickly.
Fiber tip pens use a felt tip to deliver ink, and many writers enjoy their distinctive
feel when drawn against a page smooth, but with a little friction or resistance.
Because the ink dries quickly, these pens are a good option for left-handed writers
whose hands smudge their words from left to write.
2
Find a good writing table. The first step to developing good posture while writing is
actually to use a good writing surface. If the table is too low, people have a
tendency to slump down and round their spines, which can result in chronic pain
and injury. If its too high, people carry their shoulders higher than is comfortable,
resulting in neck and shoulder pain. Sit at a table that allows you to bend your
elbows at approximately a 90 degree angle when writing.
3
Develop good writing posture.[2] Once youve found a table that will discourage you
from slumping or hitching your shoulders up, you need hold your body in a way that
prevents the back, neck, and shoulder pain that can accompany improper posture.
Sit in your chair with both feet flat on the ground.
Sit up straight, keeping your back and neck as straight as possible. You can take
breaks from time to time if the posture is difficult, but over time, the muscles will
develop and allow you to maintain good posture for extended periods.

Instead of dipping your head down to look at the page while youre writing, keep
your head as straight as possible while casting your eyes down. This will still result
in a slight dip of the head, but it should not be hanging down toward the page.
4
Position the page at an angle between 30 and 45 degrees.[3] Sit flush with the edge
of the desk, then turn the page youre writing on until it sits at an angle somewhere
between 30 and 45 degrees to your body. If you are left-handed, the top edge of the
page should point to your right; if you are right-handed, it should point to your left.
As you practice writing, make small adjustments to find the angle that feels most
comfortable to you and allows you to write most legibly.
5
Stretch your hands before writing.[4] The rise of computers and cell phones for
written communication has had a significant negative impact on handwriting one
study revealed that 33% of people have trouble reading their own writing.[5]
Another symptom of this decline is the infrequency with which people write by hand
these days; if you dont stretch your hands to prepare them for a sudden increase in
activity, youll find yourself cramping up sooner than youd like.
Clench your writing hand into a gentle fist and hold the position for thirty seconds.
Then spread your fingers wide and stretch them for thirty seconds. Repeat four to
five times.
Bend your fingers down so the tip of each one touches the base of each finger joint
where it meets the palm. Hold for 30 seconds, then release. Repeat four to five
times.
Place your hand palm-down on the table. Lift and stretch each finger up one at a
time, then lower it. Repeat eight to ten times.

Hold your hand properly.[6] Many people grip the pen too hard in an effort to gain
control over their strokes, but that often results in sore hands which lead to sloppy
writing. The pen should lie lightly in your hand.
Place your index finger on the top of the pen, about one inch away from the writing
point.
Place your thumb on the side of the pen.
Support the bottom of the pen against the side of your middle finger.

Let your ring and pinky fingers hang comfortably and naturally.
2
Engage your whole arm when writing. Much bad handwriting results from a persons
inclination to draw their letters using their fingers alone. Proper writing technique
engages muscles all the way from the fingers up to the shoulder, and results in a
smooth movement of the pen across the page rather than the start-and-stop motion
often found with drawing writers. Your fingers should act more as guides than as
the force behind your writing. Focus on the following:[7]
Dont write using your fingers alone; you should engage the forearm and shoulders
as well.
Dont pick up your hand to move it every few words; you should be using your
whole arm to move your hand smoothly across the page as you write.
Keep your wrist as stable as possible. Your forearms should move, your fingers
should guide the pen into different shapes, but your wrist should not flex very much.
3
Practice with simple lines and circles. Using the proper hand position and writing
motion, write a row of lines all the way across a lined sheet of paper. The lines
should slant slightly to the right. On the next line of the page, write a row of circles,
trying to keep them as even and round as possible. Practice proper technique on
your lines and circles for 5-10 minutes every day until you see in your pen control.
Focus on keeping your lines the same length and at the same angle. Circles should
have uniform roundness across the board, be the same size, and should close
cleanly.
At first, your lines and circles may seem sloppy. Your lines may be of varying
lengths, they may not all be drawn at the same angle, etc. Some of your circles may
be perfectly round, while others more oblong. Some may close neatly, while others
may have an overlapping hang-off where the pen mark ends.
Even though this activity seems simple, dont be discouraged if your lines and
circles are sloppy at first. Keep working at it for short periods of time on a regular
basis, and you will see a distinct improvement with practice.
This increased control over lines and curves will help you shape clearer letters.
4
Move on to writing individual letters.[8] Once youve gotten comfortable using the
proper posture, hand grip, and writing motion with your lines and letters, you should
turn your attention to actual letters. But dont jump ahead to practicing with full

sentences just yet instead, practice writings rows of each letter, just like you did
when you were first learning to write as a child.
Write each letter at least 10 times in capital and ten in lower-case across a lined
page.
Go through the alphabet at least three times each day.
Work toward uniformity across the board: each individual a should look the same
as all the other as, and the angle of the letter t should be the same as that of
the letter l.
The bottom of each letter should rest along the line on the page.
5
Practice writing out entire paragraphs. You can copy a paragraph out of a book,
write a paragraph of your own, or simply copy a paragraph out of this article.
However, youll cover all your bases if practice writing with pangrams, or sentences
that include every letter of the alphabet.[9] You can have fun trying to come up with
your own pangrams, look them up on the internet, or use these examples:
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dogs.
Jim quickly realized that the beautiful gowns are expensive.
Few quips galvanized the mock jury box.
Pack my red box with five dozen quality jugs.
6
Take it slow. Dont expect your handwriting to miraculous improve overnight it
might take a long time to erase the improper muscle memory developed over years
of writing poorly. However, with time and patience, youll see a marked
improvement in your handwriting.
Dont rush your words. Although in some contexts for example, if youre taking
notes for a class or business meeting you may have to write quickly, whenever
possible slow down your writing process and focus on creating uniformity
throughout your letters.
Over time, as your hand and arm grow more accustomed to this new writing motion,
you can speed up your writing while trying to maintain the same legibility as your
slower practice-writing.
7

Write by hand whenever possible. If youre serious about improving your

handwriting, you have to make a commitment to it. Although it may be tempting to
simply take notes on a laptop or tablet rather than a pen and paper, your
handwriting will begin to slip back into sloppiness if you dont keep training your
writing hand and arm.
Bring the techniques from your practice sessions into the real world: carry a good
pen and pad of good paper with you; look for writing surfaces at an appropriate
height; maintain good writing posture; hold the pen properly, with the page at a
comfortable angle; and let your fingers guide the pen while your arms do the work
of moving it across the page.

Method 3 of 3: Writing Neatly in Cursive

1
Use the same quality materials and posture as you did with print. The only
difference between writing in print and in cursive is the shape of the letters. Keep all
of the advice from the first two sections of this article in mind as you practice
cursive: have good quality materials, a writing desk of appropriate height, good
posture, and proper hand positioning around the pen.
2
Jog your memory on the cursive alphabet. You were probably taught how to write all
the letters in both lower and upper case as a child. However, if you, like many
adults, have gone many years without practicing your cursive script, you may find
that you dont recall how all of the letters are formed. Though many of the letters
are fairly close to their print counterparts, some the f in both lower and upper
cases, for example are not.
Purchase a cursive handwriting book from the school aisle at the store, or go to a
teaching supply store if you cannot find it there. If neither of those options pans out
for you, buy one online.
You can also find the letters easily online for free.[10]
3
Practice each letter in upper and lower case. Just as you did with print writing, you
should practice each cursive letter discretely, like you did as a new student of
cursive. Make sure that you are following the correct stroke pattern for each letter.
[11]
At first, leave each letter isolated. Write a row of ten capital A-s, a row of ten lower
case a-s, a row of capital B-s, etc., making sure that each iteration of the letter
stands alone.
But remember that in cursive, letters connect to one another. After youve grown
comfortable practicing the letters in isolation, repeat the previous step, but connect
each letter to the next.
Note that there is no convention in cursive for upper case letters being connected in
a row; therefore, you would write a single upper case A and connect it to a string of
nine lower case a-s.
4
Perfect the connections between different letters. The biggest difference between
cursive and print, other than the shape of the letters, is obviously that the letters in

a word are all connected by the pen stroke in cursive. As such, its important that
you be able to connect any two letters together naturally without having to think
too hard about what it should look like. To practice this, follow staggered patterns
through the alphabet, rotating through day-to-day to both keep you from getting
bored and to help you cover all the various connections over time.
Front to back, working to middle: a-z-b-y-c-x-d-w-e-v-f-u-g-t-h-s-i-r-j-q-k-p-l-o-m-n
Back to front, working to middle: z-a-y-b-x-c-w-d-v-e-u-f-t-g-s-h-r-i-q-j-p-k-o-l-n-m
Front to back skipping one letter: a-c-e-g-i-k-m-o-q-s-u-w-y; b-d-f-h-j-l-n-p-r-t-v-x-z
Back to front skipping two letters, and always ending with : z-w-t-q-m-k-h-e-b; y-v-sp-m-j-g-d-a; x-u-r-o-l-i-f-c
And so on. Create as many different patterns as youd like the goal is simply to
focus thoughtfully on creating the connections between different letters.
The added benefit of this exercise is that since the letters do not create actual
words, you cannot speed through the writing. By forcing you to slow down, you will
practice writing the letters and connecting them in a deliberate and thoughtful
manner.
5
Write out sentences and paragraphs. Just as you did in the previous section, you
should move on to actual words, sentences, and paragraphs once you have grown
comfortable with the individual letters. Use the same pangrams you practiced on
with your print handwriting.
WriteAlphabet Step 3.jpg6
Move your pen slowly but surely. With print handwriting, you lift the pen after every
letter or couple of letters, depending on your personal style. However, with cursive,
you will have to write many letters before you can lift your pen. This can cause
problems in terms of fluidity of penmanship.
You may be tempted to rest your hand after every letter or two. Not only does this
interrupt the flow of the word, it can also result in ink blots if you are using a
fountain or other liquid ink pen.
Write as slowly and deliberately as necessary to make sure you dont have to rest
your pen in the middle of a word. Cursive script should progress through a word at
an even, smooth pace.