Learning calligraphy even if your handwriting sucks
Tips to build your calligraphy skill.

You may think there’s no way you would be able to write down a beautiful word or sentence — and you may be right. But calligraphy is not about handwriting; it’s about drawing small pieces of letters. I know this seems a lot like writing now but trust me, it’s not.
Calligraphy may be a lot of things, but having astonishing handwriting is not one of them. It requires observation skills, patience, attention to detail, and perseverance. Like most skills, calligraphy also involves a lot of practice. Without those things, no God-given talent will produce good quality calligraphy.
“OMG, you’re so talented!” — someone complimenting your future calligraphy without taking into consideration all your study and effort.
Observing
You can improve a lot by seeing how other people do things. Watching how lettering artists do their craft may teach a lot about hands movements, techniques, and how to create something different than you would. You can try copying them — but just to learn! Do not publish something that you’re not the author, and if you really must, it’s critical that you give proper credits.
Patience
I know you want to get this done and be the best in no time! But if you are doing this is a hurry, I can guarantee you that your work isn’t going to be good. You need to be patient and breathe — that’s good advice even for when you are drawing your letters. You don’t want to hurry anything. Take your time.
Attention to detail
Pay attention to the construction of your letters: is the style similar or different from each other? Are they consistent? Is their sizing right? Use a red pen and circle what you think you need to improve next time, then try again. Small changes will make a huge difference in the final result.
Perseverance
Each person has a journey. I started learning by taking a free online class about copperplate calligraphy — which although it wasn’t my main focus, learning copperplate first helped me to understand the letters before diving into modern calligraphy.
You may decide to start somewhere else. The important thing is to take baby steps and keep going. One day you might surprise yourself with what you can do.
Getting started
There are a lot of material you can use to produce calligraphy and lettering, but you don’t have to buy fancy instruments to start learning. You just need a pencil and paper.
First, you’ll need to understand how letters are formed. Each letter has specific characteristics that repeat amongst others. They will be used as a base to create other letters.


You’ll notice every letter is composed of a few strokes. They’re not individual pieces, but a bunch of small components put together.
There are some excellent books and online courses you can acquire to start learning. Or, for a cheaper solution, go to YouTube. The beauty of the Internet! There’s a lot of free material.
Control your strokes
For most calligraphy styles there is one rule of thumb: you have to control the pressure of your pen nib or pencil to create that known thickness effect — this means you should have almost no pressure while drawing your upstrokes and put more pressure on your downstrokes.

This is way easier said than done. Even experienced calligraphers sometimes make mistakes in this area, and that’s why is so important to practice. Only practice will give you muscle memory that will make it easier for you to achieve the result you aim.
Fake it until you make it
Can’t deal with this pressure thing right now? Don’t worry, make use of faux calligraphy, which is a technique people use when they want to emulate the downstrokes of brush calligraphy, for example.

Remember to be consistent with the thickness of the false downstrokes, and make sure they are in the right place. Here is an example of a faux calligraphy letter I did, first with a mechanical pencil, then with a Sakura Pigma Micron 005 pen (very thin):
Do something different
Trying different things, like other lettering techniques or material, may help you find your unique style.
Be your critic — but in moderation
Calligraphy needs to be readable and legible, that’s why is so important to learn from your mistakes and proofread your sketches before going for a more permanent solution. If possible show it to someone else: sometimes what it’s readable for you might not be to somebody else. Learning with critiques is essential to improvement, so don’t take it personally. Instead, think of it as a challenge that you most certainly can take.
Do not compare your beginner work with someone else advanced level. This is unfair to you — because you’ve only started now — and it’s unfair to the other person — you don’t know how much study and hard work they put into it.
Remember: everyone was a beginner one day. There’s no need to suffer, enjoy the ride — you’re learning! Practice every day, apply yourself, and watch your work improving fast.
