Author Topic: Spencerian punctuation?  (Read 884 times)

Offline Zivio

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Spencerian punctuation?
« on: August 06, 2022, 12:18:15 AM »
I’m looking for some guidance with making attractive punctuation marks for Spencerian script.  I know, I know, how hard can periods, commas and quotation marks be?  But other than some examples in various letters and other documents I’ve seen, I haven’t encountered any instructions, per se, on writing them.  I’m curious if anyone has some tips or best practices on actually forming, shading and spacing them. 

Mine look the same as my third grade cursive.  Not. Good.

I’ve searched for specific information on Flourish Forum, IAMPETH and Google, but it hasn’t yielded much of value for me. 
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Offline Erica McPhee

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #1 on: August 06, 2022, 03:51:05 PM »
This is such a good question. I took a quick look at some of my Spencerian resources and did not see anything about punctuation. When I have a minute, I will look at some of my books.   ;D
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Offline AnasaziWrites

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #2 on: August 07, 2022, 02:09:01 PM »
Lots of examples. I'll check my books as well regarding instruction.

D B Holtz

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #3 on: August 12, 2022, 04:29:33 PM »
Looking at the examples in these two books, I don't see anything special about how to make the punctuation marks.  I think that as long as you follow the slant for the "tails" of commas, semicolons, and quotation marks, you should be good. 

Hope this helps,
DB

https://archive.org/details/NewSpencerianCompendium/page/n77/mode/2up?view=theater

https://archive.org/details/SpencerCompendiumOfSpencerianOrSemiAngularPenmanship/page/n35/mode/1up?view=theater

Offline Zivio

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #4 on: August 14, 2022, 02:57:30 PM »
Looking at the examples in these two books, I don't see anything special about how to make the punctuation marks.  I think that as long as you follow the slant for the "tails" of commas, semicolons, and quotation marks, you should be good. 

Thanks for linking these particular examples, they are helpful.  There are so many pages of instruction and explications in the old-time primers and manuals, it has surprised me a bit that punctuation has been given such short shrift!  And I'm a person who gets a lot of value from written descriptions.  I've often found that reading different "takes" on various techniques or how to form shapes that there will be something just a bit different in a particular place that can be a game changer!  I call this process of searching many resources "triangulating."

I have a mild case of a condition called prosopagnosia, also known as "face blindness."  I find that I must verbally describe for myself the appearance of someone's face, to later recognize it.  I wonder sometimes if this is why I take so well to the written descriptions, and require them in a way, to make better progress on the scripts.

I've come to the place where I think I'll simply need to do my own analysis of examples that I find most pleasing and determine how best to replicate them.  Your comment about the slants for the tails is very helpful. 
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Offline AnasaziWrites

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #5 on: August 18, 2022, 10:55:07 AM »
There are so many pages of instruction and explications in the old-time primers and manuals, it has surprised me a bit that punctuation has been given such short shrift! 
@Zivio
Agreed.
Here's a mention in Michael Sull's Learning to Write Spencerian Script (recommended)


Offline Zivio

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Re: Spencerian punctuation?
« Reply #6 on: August 18, 2022, 02:55:39 PM »

Here's a mention in Michael Sull's Learning to Write Spencerian Script (recommended)

Recommended, indeed!  I had started with the Mott's reprints for many months and Sull's book later added so much to my understanding and has informed much of my practice.

Thanks for the reminder, that at a minimum, he/Debra do have some examples.  Theirs show short, squarish strokes for commas and apostrophes.  I've seen others with more rounded bodies. Are the rounded bodies made by micro-direct/indirect ovals movements concluding in a small motion for the tail? 
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