Why Do Those That Write Left Handed Look So Uncomfortable When They Are Writing

If you are left-handed, how do you hold a pen when you write? How did you end up having the grip you use?

I’m an overwriter, meaning, as yourself, that I hold my pen above the writing line, as opposed to underwriters, who are able to hold the fountain pen below the writing line. So I can give you an opinion only my limited experience.The grip was something that naturally came to me, after I have been taught on how to hold the pen. After that I’ve never ever been corrected.I also often feel the strain of pushing the pen across the paper, this has rendered me extra conscious about my writing, meaning that every time I write, for the first lines, I cannot separate what I write from how I write, and it let me to adopt a variety of handwriting style, especially when I was in high school and pay extra attention to the pens and papers I use, as they all affect the quality of my writing.I’ll give some examples, different pens and angles, please forgive my poor handwriting…a ball pen, the hand position is the one I use mostly.And here’s the result:next using a fountain pen, again the hand is over the writing line but not too much:Same pen but tilting the paper, which I do on long writing sessions:here’s the finished sentence:The next example is my take on a doctor’s penmanship… basically if I’m in a hurry…Different FP, this one has an Italic nib, first horizontal writing and then tilted:Same pen, first I go with a more horizontal writing, then a more vertical and then again a “rushed” one.A different FP, fine point, two different takes:And finally, another FP and in the last line I try holding the pen overtly above the writing line, which is not comfortable to meSo I guess that in the end you just have to find what it works best for you.Thank you for reading all this rambling!

Why don't left-handed people write from right to left?

It's governed by the conventions of the language, not the preferences of the writer. If I'm writing in, say, English, I need to write from left to right or else someone reading it won't understand it. That first sentence will look like "retirw eht fo secnereferp eht ton..." and so on, and nobody's going to read that. Alternatively, to keep the letters in correct order, I'd have to know exactly what I was going to fit on each line of text, reverse the order of the letters in my head for that entire line, and write it down that way. Neither really works.It's kind of a pain to be a left-handed writer of a left-to-right language. You have to hold your writing implement oddly to see what you're doing, and the ink/chalk/pencil lead often gets smeared. But, as an Arabic teacher of mine once told me, we get our revenge in right-to-left languages. In a number of Semitic languages, notably Arabic and Hebrew, I get to write far more cleanly, and it's those right-handers who have to twist their wrists into weird positions.

What is the difference between a right hand and a left hand in writing?

It depends on the language. If the movement of writing with a pen is left to right, then you have to be more careful with the position of your left hand so that you do not smear the fresh ink. I presume but I do not know that this is also the case in reverse: right-handed people writing right to left.Left- and right-handed people tend to form some letters differently and the slant in their individual letters tends to be different as well. This is mostly an effect of lifting and curling the hand more to avoid smearing.The other difference has less to do with writing than what is being written on. Most books and binders are designed for right-handed people, so left-handed people have to write over the spine or middle of the book, while right-handed people write from the middle to the edge. This too affects how you hold your hand and approach the paper for left to right writing.Thanks for the A2A. I am going to rest both hands now. Actually it is just my thumbs that need the rest.

How do left handed people write Japanese?

My Japanese husband is left handed. He was born just after the practice of forcing kids to write right handed went out of fashion. He learned to write left handed, and through his 30+ years teaching elementary school has taught many lefty children how to write better.According to him there are several difficulties writing Japanese left handed:Kanji, and the strokes that make them, are all written left to right. It is far more difficult to push a stroke from left to right with a pencil than it is to pull it.When children learn to write in Japan there is a lot of emphasis on proper pencil hold. It is difficult for lefties to hold the pencil “properly” and still make the stroke look good.Calligraphy, which everyone learns in elementary school, is impossible to write properly left handed (according to my left handed husband). When writing a kanji with a brush and ink there are particular shapes, tapering strokes, etc., that have to look a certain way. This effect is achieved by increasing and reducing pressure on the brush, pauses, sudden turns of the brush while drawing it left to right. The same effect cannot be achieved by pushing the brush through the strokes as a left handed person would have to do. Therefore, as painful as it is, all students must learn to write calligraphy right handed. My husband’s left handed students are lucky to have an empathetic teacher!I imagine that many of these difficulties would be less pronounced for left handed people learning Japanese as a foreign language as adults, since they have already mastered one writing system in their native language, and have already dealt with similar challenges. Plus, they would hopefully have better coordination than a 6 year old!