I had a copywriting book like no other when I was in kindergarten. There were only two sides once you opened the book. Two sides! So coveted, my uncle asked for it when my cousin started to write. Unfortunately but obviously, it was trashed a while ago. Searching for a book like that was a failed quest and creating a book like that might just have been the answer. However, they chose the path of least resistance to buying a generic copywriting book. So, what was the magic of my book?
It was made of cardboard. Not paper, thick brown cardboard with a decorated front and back, dancing letters and animated words. But there was no paper. The cardboard had the letters engraved into it. That was what made it easy for a kid to just trace over and over and over again. I traced it so much, that the cardboard started wearing out.
Repetition is needed. But also is having an easy-to-repeat process.
The book I had didn’t start with letters, it started with lines and circles. I almost did just lines for half the time! Most of the letters are either straight lines, slanting lines, sleeping lines, circles or semi-circles in a bunch of different orientations (I just start giggling when I read this line!). Joining these lines is a different task altogether but having a solid base to start with(I remember my other post now!).
Fundamentals are IM.POR.TANT.
Coming to the words themselves. There are not as many letters as there are words. But once you learn the letters, you can theoretically write any word you want. There I and my friends had an issue. Our endurance when it came to the longer words was bad. The only way was to keep writing long words, stop for a while writing the word and think ahead. Well, now, I can write an entire word but it just looks like scribbles. Because I don’t care. As long as I can make out what it means at a later date, it doesn’t matter. As said in this post, don’t do that!
You only get better as long as you put in the effort.
Finally, style. Anyone, doing anything, is always looking to add that personal mark. Trying so hard that the actual message isn’t conveyed properly. While writing, many don’t really care about what they write (until they get yelled at by the teacher…). I did, but my one-track mind could only focus on the handwriting when I was either copying from others’ notes or from the board. And when I’m thinking, my notes are all scribbles. Sounds like a ‘this-or-that’ situation where you can only choose only one way. Yes, you can only choose one at a time. By alternating them, you can always get better at both. But focusing on style until you can actually write stuff isn’t very helpful. Similarly, when you’re conveying a message, how you’re writing isn’t very helpful (unless it’s illegible).
Prioritize focus on your needs.