The Fountain Pen Guide for Lefties: Do I need a lefty nib? 

4:57 is when the information starts

I am a lefty and just getting into fountain pens, thanks for the video. Lefties have to learn early on to adapt to a right handed world.

Thanks for the video! As a kid, I wrote with a hook, and since we had to use fountain pens, I always had a piece of blotter paper under my hand. But when I was in my 20s, I taught myself to write with my hand under the line, and that is how I have written ever since. Much less cramped, and it allows me to use even the wettest pen & ink combinations.

Another superb video. Agreeing with what you are saying and adding... I am a leftie and years ago my big sister made me learn to underwrite. That is my elbow was 45 degrees or a little less to the paper. Huge improvement of my eight year old script. Six months ago I got a book by someone who is a professional hand writing 'coach' . She is a big voice in education here on the subject of handwriting. I applied some of her instructions and such a change in my writing! This is what I did: Do some shoulder rolls, arm stretching and finger stretching to get the tension out. Make sure my chair was high enough that my forearm was naturally parallel to the desk top. Not reaching up to it as it were. Place my body square to the desk and the paper square to the desk too. Keep my elbow roughly near to my side. Not 45 degrees out. Place the paper slightly off to the left so that it is in front of my forearm, which is square to the paper. Then to do some circles loop figure of eights etc to get the movement going. - Bin the paper. Place the notebook or paper in the same place and start. Apparently underwriting like this allows the best use of fine muscle movement. Underwriting with angled paper means that the forearm is crossing the body and it restricts the use of the forearm and hand. (She explains). My writing is so much more legible and I don't need leftie nibs. The other thing I do with a new nib is, if it is at all scratchy, is just to give it a quick polish with some 1.0 and 0.5 mylar paper. Sometimes just the 0.5. Just ten figure of eights on each grade if using both. I have tamed many nibs doing this and I can choose just how much feedback to keep. This works a treat with Lamy nibs BTW. The left hand part of the grind for Lamy LH people is, apparently, for side writers specifically. Using a loop I found that the Lamy LH nibs are ground a little less steeply front to back to allow for the side writer's increased pushing. Overwriting is a form of self abuse IMO 😖 I do hope this is helpful to someone out there. Thanks for yet another great video. Lefties can struggle for years, like I did, so it's great you are addressing this. Sorry for the essay. Cheers

Left handed underwriter and former sidewriter here: Took me about four months to learn and become comfortable as an underwriter. I don't tilt the page but I do hold it at my left and inline with my shoulder. I find having my arm at a 90 degree angle made the process easier.

being retired ive decided to try my hand (left hand lol) at fountain pen writing. im so happy to have found a fellow south paw that is experianced with fountain pens. subscribed. thanks for the vids :)

The benefit of using a B nib is that it runs so incredibly smoothly for a lefty. I am a underwriter. The fountain pen usage made me that way so smudging is no problem to me.

YAY!!! I use the hook shape!!! Go Lefties!

Gonna start writing from right to left, end of story.

@6:25 actually uses the pen. Thank me later.

Thank you so much for making your very helpful videos in English... I really appreciate this. Not many people have this knowledge or welling to give it out like you do, so sharing your knowledge in a language that everyone gets is really helpful

Thanks for the video! I'm a left handed person and a fountain Pen's lover. Thanks for the information!

I've been using fountain pens all my life and as a lefty I have not found any types of pens impossible but don't use flex type pens. I generally side write and use an architect nib to simulate an italic nib writing from the bottom of the page. I can over and under write but side writing is the only way I am truly comfortable and can write all day. Scrively, I too grew up under a system where you used fountain or dip pens and that is why I side write. It was as far as the teacher would let me go. I have practiced writing right handed but I'm not good enough yet. Great video.

In school I was a hook/overwriter. Now I am an underwriter and use a very severe slant of the paper. About 45+ degrees to the right. I don't need a special nib and don't have smear problems. However, I did start note taking and such at the back of the notebook on the right page and working my way to the left page and toward the front page.

funny thing: at my university I know more fountain pen users that are left-handed than that are right-handed.

WOOO! fellow Lefty here just getting into fountain pens. Id like to thank you so much for making this video. it was very informative

Hi Scrively. This is very useful for left handed folk considering fountain pens. I have been writing with fountain pens for sixty-six years, at first because I had to and later because I preferred to. The solution to the problem of restrictions comes with choice of ink and paper. I wanted to write beautifully because, as a lefty, I am attracted to art, so no compromise with slant of writing and look of the piece. I wanted high speed calligraphy. I write fast and neatly and am always experimenting with writing styles, nibs, papers and inks. Fascinating really! I hope other lefties come aboard this magical ride of self expression and with your encouragement many will, no doubt. You are a pertinent resource for me. Thank you.

A very nice video. I'm a lefty just getting into fountain pens, and found it to be quite informative. Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge with us. I've subscribed to your channel.

Great info, thanks. I’m a lefty and I now know I’m an ‘underwriter’ thanks to your video 😀. I must have been taught to write by a lefty because I don’t push a nib at all, the way I write I always pull. There are a few exceptions with the letters MNVW - I push (or move the nib upwards) the 1st & 3rd part of the M and N, the 2nd part of the V and the 2nd & 4th part of the W. I hold and use a mouse oddly and I’ve never met anyone else that uses it the same way. I hold it in my left hand and I use my index finger to use both the left-click and right-click buttons, I also use the same finger if the is a middle button and/or wheel.

Really informative and your props were cool! I'm a lefty and I agree with all you said. For those of us who are interested, breaking in a righty nib on polishing film using an inked pen and the same strokes that show roughness on paper, as well as writing pen-grams, works well. Do check your work on paper frequently. It is an iterative process. I have been doing this for many years on black (jewelers') Arkansas stones (using ink for lubrication) to taylor my nib's qualities. Might try a cheap nib on film for starters. Lefties of the world unite! We are ten percent of the market (and a higher percent of the talent). Do German schools still have penmanship classes?

As a leftie that desperately struggles with trying to figure out a pen that works for me I absolutely love the amount if thought and experience put i to this issue. Writing works best with pull motions, and if I use a "proper" grip that means Im pushing into the paper where a normal pen catches the paper and literally rips paper sometimes.

I'm a lefty who just 'discovered' fountain pens and this video was extremely helpful. Going to your website now

Jättebra video! Jag ser fram emot fler videor för oss vänsterhänta.

I'm not a leftie but I found this information fascinating. It's good to understand how other people have to manage their fountain pen use. Thank you.

I am just another leftie who use fountain pen

I am a lefty AND I use a stub nib. I have no problems using it even when pushing. I use the Rotring ArtPen 1,5mm stub nib.

Wow thanks for your explanations abt lefty writing styles. Im an under writer and love fountain pens. Hate reg ball points. Will follow your instructions.

Thank you for a most enlightening video, Scrively. I must be a contradiction in terms, then, for I write with my left hand (underwriter) as a right handed person writes, ergo, I pull the nib across the page, & have no difficulty in using oblique &/or broad nibs - in fact, there's not a nib invented that I cannot use, & in that respect, count myself extremely fortunate. Admittedly, as a child, I was an 'over-writer', so an attitude of writing almost upside down - & for which, my teachers would punish me for same. Over the years, I have experienced an anti-clockwise rotation in this positioning of (any) pen, but now I write exclusively with a fountain pen. I consider it as much in training your brain to adopt a similar writing stance to the right handed - but decidedly not because of external influences - tutors, peer group et al. Simply put, I have taken on the right handed application, & adapted that technique for my own purposes. Of course, I completely agree with you - any pen is a suitable implement - it is merely a question of perseverance - to want to use these instruments...demonstrate (to yourself) that you can achieve this - you've nothing whatsoever to prove to the rest of the world :)

Have only just discovered your work, through the Appelboom podcasts. I'm a Dutch leftie and have been trying to use a fountain pen for 3 years now and got discouraged because of exactly the things you describe, the hand angle to paper (it gives me cramps) and the smudging of the slow-drying ink. So big thanks to you for these instructions! (I love Clairefontaine paper though and have stacks of it still, so that's perhaps still a hurdle)

Great information! I'm new to fountain pens and have been using a Jinhau 450. I don't know if it's me or the pen, but I have to clean the nib every single time I use it. Just a dip in water will get it flowing again usually, but I'm not sure that I should be doing this or should need to!

Lefty too!! Just ordered my Lamy Safari yesterday, but was wondering if my writing style (mix of side and over writing) would cause any huge issues but you've answered all my questions! Thanks a lot!!

As a lifelong lefty, I gave up writing with fountain pens early in my life. No matter what writing instruments I used, I would always drag my hand through my writing. Even pencils. Consequently, I always have a black mark on the outside of my left pinky. This is a great video, however there is way too much talking.

Thank you so much for you're information. I'm a lefty who uses the third hand position and bought a Lemy fountain pen, glad that it's working perfect since i use it for drawing. You're information made it much more clear for me, thank you. Do u use a self fill cartridge for you're Lemys and do you recommend it. I use a lot of ink for my artwork and it makes it easier to flush the tip.

EXTREMELY helpful video- and here I thought I would always have to deal with smearing!

I already got them 20 years ago! The only trouble I had was my three year old found my pen. I was answering the front door and when I came back she was trying to write with it and it would not work as she is right handed. Hahaha! So now trying to source a new pen. In the meantime it is pen and ink

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! VEEEERY INFORMATIVE!!!!!

Hello! I am very new to fountain pens. I have noticed that I always have ink on my nib after writing just a few words. Do any other lefties have this problem? I clean off the nib after filling, but the ink appears again quickly.

Great video. I'm a leftie underwriter, and I like fine and medium fine nibs the most. I use a Lamy 2000 EF, a lot, and I love that pen. I also use two Platinum 3776s, one F, and the other an older vintage one that's MF, which they don't make any more. My other favorite is a Sailor pen with a MF nib.

As a lefty, I had a Lamy Safaris and some Parker in same price range. I however used my friend's "Lamy abc" which was considered to be for children's fountain pen. I was so positively surprised about how well I could write with it as a lefty! I think that maybe a "Lamy abc with its original nib, a B- or LH-nib" might be perfect. Consider that one can buy Lamy nibs individually...

Im having issues using Rhodia and Clairfontaine paper. Its good paper just doesn't dry fast enough for a lefty. I also feel side writing is natural for a lefty. I have check my right hand and Im a natural under writer. I wonder how long if at all I can learn how to write with my right hand. Both in cursive and normal/simple writing.

I just bought my first foundation pen,I always wanted to try a foundation pen. I feel like I’m learning to write again.

Kool video, thank you!

Very helpful!

Which nibs do you recommend with the least flex, bit are still smooth on the paper?

Why can a nib only be ground for either left- or right handed people?

I’m a lefty over writer…. I’ve been using fountain pens for a year now. I don’t think a lefty nib will make a difference. Currently I’m using a pilot vanishing point and majohn a1. I love writing and sketching with those !

In reference to fountain pens most people always say left-handed people push the pain instead of pulling it I have no problem whatsoever and using a fountain pen and I am left-handed I took the paper to my right and I use a downward stroke and writing therefore I am pulling the pan instead of pushing it no problem whatsoever thank you

I did write from right to left, like Leonardo Da Vinci for a while. Most people can't read my notes without looking it with a mirror. I'm an inventor, it makes my inventions a little more secrets!

Hi, do you write with a dip pen?

Which fountain pen ✒️is that ?? Is it available in India??

This was a very informative video for me. Thank you!

I bought an AL-Star with an LH nib years ago. Total waste of money for me! I don't get along the triangular grip section and prefer round sections by far. I reach for Japanese EF to MF/FM nibs predominantly, but Pilot's WA nib is possibly the most forgiving nib I've ever used. Ink and paper also play a role. I stay away from heavily coated paper.

It was a pain to write with Fountain Pens in school as a lefty. We were forced to do it in Germany where pencils and ballpoint pens were forbidden to us. Back then the education about it for lefties was missing, too. I want to use fountain pens and enjoy it but...

I am 73 and I consider myself very lucky. When Isas in second grade and really learning to write, my teacher told us lefties to do everything just the opposite from what she was teaching the class. Thus, I am an under writer. Plus, I fell in love with fountain pens when I was about 12 years old. So I have bought them off and on my entire life. Now i only use fountain pens and love them. With our children living on PC's and tablets, I am very concerned that writing and penmanship is becoming a lost art!!

Skip to the answer: 18:12

I've tried writing with fountain pens for over fifty years. Smudging isn't the problem; the problem is that every item I try to use writes beautifully for about a week and then doesn't ever work again. Ink just stops flowing and the pens seem to be ruined. After hundreds of dollars down the drain, plus a ruined heirloom pen, I've just given up. 💔

I would think lefty is advantageous for flex writing, as the letters go from upper right to bottom left at a slant. Oblique nib holder is actually the way right hand have to solve that, or rotate page. Too bad there's no such thing as an oblique fountain pen. Nice video anyway.

I thought it was me- I didn’t like fountain pens scratching paper. I’m a side writer too so that’s another issue LOL! Looking into trying left handed fountain pens for the first time!

You really want to learn to write the proper way. I used to write in the hook way and it's just horrible. Underwritting is _the_ way to go. Because learning that you can pick up a quill and use it just fine. Any other way you'll just rip the paper apart and the feeling of grinding sends chills down my spine. _Then_ you can start worrying about the nib, ink and paper.

❤❤❤❤❤

Answer: no bit if your a middle writer yes get one but if a under writer you will be fine

I wanted to get a fountain pen, but their so many people out there that say fountains and roller ball pens aren't for lefties. I may give it another glance

I was called backwards O John put in a corner with a dunce cap by the teacher! Next day my mother got that teacher fired! I’m a lefty and when writing cursive, I intentionally write my O’s backwards in spite😂 this was 55 years ago and I’m still scarred😂

ALSO IM A LEFTIE FOUNTAIN PEN USER :)

I was told at an early age to write with a biro,so avoided fountain pens for the last 45 years.

Confused

Wait, why did I watch this I'm right handed ? Anyway, great video !

Lousy technique is why lefties smear the ink. I haven't even seen a rightie use a fountain pen properly in at least thirty years. The weird thing is that many out there do use a dip pen properly, particularly if it has a flex nib. If you hold the pen properly, and write straight up and down, it makes no difference at all whether you're a leftie or a rightie, or how wet or dry the pen is. Apparently this style of writing died out a long time ago, and is no longer taught to fountain pen users, which is sad, because many dip pen users are experts at it.

I'm a leftie and never felt the need for a leftie nib.

You need to get to the point sooner

Simply,left handed people push the pen,right handed pull the pen.

Just write in Arabic

You talk too much. Get to the point

Jeez, get on with it, taking far too long to say so little.