Drawing counts as penmanship, right?

Pen- Linc pentonic gel pen

My first time creating a fully flourished piece like this! It took me almost an hour to figure out how to make the flourishes flow together naturally without looking awkward. I still have a lot to improve, but I’m happy with how it turned out! ✍️

Diamine Ancient Copper

Lamy Safari Charcoal <1.1>

Maruman A5 dotted notebook

Left: how I write when I'm making a quick grading list

Right: how I write when I'm going to read the notes later

Hi all,

I’m a student currently studying abroad in Taiwan. Just want to share the beginnings of my hobby/side project, trying to practice English and Chinese calligraphy and incorporate Pinyin (the romanization system for learning Mandarin). This is a mix of brush calligraphy and pointed-pen calligraphy.

地 (dì) means “earth,” “ground,” or “land”.
瓜 (guā) refers to melons or gourds.

地瓜 (dìguā), which translates to sweet potato, carries a significance beyond a simple food for Taiwanese. Introduced centuries ago and cultivated widely because of its resilience in subtropical climates, the sweet potato became an essential survival crop, often mixed into rice porridge or roasted in traditional clay ovens. In contemporary Taiwan, it is now embraced as both a nostalgic cultural food and modern health food, commonly found roasted in convenience stores like 7-Eleven, night markets, and incorporated into desserts. Some Taiwanese affectionately compare the island’s shape to a sweet potato, a symbol of resilience.

What memories and histories come to your mind when you think of 地瓜 (dìguā)?

Reference: https://www.taiwannews.comtw/news/5895590

Another slightly-too-busy mashup of brush calligraphy and pointed pen calligraphy.
。
加 (jiā): to add; plus; to increase; to augment
油 (yóu): oil; fat; grease; petroleum; to apply oil, paint or varnish; oily; greasy
。
加油 (jiāyóu) translates to “add oil; to refuel; to accelerate; to make an extra effort; to cheer someone on”. The internet tells of a historical account tracing the origins of the phrase to Tsinghua School (now Tsinghua University) in the 1920s, evolving from cafeteria slang where students originally used it to ask for more sesame oil on their vegetables or pickles. Other theories attribute the phrase‘s roots elsewhere, such as a Qing Dynasty official adding lamp oil for late-night scholars, or as a 1960s Macau Grand Prix racing metaphor for stepping on the gas. Whatever the origin, you’ll likely hear it often from Mandarin and Cantonese speakers, encouraging and supporting you to keep going. 加油！

Speedball oblique nib holder with zebra comic G on rhodia writing pad. Sumi ink. Copperplate roundhand (stylised)

Pen - Hauser XO gel pen

Pen- Flair glitter

https://archive.org/details/creamer-penmanship

I had the opportunity to examine some of George Washington's correspondence this summer. I wanted to share this with you.

Zig Sumi Ink with Speedball nib holder and Zebra comic G nib on Rhodia notepad

Cleaning up my friend's backyard and found this. The more I studied it, the more I appreciated it.