Quote Originally Posted by Culnamo View Post
I think this is the basic misconception I had. This and some nerves towrite/draw the names.

I hope I'll start to get it!
You will. The nerves to draw each name is a lot of it. Especially inking them by hand, it's a huge undergoing with no room for mistakes. If you do it digitally it's not so stressful but it's still a commitment, y'know, instead of just typing the words. You'll be not so good at first and then you'll be okay with your lettering and then it'll be an up and down back and forth experience where you aren't sure about it.

My handwriting is crap but I can letter well enough that people hire me specifically because one service I offer is hand-lettered place names. My own handwriting has not improved due to this. I usually do comic book style and not a specific sort of calligraphy, and i often draw the words once and then redraw them a few times until I've positioned them just so.

The grid technique I learned from comic book letterists, which was one thing I've wanted to do. But now I use that skill on maps. Most comic books just use fonts now. I even made my own custom comic book font from my handwriting when I got started.

Feel free to share your results if you're ever comfortable posting them here.