I started a Fountain Pen 101 Series more than three years ago, and ever since then at GouletPens.com we’ve been getting asked about doing one especially for left-handed fountain pen users. It’s a great idea…but I’m definitely not a lefty! Well, we’ve talked to a lot of lefties and put together the best information we could (with some left-handed chicken-scratch to demonstrate). Enjoy!

Fun facts about lefties:

Today is International Left-handers day: August 13! That’s why we decided to launch this post today 🙂 Of the last 7 US Presidents, 5 are left-handed! 10% of population that’s left-handed Why are they called southpaws?

originally terms for left-handed baseball players

pitchers traditionally face west, so a pitcher throwing left-handed would have his left hand on the south side of his body

Lefties are likely underrepresented in the FP world because of the challenges:

ink smearing

drag/rough feel on the page challenges with certain nibs like flex or italic

potential flow issues

Pushing motion more than pulling (like a righty would)

nib size will be impacted (based on drag/feel of the nib)

ink options, dry time/smearing

Pen angle matters

45 degree angle is ideal for lefties or righties

coming from ballpoints/rollerballs most people hold their pens at a steep angle

lefties feel a lot more “tooth” with high angles in the push motion

try to drop that thing down if you can





Hand positions:





#1 Underwriter

mirror image of righty

mirror image of righty

hand does not smear overtop of writing

this position allows for most versatility in pen/ink choice

many writers with this hand position don’t have to take nib sizes or inks into consideration





#2 Side-writer

hand is in-line with the writing





hand in-line with writing

most potential for smearing

fast-drying ink is essential

smaller nib sizes are best (EF, F), though there will be a factor of personal preference here

flex nibs will be a challenge due to push motion

stub nibs can be used but might look odd due to the angle

turning paper to the left could help fix smearing issues





#3 Overwriter (hook handed)

hand is over the line of writing





hand is over the line of writing

still a potential for smearing, not quite as bad as side-writers

sometime exaggerating the “hook” can actually help prevent smearing

fast-drying ink helps

flex nibs are basically unusable

stub nibs actually emulate a righty, just coming from the opposite angle!

paper turning might end up being rather extreme with this hand position

Important!! Practice can change habits/experience

fountain pen will force you to slow down, practice intentionally

I’ve heard from lefties who found their existing hand position restricting, so they intentionally retrained themselves to be underwriters





Product Recommendations:

Personal preference comes into play with nib size, smearing vs. drag- for all lefties

Underwritiers:

little special consideration is needed apart from righties

generally no smearing issues, most nib sizes work well

does present challenge with stub or flex nibs, may require turning the paper drastically





Side-writers and Overwriters:Ink:

It’s worth checking out threads on Fountain Pen Network and Reddit for more opinions of left-handed fountain pen users.