How to Start Chinese Character Writing

How to Get Good Papers

I normally go to Chinatown calligraphy shops when I have chances to visit New York City. Thing is, Chinese people live everywhere! Even smallest town in US has Chinese restaurant, and you might find a art gallery run by Chinese and they would know where to get these calligraphy supplies.

If you are practicing Chinese character writing and need worksheets with squares, go to this website to print out your own: http://drlili.org/files/12x10.pdf

Or, check out this site where you can customize stuff: http://www.incompetech.com/graphpaper/

Where to Look for Examples of Writing

Don't want to carry Chinese character dictionary with thousands of pages? You can search at this online dictionary giving you the order of strokes for both simplified and traditional characters: http://www.archchinese.com/

How to Tell Good Brushes

Generally speaking, brushes with sharp and stiff point at the tip have good controls, which will help you finish the stroke neatly. I heard that you hold a brush in the sunshine and the hair shows a semi-transparent tip, then you found a good brush.

For beginners, the brushes that are neither too stiff nor too soft should be good to practice.

The best brush in China is known to be made of the mixture of rabbit and goat hair or of goat and weasel hair!!