In order to simplify the process of writing by hand, Zaner analysed how professional users of the then-existing handwriting styles used their 'rest' fingers to control movement. For writing lower case letters, Zaner recommended a technique of letting the little finger slide to the right in making up strokes, but to rest or drag for down strokes in order to improve control of the arm movement. This required the joints of the 'rest' fingers to act on the down strokes, independent of those holding the pen, which Zaner termed as 'hand action'. Professional Pen Work In the field of professional penmanship as a fine art, Zaner produced educational material and instruction, going beyond the copybook as in his lessons for school and commercial handwriting. His capital letters for Ornamental Penmanship appearing with comments by Earl A. Lupfer in The Educator showed how basic forms could be extended by flourishes with "balance, symmetry, and grace". Graphic Arts Zaner also provided instruction in drawing and illustration; and, as with penmanship, he encouraged individuality and discovery rather than the rigid following of a prescribed method. Zaner's Publications Lessons in Business Penmanship (1892-3) Lessons in Business Penmanship (1894-5) Lessons in Professional Writing (1895) The Line of Direction in Writing (1896) The Road to Sketching from Nature (1898) The Arm Movement Method of Rapid Writing (1904) Lessons In Ornamental Penmanship (1909) References Speaking Solutions: Penmanship's Storied Past and the Technological Roots of Its Revival, By Karl Barksdale Biography by Michael Sull The New Zanerian Alphabets, Charles Paxton Zaner, 1900 Scanned reproduction of 1900 book by Zaner. , including illustrations of Zaner's calligraphy. Further reading Note: studies include the writing position and movement of C. P. Zaner. External links History of the Zaner-Bloser Company Works by Charles Paxton Zaner in the Zaner-Bloser, Inc. / Sonya Bloser Monroe Penmanship Collection Penmanship 1864 births 1918 deaths Railway accident deaths in the United States Artists from Pennsylvania 19th-century American businesspeople