The Gregg Group was founded 22 May 2004, prompted by the lack of online shorthand resources. As the primary use for shorthand — business and legal recording — has waned in recent decades, we generally acclaim the skill as a hobby or personal tool. The purpose of the group is to promote the use of Gregg systems of shorthand by providing advice to beginners, support for students, and an association of users of this efficient, attractive, and enjoyable method of writing.
Hi all,
I currently use my old A5 notebooks to practice steno but I discovered it has narrower spaces between lines compared to a steno notebook. My only issue is that I might be practicing incorrect proportions especially for the longer strokes. There are times I occupy 3 lines for the longer letters like B and V. How do you write yours in a regular non-steno notebook?
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What's the line spacing in these A5 notebooks? That will help answering your question.
I measured them with my plain ol' ruler and they're at 7mm line spacing.
Gregg ruling is about 8.5 mm (1/3″ or 8.46666… mm to be exact). In the learning phase, I don't recommend writing in anything less than that because one is still learning how to write with correct proportions. Maybe you're able to write 1.5 mm above the line in that notebook, but you will be pushing it and be worried about collisions between outlines. Can't you use a steno notebook for the time being until your proportions are down pat and you write without hesitation? Then you can write using any kind of paper that you want.
I don't know what line spacing you have, but my notebook is 8mm line spacing, and I feel that it is too narrow. I think Gregg ruled paper was 8.7mm. I aim to have a "v" fit one line, but often I exaggerate it and write it more like 1 1/4 line.
In the United States there are three common spacings of lined paper.
* Narrow ruled paper has lines 1/4 inch apart. That's really narrow!
* Medium ruled (also called college ruled) paper has lines 9/32 inch apart. The extra 1/32 inch over narrow ruled paper is clearly noticeable when writing.
* Wide ruled paper has lines 11/32 inch apart (very slightly more than 1/3 inch). All Gregg ruled steno pads that I've checked are wide ruled, exactly.
I know that Gregg recommended 1/3 inch spacing. I suspect Gregg steno pads are made wide ruled because it's very close to 1/3 inch, and it's one of the paper companies' standard widths. Pitman ruled steno pads, at least in the United States, have lines 1/2 inch apart.