I want to practice writing kanji. How do I learn the basics?

Many people here learn through James Heisig's book 'Remembering the Kanji'.

On this same site at 'kanji.koohii.com' is an SRS flashcard system that can be used to review the kanji you've learned.

Assuming you want to be able to write the kanji from memory, RTK is probably your best bet. (There are -lots- of ways to learn to -read- the kanji, but very few other systems for learning to -write- the kanji.)

Sorry, what I am interested in is 硬筆書写

(2016-06-08, 7:30 pm)Joker Wrote: Sorry, what I am interested in is 硬筆書写

Do you mean calligraphy? Or plain writing? For the latter, pick up any book or web site that explains basic stroke order concepts (like https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/kanji-stroke-order/), and then use a dictionary like jisho.org to see stroke orders of individual, more complicated kanji. Practice writing these.

You can practice on regular paper, or buy paper with specific rule lines to assist in drawing kanji. You can pick up these books in 100yen shops in Japan to practice kanji on a slightly larger scale: https://www.google.com/search?q=%E3%82%B...lkfZ3dM%3A

Keeping a journal in Japanese also helps greatly with recalling kanji writings on demand.

None of this is incompatible with SRS, btw - you can do both at the same time. I usually write words from my Anki deck when I'm drilling them for the first time.

Many people here do learn how to write with Remembering the Kanji book as it teaches how to correctly write kanji with the use of mnemonics. Some also use it to help distinguish similar looking kanji.

For handwriting paper, here is a kanji grid practice paper.
http://www.halley.cc/nihon/patterns.html

I found this to be an interesting product: Practice Japanese Character Set That You Can Practice Many Times with the Water

It allows you to practice your kanji writing without having to print out more paper because the writing disappears. This may or may not be good depending if you want to keep a record of your kanji practice.

For calligraphy, I found some free video lessons on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...Gj3_JZez5b

You would need the typical supplies though: brush, ink, paper, etc.

I like to practice calligraphy with a Buddha Board

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0010TE...ref=plSrch

(2016-06-09, 6:59 am)debrucey Wrote: I like to practice calligraphy with a Buddha Board

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0010TE...ref=plSrch

This looks so cool !

I was planning to try to buy a lot of thin paper, like newsparer, to play with a brush and water (i started with real paper and ink, but it s going to be cheaper if i can reuse things...), and now, i think i ll try that board as well.. i just ordered it :-)

(2016-06-08, 8:40 pm)RawrPk Wrote: For handwriting paper, here is a kanji grid practice paper.
http://www.halley.cc/nihon/patterns.html

This is one of the most important things I've found. Blank sheets are fine at the very beginning but they tend to lead to bad habits in kanji size/harmony.

I need to get back into using the kanji grid paper too. Whenever I hand write kanji, it is always these monsters that tower my kana because I lack true understanding of proper sizing.

(2016-06-09, 7:32 am)nightbreak Wrote:

(2016-06-09, 6:59 am)debrucey Wrote: I like to practice calligraphy with a Buddha Board

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0010TE...ref=plSrch

This looks so cool !

I was planning to try to buy a lot of thin paper, like newsparer, to play with a brush and water (i started with real paper and ink, but it s going to be cheaper if i can reuse things...), and now, i think i ll try that board as well.. i just ordered it :-)

I wish I was getting commission hah.

Yeh being able to practise without wasting a load of paper and ink is great. It does take a minute or two to dry depending on the temp/humidity so that can be annoying but all in all its really helped me with my kanji. When I try to recall a kanji when I'm out and about I find myself closing my eyes and picturing it being drawn on my Buddha board.

(2016-06-09, 2:15 pm)debrucey Wrote: It does take a minute or two to dry depending on the temp/humidity so that can be annoying..

Try keeping a hair dryer plugged in nearby and it won't be so annoying  ...an old trick from when I used to do a lot of painting.

(2016-06-09, 4:30 pm)yogert909 Wrote:

(2016-06-09, 2:15 pm)debrucey Wrote: It does take a minute or two to dry depending on the temp/humidity so that can be annoying..

Try keeping a hair dryer plugged in nearby and it won't be so annoying  ...an old trick from when I used to do a lot of painting.

Would that not be against the "Buddha" aspect of it? ;-)

(2016-06-08, 8:21 pm)gaiaslastlaugh Wrote: Do you mean calligraphy? Or plain writing?

I was watching some videos of a calligrapher writing kanji with a pen and it just looked like plain writing but he had a name for each stroke and it looked like there were different ways of doing them.

I want to understand more about that, but all I can find is stroke order illustrations and books full of examples.

Was it these strokes?

Read more: Shodo strokes

From what I can see, this is for Japanese calligraphy.

(2016-06-09, 6:34 pm)RawrPk Wrote: Was it these strokes?

Read more: Shodo strokes

From what I can see, this is for Japanese calligraphy.

Yes, I think it was something like that.

(2016-06-09, 6:34 pm)RawrPk Wrote: Was it these strokes?

Read more: Shodo strokes

From what I can see, this is for Japanese calligraphy.

had i known about those stroke name before starting the rtk, i would have given each of them some character name to build story where the order of stroke is similar to the order of apparition of the characte r in the story....