Let's prepare the
Pen
A suitable pen’s nib for Naskh script is the one that has an angled tip to produce slanted letters (such as italic nib), as illustrated.
Can't find a proper pen? I can't, too. Instead, I bought a marker type on Amazon, tho this will not reproduce the same effect of a real pen!
Want to cut your nib? I haven't tried, but some people do cut the nib of their pen to make it slanted. Check this on Youtube.
Materials
Want to make your own pen? I haven't tried, but it's easy to make one with bamboo. Check the tutorial on Youtube.
Ink and Ink Jar
The suitable inks for practising include black Indian ink, Rotring black drawing ink, and any calligraphy ink.
Tips to prevent flooding the pen: use an ink jar, a small watertight jar, or a plastic film container. Push a small piece of nylon tights or stockings into the jar, and pour in enough ink to be absorbed by the fabric. No excess ink is required, as the source of ink is the ink-dampened fabric. This prevents overloading the pen and creating unsightly blobs.
Paper
Fine-grade papers such as watercolor paper or printmaking paper are suitable for calligraphy. Use a white fairly smooth matte paper for practicing like Strathmore.
Please use a
Practice Sheet
To prepare a practice sheet, use a soft pencil to draw the baseline. Then draw the upper and lower lines at equal distances from the baseline using the height of the letter alif (five dots of your pen placed on top of the other) as a guide
Start
Practicing
Write a basic angle by drawing diamond-shaped dots.
The pen should rest between the lower knuckles of the thumb and the first finger.
Press the pen diagonally on the paper and pull it in the direction of the arrows.
When you can draw the dot with a single short diagonal stroke, you are holding your pen correctly. For lettering, you need to manipulate your pen to achieve a contrast of stroke widths.