8 favorite hand lettering books for beginners
New to hand lettering? Woohoo!! It’s an amazing world and I’m sooo excited for you!
There’s a lot of resources out there to get started in this craft. For just books, you can see there’s a ton of options and it’s even tough to decide from best seller’s lists like this one what you want to start with.
To help save you the time of researching every single book, I’ve compiled my personal top eight.
I own all of them, and you may catch me lovingly (...creepily?) staring at my collection like a proud book mama.
The best thing about these books? They are easily scannable. You don’t have to read from cover to cover. You can flip through them as you need during your next project, or when you find yourself with some rare downtime where you can sip on a steaming cup of coffee while enjoying the new book smell 🤤.
Pin me to bookmark this resource! ⤵
If you want to learn the basic rules of hand lettering from some OG lettering superstars, I highly recommend choosing one of the first three in this list. You’ll want to pick which book based on which lettering artist you admire and would want to learn from the most.
Or, you could be like me and get them all. 😜 I mean, they are all so very pretty in their unique way. 😍
1. Lettering Manual by House Industries
I was so excited when this book came out! I used to be pretty wary about purchasing books I didn’t think I could finish reading but have since realized how helpful lettering books are for reference material. So, I jumped on the preorder when it came out.
Totally worth it. Why?
Lettering Manual is filled to the brim with eye candy...so much beautiful lettering and so many various styles. On top of that, you’ll get to learn lettering basics, types of drawing techniques, and types of lettering models (I’m a huge fan of Ken Barber’s script styles).
Peppered throughout are plenty of case studies with impressive concept sketches. Get a glimpse into the process for clients like Jimmy Kimmel and Hermès.
Not sure what to letter or practice? There are several lettering exercises to help put your new knowledge to the test right away.
Did I mention that Ken Barber’s writing style is such a treat? His copywriting will keep you laughing as you learn!
2. In Progress by Jessica Hische
Jessica Hische was one of the first artists I was introduced to when I discovered lettering, so I of course had to get her book as soon as it was released.
Want to see the process from sketch to digital of a lettering artist who’s worked with clients like Starbucks, Barnes and Noble, and Wes Anderson? In Progress is the book for you. Jessica touches on topics like basic lettering materials for analog and digital, lettering styles, embellishments, and insights into commercial work.
At the end are tons of client work samples that span across industries and project types to spark your own inspiration. The last half of the book is very visual and easy to scan!
3. The Golden Secrets of Lettering by Martina Flor
Martina Flor’s hand-drawn sketches always amaze me, and I was impressed to see that she had sketched out every chapter divider in The Golden Secrets of Lettering. You’ll be able to learn tons of technical information on the rules of lettering, type anatomy, letter shapes, and lettering styles. Enjoy the tons of beautifully sketched-and very helpful-illustrations at the same time.
Learn how to critique your work as you look at Martina’s in-depth breakdown of her process where she writes comments to show you how she improved her lettering at each step.
Finally, she covers her vector process in its own chapter, so if you are looking to vectorize your artwork through the more traditional pen tool method (no live tracing here!), this is the book to get.
4. House Industries: The Process is the Inspiration
The Process is the Inspiration is not a lettering book, but it is by House Industries and contains endless pages of beautiful work and case studies that kinda challenges you to stick to pencil sketches so you can have all these wonderful physical pages to collect.
But for real, this is a gorgeous book that goes into depth about the ways House Industries find inspiration.
You’ll find it very inspiring to see all the thinking behind the work that they have created with clients like Vogue and Herman Miller, and every page is a feast for the eyes. It’s a good one to add to your collection!
5. Little Book of Lettering by Emily Gregory
It really is a little book! 😂 Little Book of Lettering is a great resource to have if you’re looking for a quick sample of inspiration from a variety of lettering artists.
This book is broken into three sections: digital drawn lettering, hand-drawn and illustrated lettering, and three-dimensional lettering. Browse each one to find a two-page spread of work for each artist, featuring art from artists all over the world.
PS, the book cover is designed by Mary Kate McDevitt, another great letterer!
6. Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Design's Golden Age by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
I highly recommend building up a small collection of lettering styles to reference. When you’re ready to build a physical collection, Scripts is a great one.
In this book, you’ll find an extensive collection of script styles from the nineteenth and mid-twentieth century (the Golden Age of scripts) from the United States, Germany, France, England and Italy.
By extensive, I mean there’s a LOT. There are photos of signs, advertisement clips, full alphabets, monograms, and so much more. I often use this book to browse through when I want vary up my lettering script style.
7. Shadow Type by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
Similar to the previous book (and by the same amazing authors!), Shadow Type is filled with lots of dimensional type styles. If you want to know allll the different kinds of ways you can add dimension to your letters, check this book out!
Digging all the reference books by Steven Heller and Louise Fili? You’ll also want to look at...
8. Slab Serif Type: A Century of Bold Letterforms by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
I may be addicted to getting the entire collection of books by these two authors...maybe. Regardless, let’s talk slab serifs!
They’re personally the most challenging for me to letter, so I’m glad I have this book to help speed things along. If this is a style you like to use often or want to improve on, you can use this book to look through for both inspiration and reference on how to draw a whole slew of slab serif type.
Bonus: Get to know your type
What’s a counter? Or a terminal? How do you REALLY draw this serif?
If you’d like to get a better understanding of type anatomy and the fundamentals of using typography, check out Thinking with Type by Ellen Lupton and Anatomy of Type: A graphic guide to 100 Typefaces.
These are often on required reading lists for graphic design programs (including mine at the time!) and will help you to level up your lettering by understanding the basic rules of typography. No more time wasted on how to draw that letter “S.” 😉
Start improving your lettering today!
Which book will you be reading first? Share a photo of what you’re reading and tag me on Instagram (@belindaskou). I’d love to see what’s on your book list! 😍
In summary, here is the complete list:
Lettering Manual by House Industries
In Progress by Jessica Hische
The Golden Secrets of Lettering by Martina Flor
Little Book of Lettering by Emily Gregory
Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Design's Golden Age by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
Shadow Type by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
Slab Serif Type: A Century of Bold Letterforms by Steven Heller and Louise Fili
*Bonus* Thinking with Type by Ellen Lupton and Anatomy of Type: A graphic guide to 100 Typefaces
Ready to turn your lettering hobby into a side or full-time gig?
Check out this post with book recommendations for business and marketing!
