Famous & infamous font styles
These pages are about qualities, not copies. Each one explains what makes a style read the way it does, then shows how to draw original letters of your own with the same character. TNOF cannot reproduce a commercial typeface and does not distribute anyone's font software.
Comic Sans alternatives and playful handwritten type
Why Comic Sans reads as friendly, what people actually want when they reach for it, and how to draw and convert an original casual hand that does the job better.
Papyrus alternatives and textured display lettering
What gives Papyrus its rough, ancient look, why texture is so hard to use well, and how to draw and convert original textured display lettering of your own.
Helvetica alternatives and clean sans serif lettering
What makes a neutral grotesque look neutral, why drawing one by hand is the hardest lettering exercise there is, and how to attempt it and convert the result.
Futura alternatives and geometric lettering
How geometric sans serifs are built from circles and straight lines, the optical corrections that keep them from looking wrong, and how to draw and convert your own.
Cooper Black alternatives and bold rounded type
What makes heavy rounded display type feel warm rather than aggressive, and how to draw and convert your own bold face with soft serifs and tight counters.
Times New Roman alternatives and readable serif lettering
How serifs, stroke contrast and stress make a text face readable, the disputed history of the most familiar one, and how to draw and convert an original serif of your own.
