So, this is a good thread and the phenomenon it's talking about is very real.
However, I have to recite my usual maxim here: no cause with just one effect and no effect with just one cause.
There is (or may be, for you) something special about Comic Sans.
A thread.
However, I have to recite my usual maxim here: no cause with just one effect and no effect with just one cause.
There is (or may be, for you) something special about Comic Sans.
A thread.
I regularly adjust my font size (or switch Word to web view and zoom in) to get to the sweet spot being described, but I still switch to Comic Sans sometimes when I'm having a hard time finding the flow of creativity, and the results are pretty reliably great.
If I left this thread here and walked away, somebody would pop up to tell me it's a placebo. Guess what? There's no such thing as a psychological placebo. The placebo effect is a psychological effect... if you're using it for something mental, it's not a placebo. It's working.
What Comic Sans does for me -- and may for you -- is let my brain *relax* and stop worrying about getting everything out perfect, about making the draft of what I'm writing look the way I want it to look as a book or a finished product.
When I'm writing in Comic Sans, the writing itself has this unserious, unfinished look about it that takes perfection off the table. It takes a lot of pressure off, which is great if I'm having a hard time starting, or I've begun but the words are a slog.
Some people also just plain find Comic Sans easier to process visually, because of the way the letters are weighted. (And some people have the opposite experience; brains are different.)
I will also note -- because people always seem to make this mistake -- that writing in Comic Sans doesn't mean sending/posting/publishing in Comic Sans.
In addition to this, changing from your normal font to one that is markedly different but still legible can help you look at a project with "fresh eyes". It's a good way to get the boost of coming back later or a change of scenery, without actually uprooting yourself.
This last effect is why I don't just write in Comic Sans all the time. I want it to retain its value as a way to change my perspective.
In summation:
1. Yes, zooming or enlarging text to make the lines shorter is a great hack.
2. If Comic Sans is working for you as a writing hack, keep doing it.
3. What works for you works for you. It can be fun to learn about why.
1. Yes, zooming or enlarging text to make the lines shorter is a great hack.
2. If Comic Sans is working for you as a writing hack, keep doing it.
3. What works for you works for you. It can be fun to learn about why.
