About

My name is Mitchell Jacobs, and I'm either a poet or a library intern depending on when you ask. I started this blog so I could develop my prose writing, as well as share my passion for the niche world of shorthand systems. It's something I believe many more people would be interested in if they knew about it. (Or maybe not interested in shorthand themselves, but interested in hearing other people be interested in it.)

The name "Streptography" comes from the Greek roots for "twisted" and "writing"--interpret as you wish. Many shorthand inventors gave their systems fancypants names ending in -graphy, so I thought I'd carry on the tradition, despite not having made a writing system of my own. Someday!

The flourish under the title in the banner image might look like a random squiggle, but in the world of shorthand, every stroke is imbued with meaning, intended or not. In Hugh Callendar's Cursive Shorthand, this is the phrase "I shall be able to do that." In any other system, yeah, it's probably gibberish.

The background image is a sample of Thomas Gurney's Brachygraphy, though I tweaked it a bit so it tiled nicely. What can I say? Web design and books from 1835 need a little help to get along.

View the introductory post: Why 'Streptography'?

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