2. Practical letters

Written communication cannot rely on only one style of letter to function. A single alphabet might suffice if we were looking at Roman inscriptions, but in any kind of modern publication, we see a variety of letterforms coexist. The great strength of the Latin alphabet is its ability to be modulated typographically—the basic design can be varied by slope, weight, compression, and even by the addition of decoration. ‘Practical letters’ considers typographic terminology, the development of typefaces, the numerical systems used to describe the relationships between letter sizes, complex text typography, the mechanization of type, and how letters sit side by side to make words and lines of type.