The study of handwriting is known as graphology and it has been practised for hundreds of years. Professional forensic graphologists have worked on many court cases to use handwriting to link suspects with crimes. Handwriting is particularly important legally in the case of signatures and proving whether signatures are real or forged can be pivotal. Graphologists also work to verify whether autographs are real or fake. Some handwriting analysts also study writing samples to determine personality types and some businesses commission this analysis before hiring new employees. The method is even sometimes used to help couples see if they are compatible. According to graphologists, there is very little you can’t tell from a persons’ handwriting. From psychological conditions like high blood pressure and schizophrenia to personality traits like dominance and aggression : if you write by hand, graphologists can analyse you. Everything from the size of your letters to how closely you space words can reveal intricate details of your personality. In general, the size of your letters can reveal whether you are shy or outgoing. Compared to a standard lined sheet of paper, if you write with tiny letters that do not reach the top line, you are likely to have a timid and introverted personality. If you write with large letters that go over the topline, you are likely to be the opposite : outgoing, confident and attention seeking. Studies suggest that people who space words widely like freedom and independence, whereas those choosing to write with small spaces prefer to be among others and do not like to be alone.

There is something we all want to do, although few of us readily admit it : Get rid of guests. For nine months in the year, only my closest friends come to see me. Then, when temperatures start soaring in the plains, long-lost acquaintances suddenly remember that I exist. Occasionally, I am the master of the situation. I inform them that the cottage is already bursting. The other day I received visitors who proved to be more thick-skinned than most. I tried the usual ploy but it didn’t work. ‘I must warn you about the scorpions’, I said. We were now interrupted by someone knocking on the front door. It was the postman with a rejected manuscript. ‘I’m terribly sorry’, I said. ‘I’m afraid I have to leave immediately.’