If you want to learn to write in a way that isn't painful, learn to use a fountain pen - a $20 Pilot Metropolitan, or a Lamy Safari for I believe about the same

If you want to learn to write in a way that isn't painful, learn to use a fountain pen - a $20 Pilot Metropolitan, or a Lamy Safari for I believe about the same, will do more than well enough. Pencils and ballpoints, and to a lesser but real extent most rollerballs, require so much force to mark the paper that you can't help getting a cramp. Fountain pen ink is thinner and flows more easily, so all you have to do is steer the pen. This makes a very significant difference. Don't start with a gold-nibbed pen - both of those I named use steel. Gold admittedly feels nicer to use, but you need the transitional step to learn better habits; steel is much more forgiving of excess force, and you'll know on your own when you're ready for a more delicate and expressive nib. I used to hate to write longhand, too. I've been using fountain pens for about half a decade now. A few days ago I used one to work out a complex idea over eight A5 pages with no need to pause save occasionally for thought, and my wrist wasn't sore afterward. Here as elsewhere, choosing the proper tool makes all the difference.