The famed playwright Harold Pinter, having just been introduced as a very good writer, was once asked by a six-year-old boy if he could do a "w." The author suspects that "w" was a difficult letter for this young man, and he judged the writing capability of others accordingly. This student's assumption--that being a "good writer" means having good handwriting--is not as off base as one might think. In dozens of studies, researchers have found that, done right, early handwriting instruction improves students' writing. Not just its legibility, but its "quantity" and "quality." In addition, poor handwriting skills often hinder students' creative writing. For young children, the act of writing is demanding. The thought they must put into how to form letters interferes with other writing processes. Legibility is also a serious problem. This article focuses on effective handwriting instruction.