Longer words pose more challenges as there are simply more letters that need to be made to look like each other. For example, a nice simple word to choose might be “BOOK” as it is only 4 letters. A more difficult word might be “TELEVISION” as it has 10 letters. Often, people will choose their name if they’re designing an ambigram for personal reasons so this is also an option.
For example, if your word was ‘great’, write it out on a piece of paper and then directly below it write ‘ʇɐǝɹƃ’ lined up letter-for-letter with the normal spelling. It’s also a good idea to write the word in cursive and upper case. This lets you look at what letters may transform well into other letters. This process is the same regardless of whether you are creating a reversal ambigram or an upside-down ambigram as at the moment, you are just getting clear on which letters must transform into each other.
You want to pair up the letters, ideally combine multiple into one. For example, for the word “great” you would connect ‘gr’ with ‘t’ with a straight line, then ‘e’ with ‘a’, then ‘a’ with ‘e’. Doing this allows you to pair up the letters and have a visual aid to what each letter needs to transform into when you look at the word from a different perspective.
An example of how this works is that in the word ‘great’ the letter ‘g’ pairs up with ‘t’ (as these are the first and last letters). However, if you wanted to combine the letters, you might make it so the letter ‘g’ pairs up with the letters ‘a’ and ‘t’. This would mean that the letter ‘g’ will turn into ‘at’ when viewed from the alternative angle because you have combined the ‘a’ and the ’t’. Combining letters is a bit more complicated so if you’re just starting out, stick to just transforming 1 letter at a time.
The purpose of doing this is to just give you a clear space where you can begin to sketch your letters. The letters need to be level when you are sketching them as if they aren’t, they can end up out of proportion and look a bit wayward. You can really draw as many of these lines as you feel that you need, 4 is just a good starting point. Alternatively use scotch tape to connect a blank paper sheet over squared or lined paper, and use the lines that way.
This is where the creative portion of the ambigram really starts to become important, so be as artistic as you can. Don’t feel any pressure to find a quick solution, enjoy the process of figuring out the ways in which letters can transform. Feel free to use fonts from word processors like Microsoft Word or Google Docs as inspiration for the way that you shape your letters. Consider looking at an ambigram generator for inspiration or google ambigrams of similar words to see how people solve certain letter combinations.
For example, if your word was ‘great’ you would now combine the individual letters to form the whole word. Combining the letters here before you get too specific and concrete with the design of the letters allows you to see how they mesh and flow together to create a word. Ideally, an ambigram looks like it has been written with all of the same font rather than each letter having its own individual style. Combining the letters here allows you to check that out and make adjustments.
For example, you may decorate the curve of the tails on a ‘g’ or a ‘y’ as is the case in calligraphy and other styles. Ambigrams are pieces of art and so here is your chance to really turn the word into a piece of artwork and make it flow. Remember that not every typographic style works with every single ambigram so be open to the possibility that you have to re-evaluate the style you’re working with. Creating ambigrams is a process that takes patience!
This is a good chance for you to just double check that everything reads as you have planned it to. It’s not a problem at all if it doesn’t read correctly, just pinpoint where the issue is and go back to sketching to correct it.
