Altering Character Widths during H&J

If altering character spaces during H&J upsets some type purists, the prospect of altering character widths is best kept secret from them. Nevertheless, the concept of flexing character widths as a tool to compose type better was the idea of world-renowned type designer and calligrapher Hermann Zapf.

The logic of the approach is impeccable. On a line of 70 characters, there are perhaps seven or eight word spaces, which means there aren’t many places to stash leftover space during justification. There may be 70 letter spaces, but they’re so small that altering them doesn’t do much. But the line is equally rich in characters, and being on average wider than word spaces, if you alter their widths even slightly, you can make a major difference in the spacing of the line.