SHOCK SHIMMY
A TrueType Font by S. John Ross
Cumberland Games & Diversions
www.cumberlandgames.com

To the extent that the “vaguely wobbly font with vertical lines inside it, fading from either the top or bottom” is a font genre, this is my hat in that particular ring. As usual, I've followed some of the rules and ignored others … the forms are more regular than most, the fading lines a little more “Uresia mapping” and a little less “Monster Mash,” and the whole thing is a bit on the jaunty side.

That part's important. While many of my fonts come from some specific graphic-project need or honor some particular person, this font sprung from a mood, and not a particularly good one. Without getting too deep into the details, there was some trouble recently between Friend A and Friend B. A hurt B (and in the process, hurt a lot of the rest of us) and for a time it was necessary that I focus on the needs of Friend B without indulging too deeply in how I now felt about Friend A. Last night I finally started indulging, and tallying what I've personally lost to to the harmful act of Friend A (Acquaintance A, right now).

The thing is, being grouchy put me in a mood where I needed to make something that wasn't grouchy at all. I needed something playful, something punchy, something bold and bright and upbeat. This font is all that, which just goes to show that a grouchy energy can be reflected back into something positive. While I'm not sure what you'd license this font for (a halloween party for fifth-graders? A particularly lighthearted bar-band poster?), I hope it gives you a grin either way. It did the trick for me, and kept me company on a night when I needed some. And for my next trick, I'll be finishing a big font project to honor and celebrate Friend B properly (I've been working on it for months, it's just finally coming together). SHOCK SHIMMY is a full-keyboard small-caps set with some of the usual extras. Enjoy!

This font is copyright © 2011 by S. John Ross. "Cumberland Games & Diversions" and this font's title are trademarks of S. John Ross. This font is free for private use only. Any public or commercial use, or any use by an organization rather than an individual, requires a license; contact the Cumberland Fontworks via email (sjohn@cumberlandgames.com) or find me on the Web for additional contact information. Additional glyphs (foreign alphabet support, customizations, etc) are available by commission.

This ZIP archive may be freely distributed provided none of the contents are altered or removed.

Version 1.0