The 'n' is arguably the most important letter in an entire typeface—in fact many designers draw this letter first when they start a typeface. It gives rise to the 'h', 'u', 'm', 'r', and influences the 'v'.
The 'n' is not a particularly hard letter to design, though a great deal of thought should be given to the letter's shoulder, which is the most distinctive part of an 'n'. Other than that, its two stems are easily derived from the stem of the 'i'.
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| Components of a lowercase letter 'n' |
While the join of the 'b' informs the arc–stem join of the 'n', the letter is constructed from an 'i' and an 'a'. The 'a' provides the arc of stem, and the 'i' provides the two stems. Note that the bilateral serif for the second stem is made from the short ends of two 'i' serifs.
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| The 'n' can be made from an 'a' and an 'i'. |
Then the shoulder just needs to be cleaned up to make the join.
