Fireworks:

Creating Special Text

Know the Science - Dream the Art - Mind the Gap
A resource created by C.P. Wahle

Curved and special text can be Fireworks can be used to easily crate text that winds around any curve or shape. It is also
used to draw attention to your possible fill a to change the look of any font using Fireworks tools.
web page

To create curved text in Fireworks:

1. Start Fireworks and create a new document.

2. Draw a curved path. You must use the pen tool or a
shape tool to create it. The pencil will not work! When
drawing the path be careful that you don’t create a cure
that is too tight. Leave space for the letters to easily
flow over the curve. If the bends in the curve are too
tight the letter will collide when they are attached. You
can also use any of the shape tools such as the rectan-
gle or oval to create the path.

3. Use the Text Tool (the letter “T” in the

tools panel) to type some text. It does
not need to be on top of the curve.
Change the font, color and size if you
wish. This can always be changed or
adjusted later.
 4. Use the Selection tool (the black arrow) to select
both the path and the text. You can grab both by
simply dragging the Selection tool around them. Or
you can select both items by clicking on the text and
then hold down the Shift key on the keyboard while
clicking on the path.

5. Select Type » Attach to Path... from the menus at the

top of the Fireworks window. If Attach to Path... is not
highlighted it means you have not properly selected
both the text and the path or you have more than the
single path and text selected. Go back and try Step 4
again.
6. If you need to edit the text. double click on it with the
Selection Tool. The text cursor will reappear and you
can make your changes to the font, size or color. In
the Properties Panel there is a Text offset control that
can be used to shift the starting point of the letters on
the curve.

7. Use Text » Orientation from the Fireworks menus to

change how the letters sit on the path. You can still
change the fill and stroke of the text itself by selecting
the text and making changes in the Properties Panel at
the bottom of the Fireworks window.
8. Save the file as a .png (the standard Fireworks for-
mat) in case you want to work on it again. Then File
» Export... the file to a Web friendly format like .gif or
.jpg. When you export the file the path will become
invisible, leaving just the text.

To create special text:

1. Type some text. Use a large font to make it

easy to work with.
2. Select Text » Convert to Paths from the
Fireworks menus.
3. Use the Subselection tool (the white arrow)
to modify the points in a letter to change its
shape.
4. Save and export in a Web friendly format.