New Guitar player - bought Principles, need help with pick!

[jt3_jon]

Hello,

I'm a brand new guitar player and looking to start learning with your Principles of correct guitar playing. I've tried numerous search terms in these forums for working with a pick, (pick angle, pick technique, etc) and everything it tired came back with "too common" error and nothing would display, so I apologize if this has already been covered.

I'm trying to learn how to use a pick (as this is the style of guitar I wish to play) but I'm confused when Jamie says the following on page 68:

Most players, however, do tilt the pick slightly toward the head of the guitar, so that the pick does not strike flat against the string...

I need conformation as to what this means! Does this mean the pick tipshould be facing the head, so that the pick is striking the string at a slight angle? Or does it mean the whole pick should be tilted slight toward the head, which means the pick tip is actually pointing towards the bridge slightly?

Also, since I'm here, is it true that my right hand/wrist should NOT rest against the guitar at all? I'm finding it difficult to "float" and consistently use the tip of the pick, for when my hand is floating it seems to move around and thus is not hitting the strings the same way with the pick each time I strike. However, if I rest my hand slightly on the bridge, I seem to have a more consistent picking. Is this wrong? I'm assuming it is and thus I'm trying to get use to not having my wrist touch the guitar, however this makes me wonder about palm muting...

I also want to verify if its ok to rest my forearm against the body of the guitar? If I have my whole arm "floating" I notice a huge amount of tension in my shoulder. This is alleviated when I gently rest my forearm against the body of the guitar. Is this ok?

One last thing (for now) I've noticed that I seem to be able to down-pick pretty easy and consistently hit all 6 strings when doing a full strum, however the same cannot be said for up-picking, as I seem to get stuck and/or miss notes completely when doing a full strum. The only way I can get it to work is if I angle the pick so its no longer perpendicular with the guitar, but instead is at and angle towards me while I pick up. I'm assuming this is bad? Any advice?

Thanks in advance for your help and reply. Also, if there are any "master posts" on using the pick or pick technique, please feel free to link them as I dont want to post questions that have been answered a thousand times! Also any further information is always welcomed and appreciated, as I only have the book right now for reference.

Thanks again, and I very much look forward to putting in the focused awareness and effort necessary to learn guitar!

[Jamie]

This will explain about pick slant...

http://www.guitarprinciples.com/guitar- ... -pick.html

It sounds like you are holding tension in the shoulder, chest and back. That is why you cannot hold your hand steady while floating

Yes, some players make contact while playing. There is a difference between light contact and pressing in with the arm while holding all muscles of the upper body tense.

You need to post some videos.

[jt3_jon]

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post!!

The link on pick slanting cleared up my confusion. THANKS!!

Since I'm brand new to guitar, I'm going to read and re-read your book every day before practicing and really try to apply your techniques. I'll try to post some videos as well, once I feel a little more comfortable with the guitar.

Thanks again!
Jon

p.s. in the future is this the best place to post with questions about the principles / future videos?