The physical peculiarities of The Four Zoas challenge our practice of consuming this work in its unfinished state suspended between printmaking and manuscript-making. Through the medium of paper, pen, and ink Blake could have explored compositional possibilities beyond the artisanal execution afforded by copper, quills, and acid. What one often encounters across The Four Zoas is instead the body and mind of an engraver. The conception of graphic forms seems to echo elements which occur in his illuminated books. How then, does the hand of an engraver show on paper with regards to words and images—in one word, lines? What follows will examine Blake's practice in selected pages of the manuscript, focusing on the way layout, calligraphy, and symbols are embedded in his style as well as the extent to which the boundaries between paper and copperplate become permeable.