In this paper, we describe a case of nonlinear spelling and its implications for theories of the graphemic buffer. C.T.J., an individual with an acquired deficit of the graphemic buffer, often wrote the letters of his responses in a nonlinear temporal order when writing to dictation. The spatial ordering of the letters was maintained: Letters in the later positions of the words were written towards the right side of the response, even when written before letters in earlier positions. This unusual phenomenon has been briefly reported in three prior cases but this study provides the most detailed analysis of the phenomenon to date. We specifically contend that the decoupling of the temporal and spatial aspects of spelling is difficult to reconcile with competitive queuing accounts of the graphemic buffer.
Keywords: Spelling; acquired dysgraphia; competitive queuing; graphemic buffer; written spelling.