Any Tips For A Beginner?

[DiscountedArtist]

I've started posting comics here a few days ago and wondered if anyone had any tips for me. So here I am. I make comedy comics and the artwork is not very good because I'm still getting used to digital art. I intend to keep the art simple though. My comics don't follow a specific storyline, they're just random situations I think would be funny in a comic. Btw I know that comics take a long time to become successful. https://tapas.io/series/Howy-Comics/info

[HarryM]

• Draw every day - you can't get worse at something you do every day.
• Read real books.
• Pay attention to the people around you, and how they interact with each other.
• Train your brain to observe. Do it actively for a while, and it'll slowly become a passive thing you just sorta do.
• The more experiences and general knowledge you accumulate in life, the more you have to draw on for your jokes/stories - it all comes from within you. (This is why we do all of the above.)

Be kind to yourself when you fall off the horse. You're not in a race.

Make sure to exercise. It gets blood to your brain. You'll think clearer, feel better, and produce better work.

And finally, enjoy the process of creating, because that's the only joy you're guaranteed to have. People won't care about your work unless it affects THEM in some way.

Good luck!

[whiskeyjack]

Check out drawabox. https://drawabox.com/

[NickRowler]

Have a physical notebook which you practice with IRL. Sometimes I like to practice drawing things by hand before I draw them digitally.

Be open to experiment with different art styles. Observe other artists in how they draw. Think about your favorite artists and comics and what about them you like. If your goal is to have a very simple style like stuff like Clyde and Happiness, your goal could be working on ways to make your lines look cleaner and enhancing facial expressions.

Observing the world around you and sketching is also useful.

[Ardelvion]

I've started posting comics here a few days ago and wondered if anyone had any tips for me.

Hi there. I'm not an expert on giving art tips, but I can give you mine based from my experience as a beginner.

• Carry a notebook (or anything that you can write on) so that in case you suddenly have an idea for your comic, you can write them down.

• Experiment with different types of digital art software. There's a possibility that if you limit yourself to just one software, you'd also be limiting your art style.

• Observe people in real life (make sure you don't look like a creep when you do that). I prefer observing people in small crowds so that they won't know I'm actually observing their movements, behaviors, interactions, et cetera. Observing people in large crowds distracts me a lot because I don't know who should I focus on.

• Draw as much as you can every day, but make sure you take good care of your health.

• Read other comics so that you'll have an idea what art styles you look up to. Once you already find the styles you want, use them as inspiration to experiment and find your own art style.

[KizKat]

All of these tips are great for drawing, especially drawing every day. I cannot stress - even with a simple style - how important this is. For example, I use a simple style, and this is my progress after the last few years:

From this:

To this:

I still have a long way to go, but doing this everyday, and looking at different layouts of other people's comics I enjoy, helped improve the overall look. Obviously things like font and how clear the action and expression is goes a long way too.

As for getting an audience, I am pretty new around here and would say that I still have a long way to go on other platforms too. But what I have learned so far is:

• Promote everywhere. Twitter, Instagram, Discord, Reddit, relevant forums (like here!) - anywhere you hang out. Find groups that have similar interests to you and your comic themes. Ask people to check it out (always remember to respect groups spaces though and don't intentionally spam them, most social groups have rules that are easy to find about self promotion).
• Keep a regular posting schedule. Tell your audience when you're not going to make it or you're taking time off. Communication with your audience is good.
• Make sure you're still having fun. If making comics isn't your job, it shouldn't feel like a chore or something you HAVE to do. If you're not enjoying it, think about whats changed and what you WANT to draw. Feelings like that show in your work.

Good luck to you!