How Do You Comic ?!

[voshxdaemon]

Pretty much, any decent idea I have, I write it down. You never know when you might want it, and its good to have hard copy.

Also, I carry my sketchbook around everywhere, and I imposed some panel templates on some of the sheets, so I got the basic outline right whenever I do end up getting sketching done.

[Miokka]

@misshoneyham HOLEY MOLEY !
10 pages in one single day !
respect sir

@carloswebcomic
seems like you're got it going on ! O.O

@Wognif
LOL i hate redrawing too...
6) readership is a hard thing... if only i could tell you the ultimate magical spell (but i simply don't know it xD )

@voshxdaemon that's the spirit !

[AnnaLandin]

1.) Come up with an idea. Like, "girl has space-adventures, also - robots." or "wouldn't it be neat if I took all this love I have for samurai movies and wandering-swordsmen-manga and made a comic like that, except with my own twist?"

2.) Let the ideas stew for months, possibly years.

3.) Pick one and decide to actually DO IT.

4.) Scribble and plan and change my mind and plan some more and change my mind again. This is where all of the first-draft stuff happens - the initial character designs, the general outline, the writing down of cool ideas I might wanna use along the way.

5.) Having assembled the general shape of the idea and the outline, pick up said outline and start at the beginning. Pick enough plot-points from it to make up a chapter, and start breaking those down into more detail. What is going to happen in this chapter, in which order, and why? Who is going to be in it? Where is it going to lead? Write down a proper summary.

6.) Take the summary and break it down even further into more detail, going page by page. Like - "page one; main character A travels through a forest. Page two - main character A is startled by bird, and spots some broken twigs on a branch. Page three - main character A leaves the path to investigate" - etc., etc. Until I have a page-by-page breakdown of the entire chapter.

7.) STORYBOARDS AHOY!

These are of a Christmas-comic I did last year. I always do my storyboards on paper, because the internet is too distracting and would ruin things if I did it digitally. This is where I plan all of my page-layouts, and see if my page-by-page breakdown works, or if I need more - or less! - pages to tell my story.

Also, my thumbnails are approximately two inches tall, and all those scribbly little words beneath the thumbs are me writing the first draft of the dialogue - and sometimes tiny notes to myself re: what's happening on the page, to make my stick figures a bit easier to understand. And yes, this is the first time in the process in which I write any kind of dialogue. There may be a few stray sentences in the outlining process, but this is where the actual dialogue happens.

8.) Digital drafts!

These I do in Manga Studio EX4, creating a multi-page document with as many pages as the chapter needs. This is the thumbnail view, but these are all full-sized pages, on which I scribble all the rough sketches and place all of the speechbubbles+dialogue, so I know how much actual space they take up and if I need to change anything.

This is as detailed as my roughs ever get, and this is on the high end of the scale - usually, it's just full-size stick figures with frowny eyebrows (this example isn't from Grassblades - it's from a oneshot I did for an anthology in late 2013)

9.) Clean sketches. Next verse, same as the first - clean up the sketches and make them something that's possible to ink - although I have been known to ink right on top of my rough sketches, if they're good enough.

10.) Finishing. Inking, colouring, tinkering with lighting. Also, tweaking dialogue and getting rid of awkward phrasings and stiff wording and placeholder sentences. This step is 100% Manga Studio 5.

11.) Put it in the buffer. Then wait, like, 5-6 months until it's time to post it because I'm so far ahead of my readers. XD

[mariusthered]

hi i'm Aron. this is how i sort out my comic Tales from swipe city.

Ideas. like you I carry a pad everywhere, this is not only for comic script ideas, but also ideas for cartoons and caricatures for my other work as I do commissions for people and business. any and all ideas are scribbled down and the script ideas are pulled out later....
plotting and writing. as I have some problems with grammar I try to do most of my scripting on a word processor that will spot mistakes, this is not always easy when you are sometimes working in slang. but on the whole the full chapter is written at once and broken down in to acts. to plot events I use post it notes or cue cards and sometimes work backwards to help connect events.

(i;e my current running story how to get jenny in the house with Steve?) this was an important event but by writing it backwards gave me ideas for other events that went on to bigger story lines) (read my comic to get that.)

modeling this is where my process starts to differ from others. I use poser ten for my backgrounds, in effect it's like thumbnails and sketches in one. Every character I have has a model version of themselves my in poser. every set and room is saved like a movie set in my computer. these take along time to get right and other cost quite a lot to buy. all the cast I try to make look a bit different from other poser models . I work threw the script creating the scene placing my cast where they need to be and making a rough of what kind of expressions they need. and what props they are holding. (if a character is holding an object the object is not drawn out later but remains 3d) this can take a long time as some objects are hard to place in hands.

Layout: I use manga studio 5 and layout my pages using a page size that is 3x the size. each poser panel is put in place and all the framing done.

Bubbles I like to do this stage before drawing. putting the speech bubbles in and making sure everything flows. it can be very annoying to a reader if your eyes don't flow to the right speech bubble so placing them is a tricky thing sometimes.

Inking this is my worse stage. because at this stage I am effectively just tracing around the poser figures, inking can become very long process, I do change faces from time to time but mostly this stage is just capturing the figures.

color before I start coloring I make a pallet of what each character is going to need everything from the skin tones to the clothes, this way they stay the same later down the line. that done I work threw the page and block color everything I need. after blocking out all the color in effect I have flattened all the figures, so I hand shade and lighten everything using brush and blend. ( I have never liked cell shading) when everything is done I should have cartoon figures in a 3d world.

the next stage I cut the page and re-size it in another program to fit the tapastic page size and then I "save for web" and store it in the folder ready for upload.

job done. so now you guys know my process I hope some of you will follow my comic.

(p.s this was edited because I once again found a way to annoy without trying )

[AnnaLandin]

Bubbles unlike other people I like to do this stage before drawing. putting the speech bubbles in and making sure everything flows. it can be very annoying to a reader if your eyes don't flow to the right speech bubble so placing them is a tricky thing sometimes.

I think you'll find that a lot of people do this. I certainly do. I plan my speechbubbles as early as the thumbnailing stage, and when doing the digital drafts, I draw stick-figures and then focus on where the speechbubbles should be placed: it's a good way to make sure people read them in the correct order and that they aren't taking up more space than they need.

[mariusthered]

there I changed it for you, sorry if that was the wrong thing to say.

[AnnaLandin]

@aronthemason No, no, no, you don't have to change it, and it wasn't the wrong thing to say or anything! I'm not annoyed! I'm just letting you - and others - know that this is a fairly common thing to do!

You don't have to edit your posts if you won't want to.

[thomassayle]

Think of an Idea,usually while I'm wide awake staring at the ceiling and feeling sorry for myself. Get excited over the story and certain scenes. Here is where my mind starts to think of composition and framing. Scribble down idea for later use, maybe some thumbnails or a really bad comic version on paper. spend an hour or two character designing.Wright down all dialogue in word for copy and paste later and open up flash or Photoshop.Set the width and height to my desired length, set up any tools in the program.
Draw panels, new layer and sketch whats going to happen in each panel.
new layer and start drawing.
Once done I go back and add color, Add text/dialogue then draw speech bubbles. Add tittle and then export.

[mg78]

i take casual hints, move them as ideas, think about what they re and what to do with them.
i try to analyze what can work and what cant, thinking even if something was already done...
so yeha, i let grow the idea and i think what it can be.

then i move it in text and in sketch.
sketchs are free, no limitations/pianifications... i draw what i feel. step after step i try to define the look.
in the text i try to set the classic "what who how when why with who" + i set the first plot of the story.

when a first solid plot is ready, i start to create the chapters. then i chose where to start and how.

done all this, it's time for the storyboard.
it help me to find the right way to show what i have in mind.
then there s the classic business: pen on paper first, ink as second step. tones or colors, post production in PS/whatever for the fonts and it's done.

[igneriss]

For me it's:
1) Start drawing a random character.
2) BAM! Idea for their story just appeared in your head, together with connections with your other characters! It's not just a random character anymore, it's your OC~
3) Decide from which character's point of view the story would be the most interesting.
4) Wait. Write down new ideas that keep appearing like crazy. When you have enough of them, write down basic events and place them in time.
5) Refs time! Draw your characters and main places. ((I use those refs all the time. I have a memory of a goldfish and keep forgetting how my characters look like, haha :'D ))
5) Storyboard time! Just one chapter at time~ It's really small but as detailed as possible, with all dialouges written down under the picture.
6) Margins, sketches and lines of frames and speech bubbles- whole chapter at once. Sometimes my friend helps me here C:
7) Inking, whenever I find some free time~ and more, more inking~ scanning&editing is right after I finish one pages, as I don't like doing more at once. Also, slowly starting the storyboard to chapter 2, as well as sketches&frames, so I can jump right to next chapter after I finish inking this one ( :
8) Coloured arts! Bonus pages, cover arts and first page of the chapter.
ta-daa C:

[Zanreo]

I work in Manga Studio and this is what I do:

1. Get inspiration from something - a game news story, some game history I read, fun facts about games and their development, ect.
2. Think about just how to write this into a comic, write the joke/plot
3. Sketch it down think about how to put it together (I typically also make the script at this point, which is subject to change as the comic-making goes on)
   [steps 4-? aren't always done all at once - I might start coloring one panel before the next one is even inked and then start the background on the third one, ect. Steps 5-9 can be done in any order]
4. When done with sketches, ink
5. Coloring - magic wand the area I want to color and color it in. Get annoyed over those tiny 1-pixel areas magic wand didn't catch and manually paint them in.
6. Backgrounds
7. Speech bubbles: placement, text and tails
8. Details, like eye highlights ect.
9. Add frames
   9.5. Add white around the frames on the layer right underneath to cover up anything going above the frames
10. Add my comic's link to the bottom of the page for credits (in case anyone tries uploading it to 9gag again...)
11. Save as png and upload all the places I post, copypasting the same description

[Starfestival]

I'm a perfectionist. I do everything in one go after I planned it all out. I only do retakes when I scan the pages to my computer to color and ink them digitally.

[ChanYE]

sometimes i start off the story on paper. and draw oout all the characters.
then i go in and make it digital. i dont do all the unessesary and try to jot evry little thing down. aint nobody got time fo dat.

[kazukitakamura126]

1. Whenever I start a story I first think of a scenario of the story.

2. Then I take that idea and start making the world and developing the lore of this world.

3. After I have the basic lore and the set up of the world I start making characters and how does the story affect them. This step requires fine tuning even after the initial story starts. This helps the certain character or event in question fit better into the story.

4. Next is character concepts one of my favorite parts. This is where I can give my characters an actual appearance so I can imagine them in my head when I'm thinking of specific scenes. There are a few things I consider when designing a character; What is their social status, how does their personality affect the way they dress and what colors best describe their personality.

5. The next step is the storyboard the first chapter, I basically write down what will happen then I will draw it in a notebook as a rough draft so I can adjust frame sizes and what happens on each page. This process is repeated until I have finished the story (which I haven't done yet)

6. The last step is to draw it in Photoshop this is by far my favorite part because not only can I show what I made when i am done it can piece together the overall narrative. (This step is also repeated until the story is done)

[Mordec]

First: I have an idea, if its good I cna make up many additions. If its bad I run out of addition quickly.
Second: Give to my friends: have them criticize it to all hell. I mean literally....break my spirit. If it survives then i'll draft.
Third: Draft, plan out plot events and characters.
Four:Make a pre-version to test it out

Five: Come back after a while, Scrap: (It will happen without fail).
Six:Re-vamp and apply new skills....
Seven:Publish..

Eight: HOPE

[AngieVX]

1. Make up a concept.
2. Start drawing.
3. Put it far-far away to randomly find it while cleaning the house.
4. Start anew! Write a script... or a script for a couple of chapters.
5. Start drawing.
6. Upload stuff! Let everybody see it! Enjoy some feedback, argue about some critique!
7. Clean the house, randomly find the first version of your comic. Blush, then laugh! Put it far-far away, make sure no one finds it while cleaning the house. Remember where you've put it. Forget where you put it!
8. As a reward for cleaning the house watch some anime or dorama or whatever you enjoy watching. Realize that some characters are so you. Laugh very loud. Put this anime/dorama or watever to a list "never watch at night" (because you're obviously laughing to loud).
9. Get back to drawing.
10. Realize that your characters don't have dramatic back stories yet. Make the stories up!
11. Enjoy the dramatic back stories! Realize it's too cheesy and obvious to actually put it in the story. Make a plot twist!
12. Draw! As a bonus for your hard work receive stuff with zebras from your friends! Buy a t-shirt with zebras!
13. Realize that a random character is too awesome. Make him or her regular!
14. P.s. Don't forget to draw backgrounds!!! Add them to the pages you haven't uploaded yet!
15. As a reward watch some anime or dorama or whatever you enjoy watching. Practice Taekwondo (check youtube for tutorials) because it's awesome...
16. Read your script. Comment on it like your favorite grumpy character. Rewrite some parts of the script! Show it to your best friends.
17. Dance around the room because your friends liked it and you're happy!
18. Don't underestimate the power of happy dancing!!! You've probably just got a new awesome idea! Now draw!
19. Realize that the critique that you argued about (see #6) was partially fair. Work on your style!
20. Clean the house, randomly find the first version of your comic. Blush, then laugh! Put it far-far away, make sure no one finds it while cleaning the house. Remember where you've put it. Forget where you put it!
21. Draw and ENJOY your story!
    Something like this! XD

[UndefinableCreature]

Its rather tough me..
1) Idk, suddenly everything makes sense and i have a plot in my head.
2) dont write anything down yet, let the idea slowly develop.
* since im not doing this full time, i can afford to take it slow.
3) if the idea had developed by itself, and i can remember it clearly, then its worth working on.
4) draft.
5) draw.

Its like planting a seed. Sometimes, it dies. Sometimes it grows, but when it grows.. (youknowhowitgoes)

[colinwmd]

That's a lot like the progress of the story I'm planning. I've had the basic idea for at least 5 years and have let it grow over that time while improving at drawing. In the last 6 months it has taken on a lot more detail and I'm finally planning the scenes and basic structure of each page. I intend to finally start posting it early next year. A long process!

[joannekwan]

1. Get an idea, type it into appropriate Word doc. Ideas usually include character descriptions, the action and dialogue.
2. Once I've gotten to that scene, I open up Photoshop.
3. Type in the dialogue, format the text, arrange them loosely where I think panels will be.
4. Rough sketch of panels and figures. They look very derpy. I'm just getting a sense of the camera angle/pov/expressions, etc.
5. Refined sketch. Here I will sketch most of the things in full.
6. Create frames for panels.
7. Line art.
8. Color/tone.
9. Tweak text placement and add bubbles.
10. Add copyright, signature, and url.
11. Shrink and save as png.

[pjamasvonpatten]

Well, my current process for my upcoming graphic novel Tower25 due out on underbellycomix (sorry for the shameless plug) goes like this

1. Drink good coffee
2. Stare at the blank sheets of paper for a few minutes
3. Breathe and pick up pen
4. GO GO GO GO

I dont do any pencils or scripts. Its autobio so its my own life and I will either write the text for a 5 to ten pages at once and go back and draw them all and color with copics later after the ink dries. Or I will draw 5 to ten pages and then go back and write the text. No pencils or rough drafts makes for a quick process. i find it really exciting just to put the ink to paper and see what happens.

My work is here on tapastic or my own website Tower25comix.com