Is it okay to have an inconsistent art style at the beginning of the comic?

[huccolotus]

Hi. I'm technically just "starting out" -- i.e., been planning for a long time without actually drawing, and on my second page I noticed that my art style is very inconsistent, and it's bothering me a lot.

For reference, these two panels are only one panel apart:

I've heard a lot of people say that being inconsistent in your art style is a sign of a bad creator, and I'm worried that people will feel "misled" by the art style they had been expecting. Is it really as bad of a problem as I've been lead to believe, or is this type of issue just a nitpick?

[BoomerZ]

if that is the existent of your inconsistency you're be fine.

[Kelheor]

I've heard a lot of people say that being inconsistent in your art style is a sign of a bad creator

Okay, repeat after me - every artist is inconsistent unless you literally copypast your own panels, your characters will inevitably look a bit different.
Also these 2 panels looks consistent as hell. Really, don't worry about it!
The only way people may be "misled" if your cover looks completely different (which is a usual thing too, btw, since we usually go all out when drawing a cover), or if they compare your first pages and like, your 50th page. But that's for them to decide whether they like your art journey or nor, still not something you should worry about.

[TroyVSTheWorld]

Of course it is when you first start. Lots of even professional comics don't even have the footing on the first episode. Inconsistent art styles are fine since it means you're constantly experimenting and constantly evolving, as opposed to redrawing the exact same characters and poses every day for a lifetime in a syndicated comic.

Honestly, I'm more concerned if a consistent art style is okay to have in a comic.

EDIT - All webcomics start off rough and in that first year or so you'll find the artist has this era of accelerated growth. Lots of people enjoy seeing that improvement since it becomes so much more apparent in amatuer webcomicking. It's part of the experience as both the artist and as a viewer.

[Lensing]

The reader maybe doesn´t see that it´s not consistent.
I read not consistent comics and comics with wonky anatomy all my life and never realised it before
I started to become a drawing and anatomy nerd.
One of my favourite artist is Jordi Bernet, he is not consistent in the drawing style, he switches
styles but has a consistent inking style. The style switches are extreme in his comics and he also
changes how he draws the same character. He is almost 80 and has been an artist all his life

[huccolotus]

Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. ^^;; I feel like being consistent is too much of a pressure on artists, especially ones who are still learning and growing as creators. Honestly, I'm kind of intimidated by people (especially some featured Webtoon creators) making "stamps" for their characters' faces from different angles to maintain consistency because it's kinda like, "Oh shit, do I have to do that too?"

I don't think everyone will like my future art journey, but I think that's just how it is. I mean, as long as it's growth in a direction I'm personally happy with, that's alright, right?

[huccolotus]

Ah, yeah, I kinda get what you mean. Even iconic characters like Snoopy and Garfield have looked different over the years as their creators settled into their artistic vision. I think as artists, we just naturally want to experiment, don't we? The point of self-publishing/webcomics is that we get to be free of the rigidity of "professional" comics, and I think maybe we're expecting too much of ourselves?

And yeah, definitely get what you mean on enjoying seeing artistic growth. Ishida Sui's art style evolution is why I picked up Tokyo Ghoul in the first place.

[bronte448]

I still cringe at my first page. You're fine.

[huccolotus]

Oh yeah, I guess that's true. I think it's easy to get caught up in the aesthetics of it all when it's the storytelling that counts.
One of my favourite manga is Not Simple by Natsume Ono, and it's notoriously known for its weird and wonky art style. It's one of the best-written short manga I've ever read (in my opinion), and the art style was only secondary to it all.

Also, I've never heard of Jordi Bernet before, so I just did a quick internet search to see their art, and I can definitely see what you mean by extreme style switches. Still, their inking and expressions are superb. I can see why you like them so much.

[huccolotus]

The only inevitability of an artist's life is cringing at your first page. We're all in this together.

[darthmongoose]

Honestly, I'm kind of intimidated by people (especially some featured Webtoon creators) making "stamps" for their characters' faces from different angles to maintain consistency because it's kinda like, "Oh shit, do I have to do that too?"

Nah that's definitely a personal choice thing. On the one hand, it can speed up production and help keep things "on model" when working with a team... but on the other it limits how expressive faces can be. I'd never do it myself; I just enjoy really getting in there with the subtleties of expressions or going off-model for comedic effect too much.

There's always gonna be inconsistency, especially in early pages, but so long as characters remain recognisable, readers seriously don't tend to even notice.

In the first 9 pages of my comic, Urien goes from looking like 19 year old Leonardo DiCaprio...

To looking like Miles Edgeworth.

The readers didn't care though, fortunately! Nobody has ever commented on it!

The way I see it, it's like sitcoms. Have you ever watched a few seasons of a sitcom and then gone back and watched the first episode and everyone's a bit "off" because the actors haven't settled into their characters yet and the writers aren't used to writing them? Like how Rosa doesn't really have her distinctive gruff voice yet in the first episode of Brooklyn 99. Drawing comics is a bit like a performance. No matter how many prep sketches I draw, I never really "know" a character until I've "performed" them in a few pages; that's when they start to really develop their bodylanguage and facial expressions. It's the same with just... the overall style of the comic. The first few pages of Errant it looks almost like an indie slice of life, and it settles into the art style properly when the action elements come in and the style shifts bolder and more like a shounen manga and it pretty much stays there, because that's where I found my "voice" for this comic.
If it was a print comic and I was really bothered about consistency, I'd go back and tweak those early pages later... but I think there's a certain charm in that raw quality webcomics have where you see the development happening.

[Stargazer31]

There's nothing wrong with it. Anyway, if it makes you feel better, I always cringe at my first page too

[TroyVSTheWorld]

If you don't cringe at your first page, you are probably making very slow improvements.

[dsptss78]

When you first start out it's normal to have some inconsistencies especially when your art style evolves over time. The best way to avoid inconsistencies is to create a character chart with different perspectives and facial expressions. It will be a good reference model to fall back on as your story progresses and your character is in a different situation. Guidelines also help with being consistent and provide a solid base to create your character. It will help you remember the anatomical structure of your character. Even if your character is inconsistent you should have features that make your character stand out from all the other characters. Maybe it's clothing, eyes, or even hair as long as it is different and unique it will help make the character recognizable.

Based on what i've seen so far your art style is pretty consistent and I can still tell that's the same character even with the change of facial expression.

[irresponsiblepics]

Sure its okay!
Some of the most inconsistent art style at the beginning comics were huge successes.
Peanuts
Moomins
Garfield
Calvin and Hobbs
to name but a few
I like to call it evolution rather than inconsistent

[gabriellabalagna]

First off, those panels actually look super consistent to me.

Second, I don't think it's as big of a deal as it feels like. I think creators spend so much time creating their art that they can notice all the differences between drawings of the same character. However, most readers scroll through panels so fast they probably don't notice or even care.

Personally, I definitely need a ton of work on character consistency. However, no one ever called me out on it. As long as characters have recognizable traits like same clothes and color palette, readers probably aren't that bothered by it.

Finally, I notice many comic creators change their styles over time, even big name creators. Nothing wrong with that. However, if you want to avoid that problem, I recommend making model sheets. I made a bunch of model sheets for my comic so I can avoid this.

[AlydaB]

I think this kind of inconsistency is perfect. Though the second panel is more skillfully drawn and looks nicer in a lot of subtle little ways, the character remains instantly recognizable and the style overall has not changed. In essence, it's the same- just better.

As a reader, this isn't so drastic and sudden that it would throw me off. In fact, I love to see the art improve over time in comics I'm subscribed to. Makes me feel like I'm accompanying the author as a witness to their art journey, cheering them along the way :]

Edit:
Thought I'd share some examples of artstyle changes I really liked on Webtoon ^^

Eunjoo from the comic Dice, 1st episode versus a few hundred episodes in:

.
Dani from the comic Hooky, 1st episode versus later style:

The changes in both were so gradual that I hardly noticed, and by the end I'd actually forgotten what they originally looked like.. lol

I think what makes an artstyle change fine is that it stays consistent with the spirit/tone of the characters and story. It's still (mostly) what you signed up for in the first episode, only improved.

[WOSTR]

It certainly is, I would go as far as to say it's normal/common.

[XiuLyn_12]

I find no issue looking at your comparison
If I ever feel like I'm being inconsistent, I like to think that I'm just improving. Because the more you draw the same character repeatedly, you ought to draw them better eventually, right?
Even if it's just 1 panel apart, you're still improving! So don't worry.

[system]

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