Hey y’all,
I’m Lady T. and I make the new adult fantasy comic MagicalMashup! Today I wanted to talk about some helpful books I’ve come across in my journey to better myself as an artist and storyteller. If you know of some good books that might help out a fellow creative, please share them and highlight why you found it so helpful!
Unnatural Talent by Jason Brubaker. I had been curios about his book for a while since I remember really getting into Jason’s blog back when I sat down to start making my comic. He had a ton of helpful and free info on that blog from learning how to convert my handwriting into a font using Calligraphr to using mixed media to create a unique visual effect for my comics ie. using hand-painted swatches as texture overlays for neat effects. I believe he has removed the helpful blog from his site which is a bummer, but I understand the need to make a dollar holler.
What I like about the book Unnatural Talent is that it’s very comprehensive for comic makers. It covers everything from technicalities like resources for improving drawing skills, lettering, and even marketing your work depending on what phase you are in your comic-making journey and info on what to do when it comes to printing!
Perspective! For Comic Book Artists by David Chelsea. I find that figuring out perspective is more engaging for me when it’s presented in comic form. Well learning in general for me, just makes it more engaging for me haha. This book is a pretty fantastic resource and examples of multiple point perspectives are humorous and explained to the point with examples. He has a few books on the subject like Perspective in Action and another book called Extreme Perspective, but I’m not ready for that last one yet, but maybe you are :D!
Jack Hamm’s how to draw books. I really like the confident forms of his linework and how his contours create distinguished forms in a very flowing way. I really like How to Draw Animals and am currently reading his landscapes book. His books are also printed large but they aren't heavy textbooks. In the animal's book, he provides multiple drawings at a variety of angles of the animals and I'd love to see more on his takes of even more animals, but the ones he covers are the ones most folks would look to draw. For the landscapes, I just got past the part about composition and setting up an engaging landscape.
Draw Stronger by Kriota Willberg. This book can be applied to anyone who spends a long time sitting at a desk, to be honest. The exercises and advice given in this book are small things that make a big difference over time and something I think more folks should think about.
What are some helpful books that you have found or would like to read on your creative journey? Have you read any of the books I've listed? If so, what ate your thoughts?
