Tips for comic beginner

[navytardis]

Hi. I'm really bad at comics but i want to get better at it but i just can't? Note that i had 2 episodes of a comic on here but..i deleted it. Didn't think it was very good . What is your process on making a comic? What steps do you take to complete it?

[dan]

The only way to get better is to practice

Maybe plan out a small comic project, 30 pages or something. Make it, maybe post it, maybe don't. But from the practice of making and completing it you will learn a ton.

Your first project(s) don't have to be ones you work on for forever. Learn your lessons, seek out and apply crit, and then start anoter project. Read other comics, watch livestreams of them drawing, make friends and learn tips, etc.

[navytardis]

Noted! Thank you Story telling skills is a bit rusty for me too as well, but im trying though. In fact i have some stories that im trying to complete. Two of them is based of of dreams i had lol

[dan]

Again, practice A dream is potenally a nice short story to practice on.

Or making guest strips for comics you like. Take their characters and make a little scene, plot it out, draw it, etc.

[navytardis]

At first, i wanted to do full fledged comics with full on stories...but now i think it would be better to just do small comics ya know? Simple but satisfying. I think that just might work

[dan]

I know a lot of creators struggle and get burned out when they start their massive project before they're ready. As you get better 50 pages in, you'll want to go back and rewrite the first chapters, etc.

Doing some small comics first can give you a lot of good practice, and then if you have a long comic idea, you're at a better starting point.

[navytardis]

Thank you for the advice! You really helped me ;u;

[bynuwbis]

Hey there!!

To get better you just need to be consistent and keep doing comics over and over!

But don't forget to have fun with it because otherwise it's not worth it!

Tips of process:

1) Right down ideas. When you have new ideas throw out the day have some type of notebook or word file that you write your ideas so you don't forget them.

2) Elaborate the idea into a story. If you're making 1 episode stories you can right a description for what is going to be shown in which strip box.

For example:

Box1) He sees the duck. He Says "What 'sup duck" (General shot - The man and the duck in the scene. The duck in a lake)

Box2) The duck looks mad at him! (close up of the duck)

... and so on.

If you're making a story with chapters you will probably need to have an argument of the story. And divide the story in chapters.

3)Sketch your comic. I like to use post-its to make sketches of the strips before drawing them digitally so I can have a simple visual idea of the comic.

4) Drawing your comic (simple sketch but more close to the proportions/final look you want etc) In this step I often start to write the texts so I can have an idea of the space of the fill.

5) Draw Clean Outlines

6) Coloring fun

7) Be proud of your work

8) SHARE WITH EVERYONE!

Those are the most often steps I make!

Don't forget all creators have some self doubting moments! But the important thing is even in those moments to keep doing what you like and keep creating! Because that's the way to get better!

Good luck !

---

NuwComics
https://tapastic.com/series/NuwComics

[zerodef]

I was gonna make a new thread on this exactly but figured it would help to just keep it all here so the question I have as a beginner is what size to make the pages so that they fit optimally on the page when I upload?

I use clip studio paint if it helps nail an exact size.

[navytardis]

I think when you go to upload a comic episode it tells you the size it has to be

[zerodef]

Yeah there is a max size but whats an optimal size for a single page is what Im wondering most. That way I can make it bigger or smaller depending on what I'm doing.

edit: or there only one size? O.o

edit2: I figured it out xD

[navytardis]

I actually dont know what that is for...i don't have much experience on this site. I'm rarely on (but that might change, maybe in the summer0

[kyupol]

Find motivation to do it. That is the biggest deal of all because without it, you won't even have the desire to improve your skills and practice.

This is something you need to do some soul searching on...

[dan]

Generally, I say make it larger than upload size. You can always scale it down when you go to upload, but you can't add resolution (say later, if you want to print it or something) if you start small.

[UzukiCheverie]

My main advice is to just keep moving forward. In the sense of comics, we tend to look at our own work all the time and go "Oh man that's terrible, I need to redraw that!" In some cases, if it's in the moment, yeah, take the time to redraw something if it looks wrong to you or you just don't consider it your "best work" (there are lots of times I've completely erased panels during the lineart phase and ended up re-sketching them because I just didn't like them lol) But don't let yourself get caught in that cycle of drawing and redrawing your stuff. I've seen people never get past Chapter 1 of their story comic because they just keep going back to redraw it because it's never good enough. Thing is, it never will be good enough - we're always improving as artists, so you're always going to look back and go "man I could have done that better!" Yeah, maybe you could, but that doesn't necessarily mean you should. Even if you feel like you're not at the level you're at, keep moving forward. You'll get better with time and practice (which you'll get right off the bat by regularly drawing your comic and progressing with it). Besides, there's a nice satisfaction that comes with seeing your art change and evolve and grow better over time through the comic pages themselves - it's like a public time capsule

[spadesart]

If it's story based, KEEP AN OUTLINE AND A SCRIPT!!!! DON'T GO IN BLIND!!!! I've had so many projects fall flat because I went into my pages head on with no stable timeline of what happened (working off the top of my head). I know it sounds like it's going to keep you from experimenting and changing stuff because a lot of people "dont like to be restricted" but honestly, you are free to edit and change it any time you want. I've made about 20 edits just to chapter 2 alone from the first script draft.

!!oh also!! if you have a really good comic idea and you just keep sitting on it until it becomes "perfect" it will never be started. you just gotta jump right into it and get working on it instead of just endlessly drawing art for it.

[Zareworks]

Scrip - sketch - ink - color- illumination (lights and shadows, not the religious concept). This are the steps I use, but I also recommend practicing perspective, facial and corporal expression and a little of composition.

[navytardis]

Thank you everyone for the tips! I REALLY appreciate! I think i know what im gonna do now

[punkarsenic]

if you plan out your story beforehand, its a lot easier. mainly because you dont spend loads of time stressing about where the fuck youre going. this can be as simple as bulletpointing your plot points (include how characters get from a to b to c or else youll stress again) or even writing out your whole story - its for your eyes only, so all you have to focus on is getting down your story, the emotions, maybe writing what you need to remember setting and detail. i find this really helps me, but you have to be careful to write while also thinking it through as a comic. but yeah, thats not necessary, what is necessary is planning your story.

then, thumbnail before making your pages - sketch them out, maybe multiple times, thinking about your lettering and arrangement. until youre happy with it - dont be afraid to take as long as you want figuring it out. if you have some friends that do comics, maybe show them your thumbnails and ask for advice.

also, before you start posting your comic, have a month's worth of pages ready, so you dont have to rush to get each page ready. it makes it way less stressful.

if you want to improve, theres lots of blogs and books about making comics, and similarly for art in general - also, look closely at comics you really like, and try to figure out what theyre doing, learn from their panelling and angles and lettering and try to emulate it. dont worry if youre not good enough for yourself yet, making a comic is the best way to get better at making comics.

[Djmuse1231]

Okay, here are a few things I've learned (the hard way) when it comes to making comics. I'll keep it as short and to the point as possible.

Writing: LESS IS MORE! You need to keep in mind the panel space you have to work with when writing dialogue. In some cases, try to slash the amount of spoken/written dialogue in a panel to the bare essentials (without sacrificing your character's unique voice, of course). If you're doing your typesetting digitally, this is easier to fix.

Artwork: CLARITY IS KEY! No matter how good your art is technically, it still needs to read properly. We need to understand what is happening in every panel. This clarity of information trumps technicaly illustration skill.

Layout: FLOW MATTERS! In laying and composing panels, you need to keep in mind the flow of the page. Where do you want the reader's eye to travel? In what direction? What is important for them to see? This is most effective by figure (character) placement or the direction of the pose drawn, but in a pinch you can use dialogue balloons to direct the flow (the eye will pretty consistently follow the balloons)

Typesetting; KEEP YOUR DIALOGUE BALLOONS INSIDE THE PANELS! Okay, this is more of a personal pet-peeve of mine, but nothing looks less professional to me than having most/all your dialogue balloons break the borders of your panels. It can sometimes work, such as when the dialogue is supposed to bleed/lead into the next panel for some transition effect, but if it isn't done with purpose it just looks sloppy.

That's all I really got off the top of my head. I hope this helped in some way.