Small Press Comics FAQ What should I draw with?

2: What should I draw with/on/etc?
2.1: How big should my art be?
2.2: How big should my lettering be?
2.3: What's the story with computer comics lettering?
2.31: But gee, these comic lettering fonts cost hundreds of dollars! Isn't there anything a small presser can afford?! March 20, 1998
2.4: What's the best tool to ink with?
2.5: Do I hafta use bristol board to draw on?
2.6: Will blue pencil or marker show up on a really good copier?
2.7: Can you recommend any books on drawing comics? March 11, 1998
2.8: I want my comic colored. What should I do?


? 2: What should I draw with/on/etc?

hand drawing Hey: that's why I created Tool Talk! Check it out, take your time... it could answer a few of your questions. But c'mon back when you're done and we'll tackle some other ones here.

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? 2.1: How big should my art be?

sizing Depends on a lot of things. All that really matters is that a) your original art should be bigger than printed size, because the reduction makes your printed work look sharper, cleaner, and more like you know what you're doing; b) your original art must be proportional to the printed size [i.e., if your original is twice as wide as the printed page, then it also has to be twice as high, not 1.5 times as high, etc.]; and c) it shouldn't be too big, or you'll have to reduce it so much that your linework will shrink into spiderwebs or possibly vanish.
For your own small press work, you can often let factors of convenience help you make the decision:

  • Almost all small pressers resort to photocopying at some stage of production. Most photocopiers can't reduce smaller than 64% in one pass-through, so don't plan to reduce your art smaller than that.
  • If you use bristol that comes in, say, 22 by 28 sheets, then 11 by 14 will be a useful size for you to cut to with no wastage. So if you can fit your art (including outer margins) into an 11 by 14 space, excellent.
  • You can also approach the problem from the opposite end: try reducing some of your original and see what percentage looks best. Let's say it works out to 60% (.60 original size, in other words). Find someone else's work that's printed the size you want yours to be, and measure that printed size. Divide each measurement by .60 and that'll tell you the dimensions to use for your original art.

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? 2.2: How big should my lettering be?

Same idea applies: Measure someone else's and divide it by your reduction. If you didn't already check out Tool Talk, I'll mention here that you cannot live without an Ames lettering guide, available at any art/stationery store. I use the Ames set to 4 for my lettering, but some people prefer larger or smaller. Trial and error with the Ames guide [checking your try-outs by making reduced photocopies of them, of course] is the best way to figure out what you want.

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? 2.3: What's the story with computer comics lettering?

Well, uh... I realize that the pros are using it more and more, and admittedly computer fonts have come a long way since Shatter [Can any of you remember back that far?]. They do look good, and if you have the computer and budget to use them, they're certainly allowed. Me, I find computer comic fonts a bit impersonal for the kind of very-personal, idiosyncratic work that small press comics tend to be... but despite this, I recently broke down and bought a computer comics-lettering font [Don't ask, it's a long story...].
On the Web I've found Studio Daedalus's WhizBang font [looks good, very affordable, this is the one I bought], and Active Images, which offers a more extensive and versatile [and pricier] collection of computerized comic lettering fonts as well as a cool computer-lettering FAQ.

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? 2.31: But gee, these comic lettering fonts cost hundreds of dollars! Isn't there anything a small presser can afford?!

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? 2.4: What's the best tool to ink with?

pen Purely a matter of taste. I personally wouldn't give up my steel-nib dip pens for anything. Many many inkers swear by the brush [most often the Winsor & Newton Series 7 Number 2, for some reason], but brushes are probably the hardest inking tools to master. (But if you do, you can run rings 'round the other guys...) Some pros like Terry Austin use a selection of technical pens and get away with it. Others, as diverse as the immortal brush Alex Toth and Randy Glasbergen, use felt tip pens and markers. Someone out there is doing great work with an inking tool someone else told you never to use! There are no rules in small press! So the best advice is: if you really like it and the final printed work turns out okay, then use it. Brushes and dip pens are far and away the most common, and probably for good reason, but following the herd is not a requirement for membership. Feel free to experiment: no one else has to see it!

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? 2.5: Do I hafta use bristol board to draw on?

Nope. Just like inking, it's a matter of taste: if it works and you like it, go ahead. Bristol is durable, cheap, and a good surface for brush or pen, so its overwhelming popularity makes sense. But there are artists who do their final art on tracing paper, typing paper [especially popular with financially-strapped small press artists], illustration boards, etc.

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? 2.6: Will blue pencil or marker show up on a really good copier?

blue pencil Non-repro blue pencils and markers were originally designed to take advantage of offset printing and crummy photocopiers, but a "good" one would still pick them up. Now it seems the opposite is true: I find that the better the machine I use, the more likely the blue pencil won't show up. There are always exceptions, of course, but bear in mind:

  • You can usually adjust the copier a bit lighter and the blue lines will disappear without weakening your blacks;
  • If your large black areas do go weak in the middle, you can always touch them up with ink, marker, etc.;
  • Any blue pencil will show up if you use it too heavily. Remember that blue pencils work best when used delicately.

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? 2.7: Can you recommend any books on drawing comics?

books Funny you should ask....

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? 2.8: I want my comic colored. What should I do?

paint Ask someone who's done it before! Coloring is one section I have no experience with whatsoever. Sorry, dudes. (However, I was recently hipped to a computer-coloring studio with an online portfolio -- here -- if you wanna fork out for professional coloring...)

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John MacLeod
sardine@sentex.net