Comics are loved by both children and adults, which is why they are so popular all over the world. How to draw comics with a pencil in stages for a novice author, the article will tell.
Where to begin
Of course, with an idea. Before you draw a comic, you should consider at least the main points of the plot and the main character. Who will he be? What will happen to him? And no less important, how will the story end and what meaning does it convey? The creators of comics sometimes say: it happens that after the start of drawing a comic, the plot corrects itself, the characters begin to "act on their own", thereby setting the background for what is happening. Indeed, if the author so gets used to the role of his character, begins to see him as a real person, the ending of the story may change. But this is, rather, the lot of professional craftsmen. For novice authors, it is better to prepare an idea in advance and think through all its components.
In order not to miss anything, before drawing a comic, you need to answer questions for yourself and make a plan:
- Who is the main character?
- What is his character and image?
- Who are the supporting characters (antagonist, secondary characters)?
- Where are events unfolding?
- Is it a short fast-paced story, or is the plot long and detailed?
- What a story?
- What are the main events that lead the hero to the finale?
- How does the story end?
It happens that additional ideas arise already in the process of work. In order not to lose them, you should start a draft and make sketches in it, write down successful remarks or situations in order to use them later.
Characters
Is the plot ready? Good. This is about a third of the case. What follows is no less important - thinking through the actors. The main character is a key figure, the image of which should be memorable. To do this, it is important to decide what qualities he will stand out with: character, original appearance, unique abilities or manner of communicating. Lots of options. The main thing is that the reader understands him, the motives of his actions and, if possible, empathizes with him.
Other characters are equally important. They should set the background for what is happening. It’s better to have fewer of them, but each of them plays a role - helping the main character or making the reader laugh - it’s not so important. The bottom line is that everyone should not be a passing character, but be remembered.
An antagonist, or a hero who opposes the main thing, is in almost every story. He doesn't necessarily fight the enemy. Perhaps his most important role is to develop the course of events, create situations in which the plot and the main character develop.
How to draw a comic with a pencil for beginners: step by step about the structure
Everyone who held a comic book in their hands remembers what it consists of:
- a cover that depicts the meaning of the content (characters, title, emblem, author, etc.);
- frontispiece - the first page before the beginning of the comic, where additional information is located;
- title page (sometimes it can coincide with the previous one) - a summary, names of those who worked on the comic, dates, etc.;
- the main part is the comic itself (the number of pages is individual);
- pin-up page - other drawings that are not related to the main content of the comic, such as cover options.
How to draw a comic: composition
When the preparatory stages are over, you can start drawing. First, you should designate the field for the composition. It is important to remember that dialogues play an important role in comics, so the main place on the canvas should be given to them. Dialogues should be expressive enough to be readable. The second point is a key figure. It should be in the foreground in the drawing. All other details are secondary, so you need to draw them last. Not vice versa.
So, first of all, you need to draw a field for the drawing with a pencil. For an A4 canvas, you need to set margins of 0.5 cm on the sides and 1 cm on the bottom and top. For A3 format - 1 * 1.5 cm, respectively.
Next, you should draw a field for the number of stories that will be placed on the page. For example, 4 squares. A separate frame will be drawn in each of these squares. It is important to remember their sequence - from left to right and from top to bottom.
The frame can enhance the effect of what is happening. Often, in order to show real events, it has clear lines and sharp corners. Rounded frames or clouds are used to convey memories or thoughts. For a story about the past, the frame is darkened or doubled.
Drawing figures and faces
For those who wondered how to draw comics with a pencil for beginners, it is important to know a few points. The main thing that should not be forgotten is that all the details in the image of the characters should be as identical as possible. When drawing is done by hand, it is often impossible to convey one character in several pictures similar to himself. To do this, the drawing should be as simple as possible, not overloaded with details. It is better to draw faces schematically or in the form of cartoons - with exaggerated features. Thus, it will be easier to repeat the image later on.
To draw a comic book of a person, you need to take into account the most important point: to convey each character's emotion, there is a correct image of his facial expression. To do this, it is worth knowing which schematic representations of parts of the face correspond to certain emotions. This is the foundation of knowledge before drawing a comic with a pencil for beginners. Step by step it is worth practicing on the same face of the character in the image of each detail. After all, raised eyebrows, for example, speak not only of surprise, but also of fear. Both the shape of the eyes and the shape of the mouth are important here.
The figure of the hero is best depicted in a dynamic pose, performing some action, for example. The pose should also match the character's emotions or thoughts. For example, in a thoughtful state, the hero holds his chin with his hand, and from distrust of the interlocutor, he folds his arms on his chest.
Before drawing comics with a pencil for beginners, you need to know that the angle from which the potential reader will see the characters is of great importance. This element greatly affects the perception of the current situation and the attitude towards the characters. For example, a superhero viewed from the bottom up looks more majestic than when viewed directly. And more sympathy is caused by a character who can be looked at from above.
Dialogues and other text
In this case (how to draw comics with a pencil - we discuss in detail) it is important to know the features of the transfer of text information on the canvas.
More familiar and understandable to the reader are the following rules in drawing dialogues: text or sounds highlighted in pointed figures are perceived as loud. Scream, for example. In wavy clouds, it is better to convey a quiet conversation or memories.
Dialogues are shown above the heads of the characters, in sequence from left to right - this way it will be possible to correctly draw a comic in stages. The text should be as short as possible. The font for the conversation of individual characters can also be different. But you shouldn't overdo it. Two is enough.
To enhance the effect of sounds or emotions, all kinds of lightning, explosions, exclamation or question marks are drawn.
If the author needs to convey some information that cannot be learned from the dialogues, space can be provided on the pages of the comic for such text. Most often, such replicas are placed in a separate strict frame.
When all the sketches are ready, you should take care of the shading of the drawings. If the level of pencil proficiency allows, you can leave the comic as graphic. But even in this case, the use of shadows, hue transitions to give the picture volume and realism is of great importance. Before drawing, you should stock up on several pencils of different softness. For some it is more convenient to write dialogues and stroke the outline, for others it is more convenient to hatch the background.
The comic may be in color. Any convenient materials are suitable for shading: ink, watercolor, acrylic, felt-tip pens. The outline can also be drawn with a pen. An important point - the dialog box is best left unpainted.
With the help of photo editing programs in a comic book, you can correct errors, add a background or another font.
In general, for a comic to be successful, you need to remember the following:
- it is better to draw ideas from life, write about what is familiar;
- carefully study not only comics, but also the setting of the frame in films;
- be prepared for the fact that the first pancake can come out lumpy (practice is important in this matter and only it);
- carefully check spelling if you don’t want to fall face down in the dirt;
- before drawing a comic, you can not only draw up a plan and make a sketch of it, but also prescribe a complete scenario according to which the actions unfold;
- if in doubt about an idea, you can consult with a loved one or follow King's book writing advice to imagine your Ideal Reader and their reaction to your work.
Create a comic on a computer
If there is no desire or skills to create a story by hand, you can learn how to draw a comic on a computer. To do this, there are many resources and programs on the Web specifically for this matter. For example, Bitstrips, Comic Master, Chogger, Write Comics and others. They allow you to create your own character or story with existing ones, have a large arsenal of symbols, templates and editing options.
