My blog | Everything I know to create a comic book

How to Write a Comic Book or Manga for Beginners

AnnyJanuary 24, 2019Art, comic books, drawing, manga, Web Comics8 Comments

HOW TO WRITE A COMIC BOOK OR MANGA FOR

CREATING THE CHARACTERS AND DEVELOPING THE STORY - THE HERO'S JOURNEY

The core of every novel, manga, comic book, movie, and play is the story and its characters. In this post, I talk about some of the basics for writing a story, and the twelve stages of the Hero's Journey.

How characters in stories developed? How do stories evolve?

Creating and developing stories and characters is a unique process for every artist.

Art, in general, does not have strict rules that everyone must follow or the project will fail. It's not like cooking. Your dish won't be good if you don't follow step by step a recipe.

Writing a comic book, novel or movie for the public, however, requires some rules and knowledge. It's important to know the stages and structure to build a good story and interesting characters.

Huckleberry Finn laying in the grass smoking a pipe pencil sketch

Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, and Sally McKay in Legends of the West manga page of Legends of the West graphic novel, black and white illustrations

The easiest way to explain these basics is to talk about how I did create my characters and the steps that I am following to write my graphic novel.

In Legends of the West, I created many characters. Two of them, however, are not coming from my imagination but from two famous novels, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by my favorite American author, Mark Twain. Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer are two of the main characters in my story.

It's easy to think that I stole these two characters from the famous novels and adapted them into my story, like many other authors previously did for movies, cartoons, comics, and plays.

It comes natural to believe that taking characters from someone else work and fit them into a new story it's easier than create your own. Actually, this process it's harder than anyone may think.

Mark Twain is my favorite author. I like all his novels and I fell in love with Tom and Huck adventures. I have a lot of respect for these two masterpieces and its author. When I decided to use Tom and Huck in my graphic novel, I promised to try to do my best to keep them as close as possible from the original books.

In order to achieve this goal, I have to constantly ask myself how Huck and Tom respond in situations happening in the manga. Researching and studying the original characters and their environment helped me to achieve this challenge. At least, I hope that, (I can't ask Mark Twain to review my story, unfortunately).

RESEARCH

Writing a story requires a lot of work and involve a lot of research. Wherever a story is set in a particular time of History, in a futuristic period, in an imaginary world, or in our present time, it's vital for the author to know what he's going to write about it. The storyteller must research the landscape, the history, the costumes, and the way of life of a particular period or place. In my case, I learned about the Gold Rush era. I read analysis about Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn characters. I researched costumes, weapons, and the way of life of that historical period.

For me, all of these work is not a painful job but all the opposite. That's why I always recommend to write or draw something that you are passionate about it.

My researching and digging about Mark Twain and the American history, helped me to understand the two characters and insert them into my story without going too far off from their own nature. Taking the time and the effort to know about your story theme is a good way to get inspired and generate new ideas for a story.

DO NOT TRY TO EMULATE AN ORIGINAL WORK

Another aspect of writing a story with non-original characters is do not try to emulate the original work. Hollywood, plays, books, and even cartoons tried to rewrite a masterpiece adapting the two famous characters into something for a younger audience. It didn't happen only for Mark Twain work, but for other novels too.

The result is not always great. Sometimes the story and characters change so much that doesn't relate anymore to the original work.

Before I knew about Mark Twain and his two novels, I watched an anime. Its title is, My Friend Huck. I was still leaving in Italy at that time. I enjoyed the anime, so much that I decided to read the two novels. You can't imagine my surprise. The cartoon and the books were completely different. The only common thing was the characters names. Just to give you an example, in the anime, Jim was the adoptive son of the Widow Douglas and he was the same age as Tom and Huck. Jim and Huck runoff on a raft but the reason was to visit Jim's mother who was recovered in a Cairo hospital.
Yep. That's was a great surprise.

My friend Huckleberry Finn Japanese cartoon, anime cover

I didn't want to make drastic changes like that. I think that the beauty of Tom and Huck is their story. The two novels are masterpieces of the American Literature.

I wanted to use Tom and Huck in my comic book. But how could I use them without destroying their beauty? Definitely, I didn't want to rewrite the two novels. It's already been done too many times.
I thought that writing about Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn when they are still 13, 14 years old like in the original novels would be quite difficult. After all, Mark Twain already told us Tom and Huck adventures in their preteen years.

It came to me the idea that now it is time to tell their tale as young men.

To begin my graphic novel, I started from the ending of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn book and narrating their new adventure as teenagers in the wild American Frontier.

In Legends of the West, Huck and Tom are sixteen years old. Three years passed before the two buddies meet again.

How can I write about the two young men without changing their nature?

A way to accomplish that is to think about their environment. I asked myself a question: did Huck and Tom's environment change in these past three years?

THINK ABOUT THE CHARACTER ENVIRONMENT

The environment in a story can impact a character. Just like in the real world, it can affect a person causing to change mentally and physically.

At the end of the Adventure of Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer is dreaming a new adventure in the Indian territory meanwhile Tom's relatives decide to adopt Huck. The ending is left open letting the reader imagine what the two kids are going to do next.

At this point, in my thoughts, Tom went back to St. Petersburg together with his Aunt Polly while Huck is adopted by the Phelps and living with them in Pikesville, Arkansas.

When the two friends meet again, Tom is still the same old Tom. The same kid who dreams adventures and wants to be a hero. Tom hasn't changed because his environment did not change. He went back to the same familiar town, friends, and family. Nothing really impacted his personality.

The situation is different for Huck. He didn't go back to St. Petersburg like Tom. He's in a new and unfamiliar environment. New home, new town, new people, and new friends. Moving from a native place to a new one is difficult for everybody, especially for a child.

Huck had to cope with the fact of being away from a familiar place and people that more or less knew about him and his story. In the new town, he has to make new friends and meets new people. No one knows about his past and his adventures with Tom. Now, he's living with the reputation of helping a runoff slave. It's true that Jim was a free man, but Huck didn't know it till Tom revealed it at the end. It is not a breeze for him getting around the new town and making new friends with such reputation in a slave state.

This new situation impacted Huck and changed him. Now, he's more mature with his feet on the ground. Even if he lets himself getting drag in nonsenses by Tom, he has a better view of the world that surrounds him.

In the graphic novel, Aunt Sally mentions that she never saw him smile. He seems annoyed by his girlfriend too. Huck is melancholy indeed, nothing really makes him feel happy. That's why he decides to join his best friend's dangerous adventure not just because Tom asked him, like in the past, but because Huck wants to get away from that place and finally find himself somewhere else.

During their adventure, they will meet new people, and affront new challenges never faced before. Thus, make them change again and grow as the story progress.

This is an example how the environment is a fundamental part in the creation of a character and developing a story. It's one of the most important basics that a storyteller should always keep in mind. Ask yourself how the world around your hero in the story impacted him. This thoughts can really help to analyze and grow a comic book.

KEEP THE CHARACTERS RELATABLE TO THE AUDIENCE

Another important basic to keep in mind is that characters in a story must be relatable to the audience. People are not perfect. All of us has positives and negatives. We have obstacles in our life to affront, decisions to make, failures, rejections, deal with the unexpected. Sometimes we are winners, sometimes we are losers. This is the same for our characters. A storyteller must be able to export emotions to viewers or readers. No matter if you write a novel, a movie or a comic. An audience must feel involved in the story and relate to the characters.

Creating a character that is perfect in everything, is a big mistake. A hero that is always right, with no fears, does the right thing all the time, gets the woman or man that likes, and everybody loves him or her, is not a great character and is not realistic. The story ends to be predictable, boring, and hard to develop. There is not much to write about someone that wins all the time and is perfect. It would be a story with no emotions and no audience.

JOURNEY,...LIFE IS A JOURNEY. THE 12 STAGES OF THE HERO'S JOURNEY

Life is a journey. Just like in real life, characters in comics, novels, and movies go through a journey both physical and mental. Since the day we are born, we embark into a journey without knowing the destination. And just like us, our characters are going to face challenges and cross the unknown that will change them forever. Some of you may know about the Hero's Journey by Joseph Campbell.

Every story has common structural elements. The ancient Greeks used this structure in their mythology like in The Odissey. Fairy tales, Disney is a good example, and movies adopted this universal structure divided into stages.

Joseph Campbell divided these elements into twelve stages called The Hero's Journey. An example of movies that adopted this format are Star Wars, the Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, The Matrix, The Lord of the Ring, and the list goes on and on. It's right to say that every great story uses the Hero's Journey elements.

The 12 Stages of the Hero's Journey:

Ordinary World

1. Ordinary World

2.Call to Adventure

3. Refusal of the Call

4. Meeting the Mentor

5. Crossing the Threshold

Secondary World

6. Tests, Allies, and Enemies

7. Approach the Inmost Cave

8. The Ordeal

9. Reward

10. Road Back

11.Resurrection

12.Return with Elixir

A story doesn't have to follow to the perfection these stages. However, it's important to know what every single step means and understand the structure for writing a good story. Sometimes, it might be challenging to follow these elements, especially with short stories but the effort could be worth it.

chile house architectural building with clounds in a blue sky view

The Ordinary World.

The Ordinary World is the Hero's safe place. It's the first place where the audience meets the main character for the first time. This is the stage where the storyteller has the opportunity to introduce the Hero's flows, emotions, urges, environment, to the audience. It's the part where the Hero finds the reasons to walk through the Secondary World. Writing a story is like building a house, and the Ordinary World is the foundation of a story.

giant tree in green forest with a man sit on a branch

The Call to Adventure

The Call to Adventure is the reason why the Hero begins the Journey. The Call to Adventure has multitude forms. A sudden death, a message, a natural event, an abduction, someone words, a villain, a discovery, and the list can go on and on. In some cases, the Hero needs a second Call to Adventure before taking the decision to enter into the Journey. Sometimes the Hero must choose between two conflicting calls.

Refusal of the Call

The Hero refuses the Call to Adventure because of insecurities, fears, danger, and uncertainties, that make it hard for the hero to leave the safe heaven of the Ordinary World. Even for us, at least once in our life, we didn't take some challenges for fear of changes. In this stage, it's important to underline the conflict between the security of the Ordinary World and the danger of the unknown Secondary World.

Meeting the Mentor

The Mentor is not necessarily a human. Like for the Call to Adventure, the mentor can be under any form. It might be an animal, an object, a signal, a message, etc. For example, in Legends of the West, Huckleberry refuses his call to adventure for fear of the dangerous voyage that could lead to his death. However, when Shannon tells to Huck about her Uncle living in California and describing that land as a wonderful place full of opportunities, Huck rethinks his decision and joins to Tom. In this case, the Uncle is the mentor, even if he never appears physically in the scene.

figure of a man jumping two edges of a mountain vector illustration

Crossing the Threshold

Crossing the Threshold is the step where the adventure truly begins. Everything starts at this point and nothing will be the same as before. Once the Hero Cross the Threshold there is no turning point. The Hero's Journey has begun.

Friends, friendship, group of hands touching in sign of friendship

Tests, Allies, Enemies

This is the stage where the Hero together with the audience steps into the Secondary World and learns its rules. He's preparing himself for greater conflicts. He meets allies, enemies, or forge a team of Heroes. Usually, this is the part where appears a sidekick. The hero begins testing his capabilities. For example, in Legends of the West Huck and Tom meet Sally and join her to reach California. They encounter some enemies and the first conflicts rise.

Dragon in a fantasy land with warrior approaching an iland

Approach the Inmost Cave

The Inmost Cave is the representation of inner fears. It can be a dangerous location, a fearful creature or an inner stage of the Hero. He must overcome this challenge in order to face the Ordeal. This is the stage where the Hero must prepare to Approach the Inmost Cave that will lead into the hearth of the Central Ordeal.
Planning an attack, training before a battle, questioning feelings of a lover or weakening an enemy are just a few examples of the many possibilities in this stage.

The Ordeal

The Ordeal is the highest point of the Hero's Journey. The Hero encounters difficult challenges and conflicts. He's battling with his most inner fears. In this stage, everything seems lost, and the Hero is falling apart. In this phase can occur the death of a friend, a mentor, or a break up with the loved one. At this point, the audience looks at the hero with suspense. The Hero is touching the bottom and the viewer is wondering if he or she will survive and stand up again. If he fails nothing will be ever the same.

The Reward

The Hero survived to the Ordeal. He earned the Reward. The Reward has different forms. It could be the return of a loved one, a friendship reunited, an object, a treasure, the conquering of a person or a throne. Anything can represent a Reward for the Hero. The Hero's celebrating his victory and there is a sort of peace. The Audience can relax and catch the breath before the Journey resumes to its climax and resolution. The Journey is not over yet.

The Road Back

The Hero must return to the Ordinary World. Like for the Threshold, the Hero might need to be pushed back into the Ordinary World and leave the Secondary World. A threat into the Ordinary World might cause the Hero to take the Road Back. A villain may regain forces and search for revenge. Sometimes, the Hero must choose between an internal or external decision.

Resurrection

This is the highest stake of the Hero's Journey. The Hero resurrects from the "death" and reborn. He uses everything that he learned during his Journey to fight his final battle.
The Hero's last battle is no longer for his life but for everything dear to him. If he fails, nothing will be the same anymore, he will lose everything. The Hero must prove that he conquered his fears and learned his lesson, now he's ready to fight one more time for the benefit of the Ordinary World.

graphic illustration with an open book, little girl walking with a red umbrella and an hunting dog

Return with the Elixir

The Return with the Elixir is the final stage of the Hero's Journey. The Hero resurrected and fought his final battle. He won, the Ordinary World is safe again. He defeated the enemy and conquered his love. He overcame his fears, insecurities, and obstacles. He crossed the unknown, the danger, and now he is back into the Ordinary World with knowledge, and everything that he learned in the Secondary World. Now, he can apply his new abilities to embark a new journey and help others forever influenced by his adventure.

The Hero's Journey is not a straight line that begins and ends. It's a circle where everything gets repeated over and over till the Hero learns a new lesson. Just like in real life for all of us, there are many lessons to learn and journeys to embark.

GREAT STORIES SHARE EMOTIONS WITH THE AUDIENCE

The Hero's Journey stages are a good reference point to keep in mind for writing a story. A good story that keeps the audience entertained. A storyteller must produce emotions and relate the characters to the audience. Readers or viewers share together with the Hero the same feelings; fell in love with the girl or boy, despite the enemy, feel joy, and sadness.

Some of the most acclaimed TV series on the screen has appealing characters and stories that transfer emotions to the public. Who didn't feel anything for Walter White and Jessie in Breaking Bad? Who wasn't shook when Ned Stark died in Games of Thrones? Who didn't suffer together with Rocky Balboa? There are many good books, movies, and comics out there that became part of our society, and make us feel joy, fear, anxiety, love, and hate. These storytellers delivered us a great story.

Those movies or novels are masterpieces wrote by professionals, veterans in the writing field. However, it's not impossible to write a good story even for unknown artists. Remember all these great directors and writers are not born famous or with some kind of special gene that made them create these amazing movies or novels. Everyone must start somewhere. They wrote a lot of stories and failed many times before getting where they are today.

THE END

In conclusion, whatever story you decide to create, remember the Hero's Journey stages. Think about the character's environment. Keep them relatable. Write a story that makes feel emotions and transfers your feelings to the audience. Your readers don't know what you have in your mind. They can't figure out what you want to express with your story. That is your job as a storyteller. Take time, don't rush the story forcing the audience into confusion and emotionless. Don't try to emulate others. Do your homework, research everything related to your tale. Study the history, the era where the comic book is set, costumes, and the way of life. If it's a story based in the present days, learn about the country and the city where it takes place.

Writing a good story requires time and a lot of work. But as you should know, Rome wasn't built in a day.

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Colors vs. Black & White comics|Five reasons why color comics are popular

AnnySeptember 26, 2018Art, comic books, drawing, manga, Review2 Comments

What is better; color or black and white comics? My five reasons why color comics are popular and what to consider before taking a decision.

So far I wrote about screen tones, pen nibs, Wacom Intuos pen tablets , and other art supplies that I use to create my manga Legends of the West. Right now it's time to decide should I color or just make a black and white comic book?
This question is more common than you think. Newbies or not, comic book authors are wondering which way to go, color or black and white?

I can't tell you what to choose but I can give you my perspective on this topic.

Five reasons why color comics are popular

Color comics are getting more popular than ever.
There are five fundamental reasons why comics in colors are getting so much popular.

Reason number one.

Paint software is way cheaper and user-friendly than just a decade ago. Think about. Less than ten years ago Photoshop was inaccessible for most of us. Only agencies and professional freelancers were able to buy this software. Photoshop price was between $500 to $1,000 plus. Not really on the budget for most of the amateur artists.

Finally, not long ago, Adobe released Adobe Creative Cloud .
Anyone can use Photoshop and other Adobe apps for an affordable monthly fee. But the software that indeed transformed the game for most of the comic artists is Manga Studio, now is known as Clip Studio Paint . This affordable and incredibly powerful software improved the way of making comics.

Clip Studio Paint is primarily for creating manga and it's easier to use than Photoshop. Manga Studio fired up the creativity of many comic artists who are self-publishing.

Reason number two. Pen tablets and Cintiq

Pen tablets and Cintiq are one of the reasons why color comics are on the rise. A long time ago comic artists used to color comic strips and graphic novels by hand. It took long hours and hard work to paint every single panel by hand. The giant publishers like Marvel and DC had and still use computer programs for coloring their comics but not every self-publisher was able to access to this software. Now, most of the comic book artists color their pages digitally which is faster and cheaper (Even if Cintiq is not really affordable). Pen tablets combined with Clip Studio Paint give the ability to anyone to create amazing digital paintings and coloring comic pages in a reasonable cost and time.

Reason number three. Affordable websites

Ten years ago building a website was a job only for professionals and for companies with a lot of money available to invest in a website.

Currently, designing a website is easy and cheap. Anyone can develop a website for just a few bucks a month without knowing to code or having particular graphics skills. I use Hostgator/Wordpress and I pay $12 per month. Not bad compared to the thousands of dollars spent on building and maintaining a website just a decade ago.

Many artists are able to make a good income from their online comics, and some of them left their nine to five jobs to be a full-time comic author.

You might think, why affordable websites have something to do with the increase of colored comics? Millions of viewers are able to see and read a webcomic on any website from all over the world. If color comics are popular then more and more of them will be in colors because artists follow the trend to gain followers, readers, and eventually buyers.

Reason number four. Anime popularity.

Japanese cartoons are gaining so much popularity. Well, let's say here in the USA because animes were already popular in Europe and other countries since the early 80's. I'm from Italy and my generation and my older brother generation grew up watching Japanese cartoons on TV every day after school. I'm talking about the 70's, 80's till now.

Here in America anime begin showing on TV about fifteen or twenty years ago and lately are increasing their popularity among the younger generation.

Since the anime market expanded in the USA, color comics increased as well. Anime fans love to see their favorite characters in colors and read their comics just like they watch it on TV.

Reason number five. Webtoon.

Webtoon or Linewebtoon is a platform where any comics creator from any part of the world can share webcomic series and ultimately get even paid if the story retains a certain number of subscribers. The majority of webcomics on this platform are in colors. I post my manga on Webtoon too and I think that only my story is in black and white. Of course, people might be influenced by the gazillion of colorful comics posted on this site. Many authors want to be part of this wave and increase their subscribers. If you want success do like everybody else, right? Well...yes and no.

These are my five reasons why color comics are popular. Now, anyone might think that it is better to create a comic in colors. Do not rush it. It depends on what are your goals.

things you should consider before coloring a comic book

Manga are not in Color

Consider a few factors before determining your decision. You have to examine yourself and answer honestly.

Notice that I have never mentioned manga but only comics and webcomics. I did it with intention because a manga is NEVER ever in colors. I can hear some of you screaming. But it is true.

The Japanese comic books which the proper word is manga are in black and white with grey tones known as screen tones. Screen tones have different patterns from just simple dots to landscapes. A manga is not an anime. Here is the confusion for some, not everyone. Manga is a graphic novel the anime is the cartoon most of the time based on a popular manga. The only colored part in the book is the cover. Manga and anime are two different forms of art and are created differently. It's like a novel and a movie.

However, I see that many new comics online are in colors with a manga style. These "manga" are created by western artists. Many webcomics are from China and South Korea which they resemble the manga style a little but they are not. Webtoon is loaded with manga "stylish" webcomics but is not Japanese as matter of fact it is a South Korean company and the most popular series on the site are South Koreans.

So, if your goal is to create a manga, try to keep the originality of its style that makes manga so unique and different from any other comics. Keep it black and white with screen tones. No matter if your story has a Japanese theme or has a super manga look. Manga has various drawing styles depend on the type of audience and story. If you want to do it in color be aware it won't be considered a manga.

How much time do you have to dedicate to your story?

This is another question that you really need to think about and answer with honesty. Creating a comic book, manga, or webcomic requires time and dedications. It's not a thing that you would complete in a month or in a year. If you are really serious and you have a story that you love and want to bring to life, you need time a lot of time. There aren't many hours in a day, and you share it with work, school, family, and friends. You will put the extra hours left into your project.

Coloring a comic is a long painful and tedious job. You have to color every single panel with the same tones over and over again for every page of every chapter of your story. Unless you have the money to outsource the coloring part like many professionals do, ask yourself can I color my comic series for maybe years to come? How many hours am I willing to dedicate?

Color comics are nice, but there is a tremendous amount of work behind. Many webcomics are in colors but not all of them are good quality. Some series are amazing both story and art have an excellent quality. You can tell that the author put a lot of work into. However, there are many more comics that are just crap. That is because the creators are not professionals or they rushed the process for the deadlines, and not everyone can color. One thing is making a pretty digital illustration, and another thing is making a whole comic series. There is a huge difference.

How good am I in coloring a webcomic?

This is the most honest answer that you have to give yourself. I already mentioned some webcomics are crap. If you decide to make a comic in colors, you need to improve your coloring skills. A serious artist accepts constructive criticism, and he or she is willing to learn and improve from the own weakness and mistakes.

Being an artist means have an open mind, be curious, eager to learn and never stop to challenge yourself. In addition, not everyone is a good colorist like no everyone is a good inker. That doesn't mean you can't ever color your story you need just to practice and focus on the areas that you have more troubles. This is normal, everyone has to master the own abilities to become a professional.

No one is perfect. Improve your coloring technique then publish your comic online. There are many good and bad stories online but only a few of them become successful.

Do I want to print a paper book version of my comic series?

Webcomics or ebooks are the kings on the market right now despite that what if one day you decide to make a print version of your comic. Printing a comic book in color is expensive. More volumes the story has more expensive the comic book will be.

Few options can help with the financial part like print on demand or raise money through a crowdfunding campaign. However, more money you need to reach your goal more money you have to ask and raise which is uneasy. You need a large and willing fan base to donate towards your campaign. Building a loyal fan base is not the easiest thing in the world and definitely takes time and consistencies from your side.

On the internet, a lot of successful campaigns raised a lot of money. However, there are many more failed campaigns and no one is talking about it. Remember, everyone wants to talk about the success but no one wants to talk about the failures. Print on demand is a good solution, but you need to consider how much profit you can make when you sell a book. To get some kind of profit you've to raise the price.

Keep in mind that your book will compete with a billion of other books not only from other self-publishing authors but also from big and famous publishers. Can you compete with their prices? There are more people willing to spend $30 for a Marvel or Image Comic volume than for a semi-unknown book. I wish everyone all the success of this world, but I'm realistic. Like my dad used to say, never count money that is not in your pocket. I know for experience how much work there is behind a graphic novel; it's not just drawing pretty characters.

What did I personally choose to do?

As I mentioned earlier I post on Webtoon too and I believe my manga is the only one in black and white.Legends of the West is a classic manga, black and white with screen tones in a retro style.
To be honest I began drawing my story years ago. I wasn't even thinking to make a graphic novel when I started to sketch the characters. It was just a hobby for myself. One day, I was watching on TV the famous anime series Inuyasha. I really love this anime. The manga inspired me to make my story like a real comic book. I bought books to learn how to draw manga and practiced. At that time tablet, Webtoons and manga studio was not available. I think they were not even on the market.

I learned the old way that's why my story is black and white with grey tones and "retro" manga style. However, I learned a lot from my first three chapters, I recognize my mistakes and I'll try to improve in my next chapters. I had my doubts too when I saw all these colorful webcomics. I started to think if I am going in the right direction. Everyone is doing differently than me; time is changed. It's hard to get subscribers, etc.

Then I thought, I already did three chapters in this way, I am not crazy I won't start all over again. I don't have enough time to commit or money to outsource the coloring part. And it's a manga! So why change it? If I don't get many readers, so be it. It's my story; I love it, I see the characters in the way I draw them and I like inking by hand and is faster complete a page in black and white.

After all, I am not making the story for gaining followers. I mean, I'd like to have many subscribers and make money off it. At the same moment, I want to be happy with my work. I don't draw in a certain style just because everyone else does. I like drawing in the way that I like.

And in general, I prefer black and white comics. I think they are neat and easy to read. They give more space to the imagination while colors sometimes have an artificial look and it can take away from the story.

When I saw Sin City the graphic novel I thought it was so cool and when the black and white movie came out I thought it was different and unique. That's what I like, original and creative. I do not like copycat.

In conclusion, color comics might be the trend now but no one knows what will be popular in the following years. Trends always change, and it's hard to keep up, especially when you have a long story that might continue for several years.

Coloring a comic is a long tedious job, and it might be more expensive if you decide to hire someone to color it and printing the paper book. However, the audience is more attracted to colorful webcomics. That leads to more followers.

On the other hand, black and white comics are always a classic and if you want to make a Manga, black and white with screen tones is the way to go. It's more affordable to print and faster to complete a page. On the contrary, black and white webcomics are not very popular at the moment.

In the end, decide what is best for you and your story. If you vision your series in colors and you are willing to commit time and money then do it in colors. Otherwise, keep it classic, you'll never go wrong.

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What Art Supplies Do I Need to Draw Manga

AnnyJuly 13, 2018Art, comic books, drawing, manga8 Comments

What art supplies do I need to draw manga
What art supplies do I need to draw manga?
What art supplies should I buy? What are the best art supplies?

These are the most common questions that aspirant mangaka and beginners ask.

In the last three blog posts,I talk about pen tablets , screen tones, and Japanese pen nibs. In this post, I talk about my favorite art supply brands.
The art tools that I use for drawing my manga Legends of the West and illustrating in general.

I am using these art supplies for many years, however, every artist needs to find what kind of art supplies are best for himself.

Not everyone likes the same stuff but my post can help newbies to get some direction to buy art supplies to draw manga without overspending.

MECHANICAL and GRAPHITE PENCILS

It's not uncommon for a comic artist to use just a regular mechanical pencil for drawing a comic. I am one of these artists. I like using mechanical pencils for two simple reasons. One, the space for drawing a comic page is limited. I have to draw small scenes and characters with many details and the mechanical pencil fine lead is perfect for drawing small areas and details. I don't have to stop to sharpen the lead and the refill last long time.

Second, mechanical pencils are unmade of wood, so, they last longer than graphite pencils (if my dog Lucy doesn't stumble on it and destroy it). There isn't a particular brand that I pick for a mechanical pencil. I recently bought Pilot mechanical pencil. I paid less than $5.00 for two mechanical pencils with refill in a pack. As long as it has a firm grip and it's a little sturdy, it works fine for me.

I like using Staedtler graphite pencils for drawings portrait and other illustrations. I am using this brand for a very long time. Staedtler has good quality graphite pencils. They range from technical drawing to the classic illustration. It's a German company, and their products include a variety of art and technical drawing supplies.

ERASER

You must have a white eraser that does not leave any marks on your paper. DO NOT USE the pink or any other colorful erasers. These colorful erasers are solely for school use not for drawing because they would leave marks on your illustration.
I use the Staedtler white eraser for my drawings. It does not leave any unpleasant mark or scratch.
Do you know how to clean a white eraser? Rub it on a table or a wall. It will get white and sparkling again. I discovered this technique at the graphic design school in Italy years ago.

PAPER

The paper quality is extremely important. For drawing with watercolors and acrylics, it requires a type of paper that doesn't curl up when it gets moist. Same way for inking a comic or any other drawing that requires ink. For inking manga or other comics, it takes a smooth paper sheet that absorbs fast the ink and it doesn't curl or wrinkle up.
I like using Copic paper sheets, natural white, for manga. I bought it on Amazon for about $8.00
There are different brands of art paper. Make sure to choose one specific for manga so you'll know it's good for inking.

I use Strathmore Sketch paper for sketches. I buy the 100 sheets Sketchbook, and for me, it works fine. There’s no point to spend money on paper just for brainstorming. Some artist uses a basic print paper. I like being organized. All my pages are together in the sketchbook and I can take it everywhere.

PENCIL COLORS

Caran d' Ache is my favorite brand for pencils colors.
I don’t know if here in the USA are popular like they are in Europe. Since 1915 this Swiss company has manufactured luxury and arts products. They have $10,000 ballpoint pens for sale on their website! Caran d'Ache trademarked the first mechanical pencil in 1929 and launched Prismalo watercolors pencils in 1931.
Regardless, you don't need a $10,000 pen, but the color pencils are definitely worth it. They have a wide range for the all art techniques from watercolors to wax oil pastels. Blick Art Material site has an excellent description and related videos of Caran d'Ache products.

The soft lead and pigments leaves a beatiful texture on your illustration.I love the fact that I can mix this graphite color pencils with watercolors and markers like I did for Legends of the West Vol. 1 cover.

In my opinion, Caran d'Ache is the best brand for color pencils. However, they are not economic. Start with a small size set and add more colors buying just a single pencil at the time. They are easy to find in art supplies stores and online on Amazon, Blick, and other related sites.

WATERCOLORS

A couple of years ago I was looking to buy watercolors. Windsor & Newton or Caran d'Ache are excellent but not good for my thin wallet, so I checked several reviews on Amazon to figure out what brand I can get. I choose Koi watercolors. They are excellent for beginners and artists on a budget. Koi watercolors are affordable, and they have a nice variety of tones. I have to say I am amazed by their quality and price, definitely worth it.

MARKERS

If you draw manga, you know Copic markers. They are one of the best art supplies brand on the market and popular among mangaka. Copic is a line of markers manufactured in Japan by Too.The Sketch markers version has a chisel-style tip on one end and a brush style tip on the other. These two sided nibs are perfect to color small areas and give a brush effect to the illustration. All the Copic markers are refillable and the ink can be mixed to create custom colors. Their nibs a replaceable too. Copic markers have a vast variety of colors, and its ink absorbs nicely in the paper without leaves any wet marks.

INK

You will need a good quality India black ink if you are still inking by hand your manga. Don’t use the cheap one! Cheap ink is too watery, leaves marks, and sometimes it looks almost brown. It’s not suitable for illustration and comics. I use Daler-Rowney® FW Artists' Acrylic Ink, India Black or Dr. Ph. Martin's - Bombay India Ink - Black. They are a good brand and the ink is a true black. I'd like to try the Deleter black ink. Their price range between $4.00 and $6.00, depend where you buy it.

PAINTBRUSHES

Good quality paintbrushes can be expensive. The most expensive ones are made with real fur. I don't approve using animal fur for brushes or any other product, so I get the nylon hair tip. Their quality improved remarkably over the past few years. It's unnecessary to buy an expensive set of paintbrushes, get an inexpensive one or just a single paintbrush. It will do the job especially if you are a beginner. I don't have a particular brand to use. The primary thing is that the paintbrush has a good grip and the hair tip is soft and flexible.

FIND WHAT ART SUPPLIES ARE BEST FOR YOU

These are my favorite art supplies that I use for drawing in particular Legends of the West. However, it doesn't mean you have to buy the same products that I like. Some artists have a particular pencil or paper that like to use, others don't have a specific brand.

For example, Mark Crilley underline in his Youtube videos that he doesn't make a great deal about the brand of pencil or watercolors that he uses.
I agree with him that it's not worth to invest a bunch of money for some art supplies, especially if you are a beginner. On the other hand, I think it's worthier to find what works best for you.

To sum up, spending a little on good quality ink, paper and colors pencils is a good investment. It's unnecessary to buy the top of the line or the most expensive one but you don't want to purchase inexpensive products either because, in the end, you will spend more money.

Experiment with various materials and brands and see what you like to use and fill more comfortable. After all, what really matters is improving your art skills and the most expensive tools won't help you in achieving that. It's not a pen that creates quality drawings, it's your hand.

Legend of the West illustration with watercolors base, color pencils and markers.
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Screen Tones for Manga- Drawing a Professional Comic Book

AnnyMay 26, 2018comic books, drawing, manga4 Comments

How to draw manga; Screen Tones
Screen tones. Where to buy screen tones? How much do screen tones cost? How to use them?
In the previous posts, I talked about drawing tablets and Japanese pen nibs. In this article, I am going to talk about another mangaka art tool; screen tones.

If you notice a manga is mostly black and white with some gray dotted area or some special effects like cross-hatching or other patterns of different kinds. These are screen tones. But not everyone knows what screen tones are. Simply because European and American artists don’t use them as much since most of the western comics are black and white or in color. In addition, screen tones are getting hard to find and are pricey.

Manga page with screen tones Legends of the West Vol.1 Page 37
Classic American Comic Books

What are screen tones?
Screen tones are a sheet of adhesive paper in grayscale with different tones and patterns. They can have basic patterns such as dots or more complex textures like flashes of lightning, natural backgrounds, and so on. Screen tones are applied on the area of the manga you chose and cut around the image borders with an exactor knife.

It sounds pretty easy, right? Well, try to apply this sticky paper on a small area or hair. It can require a little bit time to finish the operation and it can result quite difficult when you have a lot of details. They are sticky, easy to break, and easy to scratch. Not to mention that at the end of the operation, it gets annoying to find all the left tiny pieces everywhere.

How much do screen tones cost? And where can I find them?

As I mentioned before, Screen tones are becoming a little bit more difficult to find (at least here in the USA) and they are expensive. I usually purchase screen tones on Copics.com. Yes, Copics sells good quality screen tones. It's kind of tricky find them on their website. The price is about $5.00 per sheet. The size is 9X13in (25X35cm), like a paper sheet for comics.

Deleter Manga Shop is another site where you can find screen tones and anything related to draw manga. It's a Japanese website all their material come directly from Japan. I talked about it in my pen nibs article. The price range from $3.00 to $5.00. They sell sets too. However, their screen tone sheets size, I believe, is smaller then Copic screen tones. In my opinion, Copic has the best price.

And of course you can find them on Amazon! Can you believe that?
They sell Deleter screen tones, which are great quality too.

The cost adds up quickly when you use them in your manga and you need to find the same exact one that you used in the previous image. For example, for my characters hair and clothing, I have specific screen tone numbers to maintain the same color tone on each page.

Example of screen tones:
Tom Sawyer hat hair and clothing have screen tones.
Same for the servant skin and Huck Finn hat and pants.

Should I use screen tones for my manga?
If you draw your comic on Photoshop or Clip Studio Paint, buying screen tones is useless since you can create them with Photoshop or download it for free from Clip Studio Paint. You don’t even have to use them at all if you paint digitally your comic.

I used screen tones on Legends of the West Volume 1 till chapter 3. However, I am about to start chapter 4 and because I don’t want to get too far off from the previous chapters I am still going to use some screen tones but not as much as before. I will eliminate them gradually and just do it digitally.

It really takes away a lot of time to apply them manually, and as an artist, you know how much precious is time.

Also, they are too expensive. I have to buy several sheets to complete one chapter. It gets too expensive for my wallet. Another reason is that I am afraid I won’t be able to find the specific screen tone numbers that I use in my manga in the future. It would be a mess drawing Legends of the West Volume 3 and no screen tones available. In the future, I would use Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop to apply a shade of grays and tones. After all, I am already doing that when I edit the pages on Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

Legends of the West main characters cover illustration. Drew and inked by hand then scanned and edited it on Photoshop. I did not apply any screen tones manually just painted with Photoshop brushes.

I am thinking to create a Youtube channel to show how to draw manga and share my drawing techniques.
And probably I would make a video on how to apply screen tones. It’s an important technique to know and if you want to draw traditionally a manga, you must know how to use screen tones.

In conclusion, a manga without screen tones is not really a manga, (if you draw a black and white comic). They are great for enhancing details and giving depth, volume, and shadow to the drawing.
On the other end, they are harder to find, expensive, and it requires time to apply them manually.

However, you can create and download them for free or at a lower cost.

Be careful! Don't exaggerate with too many screen tones on a page. It will flatten the image which is not pretty for a comic.

Here below some links in case you want to purchase screen tones.

Unfortunately, I am not able to post a link for Copic screen tones. Their website does not show any screen tones for sale. I checked Copic Facebook page and their post for screen tones is dated 2014. I tried to Google "Copic screen tones" like I did in the past but no luck.

So, I am posting the link only for Deleter Manga Shop and Amazon.

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Drawing comics with Japanese Pen Nibs; Love or Hate

AnnyMarch 20, 2018comic books, drawing, manga, Uncategorized4 Comments

Inking with pen nibs; love or hate?
ARE MANGA PEN NIBS PART OF THE PAST OR ARTISTS STILL LOVE THEM? A REVIEW FROM A PEN NIB LOVER

There are different manga pen nibs available with a specific design for drawing different subjects. From drawing action lines, to small details, Japanese pen nibs are being part of a cartoonist life for many years.

However, in the digital era is getting rare to see comic artists inking comic pages with pen nibs. Some artists still love inking with pen nibs because of their flexibility and personal touch. Other artists hate them because inking with pen nibs may result in a big mess. If you are a beginner, pen nibs may are difficult to manage, and you need to replace the nib often.

Better inking with an easier drawing pen or just using a software for drawings.

If pen nibs are so much troubles, why some Japanese comic artists still use them? Are manga pen nibs better than drawing pens? How many different manga pen nibs there are?

Here my thoughts, review, cost, care, and art supplier sites on pen nibs for drawing manga.

INKING WITH JAPANESE PEN NIBS; GREAT MANGAKA STILL LOVE THEM.

Once upon a time, a comic book artist was inking a comic page with an art tool called pen nib and a black liquid in a small bottle called ink. Ha, ha…, it sounds like a nice old tale but comic book artists don't use paper and ink as much as in the past.

I personally love drawing and inking by hand. It gave me a sense of control over my illustrations. However, a large number of artists don't use them anymore.

European and American artists pretty much abandoned brushes and ink for newest and fastest art tools. There’s nothing wrong with that. Artists are adapting to the digital era. Photoshop, Clip Studio, drawing pens, pen tablets, and Cintiq make easier to speed up the workflow.
I did adapt too. Yes, I still draw by hand but I use Photoshop and now Clip Studio Paint to finish my pages. I have a pen tablet too!

What about Japanese comic book artists or better known as mangaka? Do they still use paper and ink? Surprisingly they still do.

Many mangaka and even the famous ones working in big production companies like Hayao Miyazaki, creator of Princess Mononoke, still draw by hand. I watched a documentary on Netflix about Miyazaki's movie, "The Wind Rises". It was amazing to watch all these animators working so hard drawing every single detail with such precision and doing it over and over, each frame. If you get a chance, watch this documentary, it's really interesting.

Available on Amazon-Click Image to know more

Another interesting video to watch is the interview of Inio Asano.
He draws by hand using real photos and edit the manga pages in Photoshop and Clip Studio Paint. He is really good. It gave some ideas for my Legends of the West.

Few years ago I read an interview with Rumiko Takahashi, the creator of many famous manga and anime. She is the author of Maison Ikkoku, Ranma 1/2, Inuyasha, and many others. In the interview, she is explaining how she doesn’t even own a computer! How is it possible? Rumiko Takahashi is one of the most famous comic book artist woman in Japan.

How a great artist like her doesn't use digital technology for her manga stories. Here there might be one possible reason; she is from a different generation.

When she started her career, comic books artists drew entirely by hand. There were no Photoshop or Cintiq available. Only ink and paper. If you made a mistake, you re-started all over again.

Do you remember the old classic Disney movies like Bambi and Snow White? Disney animators drew and painted each single frame by hand.

For many artist is hard to leave old ways to learn a new one. And some people are just not tech savvy.

I have hard time to put pencil and paper away and replace them with the computer too. When I was going to the Art School back in Italy, Photoshop was quite new and only big graphic designer agencies used it. We learnt to draw everything by hand, even lettering. I remember this big Letraset fonts book making copies of the selected font and draw it free hand.
Now, it's enough go on Dafont.com and download as much fonts as you like. Thanks God!

Everything changed completely in the last decades. Digital art made enormous steps and its related products are getting more affordable and friendly user. That made it easier for younger artists quickly adapt and learn new techniques with technology.

Youtube changed the game too. There are plenty of tutorials for every subject. And most of them are really good. Back in my days, you had to take a course or go to the library.

A Generation thing might be one of the reason why older Japanese artist still use pen nibs. Maybe, but it's not completely true. Some young Japanese artists use pen nibs to draw their manga too.

Some may say that mangaka have assistants that help them while American and European comic book artists work by themselves so mangaka have more time to apply in drawings with traditional art materials than western artists.
I would say no. This is not a good reason. It is true that mangaka have assistants but that's because in Japan publishing deadlines are insane.

Manga are published weekly in magazines. When a manga gets popularity, the publisher publishes the story in volumes for selling all over Japan and other countries.

In Japan, every mangaka assistant has a specific role. Some assistants may draw just the backgrounds for a page another one may just ink the page and so on. It is practically impossible to finish a chapter ready for publishing by yourself in a week. I can’t even finish a page in a week!

So, why some Japanese artists still use pen nibs?

The true is that drawing with a pencil and inking with a pen nib creates unique lines different from one to another that only your hand with a pen nib can create and cannot be duplicate over and over like in a computer so the image that you just created is unique. For this reason, your drawing has personality and has your style which is your signature.

Now, I know some of you may disagree. But If you really pay attention to most of the manga and western comic style out there you will notice that are almost alike. Drawing on the computer is nice and faster but sometimes I see these beautiful artworks look too much similar to one another. Their are great drawings but with no personality.

I follow several artists on Instagram. They creates amazing drawings with the computer, no doubt. But honestly, if I don't read the name of who posted the artwork I can't recognize who draw it because they all look the same.

I don't blame the using of computer. Art schools teach to the students to draw manga in a certain style because it sells. So they learn to draw in that way from school, and these young artists won't find their own style. DC and Marvel comics are not exception. There is a mass production of anime and manga, and comics in general. Stories are shorter and pretty much similar to each other.

I might be wrong, but I grew up watching anime. They were different styles and you could recognized who drew it. Miyazaki, Takahashi, Monkey Punch are great Japanese cartoonist and you can tell the difference in their style and stories. You don't need to figure out. Their drawing style is their signature. Unfortunately, it's getting lost.

Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki
Inuyasha by Rumiko Takahashi
Lupin the III by Monkey Punch
There are still good and original stories in the comic book market. They are getting rare because like for everything else profit is more important than quality. It's like the music industry. Once in a while you get a really good song but for the majority they are pretty much the same.

At the end, every artist use whatever art tools prefer. There is not a real rule to follow. But it is important don't forget that we are artists and create our own personal style is vital not only for ourself but for the art in general. Comic books are an expression of art no matter what some people say. There is nothing more artistic than create a story with characters and described with images. So, for all the newbies who want to create comics I give you an advice.

Begin to draw with traditional art materials. Learn as much as you can. Don't just draw comics. Buy some good art books or watch some tutorials and learn how to draw in different styles with different materials. Charcoal, pastels, acrylics, etc. Draw everything; animals, inanimate objects, natures elements, landscape. Learn the prospective, and the human and animal anatomy. How to create shadows and lights. Learn the basics and then improve your skills watching other artists and learning from them. Remember that an artist never stop to learn, no matter how good he or she is. Once you know these basics, you are ready to draw a comic book and you can apply your skills on a computer too.

Drawing is like learning a language. You can't start speak a language without knowing verbs and basic grammar rules. You have to study and then apply what you learned.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF MANGA PEN NIBS
Let’s come back to talk about pen nibs. Japanese pen nibs are the ones on the market used for drawing, specifically manga. Obviously, you can use them for drawing anything else.

There are other types of pen nibs these are for calligraphy and are not for drawing, so don’t waste your time and money.

There are different types of pen nibs for manga. All of them have different drawing purposes;

SCHOOL NIB

The School nib is the easiest one to use. It’s smaller than the other nibs and it is slightly flexible which it makes easier to control. These characteristics make the school nib popular among beginners. It creates fine but consistent lines. School nib main use is for drawing objects, buildings, cars, and architectures.

G-NIB

The G- nib or pen is one of the most use and popular nib among manga artists. It's the most flexible nib. It creates bold lines depending on the amount of pressure used. For this reason, the G-nib is a little more difficult to use for beginners. The G-nib main use is for drawing a variety of subjects such as humans, animals, natural landscape, action lines and so on. The Zebra G-nib is slightly more flexible than the G-nib.

SAJI NIB

Saji nib or Spoon nib it’s easy to recognize due to his spoon shape. The Saji nib is a good choice for beginners not ready yet for the more flexible G-nib. The Saji nib creates fine even lines almost like a drawing pen, so be careful how much you use it in your drawings. Using too much Saji nib in a drawing may result in a flat, and unexpressive illustration. This nib main use is for drawing mostly inanimate objects and scenery.

NIHONJI NIB

Nihonji or Japanese nib is the most versatile of the pen nibs. It was designed for drawing curved lines. However, the Nihonji nib has a general use for drawing pretty much anything you want. It has a better flexibility and elasticity than the School nib making it easier to manage.

MARU NIB.

The Maru nib or mapping nib is the smallest of the pen nibs. It needs a specific pen nib holder, so be sure to buy the right matching one. The Maru nib creates very consistent fine lines. For this reason the Maru nib use is for drawing small details like eyes and hair.

SOFT MARU NIB.

As indicated by the name, the soft Maru nib is the softer version of the Maru nib. It creates fine lines like the regular one but has a little more flexibility. Usually, the soft Maru nib main use is to apply details in long curvy lines like long hair.

SCHOOL NIB
flexibility: moderate. Use: inanimated objects

G - NIB
Flexibility: High. Use: animated objects (humans, animals) natural elements.

SAJI NIB
Flexibility: Low. Use: inanimate objects, texture, even fine lines.

NIHONJI NIB
Flexibility: medium. Use: anything

MARU NIB
Flexibility: low. Use: small details like eyes, hair.

SOFT MARU NIB
Flexibility: medium. Use: small details like long curvy lines.
IS IT WORTH USE THE PEN NIBS FOR DRAWING MANGA?

Using the pen nib for drawing is not easy; it takes practice. Don’t get frustrate when you see a big drop of ink in your drawing. It happens and you can fix it in Photoshop or whatever software you use, (I do it all the time). First practice. Practice a lot and get confident in handling the pen nib. You need to learn how much pressure to put on the nib when you are inking. If you put too much pressure on it can result in a big messy ink drop on your drawing, or a larger line where you need a fine line, or even break the nib. At this point, you will say: “Oh Anny, it’s too much trouble I don’t want waste time and play around with ink.”

Believe me, you should try it. once you learned how to manipulate the pen nib, you will see the results, and it’s worth it.

Also, as an artist be open mind and try to develop different skills and techniques. As I mentioned before. Don’t stick with only one thing, and don’t be afraid to try new things.

That’s the beauty of being an artist and have this special mind and ability to be creative and see the world with different eyes. That’s why we are artists.

HOW TO TAKE CARE OF PEN NIBS

Pen nibs need some care. Wash them with warm water and hands soap after every use. So next time you use it, the ink will flow evenly in the nib. Don't let the ink dry in it. It can cause clogs and it can damage the nib.

You need to change the pen nib every time you see the edge of the nib split, (like split hair).

How long a pen nib last depends from the frequency you use it. If you use it everyday maybe it last a week or two. I can't tell you an exact time. But don't think to use the same nib for months.

ARE PEN NIBS BETTER THAN DRAWING PENS?

There a plenty of drawing pens out there like markers micro-pens. They are good and definately easier to use than a pen nib. However, micro-pens are designed for calligraphy and technical drawings. Be careful, don't apply them in your comic page too much. Micro pens create fine even lines. If you use them too much your drawing will be flat and inexpressive.

I use them sometimes for really small details, drawing the panels in my comic pages or just for graphic design in general.
Sakura Pigment Liner Pigma Micron is the one that I use most.

Some micro pens have like softer type of brush or even a sorta of nib that are better suited for drawing manga.

HOW MUCH DOES PEN NIBS COST AND WHERE CAN I BUY THEM?

Pen nibs are very affordable. Their prices range from $3.00 to $10.00 depend if they are sold in a small bag of two nibs or more. There are available sets that include different types of nibs and pen holders.These usually range from $11.00 to $20.00
I usually buy them on Amazon because what Amazon doesn't sell? And I have Prime so I don't pay shipping.

Another big website where you can find pen nibs for drawing manga is Deleter.com
Deleter is one of the largest supplier of comic art in Japan. They ship all over the world. Shipping time may vary due to the custom.They accepts payments only through PayPal. I have never bought anything from them, so I can’t tell you my experience but it is a legit site and their prices are really good and you'll basically find every material for drawing comics from paper to screen tones, etc.

Visit Site
Blick Art is another art supplies web site with a great selection of comic art materials. They have good quality material from cosplay to screen-printing. They do sell Japanese pen nibs, ink, brushes, and markers. However, they don't have screen tones for manga. Screen tones are getting hard to find. Over all, Blick Art site is a great art supplier. It's worth to check it out.

Learn More
Jetpens.com is a great art supplier site. They have a section specifically for manga art materials and they do sell screen tones. Prices are pretty much the same of Blick Art and Amazon. Jet Pens also has a blog and tutorials for drawing manga. Definitely it's worth to check it out.

Visit Site
In conclusion, pen nibs are undoubtedly an evergreen art tool for inking comics. No matter what generation you are, these nibs enhance and convey personality to the drawing. They are uneasy to use. It takes practice and even with a lot of that you will still drop some ink in your drawing. But what is it easy in life? If you indeed want to be a pro then learn the hardest way to take the easiest one later. You won't regret it.

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Best Drawing Tablet for Beginners and Pro-Wacom Intuos Pen Tablet

AnnyFebruary 13, 2018Review11 Comments

The best drawing tablet for beginners and pro is Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch tablet. This drawing tablet is the essential tool for comic book artist like me or any other artist. From editing photos to 3D sculpting, the Wacom Intuos line is an amazing pen tablet that match the needs for any artist. Here's my review.

There are different steps in the journey of creating a comic book. The first step is writing a story and creates the characters related to the story. The second step is bringing to life the story and the characters. The third step is sketching the comic pages, and the fourth step is finishing and editing them. I'm not going to talk about the other steps such as create a website, marketing your comic book, and so on. These steps are very long and require a lot of details and explanations. I will definitely talk about these topics in the future. For the first post, I want to talk about the tools and materials that I use to draw my comic book, Legends of the West.

I still draw comics by hand. I even ink and apply the screen tones by hand. I know, I know, some of you are saying "WHAT?!" I am used to drawing by hand since I was a little girl and, honestly, when I began to create Legends of the West I was not aware of pen tablets, tools, and software to create comics. I just bought a bunch of books to learn how to draw manga and none of them mentioned the use of tablets and software. Now a day, there are tons of different digital tools that substitute pen and paper. So, yes, I know, I am old, 🙁
Where was I? Oh...yes, once I finished my "handmade" page, I scanned it on my computer and edit it with Photoshop to make it suitable for my website. And guess what, I used to use my computer mouse to edit in Photoshop.

Yes, I used the mouse to work in Photoshop until last year when my friend gave me her Bamboo Pen tablet for free because she was going to buy a new one. I instantly fell in love with it. I learned that using a pen tablet it is way easier than using a computer mouse. YEAH, welcome to the modern world, Anny!
Anyway, the Bamboo tablet was a little old and I began to have some issues with the pen. It was missing the grip and I had put to much pressure in order to complete a line with the brush tool.

One day, I was watching on YouTube one of my favorite channels, The Futur, which is a channel for graphic design, marketing, etc.
The graphic designer was showing how to remove the backgrounds from a photo in Photoshop. The designer was using a Wacom pen tablet. I found it really cool, and I said to my self, "I wish to have a tablet like that one too". I checked Wacom website to get some info and prices. I found out that the graphic designer in the video was using Wacom Pro. Of course, it is one of the most expensive tablets, it cost about $300/400 and even if it is really cool, I can't afford it. Anyway, I did some research about it and I ended up buying the Intuos Creative Pen & Touch tablet Comic that I love so much.

Here is the YouTube video that I'm talking about. Just in case some of you are interested.

Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch Tablet Review
Wacom is one of the most popular brands for digital technology tools for creative people like us. From the most professional designer to the newbies, Wacom has pretty much anything you are looking for. They really have good quality products. Intuos is a new line of pen and touch tablets. There are four different versions for different needs.

INTUOS DRAW CREATIVE PEN TABLET

Intuos Draw Creative pen tablet comes in black and white or mint and black. It's the most basic version of the Intuos line. It is a great start for beginners that are not familiar with pen tablets. The Intuos Draw includes ArtRage Lite software, which is a drawing, sketching and painting software. You just need to plug in the tablet in your computer, register it, and download the software for free. All the Intuos come with training and tutorials but not all of these tutorials are free. However, the software is free. Obviously, Intuos Draw and the other entire versions include the pressure-sensitive pen.
Intuos Draw is not multi-touch.
OK for Windows or Mac.
USB wireless is sold separately.
Right or left-handed use
It is available only in the small size
Active area: 152 x 95 mm (6.0 x 3.7 in)

On sale on Amazon; $79.95 free shipping (with Amazon)

On sale on Amazon; $99.95 free shipping (with Prime)

INTUOS ART CREATIVE PEN & TOUCH TABLET

Intuos Art Creative Pen & Touch tablet is a great match for more advanced artists who like create a digital painting and design t-shirts. I was debating to buy this version or the comic one because I create custom design t-shirts too. In fact, this version comes with Corel Painter Essential 5 software, which has a lot of brushes and cool features that allowed you to create awesome digital paintings. This version comes with the pressure-sensitive pen, (available in all of the Intuos versions)
It is multi-touch.
Right or left-handed use,
USB wireless is sold separately.
OK for Mac or Windows
Color: Black or Black and Mint
It comes in two different sizes small and medium
Active area sizes: Small: 152 x 95 mm (6.0 x 3.7 in)
Medium: 216 x 135 mm (8.5 x 5.3 in)

INTUOS PHOTO CREATIVE PEN & TOUCH TABLET

Intuos Photo comes with Corel PaintShop Pro X8 for Windows and Corel Aftershot Pro 2 for Windows and Mac. Macphun Creative Kit is available for Mac users.
This software is great for creating amazing effects with photos. This pen tablet has the same exact features than Intuos Art except for the tablet color available only in black and it is available only in the small size.

On sale on Amazon; $99.93 free shipping (with Prime)

On sale on Amazon; $199.95 free shipping (with Prime)

INTUOS 3D CREATIVE PEN & TOUCH TABLET

If you are into sculpting and three-dimensional art, Intuos 3D might be the right match for you because it comes with ZBrushCore from Pixologic one of the leading user-friendly software for 3D-Sculpting/Digital-Clay. This tablet has the same features like the other ones except for the color and size.
Intuos 3D comes only in black and in the medium size:
Active area: 216 x 135 mm (8.5 x 5.3 in).

INTUOS COMIC CREATIVE PEN & TOUCH TABLET

Last but not least of the Intuos line is the Intuos Comic Pen & Touch Tablet. This is the one that I purchased. All the Intuos tablets are pretty much the same the only main difference is the software that comes with it, color, and size. As you can expect, Intuos Comic comes with Studio Paint Pro and Anime Studio Debut, great software for comic book artist.
It comes in two colors; mint and black or all black. It is available in both sizes small and medium. I got the small size in mint color.

At first, when I opened the box, I thought that the tablet was too small. However, when I started to use it, I realized that the small size is what I need. I have a MacBook Pro and the tablet matches my laptop size. Plus it is easy to carry around wherever you want. The pressure-sensitive pen gives you the real feeling of using a pencil on paper. You don’t need too much pressure on it. It is very sensitive and fit perfectly in your hand.
The Intuos tablet is user-friendly, very easy to install and download the software. It is well designed. I just love it!

I truly recommend it. Like I said, it is great for beginners and pro. I think for the price, you get a lot since includes all these awesome software and tutorials. I haven't used much Clip Studio Paint because I didn't have a chance to edit a page lately. But I will do it pretty soon and probably I will write a post about it.
The price for Intuos Pen Tablets varies from the size. Obviously, the small size is cheaper from the medium one. I bought mine around Christmas on Amazon for $89 free shipping with Prime

On sale on Amazon; $99.95 free Shipping (with Prime)

For some reason the Intuos Comic in mint color is more expensive; $114.95 free shipping with prime on Amazon.

WACOM INTUOS PRO

The Pro version is the best of the best. It has more features and includes all the software from all the Intuos tablets. It includes the New Wacom Pro Pen 2 designed to be exceptionally sensitive and responsive like a natural extension of your hand. Wacom Pro comes in medium and large size. It is built with premium materials like anodized aluminum and fiberglass composite resin. It is 8mm thick.
Active Area size: Medium: 224 x 148 mm / 8.7 x 5.8 in
Large: 311 x 216 mm / 12.1 x 8.4 in
Creative left and right-handed, USB and Bluetooth 4.2
OK for Mac/Windows. Express Keys, Home Button, Touch Ring, Time-saving settings.

On sale on Amazon; $499.95
free shipping (with Prime)

Wacom Intuos Pro is really nice but honestly, you might not need all these features and you can get by perfectly with the Intuos version.

In conclusion, if you are a beginner and you never used a pen tablet before, get one of the Intuos lines; choose the software that you might need most. If you are a pro, I would still suggest buying one of the Intuos because it does the job without spending too much money. If you are a professional and you work as a graphic designer or a freelance artist who needs different software for various projects, then buy Wacom Pro.

I hope that this information about Wacom Intuos Pro and the Intuos Pen & Touch tablets line helped you to decide what to use and eventually buy. Do your research and maybe compare other brands and see what is the best fit for your skills and budget. If you decided to purchase one of them, click directly on the pictures and it would redirect you to Amazon.
Usually, Amazon has the best deal better than the website.

Also Read: <a href="https://www.pixpa.com/blog/best-drawing-tablets/">Best Drawing Tablets for Graphics, Art and Illustrations in 2019</a>

Here the link for Wacom website;

https://www.wacom.com/en-us/products/pen-tablets/intuos-comic
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