07/03/11

How Ratboy Is Dead Is Made

Part 3: What I Do After Pencilling

So in this exciting episode of How Ratboy Is Dead Is Made I'm going to cover two parts, for two reasons. It's like a buy one, get one sort of deal. Mostly I'm doing this because both processes are simple, and I don't really necessarily do them in order.

So, at some point during this process I ink the characters. I usually do this part first, because the background gets a bit easier to place around something solid. I prefer to use a nice, crisp line with my wacom tablet when creating these.

After that, or sometimes before that, I'll do teh backgrounds. Backgrounds are always an odd process because half the time I don't really know what to put and use an abstract paint background, or manipulate a photo or something. It's easier and I realize it makes me a lazy asshole. But I do draw them, too! I'm pretty loose one what constitutes a background, but lately, I've been fond of thicker, less defined lines and textures. Whatever helps the composition, really. There are two good examples in the image below.

So, after that, I generally make sure all this is placed and looks reasonably decent. I put a few finishing touches on each piece, like the crappy shading in the background, then move on to the next step.

Next time: Making people say what they should say

06/28/12

How Ratboy Is Made

Part 2: Pencilling Like an Idiot

So, after I have a reasonably decent layout, I then actually pencil in each panel. Since this comic is done mostly digitally, I often draw each character individually and then place them on the page later in photoshop, or other times I'll simply draw the whole panel, such as the example below.

I then scan the pencilled images into the computer. I lay the page panels out in Photoshop, and then place the scanned drawings in onto the panels, and arrange the page exactly how I want it laid out. It's pretty quick if I have the panels all drawn out already, but can take a while if I drew everything separately. Then, I take out my trusty Wacom tablet and begin to draw the final product.

Next time: What I do after I pencil like an idiot

06/26/12

How is a Ratboy Comic Made?

This is honestly the only real question I get asked consistently. It's not a terribly complicated process, so here's a fun blog post about how I do this. There's actually two different methods I've used - whether I draw the comics by hand and just touch them up digitally, or whether I draw them almost entirely digitally. Since the second one will probably be not only easier to show you, but a more interesting read, I'll focus on that one, since it's what I primarly use now, since I'm lazy. (which will be a running theme throughout this series of blog posts, trust me.)

First off, I write the comic. As of this blog post, I've completely written about half the Ratboy story. I constantly revise it, and add little jokes as I see fit, change gags that seemed rushed or convoluted, and do my very best to not resolve things with Deus Ex Machinas - even though it's an occasionally funny and super convenient literary device. I have the rest of the story loosely lined out and write in whenever I feel like - which is why I write so far ahead, because I get distracted easily.

When it comes time to actually draw the comic, I first draw a very rough outline for composition. This usually takes about sixteen seconds. I time myself. Mainly it takes such a short amount of time because I get lazy. I don't always have as much time as I'd like to draw these comics, and I wish I did, because I could get better compositions rather than lame ones. It really depends on if I'm in a hurry or not.

I tend to leave the backgrounds blank at this spot unless it's necessary, easier, or otherwise prudent, such as in the final panel pictured here. I do this mostly to give me more flexibility when reevaluating things like the composition for each page, and to make sure the backgrounds actually work with the much-more-important foreground.

Coming up in part two: Pencilling Like An Idiot

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