10 Things Every Comic Book Artist Needs To Know

 Realistically speaking (or writing) there are things an aspiring comic book artist needs to know before getting themselves into the wonderful yet treacherous world of indie comics.  The sooner you get familiar with these concepts the better off you'll be getting your at career started.  Unfortunately, these are the types of topics many people will be very political about sharing with you an opinion and sometimes they are also shadowed by the local indie comic community.  The reality is you really need to know this.

Skills

True artistic ability.  Don't kid yourself.  Can you draw or is your imagination and optimism setting you up for failure?  This and an enormous ego will seriously restrict your success in the art world.  You need to know.  Don't ask friends or family members...they will by default praise your efforts.  "Wow... did you draw that?  Very nice!"  No.  Go find other comic book artists in the level that you want to aspire to and prepare yourself to get torn up with a critic.  Don't fight it!  Get as much advice as you can and work on it.  Build up your portfolio.  Work on it constantly.  Give yourself about 3 month of hard work before you go for another critic by a different source.  Even if your art is good...keep working on it.  The comic book artist industry is very competitive.

Style

Decide on your art style and specialty.  Sounds silly?  No.  Writers often look for a particular look when they imagine their work as a graphic novel.  Draw and learn from many great comic book artists in order to grow, but in the end you need to have a consistent art style that defines you.  People should look at your art and say "Hey... that's [your name]'s style!  Pretty cool!"  You'll get closer to your personal style the more you draw.  Some artists draw in noir while others choose a light pastel feel to their art.  What ever you choose, stick to it and make it your own.

Job

Choose a position.  Know right off the bat what you want to specialize in: penciling, inking, coloring, letting...whatever you like the best and feel the most comfortable with.  Even if you like being a cover artist, choose one of these mediums as a back up for work.  I don't just mean how to do it well.  I'm talking about the whole sha-bang!  Know your turn around time (the time it takes you to complete a finished page), your page rate (the amount of money you charge per page of work), and have a portfolio of your work handy as a physical binder AND an online gallery.

Networking

The truth about networking is that it is very difficult in the indie comic industry mostly because the industry is filled with distrust, predators, lack of business knowledge or left brain thinking, and many creators are working on their own projects.  I'm not saying that people are shady...just that yeah, people are shady.  But this atmosphere changes from place to place.  I'm just mentioning what I've personally run into and the experiences of some of my peers.  Many artists don't understand the unparalleled power of the collaboration process.  Its a give and take action and a collective force to create a project.  With honesty and true expectations, a great group of individuals can come together and build a comic, agree on a starting fee, and pay everyone off with the fruit of their labor once the comic is published.  The trick is finding reliable people with strong work ethics that are willing to put in the effort into an amazing project that you can get along with and trust.  Simple enough?  You're better off working with a small group or by yourself until you establish a reasonable source of income from your work.  Then they will flock to work with you, but you will then have to review everyone's work before hand.  Not just any Jack or Sally will do.  

Comic Conventions

You need to understand where comic book conventions stand between incredible events of opportunity and total waste of time.

(Continue in Issue #1)     

Marketing: Creating Excitement!

When it comes to creating a comic book story it usually leads to a climatic conflict.  This is the normal set-up with modern comics.  You have to build up the action, the anticipation, the drama for the reader.  And there are so many avenues to take to get that done.  You can use violent battles, seductive encounters, mysterious events, even the death of a main character to lead to heart of the story.  Its these roads that will get you a wider audience when you finally put it out there for the world to read.

No one truly cares about the superpowers or quick reference back ground that you thought up a few days ago.  People want a story, an experience to associate with your character.  From that story the pieces will help create a press release.  You need to dissect parts of the leading action to give hints of the climax without giving away the ending or story altogether.

One popular way is to ask the question.  What if the reader found themselves in a similar predicament?  What if a particular situation arose that forced the reader to make a hard decision?  You have to create that bond between your main character and your audience. Show them your hero's struggle.

Another common way to generate interest is to show-case the action.  Its like the latest superhero movies where they pan right to where the heroes are clashing with the villains for that monumental battle.  Share some of that great art. Give them a tease at what's inside.

Keep the marketing short and concise.  You don't need to give a full explanation of your story up front.  In fact that will deter a lot of your audience because they're going to feel like they just read your comic in a paraphrase.  Just give them what's at stake, what's the conflict?

Don't go on about how Power Man X was created out of a secret government project and his powers are x, y, and z...and how he's the defender of all and so humble but powerful.  I mean com'on, its his first appearance.  How are your readers going to swallow all of that?  People will read it and give you the all too common "Great job!"  and forget about your comic by the time they go to the next article  on Facebook.

Build the anticipation, Power Man X sacrificed everything for superpowers he never wanted.  Now as the city is under siege by giant alien robots, Power Man X must risk his life to save the few people that matter the most to him or lose his humanity and life to the secret organization that created him.  Add some mystery and drama.

Pictures are gold.  Attach pictures of your comic book or action scenes.  You'll get a much better response from your readers.  Aim for color pictures.  Even if your project is in Black and white, try your best to add color to the marketing.  Use the cover or title to give it that spark.

Remember to pace yourself.  Don't just bombard your audience with full-time marketing at all hours of the day or the typical ten postings on Facebook, one on every comic book related page you're on...because people usually are members to several of them just like yourself.  Resist from the Twitter bomb...unleashing multiple tweets at once about your project.      

This is very important when it comes to marketing your comic.  If the reader doesn't establish that interest quickly they will move on to the next one.    

Keeping an Amazing Comic Studio

The studio is where the magic happens.It is the home of the comic artist's inspiration.  Littered with comics, sketchbooks, statues, it is a breeding ground for the imagination.  Each is unique to its owner's style and a destination of pure comic delight. A well organized comic studio will help you be more productive and creative in all of your projects.

The main purpose of your studio is to support your creative endeavors.  It should be a place free from distractions, but full of motivational tools.  Keep in mind that the design of your studio will help you come up with better ideas and lot faster.  Here are some tips to consider when organizing your comic studio:

Your Studio is your research library.  It is your inner sanctum.  You should have a small collection of reference materials that you commonly use during your creative process.  This normally includes comics and graphic novels of your most inspirational artists, books on anatomy, perspective, and other "How to" art books.  I also include books on writing and publishing because its what I do.  Make sure that your collection is customized for you.

Keep you space dedicated.  Not only should this space be free from distractions, but also be completely dedicated to your comic projects.  This space can be a small desk or a full sized room.  The important part is that it is just used for your comic projects. 

If you work on different different media, keep your projects separated.  Have a section for your digital art, another for your acrylic paintings, and perhaps a section for your sketching or traditional drawing.  This way you can accommodate your art supplies in a way that make sense to your productivity.  Staying organized like this will keep you focused.

Have enough art tools out so that you can easily reach for something without losing your train of thought, but not too many supplies that it makes your creative space messy or cluttered.  Boxes and carousels make a great organizing tool for your pencils, pens, markers, brushes, and other supplies. Do not use anything toxic in your studio.  I'm talking about aerosol sprays or heavy paint thinners.  And even if they don't smell it doesn't mean that there aren't any harmful fumes.  You don't want to use that in a space that you're going to be constantly in for hours.

Here is a small list of useful thinks to keep in your studio:

• Trash can
• Adjustable lamp 
• Dry erase and/or cork board
• Computer, laptop, or tablet
• Portfolio
• Art supply bin
• Pencil/pen carousel 

Remember that maintaining an organized work space help keep the imagination flowing.