So How's it Done?

I think every webcomicer makes their comics in a different way. I know that in preparation for making Deck of Fools I read a lot of tutorials and advice from various other artists, and not just the best ones either. It's always useful to find out how something you don't like was made so that you can avoid making the same mistakes.

I'll leave it up to you to decide whether I'm producing something to emulate or avoid, but here's my process.

First I start with the script, I've got a rough script of the first four chapters written out that I detail as it gets closer to drawing time. For example: before I started the prologue I had fully scripted and named the pages as well as including some brief stage directions. I had chapter one sectioned out into pages and named, and I had detailed outlines of chapter two and three. I've also got bare bones scripts for four and five in development.

My next step is to make some thumbnails, I do these in my shetchbook. I usually do thumbnails for a few pages at once, it helps me get an idea of how they'll flow together when they're done. I'll then take my thubnails of my upcoming page and make the proper one.

The real page is made on 11" x 14" smooth bristol paper. I've got a tsquare that I use to measure out approximately 1"borders all around, and a triangle for the straight lines inside the page themselves. I'll also sometimes make use of a protractor, though I've got some other tools those are all that I've used so far. I pencil my lines with .7mm HB mechanical pencils (oh I know, I'm a bad girl), and I use one of those white erasers if I have to make corrections.

When the page is finished I'll scan it into photoshop in sections then create a photomerge to give me back my full page.

The next step is to merge all visible layers, change the mode to grayscale, then adjust the levels until I get the lines I like.

I've got a pre-made template that I use for the background and titles, so I duplicate my page layer into this template. From here on it gets a bit more complex, but I basically color in my blacks and shade the shadows and highlights.

Last but not least I put in my speach bubbles. I've learned that it's much easier to fit the bubble around the type than it is to fit the type into the bubble, so I put my letters down first. I make the bubbles themselves using the paths functions.

Then I resize my image, save for web and devices, ftp the comic to the site and wait for it to update! Not quite easy as pie, but it's a lot of fun.