I wanted to start by saying how much I've appreciated you adding verses to each of your posts. It's so uplifting to see those and look them up to find a very encouraging word.
How do you pick what verses to add to the end of each post?
Also what is your general comic-making process?
I loved you Carving Contest comic, and the bonus comic for it! It's all so well done! The art style is adorable and the story is so emotional and heartfelt!
Hi!!!!!! I'm doing good!! :D
Thank you, that makes me really happy!!
I reread the Bible regularly, the New Testament most often, so I tend to write down verses that stand out to me as I go. I like to pick verses that are good for instructing or encouraging believers. "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness," (2 Timothy 3:16, ESV), but you know some verses are more applicable than others, like Jesus' teachings and parables or Paul's letters which were specifically written to instruct Gentile Christians. Intended audience is always important to keep in mind when picking a verse because you don't want to take one out of context and apply it where it shouldn't be (for example, Jeremiah 1:5 was intended for Jeremiah only, not every Christian who reads it). The Psalms and Proverbs are also a good place to pick from because they're about praising God and general wisdom respectively.
Ooooh, comic process!!! I got you.
First, I give you a thumbnail:
Thumbnails are your best friend. They will make or break the process. Your drawings can be as simple as stick figures but figuring out what the environment/background looks like, where characters are placed in said environment, and how the reader's eyes will travel through the page will still take some work. You can always refine more later but you should know what dialogue will be included (if you have dialogue). Placing your speech down first and building around is going to help you so much in the long run. Don't let your words be an afterthought.
This is just a one page example, but if you're doing multiple, there are a few rules to follow. First, introduce the setting. You should have a big panel showing where the characters are every time you start a comic or change a scene. Second, work out how many panels your page needs. A good rule of thumb for comics is 5-7 panels per page (though I have seen some manga with 7-9 panels per page), so feel free to experiment but don't overwhelm yourself or your readers. Clarity over creativity. Third, your last panel should have some kind of hook that makes the readers want to see the next page; this can be a question, a strange noise a character hears, something lurking in the shadows behind the characters, etc.
Thumbnails are going to take the most of your mental energy. They can be very tiring to make because you're basically trying to plan everything you have to do, but they're very helpful. I know it's boring, but it's a good idea to thumbnail pretty far ahead of where you're at. Some would recommend you thumbnail the whole comic before you even try to ink or color anything.
I, however, need to see some progress to feel happy, so I recommend you try to stay around five pages ahead with your thumbnails before you start inking. Or if you're doing a multi chapter comic, thumbnail a whole chapter before you start doing the rest of the process.
Anyways, next I like to make the panels and then ink:
We all know how this works. We're getting into normal drawing territory now. Since you've already done your planning, you can take it easy.
Next would be coloring, which I didn't really do for this example. I tend to do speech bubbles after coloring, but they can be done whenever. Lastly, shading/rendering or any other special effects you want to add (although I want to say: doing more details does add a lot more time to your process, which can build up in the long run. There are some incredible comics out there with just flat colors so I would take the easier road and simplify your style slightly or skip rendering all together):
And that's my process! I tried to be concise, I don't know how well I succeeded though.
Thank you so so so much btw. That's really really sweet and it means a lot!!!! I'm really really happy you liked my comic!!! :DDD
God bless you too!!!! <3333
