My Comic Page Process
Just thought that I’d show a bit of the process I go through with a typical comic page I work on.
Most often than not, I write my own stories. Usually, once I have an idea (and after I’ve talked it through with a couple of people), I write up a “full-script” - this basically means that I plan out every page in advance and generally have an idea of what all the illustrations within the panels will show and what dialogue will be used. Generally, when I write a script I let it be guided by dialogue (which quite surprisingly is probably my favourite part of the writing process). Some comic creators prefer to work in the style popularised by Stan Lee, called “the Marvel Method.” This is when a writer gives an artist a brief overview of the plot and plans out key story-beats, and just allows the artist to illustrate it however they want. I don’t often write in this style personally, as I prefer having the script prepped in advance. However, whenever I collaborate with another writer, I actually prefer Marvel Method to full-script, as it allows me to maintain more influence in the storytelling and keep my interest.
This is an example of the full-script method I work in. Each panel is clearly set out, and is described in enough detail. I will often include links to references, as well as a reminder of which side the page I’m writing will be on.
Even though I love drawing, I rarely have any definitive idea what the panels will wind up looking like at this point. While this may be confusing, I generally find it liberating, as I get the freedom to experiment with layouts and ideas for each panel, rather than feeling inclined to only try one idea that may not even work out. Of course, this only makes it all the more rewarding and motivating when I come up with a layout I want to tackle and knock it out of the park.
Once the script is done, I begin drawing. The avenue this takes usually varies depending on my mood. Even though I’m mainly a digital artist, I like to use a sketchbook and a mechanical pencil to block out some pages that I think may need more thought. Using a sketchbook also helps me to loosen up and be pretty rough with my planning out, as even after doing several projects completely digitally, I’m quite precious with making my digital linework look ‘clean.’
For this comic page, I decided to begin by sketching out a few thumbnail layout ideas. This is just to let me figure out how all the panels will fit together on the page. This isn’t typically a part of the process I spend too long on, as I don’t want to get too committed to one design. After this, I start doing sketches for specific panels. These weren’t on the same page and spanned a few days between me continuing writing my script. Most of the time when I draw in my sketchbook, I focus on the main elements for my work - in particular the human characters. This allows me to break down the framing and anatomy of the characters prior to starting to produce the work digitally.
A page from my sketchbook planning out one of the panels described in the script above.
At this stage I start doing my digital work. I used to primarily use the art software Clip Studio Paint with my Huion graphics tablet, but for about two years now, I’ve been using Procreate on my iPad Pro. This suits my drawing habits a lot more as it grants me more mobility and freedom to draw wherever I want, rather than being stuck at a desk for hours on end.
On Procreate, the first thing I do is create my canvas. For this project, I’m planning to have it printed at B5 size, and I tack on an extra 6mm on both width and height to create a 3mm bleed around the page. I then mark out said 3mm bleed around the page, as a reminder not to draw any vital information around there that could be cut off during printing and binding.
After this, I create my panel layouts within a working area 3mm inwards from the bleed (again this is to ensure that all vital information including art and dialogue doesn’t get cut out later).
At this point, I use a low opacity layer to add any reference (from images I’ve found online that are similar to what I want to convey to pages from my sketchbook). In another low opacity layer, I block in rough figures/elements to give me a more clear digital sketch to follow, as opposed to lower-resolution photographs. The roughs are usually done in different colours, so I can easily delineate the differences. For this page, I generally tackled each panel individually, instead of sketching all panel roughs together.
Following the roughs, I start do clean digital inks. While in traditional comics production this would be when artists pencil, I jump straight to my final linework. I add spot blacks and use a low opacity layer to add general indications of shading/lighting. For panels that require it, I’ll use texture/pattern brushes if relevant - for example, I used a white brush and the selection tool to add a rain effect to the panels on this page.
Eventually, all the panels are drawn. At this point, I look back at the script and double-check that there is enough room in each panel for the relevant speech bubbles or caption boxes. On a new layer, I make a quick indication of where these bubbles will go. Again, as I’m also being my own writer for this project, I can still make changes to my script at this point (which I frequently do - whether it’s cutting down dialogue to ensure it fits on the page or changing the number of panels on a page to ensure they communicate to the audience effectively and flow well).
At this point, I save the final digital linework as an Adobe Photoshop file (so I can import it into Adobe InDesign for formatting, and save a copy with all my layers onto my OneDrive), as well as a PNG to post on my social media. If I want to add colours to my work, I’ll open the file in Photoshop or on a new Procreate canvas, and go from there. Once I’ve imported the file into InDesign, I will start to add the lettering/speech bubbles. At this point, the page is completed.