HELLOMUFFIN! Extras

Hellomuffin!

Extras, ie. tutorials on how to excrete muffinatives, articles on whatever I'd like to rant about, whenever I decide to write them, and reviews of comics (likewise). Things which don't fit elsewhere, fit here.

Ivy's Three Simple Steps of Creating a Comic:
Hatch it in your brain.
Sketch and ink it on paper.
Tone and letter it on your computer.

The following tutorials are very detailed and covers every little aspect of how things are done. I don't even assume you've heard of Photoshop. But don't worry! These things aren't too complicated.

Follow the anchor to see a short description, or follow the link directly to the article.
Materials (anchor)
Part I: Planning, writing sketching (anchor | article)
Part II: Editing sketch in Photoshop (anchor | article)
Part III: Inking (anchor | article)
Part IV: Editing inks in Photoshop, Backgrounds (anchor | article)
Part V: Lettering (anchor | article)

Traditional materials:
A4 copy paper
A4 drawing paper
Mechanical pencil
Eraser
Long ruler
Black M pen for panel borders
Ink brush pen (example), OR a paint brush (size 1, 2 and 3)
IF paint brush: Black ink
Whiteout
Note: These are the materials I like. Whichever materials you prefer shall work like a dream.

Non-traditional materials:
Reliable computer
Reliable scanner
Color printer
Adobe Photoshop
Note: I only use Photoshop. Other graphics software have overlapping or identical features, but I assume you know your way around your program. Also, scanners work in mysterious ways, but similarly as a rule. I assume you know how to work yours.

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Overview: I say more on the mentality around planning and writing than the actual planning and writing. It's important. With Hellomuffin, planning and writing are done at the same time, and quickly. Other people work differently.

I sketch the strip using a piece of cardboard as a size template. As isn't too common, my comic is vertical. If yours isn't: good. Vertical is the alignment of my choice as it were, and it's okay, but it's a hell of a hassle also.

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Overview: After the sketch is done, I scan and assemble it in Photoshop. I tell Photoshop to turn everything in the sketch into a nice, copy-proof light blue.

Then I put drawing paper in my printer, make sure the sketch is scaled to an A4 width, and I churn out the blue sketch on thick, heavy drawing material.

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Overview: Back in traditional methods I ink the upsized blue printout of the sketch with a paintbrush and black ink. This is the plan: When I re-scan I'll remove the blue lines, neatly leaving the black inks.

This article describes my own method of inking. It's a matter of personal preference rather than a technical method. It's part of the procedure anyhow, and also, if you haven't yet settled on a favourite inking method or choice of material, it can be helpful.

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Overview: After inking is done, I scan the inks and assemble them in Photoshop. I remove the blue lines and optimize the quality of the black lines.

I start adding layers and fill in with backgrounds and patterns. These files will be available for download at the end of the article:

1 pattern pack for Photoshop (.pat file)
19 ZOOM LINES images (.rar file)
15 scans of DELETER screen tones (.rar)
A large pack of assorted screen tones and patters (.rar)

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Overview: Still in Photoshop, I place the text. I draw the bubbles and pointers with the Paths tool.

These sets of fonts will be available for dowload at the end of the article:

Mighty Zeo font family (.zip file)
Futura font family (.rar file)
CreativeBlock font family (.zip)
Midnight Snack font (.ttf)
BigBloke font (.ttf)
ConfuseBox font (.ttf)
Twelve Ton Goldfish font (.ttf)
Manga Temple font family (.zip)
Jugend font (.ttf)
Mutlu Ornamental font (.ttf)