A look into my Comic Process - [Page 9]

At the request of someone on the discord server, I've decided to show you all the process of what goes into making my pages~

This is also a reminder about the existence of the discord server! If your patreon account is linked to your discord, the discord bot will automatically send you a server invite. We post memes and talk waifus there, so, come on and join us~

Anyway, back to the post:

My comics professor likes to say that planning is half the work of making comics. I like to think that he know what he's talking about since he's published like 21 books worth of the stuff. So, that's what I like to do. Before everything else: 

Step 0: Pre-Planning -  You have to have a written script on the direction of the comic, for good flow and paneling purposes. For this comic, I'm always scripted at least 5 pages in advance of the currently published page. My professor would kick my ass if he knew I was that lax with the pre-planning, though. Good practice would be to have the whole thing/chapter fully scripted before starting, but I'm still looking for more kinky exhibitionism tropes I can incorporate into this comic, so I use that as an excuse. 

Step 1: Planning/Rough Blocking - at this stage, I convert my written script into a really rough blocking sketch to visualize the flow of the page. This step is tiny. It's on a post-it note. This stage really helps in establishing easy panel flow for the reader's eyes. It also lets me get a grasp how big I want to draw the characters, where to put text boxes, and which panels to go ham on with the draftsmanship.

Step 2: Sketching - This step is where I finalize the paneling, and set up the anatomical models for the page. I'll tell y'all a secret: I use 3D models to pose my hands. because fuuuuuuck man, hands are tough to draw. You can see here that I've added more panels to the page. This is because, at this point, I thought that it would help the page flow better if more panels were present to show details in the scene -- as opposed to text being used to narrate the events. This is one of the criticisms I've received from my first comic. I relied on text too much, as a crutch. But now, I'm trying to show, not tell.  P.S. This part is called remnants because I delete or merge layers as I go to conserve RAM on my workstation, and I deleted some of that layer here. UnU

Step 3: Lineart - This step is just drawing over the sketch layer, while trying to be on-model for the characters. I like to use a modified version of the equestria girls look, where their eyes are a little smaller, and their torsos and appendages are proportioned closer to what a human's would be. Protip: If you're illustrating a shot-reverse-shot to show dialogue between to characters, resist the urge to draw just their heads. Cropping characters at their joints (like their neck) makes them look decapitated/amputated. And it barely shows the readers any new information.

Step 4: Base Coloring - This step is the basic coloring for all non-background units in the page. I also deal with things like gradients within colors on this step, which covers things like blushes and stains. 

Step 5: Background and Details - In this step, I add in the generated backgrounds that I've come to love (Thank you ClipStudio~ #NotSponsoredTho #HMU) and I paint over Wallflower's clothes for that delicious transparency we all love. Quick shoutout to this page's big panel's Wallflower armpit. That part turned out really nice, and I'd hate it if people missed that particular part. I also add the sweat drops, cum trails, and the respective highlights in this stage.

Step 6: Background color and tone - In this step, I color in the backgrounds, and add mood tones to the empty backgrounds. The advantage of a colored media is that you can convey big moods with just the color of the backgrounds, even though there's basically nothing there~

Step 7: Speech Bubbles - This step was so basic, that I didn't feel the need to up it in. It's really just the text in the bubbles step. XD

If you made it this far in the post, I thank you for reading~ I hope it was informative for you.

I would also like to take this time to apologize for the erratic uploads this month. This month was the first time that I had to do my annual taxes by myself. I wanted no mistakes, so I ended up spending a lot of time on that (and a lot of time in stuffy government offices). On top of that were some personal obligations that I had to fulfill. (Among them was a 21 hour drive, one way, to get to a wedding.  😂 deadass 😂) Thus, my content took a dive for a bit. 

Regardless, I wholeheartedly thank you all for sticking around. You guys are the best~

ilubby

~Pshyzo