Illustrating a graphic novel is a major project.
Graphic novels are a new literary form that are often confused with comic books. Although both mediums utilize comic illustrations and bubble dialogue, graphic novels tell a single story while comic books are serialized. Graphic novels, which often cover social and political narratives, benefit from visual storytelling and the use of symbols to convey powerful situations that are otherwise left to the imagination in a memoir or novel. Illustrations in a graphic novel range from simple line sketches to detailed and colorful artwork.
Instructions
Sketch the Elements of Your Graphic Novel
1. Drawings bring characters and narrative to life.
Sketch each character from your graphic novel. Give each character distinct physical characteristics such as glasses, hairstyle, facial features, clothing styles and scars. Practice drawing several different versions of each character, then draw them with various emotional expressions.
2. Outline the plot of your story. The dialogue and storyline should be complete before you begin illustrating your graphic novel. Use the story outline to determine the scope of your illustrations. Create a sketch of each major plot point listed in the outline.
3. Draw a sketch of each important location from your graphic novel. Bring the environment to life with buildings, plants and animals that embody the mood of your novel. Remember that darkness connotes danger and depression while lightness represents growth, new beginnings and success. Environmental symbolism is a powerful visual storytelling tool.
Draw Thumbnails of each Panel
4. Graphic novel illustrations replace literary narrative.
Decide how many panels you will place on each page. This number does not need to be fixed, but much of the graphic novel will adhere to the number you choose. Many graphic novels have 6-9 panels per page. The size of your panels will be determined by the size of your novel and amount of fine detail you plan to illustrate.
5. Use blank paper to create boxes that represent each panel. If you have chosen to include six panels per page, draw six boxes on each sheet. At the top of each page create a place to note scene and page number. Under each panel leave room to note characters and dialogue references. Make enough photocopies for each page of your novel.
6. Draw a thumbnail version of each panel. A thumbnail is a rough sketch that conveys location, characters present in the panel, and the size of speech bubbles. Do not include fine details; those will be drawn in the illustration phase.
7. Notate characters and dialogue under each thumbnail. Dialogue can be notated by numbering speech bubbles with corresponding dialogue lines. Be sure to number dialogue in your script to match the thumbnails. Dialogue bubbles are read from left to right and top to bottom. Sketch your characters and speech bubbles on each panel according to this convention and don't allow the tails of dialogue bubbles to cross.
8. Consider the amount of space that dialogue will consume in each panel. Limit speech bubbles to one or two short sentences. Dialogue may need to be adjusted. Narrative can also be added to a panel; this is denoted either through a rectangular box or font written directly onto the panel.
Illustrate Each Panel
9. Illustrations convey mood, action, emotion and environment.
Mark your multimedia hardboard with measurements for an 8 1/2- by 11-inch sheet of vellum. These measurements will help you maintain perspective and ratio while you illustrate each panel. Tape a sheet of vellum to the hardboard.
10. Illustrate each page to fill an entire sheet of vellum. Be sure that your panel boxes are carefully measured and drawn prior to illustrating. The first stage of illustration is drawn with a mechanical pencil. Don't be afraid to erase mistakes or start over.
11. Complete your illustration with pen and ink. Use micron pens and felt tips for fine lines and use cartooning ink for thick lines. Denote negative spaces (black areas) with an X. The black area will be filled in Photoshop.
12. Leave space for speech bubbles, but don't pen them in unless they are accent words like "BOOM!" Dialogue and speech bubbles can be added with Photoshop to save time and create flexibility with font styles.
13. Scan your completed illustrations into high resolution Photoshop files. Manipulate your illustrations, add speech bubbles, dialogue and narrative, and add color if desired. Print your graphic novel at home, or pay a self-publishing service to bind your novel for you.
