I must show off...

[Derrick Fish]

While my strip has been 100% digital being drawn in Photoshop with my Wacom tablet since I started it in '01, I've been slowly but surely practicing more and more with good ol' ink on paper for a few months now.

Artistically, I've never had the patience or steady hand needed for that wonderfully smooth Jeff Smith/Walt Kelly brush line I dream about, but I've been using Faber Castell Brush pens and they have a wonderfully sharp point that keeps it's shape a good while longer than a Micron brush pen with blacker ink. It also has a kind of a denser, thicker tip that helps me control the pressure easier.

My hands have always shaken a little bit since I was a kid and I draw mostly with my fingers more than my whole hand or wrist, so it's a bit harder to control a real brush and have it look nice in the time I'd like to spend per piece.

Of course, the REASON I'm mentioning any of this is that because of my process, I'll never see one of my strips displayed like that. Man, it makes me seriously consider changing techniques.

[Rooster]

Yeah, the Faber Castells are the deal dude!

They're not meant to be refillable, but just take that spongey stuff out from inside when they're dry and soak them in a pot of indian ink. Works awesomly

[VenM2]

Just wanted to mention here that my newest strip (http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/2236/poster2cs7.jpg) uses old fashioned ink and brush. However in the un-enhanced original there is a big problem. My ink grays real easily. It is not black enough to make a pure black line on the first go. I'm guessing the ink I use has more water in it than it should be. After all, this ink was meant to be used for ink and wash works like this: http://vengencemkii.deviantart.com/art/ ... e-54647537

If you want to go brush and dip ink, be sure to get the right kinds unlike me.

[Priest_Revan]

I don't think I'm up for switching from an Calligraphy pen to a brush.

But I gotta give it D.C.S., his advice on using bristol board was genius. My comics haven't ever been so clean.

[Steve the Pocket]

Just wanted to mention here that my newest strip (http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/2236/poster2cs7.jpg) uses old fashioned ink and brush. However in the un-enhanced original there is a big problem. My ink grays real easily. It is not black enough to make a pure black line on the first go. I'm guessing the ink I use has more water in it than it should be.

Are you dipping solely into the ink, or double-dipping with a jar of water? Because I find I have to do the latter to keep the lines nice and smooth, but it does gray them a fair bit.

Either way, some amount of graying out is expected, if the scans in Calvin and Hobbes: Sunday Pages 1985-1995 are any indication. But comics were intended for reproduction, which usually minimizes those kinds of problems if you do it right. And from the look of your comic, you more or less did.

Here's another tip though: scan it at high-res, like 600 dpi, as "monochrome" (after previewing and adjusting the lighting levels to your satisfaction) and then convert to grayscale and scale it down to the size you want afterwards. That tends to take care of the grayness.

[Rooster]

I don't think I'm up for switching from an Calligraphy pen to a brush.

But I gotta give it D.C.S., his advice on using bristol board was genius. My comics haven't ever been so clean.

Bristol Broad is weeeeeeelll too expensive for me. I'll stick to my WHSmith Sketch Pad...I mean, it's 135gsm, that ink ain't going nowhere

[Tom Flapwell]

Speaking of your art, Rooster... what's that word that looks like "foreit"?

[Zaaphod]

I imagine that's supposed to be "forfeit."

[Tom Flapwell]

I thought of that, but "do her forfeit" is an unfamiliar expression to me. Must be British.

[dcsimpson]

Are you dipping solely into the ink, or double-dipping with a jar of water? Because I find I have to do the latter to keep the lines nice and smooth, but it does gray them a fair bit.

I imagine it would, yes.

It seems to me that if that's happening, you should buy different ink. What kind of ink are you using?

[Rooster]

Yeah, India Ink shouldn't grey unless you really welly in the water.

[dcsimpson]

Of course, the REASON I'm mentioning any of this is that because of my process, I'll never see one of my strips displayed like that. Man, it makes me seriously consider changing techniques.

That's the downside to working so deep in digital media.

The up side, though, is that on your web site, people are seeing your work exactly as it is. You don't have to worry that some of the work's integrity is lost in scanning or resizing (maybe resizing--I'm not sure how you work). There's less of a distance, if you like, between the creation and the audience.

Everything's a kind of tradeoff.

[Derrick Fish]

Ahh, tradeoffs. My FAVORIE tradeoff is when I tell people that I draw the strip digitally and then get to hear wonderful affermations such as: "So, the computer makes your comic?" *sigh*.

At conventions, I used to bring my laptop and a second monitor to point out from the table so I could work on strips live and people could watch me draw them. It was always a good attention getter at shows but I got SOOO tired of answering techincal questions about how much my tablet cost or which program I used to make my strip, But enough whining from ME.

I do draw the strips at about 11" across in hi res so I can print them with greater detail, not too dissimilarly to how I would work on paper for a strip or comic page.

If you don't mind me asking, how large are your originals and how long would you say (on average) does it take to draw a strip for you?

[Chris]

If you don't mind me asking, how large are your originals

The originals of daily strips are 15 inches wide by 4 1/2 inches high, with an inch or so of white border space around them.

how long would you say (on average) does it take to draw a strip for you?

Q: How long does it take you to draw a strip?

A: It varies, but usually between an hour and a half, and two and a half hours. It depends on whether I'm drawing characters, backgrounds or poses I don't usually draw; very familiar and static drawings take a lot less time.

Sunday strips, between the larger artwork and the detailed coloring, take me as much as six or seven hours all told, which is part of why I don't do them very often anymore.

[Derrick Fish]

Ahh... thanks. I guess I was kinda typing stream-of-conciousness and I didn't even THINK of checking the FAQ. D'oh!