Making Of Disposable Teens

My desk. This workspace is pretty new, but it already has some clutter. I love seeing creative messes. Just so long as it isn't so messy it's difficult to work, I love having piles of paper strewn about the workspace.
Before I begin, I want to make note that the way I draw Disposable Teens is far different than the way I draw my everyday sketches, including My Art Book sketches. The process detailed herein is very time-consuming and somewhat old-fashioned. I see Disposable Teens as an exercise in restraint and a chance for me to put a lot of thinking onto a single page without having to dilute the information.

To begin, the thumbnail of the Disposable Teens strip is drawn on a sheet of computer paper. In this case, the first page of the first issue. This draft gives me an idea what the strip should look and feel like. I basically wrote this one around wanting to draw Naveen in his room, on his bed, ready for another day. The thumbnail contains rough sketch, speech dialogues and better pacing of the story. This one is written just before I begin to lay out the panels.







The comic is drawn really BIG. This is a 19 by 24 inch pad of Bristol paper.

The comic's dimensions are 15 by 15 inches. I also draw a line about a quarter-inch inside the frame for the outermost panel border lines. And strangely enough, this is how I hold a pencil.

Using the very rough thumbnail as a reference, I lay out all the panels first. These are not drafted using exact measurements. I just use the lines on a clear ruler to eyeball it, and save myself some time. This page contains on 3 thumbnail. I picked this page because its simple and eazy to understand.



with pencil


Sanford blue pencil

I use a Sanford Col-Erase blue pencil. NOT the photo-blue, but just standard blue. It feels better to use and is easier to read. For my pencilling, I begin by scribbling rough versions of the images, and then I go back to carve out all the details and solidify the shapes with the blue pencil. I use normal pencil then the Sanford Col-Erase blue pencil.





PIC***





I use a lot of construction lines since I'm still not able to draw good shapes naturally. I have to work for the image every time. In fact, each time I sit down to work on anything, especially Disposable Teens, I feel like I have to teach myself to draw all over again. You may notice that the dialogue is different here than in the final. I usually end up tweaking the awkward dialogue as I get closer to completion, placing stand-in text to just keep myself moving. I also round the corners after I'm about halfway done with the drawings. For some reason, doing the corner-rounding gives me a sense of accomplishment and helps get me pumped to finish the rest of it. It's all about inspiring (or tricking) yourself into getting things done, I suppose...