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3. Go, go, go, Johnny B. Good
Last time (on V) we covered who I am, what I do, and just how fab am I anyways. We also covered the first of the three laws. To recap:
1. Be Fast
2. Be Good
3. Be Easy (to work with)
This time, we'll be covering 'Be Good'. Now, I've promised 2000AD Review that this isn't going to be any sort of 'How to draw comics the PJ way' (and since my art style is notoriously quixotic anyways I'm not sure there IS a PJ way). Instead, I'll offer up what being good actually means, in practical terms.
Being a good artist is NOT the same as being a good comic artist
First off, being a good artist is NOT the same as being a good comic artist. It doesn't matter how well you can draw a nekkid woman, how awesome your dragon drawings are or just how fantastically cool that big-ass robot you painted on your jacket is. None of those things are comics.
Being Good is just too damn hard to acheive, because, well, Good is so hard to define. It's different to everybody. What everyone can agree on, and what you should really be concentrating on is good story-telling.
Good drawing and good story-telling, while not mutually exclusive, can often be at odds. For comics, story-telling has to win out.
The pursuit of good drawing can stifle an artist. The need to make a figure look absoloutely perfect, or, even worse, the fear that something on the page will be less than perfect can stop you dead in your tracks. And, of course, nobody and I MEAN NOBODY is so good that they don't see some sort of flaws in their artwork (in fact, if you don't see flaws in your artwork, I'm willing to bet really good money that you're probably pretty damn piss-poor as an artist).
Ignoring that need to make individual parts of the page just right and just getting on with drawing, concentrating on making sure your story telling is good, will, eventually, lead to you being a better artist anyway, without all the tortured 'Why AM I SO CRAP??' emo-self-loathing (I was that soldier).
Nobody can draw a straight line, that's why we invented rulers.
Family or friends, when confronted with artwork drawn by a loved one and asked "What do you think?" will always exclaim "Wow, that's great - I can't draw a straight line!" - this is the most singurlay useless piece of information ever. Nobody can draw a straight line, that's why we invented rulers.
BUT family or friends CAN help if you hold up an unlettered page ask them the right question:
"Can you tell me what's happening in this story?".
Once asked, you've got to study their reaction carefully. They'll never want to say anything negative and will be trying desperately to tell you what they think you want to hear. Which is why they always tell you how great you are as an artist.
You can watch their eyes as they scan the page, moving from one panel to the next. Ask them to tell you what's happening panel to panel - don't give them any hints, let them tell you. If they get it wrong, don't react - let them keep going.
Becoming a good artist is hard. Becoming a good comic artist is easy - just draw comics.
And to close - something for the forum: Name an artist and decide - Great artist or fantastic story teller?
PJ Holden is wondering what the reaction to Dead Signal is going to be... www.pauljholden.com
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