Comic book artists today need an excellent degree of design and art skills to compete with other artists. Gone are the days of simple outline drawings that resemble silhouettes. To cut it; as an artist, you will need to build an excellent portfolio of your work and an action plan, because you are not going to be discovered easily without them. The likes of DC and Marvel publishers are looking for gifted artists with a resume to prove it! However you do have other options.

If your skill is of a high standard and you have confidence in your work why not volunteer with a comic book publishing house. This is probably my most important advice. You will be in a commercial environment and will be working with talented individuals who can help you. Without an immaculate Portfolio you are going to struggle finding an interested employer let alone volunteering. Concentrate on your Portfolio and use examples of your work that really show off your skills. Your Portfolio should showcase your range of skills to the employer this is important even when looking for volunteering positions. Your selling yourself so be confident.

When you have a website up and running with your comic book art you can contact comic book publishers and direct them to your website. Join forums to do with art, and leave interesting posts, and make sure you have a signature at the bottom of each post with a link to your website. This is very important as professional comic book artists will find your post eventually and will have your website link at the bottom. Go to Conventions and network with Publishers. At first just introduce yourself and make small talk, and mention that you have your portfolio with you, you should have no problem making professional relationships this way, although make sure you are prepared in advance.

Tags : Artists, Comic Book, Publishing House

Learning how to draw funny cartoons can be a fun hobby. If you really enjoy it, and are good at it, you could even get paid for your creativity. But before you even pick up the pencil to begin drawing, you need to think about your character, or characters.

First, you need to determine what you want to express through your character, and the message that you want them to convey. You need to create a life history, or a biography of your character, or characters, as you will usually have more than one character in each caption. This will make it easier to draw them with the right attributes and qualities. It will also make it easier to draw them in new, future situations, should they be a continuing, or main character.

Next, you need to decide on their physical characteristics: are they, fat or thin, attractive or weird looking, short or tall, young or old, male, female, an animal, or some other creature. Then you need to decide on their personality traits: are they, dramatic, serious, happy-go-lucky, sad, suave, or stupid. Next is their social life, and how they interact with others: are they, grumpy, loving, optimistic, pessimistic, friendly, or rude. If you find yourself blocked, just look at the people around you on the street, and in the store. Notice what makes the cashier unique, or your dentist, or neighbor. Inspiration can come from anywhere.

Finally, you are ready to draw. You should begin with the head and the eyes. The eyes are what helps to instantly give the character life and personality, and can instantly create a mood, telling you what the character is thinking and feeling. You then draw the body, and fill in the background.

Tags : Drawing, Funny Cartoons, Learning