Instructions
- Step 1: Step 1 Doodle before starting. Draw a practice figure or two. It will help give you a feel for your specific equipment.
- TIP: If you’ve not good at drawing, get some instructional books and practice before trying manga.
- Step 2: Step 2 Study some manga and note the differences between it and Western-style comic drawing. You can buy manga at most bookstore chains
- TIP: Study manga in the style you’d like to draw.
- Step 3: Step 3 Manga characters have a wide variety of expressions. Practice drawing eyes, noses, mouths, and entire faces that convey specific emotions. Male faces tend to be angular, and female faces are more rounded.
- TIP: Facial expressions in manga are often different from their western counterparts.
- Step 4: Step 4 Study the bodies. Practice torsos, arms, and legs, then draw a guideline and practice entire characters. Use your kneaded eraser for precision erasing.
- TIP: People’s legs are often longer in manga, which is mainly done in black and white.
- Step 5: Step 5 Add hair, clothing, and other details once you feel you’ve gotten the hang of the basic character. Remember—fabric has folds and creases, and hair moves along with the character.
- Step 6: Step 6 Draw a world for your characters to inhabit. Start off simply—maybe a plain bedroom—and move up to more specific places and settings. Draw as much or as little detail as you think is required.
- Step 7: Step 7 Starting on a new sheet, draw a three- or four-panel manga that tells a very short story – two characters meeting, a boy walking home from school, or maybe a car driving through a city.
- TIP: Panels in manga are read right to left, top to bottom.
- Step 8: Step 8 As with all art, skill comes from practice. Try to draw every day, read books on advanced drawing specifics in the manga style, and take an art class if you can.
- FACT: Manga is a $200 million yearly market in America alone.
You Will Need
- 1.0 Drawing pad
- 1.0 Drawing pencil
- 1.0 Kneaded Eraser
- 1.0 Manga
