Pencils & Stories

The course is designed for everyone who wants to make comics. Who want to know more about the process of making them, or for who want to try it out and see if it’s for them. A lot of artists are waiting for the “right time” to start making comics. A lot of them never start. Or they don’t know where to begin. The course aims to show you that making comics doesn’t need to be a gigantic, tough process. Or something only reserved for “Really Good Artists.” Everyone can make comics.

For following the lessons you will need a stable internet connection that can stream video, a microphone and camera so you can interact during the lessons. You can follow the lessons on your phone of tablet as well. We will use a program called Zoom for live lessons. For making your comic you can have something as simple as pen/pencil and paper. I do recommend a stack of paper, post it notes and a black pen (fineliner, small marker) to start out with. For your final comic, find materials and tools you are comfortable using, but also don’t go out and buy all kinds of expensive tools and materials. You can use what you have. If you decide during the course that you want to make your comic with a specific kind of tool you can go out and buy it then.

Yes, every lesson will be recorded and uploaded into Thinkific for you to watch if you can’t make it to one of the lessons (though attending the lessons is encouraged of course). Only your current class can see these videos. Downloads will not be available.

The course will run for ten weeks. Every week is focused on one step in the comic making process: from ideas to writing to drawing. We will also talk about what your goals for your comic are and how you can put it out into the world.

We will have weekly lessons of approximately 3 hours with info about comic making, in-lesson assignments and room for questions and discussion. Apart from the lessons you will make a short comic in your free time. The amount of time you put in depends on what you want your comic to look like and how much time you have for it. The more time you have, the more elaborate you can make your comic. But even if you have a limited amount of time, you can still make a simple comic. I’d recommend to have at least 2,5 to 3 extra hours a week you can set aside for your comic. You might need a little more or a little less, depending on the lessons and the decisions you make about your comic’s style. A big part of the course is dedicated to figuring out how much time you are able to spend on comics. So we’re flexible in that.

We will be doing explorative assignments in the class. In your free time you will make your comic. You will have an actionable step every week that helps you get closer to that finished product.

The course will start May 19th. It will will probably be taught in my evenings (I’m in Europe) as that usually works out best for most people worldwide. This means morning or noon/early afternoon in the U.S.A. on the same day. And early morning of the next day in Australia/New Zealand. I think Saturdays will be the best day, but if the main consensus is a Friday that can be a possibility too. We will look at the best time for everyone/most students when the class is final.