The Cartoonist Workbook

Cartooning is a unique form of storytelling that, using both art and text, is imbued with the cartoonist's unique sense of humor and perspective, often conveyed in a few words and brushstrokes or lines. In The Cartoonist's Workbook, Robin Hall demonstrates basic techniques and offers insightful guidelines and shortcuts that will help both novices and experts sharpen their skills. By using Robin's "keyhole method" almost anyone can create great cartoons, even those with no previous experience. Hall begins by showing how to draft Keyhole Ken from all angles and in a variety of posts and costumes. Then he explains how to vary facial expressions, convey special effects with movement lines, and how to turn any character into a finished cartoon. Once you've mastered Keyhole Ken, you'll be ready to move on to more advanced techniques such as composition, creating storyboards, developing a personal style, and using color that will help bring your drawings to an even more professional level. Robin's ultimate goal is to teach you all the skills you'll need to be able to draw any image you can think of without referring to other source books. To do this, Robin will show you how to visualize an image in your head-before you put pencil to paper. Jokes and gags are often elements in cartooning, and you'll find lots of professional tips and advice to help stimulate your imagination and sharpen your skills. You'll begin with simple exercises: composing humorous captions for magazine illustrations, drawing cartoons for friends and family on letters or notes, and creating cartoon strips using a variety of gags. Complete with advice on presenting and selling your work, The Cartoonist's Workbook is a one-of-a-kind reference that's also fun to use.