Things You'll Need:
- #2 pencil
- black ink, marker, felt tip pens
- color paint or felt tip pens
- opaque white paint
- drawing paper
- cartoon section of a newspaper
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Step 1
Measure out the strip. You'll want to use as many panels as it takes to tell the story. If you want to draw for a newspaper, measure the existing comic strips for an example of size. To enlarge your drawing space, measure on the diagonal to a greater size without losing the dimensions.
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Step 2
Divide the strip into panels. Using a pencil, you can draw each box neatly with a ruler. The usual margin between panels is one-forth inch.
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Step 3
Sketch a rough copy or storyboard. On a separate piece of paper, you'll need to draw the cartoon to see how it'll play out in your comic strip. Determine how many panels you need. Since speech and thought bubbles go in the top third of each panel, you'll need to see if you can draw your characters and scenery in the bottom two-thirds.
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Step 4
Transfer the cartoon onto measured paper. Redo your rough sketch onto the paper you measured. Be certain your lines won't fade or break up when the comic strip is reduced to the newspaper's size.
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Step 5
Ink in lettering, balloons and borders. When the ink has dried, erase your pencil drawing with a kneaded rubber eraser. You'll want to use a marker to fill in the black areas of your cartoon.
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Step 6
Paint cartoon. After the black marker dries, you can paint the remaining panels with color.
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Step 7
Reduce the comic strip. Using a photocopier, you are ready to reduce your cartoon panels to the newspaper's size you originally measured. You may want to tape it over a cartoon in the paper to see how your comic strip compares.
