I know there is probably a thread somewhere in here that has been posted about this topic but i couldnt find it so here i am... One project i am working on atm involves pirates; something i would think that would be helpful in developing these character is having a picture or drawing of what they look like... however i suffer from a sickness known as... i cant draw. So i have been wanting to learn just basic sketching of people, hair, basic outfits, ect... but i dont know where to start. If any of you have any suggestions on where i could find a book or something to that lines it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advanced.
Your local bookstore should have "how to draw" books, but another method, that would be much faster, is to do a google search for images of pirates.
Er, well, a lot of people seem not to understand that art is a skill. They seem to sink you're born with it or something. Like any skill, you get better with art over practice... All I'm saying is if you're not really used to drawing/sketching, then don't expect immediate results, book or not.
You could practice and try to draw it yourself. An alternative is to use one of those "create-a-hero" engines (do a google search) which would work for a basic sketch. If your really serious about it, you could hire someone to do it and just provide some info about what you want the sketch to look like.
This being a writing site, it shouldn't be too surprising when I suggest: Paint the character with words! Write down your descriptions in a way that they build an image in your mind's eye.
I actually like drawing my short story characters. It's fun! I don't really have any books to recommend on drawing, though. But, if you have an idea, go for it!
Although I can draw pretty well, I choose (most of the time) to "draw" the charactar with words. Everytime I read or write, I have a picture in my mind of what the setting and charactars look like. Therefore, when I write, it becomes natural to imagine what the person looks like and I use words to describe it. I don't think it's really necessary to draw the person out (unless you're thoroughly convinced that it'll help), because for me, seeing it (in front of me - on paper) is so much similiar to 'seeing' it in my mind. You can probably google "how to draw people" or something along the lines of that and find a lot of books that'll help you. There are also videos that can teach you how to draw- those are really helpful. Personally, I learned from an art teacher. A side note: I have tried taking photos and trying to use descriptive words to try to descibe how the person looks - just for practice. It didn't work, it lost my attention too quickly. But if I get to make up the person by myself and the person's in the story I'm writing- then it's a lot funner for me to do it.
lol, I usually sketch my main characters. They are usually very horrendous sketches, but it helps me have an idea of how they look. I already know their physical features and attributes, it's simply seeing them on paper helps somehow. I've tried to even MS paint my characters..... didn't turn out too well. It's usually just lazy general sketches, anyway, to give me a general idea.
Do you know of anybody that could do them over the internet? I've been looking for somebody, but most people charge you.
I doubt you'll find anyone good on the internet who will do it for free. Good art is hard and takes days if not weeks of hard work (Depending on the complexity and how much time the artist has). If you want something good you'll probably have to pay. If you really want it badly though I highly suggest Deviant Art. Its a pretty good site for artists online. I've seen people get work done for them by the artists there before.
That was genuinely funny! You might not be able to draw, but you do have a good sense of humor. Sadly, I too suffer from a rather depressing case of icantdrawitus, and I am a very visual person. What I do to combat my malady is simply to trawl the internet for pictures when I run into a dry patch in my writing. There’s a ba-zillion things to find on the internet. Set your filter high on your search engine or you’ll get some unwanted stuff. It works for me p.s. I also suffer from another illness called I am the only person I know who can take a decent picture so all my friends have cracking good photos of themselves but not me because no one I know can take a picture worth a damn…itus. I’m working on a shorter name.
Well at least i know i got one thing going for me... i often ponder how much it would be easier if i could just take the image i have in my head and like scan it on paper.
Deviant art is the great place to go scarecrow and whoever started this thread... unless it was scarecrow.
I understand how hard it is for those who don't have the talent to draw, but seeing that you're interested, then that's enough motivation that'll get you somewhere if you get started on actually practicing drawing. Sketching characters is a beautiful thing to do. I do that with their features and appearances, even their clothes, I draw a few outfits that would fit the scene. I came across a website last week 'mangatutorials.com'... it gives you step by step tips on drawing all features of the body in a simplified manner. Watching 'pirates of the carribean' is also an excellent option if you haven't done that yet. you can also try and print images from the movie's characters and place a paper ontop, then trace it. I know you might think that this won't help you instantly, but with time, you'll notice that your hand gets used to the figure and you can copy it by yourself on a separate paper Good luck
Drawing tips: 1. Get an anatomy book so you know the shape of bones and muscles. 2. Humans are 7.5 to 8 heads tall. That means you figure out the length of the head and make equal points done the page. With an 8 head body, the crotch would be at four. 3. Make a light sketch of the person naked before you add clothes. That will make the clothes seem as if they're resting on a human body. 4. Look at photos of people wearing clothes and see how they fall on the body. 5. When drawing a face, start with the eyes and nose, then shape the face and head. The eyes and nose mean a lot to the look. If you draw too small of a head the crammed in features will look odd, and vice versa. 6. It's good to get magazines, or pictures from the web, and draw those people. These are real people and are like having a live model versus trying to invent how someone looks from your mind. You'll do that better later on.
I didn't start the thread, although I have the same problem. Thanks, I'm going to check out deviantart.
