Inktober 2019: day 21 - ink and water

She knows she’s supposed to use matches to light the fires.

This is another character who hasn’t really appeared before. You might see her again before the month is over.

Inktober 2019: day 20 - mapping pen

It’s not clear to anyone why Coda attracts so many butterflies.

I went for something simple again because I’m tabling at London MCM this weekend and I’m starting to panic a little bit!

Inktober 2019: day 19 - brush inking and coloured ink

If they fall down without time to prepare, they don’t come out right.

Inktober 2019: day 18 - fineliners and ink wash

Jessie can summon lightning even on a clear day.

I spent a good 20 minutes just staring at my sketchbook drawing a total blank on ideas, so in the end I decided to extend the ‘girls looking straight forward’ set from last year. Maybe I’ll do a few more?

Inktober 2019: day 17 - Pentel pocket brush and felt tips

His whispers blend right in with your own thoughts, until you can’t tell the difference.

Inktober 2019: day 16 - gel pens

Spider starts to feel a bit sick if Nettle spins him around too much.

I don’t think I’ve done this picture in gel pens before? I’ve drawn it every Inktober so far, but I was at work and couldn’t check which inks I had and hadn’t used.

Inktober 2019: days 14 & 15 - ink and water

“Those thus blessed shall ye know by a stain of blood that cleareth not, neither by water nor by milk.”

Something very exciting has been happening this Inktober! I’ve had Meilee and Lin since I was a teenager, but I could never get a bead on who they are or what their story is. Now all of a sudden I’m learning a lot about them! I normally try hard not to do the same thing two days in a row, but I didn’t know about their port wine stains until a couple of days ago, so I drew these two back to back so I could post them as a pair.

Inktober 2019: day 13 - brush inking and ink wash

A character we haven’t really met before! This is ‘Sapling’, the Dai Empress, in extremely casual clothes. This might even be something like pyjamas. She rules a vast empire that spans more than half a galaxy.

I normally try not to use the same inking method two days in a row, but carrying bottles of ink to and from work was making me nervous so I thought I’d better do all the brush inking at the weekend. I did use different brushes though!

Inktober 2019: day 12 - brush inking and coloured ink

The way Nettle’s hair waves around when she uses her powers is a sign of poor control.

I wanted to practice using those rigger brushes a bit more, so I drew something pretty simple. They’re so hard to control! You can get more ink in them at once without losing the fine tip though.

Inktober 2019: day 11 - fineliners and grey pens

He can’t speak, they cut out his voice.

I don’t like these grey pens as much as I used to, I don’t know if I’ve gone off this style in general or if I need to find a new brand of pen.

Inktober 2019: day 10 - G-pen

Sweetpea is trying on a new hat, but I don’t think it’s going to stay on over his hair. Maybe he’ll have better luck once the other ear frill drops.

I promise I drew this on the day, I just ran out of time and/or energy to scan it! I keep coming up with ideas that I know will take too long, but then I can’t bring myself to go with a weaker idea so I end up having to finish it at night. I know Sweetpea well enough that I didn't have to think too hard about this one, but there is a certain irreducible length of time it takes to do all that cross-hatching.

(If you know your nuts and seeds you can work out how big he is by that hat.)

Inktober 2019: day 9 - dip pen and ink wash

The Mirror Twins have spotted a potential new friend.

I’m getting really tired so I tried to keep this one simple, but it actually took longer than yesterday’s picture!

Inktober 2019: day 8 - fineliners

If you tell her to wait, she’ll wait.

I was going to shade this with grey pens, but I decided on a whim to try doing just clean line art instead. I’m quite pleased with it?

Inktober 2019: day 7 - ink and water

Nettle is not renowned for her masterful control of her temper.

I wanted to have another go at blending only part of the picture like on day 1, but it didn’t work quite as well this time, it came out too dark and flat. In hindsight maybe spot colour would have been better, but hey ho this is how we learn.

Inktober 2019: day 6 - brush inking and coloured ink

One foot in front of the other, repeat as necessary.

I inked this with some rigger brushes that I’ve never been brave enough to use before, they have minds of their own!

Inktober 2019: day 5 - dip pen and liquid ink

Isaac doesn't always know how to pass the time at night

I had the idea for this one a few days ago, but had to save it for the weekend because I knew I wouldn't have enough time on a workday. In hindsight I could have pushed the lighting even more, maybe I'll give it another go later in the month.

This is also a turnip pen instead of my normal mapping pen. I've been having trouble finding replacement mapping nibs (although I've finally tracked down some that I like) so I've built up a small collection of alternatives.

Inktober 2019: day 4 - Pentel pocket brush and ink wash

Lottie wears her hair over that eye for a reason.

This one snuck past my 90-minute time limit, I'm not as quick with the brush pen as I thought!

Inktober 2019: day 3 - Fountain Pentel

Divination can be done with almost anything if you know how. Aichmomancy would normally be done with a knife or a spear, but a sharpened pencil will do.

I stayed within my time limit today, this one took almost exactly one hour. I'm already developing a much better grasp of how long it actually takes me to do something.

Inktober 2019: day 2 - gel pens (and a brush pen)

Louise and her foster parents are not the only creatures that live in her house.

My 90-minute time limit fell apart already! I could only get the lineart and the spot black done in that time, so I've been frantically crosshatching in odd moments throughout the day. I'm very pleased with it though!

Inktober 2019: day 1 - ink and water

Spider often 'falls asleep' in lessons, but he isn't always sleeping.

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It's finally time for my favourite art challenge of the year, Inktober! I've started doing cover pages in my sketchbooks since last year, so I did one in preparation yesterday. I also go a full-time job since last Inktober, so this year will be a real test of my skills. I'll have to do each piece in the 90 minutes I can squeeze in before work, how is this going to turn out?

I'm never sure if people know what I mean by 'ink and water' - it's a drawing in water-soluble ink which I then move around with water. I've never tried to do it on only part of the picture before, how does it look?