I’ve been using pen and paper to make comics for as long as I’ve lived. From copying the comic books I grew up with, to making webcomics as an adult, I’ve always felt comfortable with traditional art tools. The early days of digital art felt too disconnected to me, too distant from the creation of the image itself. The feeling of being close to the paper, with the friction of the pen tip as it moved, made me feel close to whatever I was creating.
Digital art has come a long way since those early days, and more and more I felt its siren call beckoning me to try its new tools and fancy toys. I finally caved in and, thanks to combined generosity of my family over the holidays, I was able to acquire an iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil, and downloaded Procreate to make digital comics.
As someone who’s only used pen and paper for forty years, the tools of digital art are so advanced and incredible that it feels like I’m cheating. It’s wizardry.
Today’s update is the first Dominic Deegan-related comic that was created one hundred percent digitally. Please bear with me while I learn how to better use the tools at my disposal, but so far, even with my limited experience, I’m extremely happy with how the comics are going to look.
I needed to wait until digital art felt as close to physical art as it does now. I’ll never fully give up pen and paper, but this is a good step to streamlining my process. And besides, change can be healthy.