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I usually refer to both how to draw books and various manga series.

one particular how to draw book that might help you is called "Manga for the Beginner" by Christopher Hart.

here's a link to assist you
http://www.randomhouse.com/crown/catalog/index.php?page=1&view=&sort=pub_date&title_subtitle_auth_isbn=manga+for+the+beginner

have fun drawing

Friendly Dabbler

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I go to a place called "Blick's". It's a bit expensive, but they have alot things that you might/want.

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The key too good art supplies is knowing how to use them.
Now. I preffer medium weight multimedia sketch papaer for my comics because I like to use many medias rather than just one.
Try Hobby Lobby or a local art store for the supplies.
I use, and recommend; .3 or .5 Steadler pencil and erasers, Prismacolor color pencils, Prismacolor outlining pens(The set that has .005 .03 .05 and B), Copiic Markers, Standered white ink pen, and of course medium or heavy weight Multimedia paper.

Now. It doesnt matter how good your supplies are if you cant draw or dont know how to use the supplies. So dont be dissapointed if you get the supplies and your art isnt immediately amazing. Just remember art takes time. And everyone has their preffrences in supplies.

For example. I'm in a Advanced art class. I preffer Copiic Markers for my final assignments with a white ink pen and the girl next to me preffers Prisma markers with white out. The guy across from me hates markers and can ONLY use crayola pencils and crayons and good art supplies are useless to him.

So just remember evryone is diffrent and just do your best! biggrin

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generally what kind of pen would work best when it comes to sketching?

gel or ink?

where i am, everything is SERIOUSLY and RIDICULOUSLY expensive.
i need tools which are effective but i dont know which would really work.
Honestly, just buy one of each and see which works best for you, it's an entirely personal thing.

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Ink works best for sketching because it doesnt run and is harder to smear than gel. I sugest Prisma or Micron. Prisma runs less but costs a penny more.
If you're sketching and on a tight budget, try just using any old ballpoint pen.

Invisible Conventioneer

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well I get my supplys & Kinokuniya Book Store mainly also at art supply shops like Pearls. But you could also get them @ Amazon or any of the other online manga supply stores.. but if you search using japanese then you may find even better deals & selection. sweatdrop

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(Just wanna toss my two cents in.) I just finished a manga for the final project of my Bachelor's Degree, and the biggest thing I can suggest is: GET MANGA STUDIO! Especially if you want to do the traditional screentoning style.

I tried for years to find manual screentones that you lay over your artwork and found out they no longer sell them anywhere outside of Japan, and they're incredibly expensive. Next, I tried using Photoshop to mimic the effects of screentones, but ran into difficulties with moire patterns and it was just so much hassle. Also, putting the book itself together in InDesign was difficult.

With a tablet and Manga Studio, I was able to complete projects quickly and well, and the learning curve was easy with the help of the site Pencilkiller.com (Holy cow, I sound like a Manga Studio salesperson... eek ) Get the real version, not the demo. If you're a student, you can get it half-off if you delve into their website.

Aaanyway- I personally do most of the work manually before transferring it into Manga Studio. I'm lazy, but I find that a regular mechanical pencil and computer paper works just fine for designing and drawing. I recommend Micron pens for inking. (Sharpies for the large black areas.) If you can wield a brush well, Higgins ink is relatively cheap and works fine, but don't paint over it with watercolor.

Design the pages in small thumbnails, about 2 inches, in the correct format. I suggest drawing them actual size so you know if it's too busy, but always ink at at least 150%, 200's better.

Good luck, and I hope this was helpful. Please don't repeat the mistakes I made!!




If you wanna see my work,
My Deviantart and
My Website

Dapper Shapeshifter

Pieprsn2 the avenger
The tools you use don't make the manga look good. It's the skill behind the tools that does the trick.

I think that most professional manga artists these days use an online art tablet and photoshop. A tablet is very expensive, and the prices depend on the size of the tablet. To be honest, though, from the way you're presenting yourself, I doubt you'll want to invest in a tablet. If I were you, I would just focus on learning how to draw and create comics, and THEN, after you finally decide that you want to be more than an average wannabe mangaka, start investing into some tools that you would like.

Art is hard. Art is VERY hard. Comics are even harder. Be sure you're really willing to commit yourself before going out and buying ridiculously expensive tools.

Seriously. SERIOUSLY.


a agree with above.

But if you want authentic supplies, I suggest buying from Akadot.com. They're cheap and you pay in USD.

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