How to Draw Comics by Ilya, reviewed by Chitra Soundar

I grew up reading comics. Read more about that story here.  So I’ve a fascination with telling stories in that format. When I lived in Singapore, I worked with a local publisher – Asiapac Books, who converted some of my stories embedded within the non-fiction book into comic strips. A sort of dream come true.

Recently with my nephews growing up and wanting to introduce comic books to them, I did two things:

First, I got them a copy of the Akissi digest. It’s one of my favourite series, that’s not dissimilar to the “Jamela” picture books , reviewed here  and the Anna Hibiscus stories reviewed here by Sarah Hammond, but in comic form.

The second step was to buy a How-To Book. The book I landed on was – How to Draw Comics by Ilya, by Michael O’Mara Books. It’s a master class in storytelling through drawings and at the same time, teaching us the grammar of comic books.

The thing I liked about this book was that it started with the basics for someone like me. From terminology to conventions – how do you tell the story, in which order, do you go left to right? Does it need to be funny?

It does get technical as you go further – from which pens, how to use a drawing tablet to how to draw faces, action elements of the story to how to show character.

For me it’s almost like two birds in one stone – I can learn visual storytelling while my nephew and I can together explore how he can learn to create his own comic books.

And if you want something for young kids to start off drawing, try this one too! Written by the amazing Loui Stowell and illustrated by a team of wonderful illustrators, it’s a stepping stone to more complicated stuff and of course half-term fun.

With a full disclaimer on “I can’t draw”, here is my first attempt at a cartoon cat in comic strip form to show you that I'm learning from these books, albeit slowly. 

Oscar the Cat by Chitra Soundar

---

Chitra Soundar is an Indian-born British writer of children's books. She has written over 40 books for children and often visits schools to teach creative writing. Find out more at www.chitrasoundar.com or follow her on Twitter @csoundar.

Return to REVIEWS HOMEPAGE

Step by Step Drawing Book by Fiona Watts / Candice Whatmore, reviewed by Chitra Soundar

When I stumbled on The Step by Step Drawing Book by Fiona Watts, illustrated by Candice Whatmore, published by Usborne Books in a new independent bookshop called Bookasaurus in Melksham, Wiltshire, I thought it would be perfect for my 4 ½ year old nephew who loves to draw.

As I flipped through the pages I realised, it would be perfect for completely novice doodlers like me too. I bought a second copy so I needn't share mine with my nephew.

As a child, I never learnt to draw. But I was always a visual learner and loved illustrated books. One of the reasons I love reading picture books is that a lot can be told in pictures. If there was one thing I’d like to go back and fix if I ever got a time machine would be to learn the skill to draw, doodle, express myself in pictures. For now, I’m learning how to draw a time machine.

Until a few years ago, I never thought I could even attempt drawing. My skills were undeveloped and I knew about 4-5 things I learnt as a child that I could still draw. When my nephew was born and he liked drawing, I decided it was time to learn but this time I had company. I could draw with him. 

My Doodles of Things that go vroom..

I'm proud of this one I learnt to draw from Youtube.

Long story short, I’m still learning to draw and this book is perfect for me. It gives clear and simple instructions that can be followed by an expert 4-year old or a novice 40-year old. It has a selection of animals, people, things that go vroom… and more.

It’s a great book to share as a family and children can definitely get a sense of achievement drawing one thing at a time. And they have a lot of space on each page to practice until they get it right. Once they have learnt something, they can then go ahead and use that knowledge in a wider canvas - use it creatively to tell a story. That for me is a great reason for young people to use this book.

Although this book is part of a series where you can choose to draw lots of dinosaurs or lots of animals or different people, I like this one, which is an assortment of everything.

For an author like me who can’t draw, I’m hoping to practice some nice doodles so I can do them when signing books. So if you're like me and somehow grew into an adult who didn't learn drawing, there is no more any excuse not to learn.

Return to REVIEWS HOMEPAGE