Inking the New Hotness: Part 1

I've been doing a LOT of inking lately and I think I'm in love with it. A couple of months ago, I  switched over from only using my beloved Pentel Brush Pen to using a tiny brush and a pot of India Ink.

Inking used to be one part of the Comics Process Trinity that I liked okay (because at least the pencilling was over with), but I was always disappointed with the lack of control I felt. Lines that looked so cool in pencil were suddenly ruined by the shaky, fat line that completely surprised me when I drew it on the page.

The smaller brush seems to have made a huge difference in giving me more control in line weight and distribution of ink. It took some adjustment at first to get used to holding a thinner drawing instrument (welcome back, carpal tunnel!), but now I wouldn't have it any other way. I even tried to get slightly larger brushes of the same style - #8 and #10 - but #6 remains my jam.

I'm a total inking novice, so I wanted to do a couple posts on my newfound love of it and how I'm (hopefully) learning to improve upon my process. New exciting tools that make me excited to do it - CHECK!

Inspiration is also a huge kick in the pants of making we want to improve, too. Here are a few of the folks whose inking stylings I'm super crushing on:

Other posts about inking: Inking the New Hotness Part 3 Inking the New Hotness Part 2

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Small Boob Awards: Katina Choovanski

Like a lot of the ladies I give out the Small Boobs Award to, this one also doubles as a Kick-Ass Woman. Katina Marie Choovanski, aka Katchoo, is one of the main characters of Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise - an epic, amazing series about ladies in love, assassins, intrigue, and best friends.

I first fell in love with Katchoo because she was petite, gorgeous, had HUGE bags under her eyes, chain smoked, and was always pissed off. It was the first time I'd seen a female character in a comic book allowed to be real - in all her good, bad, and awkward moments. Strangers In Paradise (and Terry Moore) is given a lot of credit for its depiction of real bodies, mainly because of the tall, realistically busty Francine. But since I am on the flat-chested side, I tended to relate more to Katchoo.

Plus you don't get too far along in the series before you find out she can hold her own in a fight, and used to work alongside a slew of assassins. That's pretty much everything I want in a story - realistic, relatable characters and secret organizations full of female assassins. With some scenes of junk food eating and TV watching thrown in, to boot.

Here's a blurry picture of a sketch I did of Katchoo back in 2009, when I finally got to meet Terry Moore in person:

There are very few characters who've influenced my comicking as much as Katchoo. I'm so lucky I got introduced to her when I did.

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