Witches, wizards and warlocks have a historical need for a strange companion, be it flora or fauna- but why does it always have to a guessing game what freak of nature you get? Use my handy MBTI guide to figure out what ungodly mongrel will best help YOU in your arcane pursuits!
me: my job sucks
people: why don't you do what you enjoy
me: capitalism has determined that what I enjoy has no value
people: ??? ??????????
Hey guys, I’m getting a lot of asks about the same things, mostly questions about how to make comics, how to “break into comics” (haha, oh dear), working with publishers, that kind of thing. I’ve done some blogging on many of the subjects, so instead of repeatedly replying in private with links to those posts, I’m going to do a master post thingie with links to all my blogging about how I work. Hopefully some of you will find some helpful nuggets in there! I remember when I first started trying to transition into making comics for a living, and there wasn’t much information about that online. I spent a lot of time wailing about it on a locked livejournal. XD But anyway, I hope my blogs help a wee bit.
Disclaimer: these blog posts are all based on my own personal experiences as a cartoonist, and the advice therein might not work for everyone. The most awesome thing about comics is that there is no one way to make them, nor is there one direct route into becoming a full-time cartoonist. The more pro cartoonists I meet, the more it drives home how different our methods and origin stories are.
Anyway, here you are! (With all of these, scroll past the placeholder image at the top of the post.)
1) How I make my comics, start to finish (traditional penciling)
1A) How I make my comics start to finish, now with digital penciling!
2) Finding the art tools that are right for you.
3) Working with collaborators.
4) Acting in comics.
5) The financial reality of a full time cartoonist.
6) Making a successful graphic novel pitch.
7) Adapting a prose novel to comics, part 1.
8) Adapting a prose novel to comics, part 2.
9) Very simple tips for drawing a comic that will be published.
10) Working with editors from a cartoonist’s perspective.
10) b) Working with editors from an editor’s perspective (by my First Second editor, Calista Brill).
11) On “Drawing Styles.”
12) Dealing with discouragement (this is probably the most popular thing I’ve ever written XD).
13) On Comic Conventions.
14) On Being a Pro and Finishing that Comic When You Don’t Want To
15) How I Write My Comics
Okay, I think that’s it! Whew! The remainder of the Friends With Boys blogging archive is here. It has some other bloggings that aren’t advice-related (mostly ramblings about comics I like), if you’re interested. If you have any other comic-related subjects you’d like me to blog about, feel free to drop a suggestion in the ask box.
I hope this was helpful. Share and enjoy!
Updated 08/12/15
looking for a bathroom?
Trans Student Equality Resources
Trans Housing Network
All Our Worlds (Queer Book Database)
art
articles
books
videos
visibility
5 Common Insecurities The Don’t Mean Anything About Your Transgender Identity
8 Signs and Symptoms of Indirect Dysphoria (summary by Transgender Teen Survival Guide, article by Zinnia Jones)
Ask a Gender Therapist: Am I Transgender? (youtube video)
I think I might be transgender, now what do I do? (an article by AdvocatesForYouth.org)
Need help finding pronouns? / Here’s where to try them out
What Am I? (an article by Transgender Teen Survival Guide)
Coming Out (article by Trans Youth Family Allies)
Coming Out: The Plan (by Neutrois.me)
Coming Out Tips (by Transgender Teen Survival Guide)
Coming Out to Partners: Transgender and Nonbinary People (article by J. Lee Phelan)
Coming out stories:
On Coming Out as Genderqueer; or, My Life as a Bearded Lady (by Dustin L)
So Your Child is Non-binary: A Guide For Parents
Understanding:
American Psychological Association: Answers to Your Questions About Transgender People, Gender Identity, And Gender Expression
So Your Child is Non-binary: A Guide For Parents
Everything You Need to Know About Nonbinary Identities (an article by Everyday Feminism)
in-depth interview with a nonbinary person about their identity (article from Zenger’s Newsmagazine)
Explaining Genderqueer to Those Who Are Not (an article by neutrois.me)
"forcing kids to stick to gender roles can actually be harmful to their health" (article by Tara Culp-Ressler)
Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She (an HBO documentary on gender variance available on Youtube)
Think Your Child Might be Transgender? (an article by GenderSpectrum.org)
What It Feels Like to be Transgender (article by Sophia Gubb)
8 Signs and Symptoms of Indirect Dysphoria (summary by Transgender Teen Survival Guide, article by Zinnia Jones)
Supporting:
A Support Guide for Parents, Families and Friends of Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming people (by PFLAG.org)
There’s No Such Thing as a “Sex Change” (video from TheGuardian.com about how to talk about transgender people)
find support groups for parents of transgender children and trans youth (USA)
Trans*Forming Family (a blog by the mother of a genderqueer child)
Transgender Parenting (articles from Egale Canada)
TransYouth Family Allies
Merriam and Webster: Ask The Editor
Oxford English Dictionary
Wikipedia: Singular They
The Economist: Singular They
WPATH Standards of Care, version 7 (pdf) (The World Professional Organization for Transgender Health)
Transgender Law Center (USA)
Change your Name for Free - Civil Indigent Status (USA) (Tumblr post)
Transgender Surgeons in the U.S. (USA)
Presentation:
Women’s Clothing Terminology
Tucking How-to Guide
The Breast Form Store
Mastectomy Bras with Built In Flap for Breast Forms
How to Contour and Highlight Using Makeup | How to Apply Eyeliner with a Spoon | How to Apply Foundation | How to Apply Blush | How to Apply Eyeshadow
Eva Voice Training App
Transition:
Find a gender therapist
AMAB Hormone Guide (uses “MTF” wording)
AMAB Surgery Guide (uses “MTF” wording)
DMAB master post
Presentation:
The FTM’s Complete Illustrated Guide to Looking Like a Hot Dude
Underworks Binders | GC2B Binders
Mr. Limpy Soft Packers | The Real EZP (the only STP that actually works)
Transition:
Find a gender therapist
AFAB Hormone Guide (uses FTM wording)
AFAB Surgery Guide (uses FTM wording)
FTMSexTalk.tumblr.com (everything to do with sex as it relates to gender and transition - FTM-focussed but they also answer a lot of questions from AFAB non-binary people)
Hudson’s FTM Guide (tons of information about binding, HRT, and masculinization)
Janitor Queer (a blog by a genderqueer person on low-dose testosterone)
Neutrois Nonsense (for information about nonbinary-specific transition)
OutOfThisBinary (collab channel)
welkin gender
Micah R
thecharliecharmander
queerascat
queerbb
benderqueer
Qubit Cuties (collab channel)
WRITING HELP/CHARACTER
writing a bitchy character (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10)
writing a cocky character (1,2,3,4)
writing a emotion character (1,2)
How to play a hippie
Playing the quiet character.
Portraying the shopaholic.
Portraying a mute character.
Portraying a kleptomaniac.
How to play the stalker.
Writing distant, indifferent characters.
How to write a character who stutters.
Writing a character who is sassy.
A guide to playing a southern character.
Portraying characters with crushes.
How to portray a teen mom.
How to play a character who is mean.
How to portray a character high on cocaine.
Writing a character who is high on amphetamines.
Playing an efficient male character.
Portraying the asshole.
Playing a character who suffers from shyness.
How to play a mentally ill/insane character.
Writing a character who self-harms.
Writing a happy character.
Writing a character who suffers from night terrors.
Writing a character with paranoid personality disorder.
How to play a victim of rape.
How to RP a blind character.
Writing a leader.
Writing a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder.
Writing a character with depression.
Writing a character who is homosexual.
Writing a character with schizophrenia.
Playing a fe/male character.
Writing a character with Nymphomania.
How to write a worry wart.
How to write a character with HPD.
How to write a bad ass character.
Playing a pansexual.
Tips on writing a drug addict.
Tips on writing the pregnant female.
Writing insane characters.
Playing a character under the influence of marijuana.
Portraying a character with diabetes.
How to play a prankster.
Playing a character who has been adopted.
Portraying a vampire.
Playing a character with an eating disorder.
Portraying a character who is anti-social.
Portraying a character who is depressed.
How to portray someone with dyslexia.
How to portray a character with bipolar disorder.
Portraying a character with severe depression.
How to play a serial killer.
Writing a tomboy.
Playing a pyromaniac.
How to write a mute character.
How to write a character with an OCD.
How to play a stoner.
How to write an asexual character.
How to play a bitchy/vicious character.
How to play a character with HPD.
Playing a pregnant woman.
Playing the burn-out.
Writing a “nice” character.
How to play a gentleman.
How to play a shy/introvert character.
How to play a naive character.
Playing characters with memory loss.
How to write a character who smokes.
How to write pirates.
How to write characters with PTSD.
How to play a character who isn’t ready for sex.
How to play the geek.
Playing the manipulative character.
Portraying a character with borderline personality disorder.
Playing a character with Orthorexia Nervosa.
Writing a character who lost someone important.
Playing the bullies.
Portraying the drug dealer.
Playing a rebellious character.
How to portray a sociopath.
How to play a swimmer.
Portraying a ballerina.
Playing a promiscuous male.
Playing a character with cancer.
How to portray a bubbly character.
How to portray a power driven character.
How to portray the shy character.
Playing a character under the influence of drugs.
Playing a character who struggles with Bulimia.
Portraying a hippie.
Portraying sexually/emotionally abused characters.
Playing a character with asthma.
Portraying characters who have secrets.
Portraying a recovering alcoholic.
Portraying a sex addict.
How to play someone creepy.
Portraying a foreigner.
Portraying an emotionally detatched character.
How to play a character with social anxiety.
Portraying a character who is high.
How to play a strong, female character.
Writing a character with a hangover.
Playing angry characters.
Playing a character who is smarter than you.
Playing and writing autistic characters.
Portraying a trans character.
How to portray a dominant character.
Playing a character who is faking a disorder.
Playing a prisoner.
Playing the opposite sex.
Portraying a character who has PTSD.
Playing a character who stutters.
Portraying characters with Aspergers Syndrome.
How to play a depressed character who selfharms.
Portraying the “dumb” character.
How to portray a lesbian.
How to play a blind character.
How to play a sexual assault victim.
Writing a compulsive gambler.
Writing a closeted character.
Playing a werewolf.
Writing a character with an addiction to sex.
Writing a character who is drunk.
Portraying a character who is British.
Playing a Brit.
Portraying a character with amnesia.
Playing heroes.
Portraying a witty character.
How to play an INTJ.
How to play a vampire.
How to play a character who is manipulative.
Portraying the natural born leader.
Portraying the character who is flirtatious.
Writing a nice character.
How to portray a character who has asthma.
Playing a character with ADHD.
Writing characters with anxiety.
Amnesia
Children
A Death Scene
Loosing Someone (2)
Old Persons
Physical Injuries (2, 3)
Sexual Abuse (2)
Fight Scenes (2, 3, 4)
Horror
Torture
How to Describe the Body Shape of Female Characters
Character Apperance Help
Words to Describe Voice
Body Language Cheat Sheet
Character Development Exercises
101 Character Development Questions
Art of Character Development
Introducing Characters
Characters You Need to Reinvent
Making Characters Likeable
Heros and Villains
Describing Clothing
Understanding Body Language
100 Positive Traits
Mental Illness in Writing
Conflicts and Characters
JOBS/HOBBIES
Actors
Ballet Dancer (2)
Christianity
Foreigners
Gamblers
Hinduism
Hitmen
Satanism
Smokers
Stoners
Taoism
Journalists
Vegetarians
LOCATIONS
Australia
Boston
California (2, 3)
England/Britain (2, 3, 4, 5)
New York
Prison
London
The South (2)
GENDERS
Females (2)
Males (2)
Transgender People
NAMES
Female Names (2, 3, 4, 5)
Male Names (2, 3, 4, 5)
Last Names (2, 3, 4)
QUOTES
Song Lyrics Masterlist
Songs for Biographies
Favorite Quotes: TV and Movies
Favorite Quotes: Notable Authors
Favorite Quotes: Celebrities
Favorite Quotes: Popular Books (2)
Quotes From Songs
Character Quotes
Masterlist of Bio Lyrics
Masterlist of Bio Quotes
Masterlist of Song Lyrics
Biography Lyrics
A Masterlist of Quotes
+130 Quotes
SMUT
Smut Guide: Casual Sex
Smut Guide: For Beginners
How to: Write a First Time Sex Scene Romantically
How to: Smut - The Bare Bones
How to: Smut (For Virgins)
How to: Write Lesbian Smut
How to: Write Smut (2, 3)
How to: Write a Blowjob/Prepping for Smut
Smut Guides of Tumblr
Tips on Writing Sex Scenes
A Guide to Language in Smut
Domination and Submission
Making Love
A Smut Guide
KISSES
How to: Write a Kiss (2)
Different Types of Kisses
Writing Out the First Kiss
GRAMMAR
Placement of Speech Tags
Grammar and Spelling
Grammar Slammer!
American vs. British Grammar
HyperGrammar
Grammar Girl
Punctuating Dialogue
How to Use the Semicolon
Introduction to the Basic Rules of Punctuation
Comma 101
All About Dialouge
11 Grammar Tips
Comma Usage
Correct Use of Apostrophe
Proofreading
Transition Words
40+ Tips to Improve your Grammar and Punctuation
Better Writing: Grammar & Spelling
Semicolons and Colons
Underlining and Italicizing
Dashes and Parentheses
Hyphens
Apostrophes
The Ellipsis
List of 1000+ Adjectives
ART
painting tutorial
colour palette (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
drawing clothe folding
avoiding drawing the same face
draw ice
anatomy help
free drawing program (1) (2)
sai brushes (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
draw hair
drawing ref
dont know what to draw?
draw 3D room tut
drawing eyes
lip tutorial
how to draw jeans
how to draw arms
expression tutorial
drawing hair and fur
drawing cats
pose reference blog [its actually a blog full of references i-]
download photoshop
paint blood
color blender
draw hands
hands 2
photoshop help (1) (2) (3) (4) (5)
remove backgrounds from images online
clouds
brush setting ref (SAI)
kissing ref
how to draw curls
realistic woman body ref
draw knees
draw feet
shadow help
male body
lips ref
contouring and highlighting
draw wings
change images using blur (PS)
gray
hat ref
glowing stuff
pastel colors
draw grass
eyeliner ref
Painting tutorial
Female/male arms
Kneeling + Sitting ref
Dragon head view tutorial
SAI brushes 86786
Drawing expressions
Sai Brushes 1
NGE colour palette 1
100+ colour palletes
Avoiding same face
Face contours/highlighting
free art MyPaint
Body anatomy help 1
How to shift images using blur in PS
Drawing clothe folding
How to draw ice
Colour palette 1
Colour palette 2
SAI brush settings 2
SAI/PS pixel brushes
Warm/Cool gray
Flower crown tutorial
Skin colour palette
Pink colour sheet
How to draw butts&thighs
The male torso
Drawing glowing stuff in SAI
Drawing horse/animal legs on humans
Drawing clouds
Muscular male with bow stock photos
Pastel colours
Drawing grass fields in SAI
Expressions&Legs
All about the human body
20+ colour palettes
Colour conversion
Kissing ref
Creature design
Colour meanings
Creating expression
Tutorial masterpost (100+)
Lineart
Canine
How to colour
Pose studies
Feline comparisons
How to draw penis
Leaf pressing
100+ anatomy references
How to draw folds
SAI brushes 3
Sitting poses
Colour palette 4
Cloud painting
How to draw 3D rooms
Colour info
Colouring ref
Hair tutorial
Clothing ref
Bodies and poses
SAI brushes 5
Colour scheme designer
Folding ref
Heads&Angles
Paint tool SAI masterpost
Drawing ref masterpost (10+)
Hair+Fur
How to draw faces
SAI brushes 4
Anatomy of mutant humans
What should I draw?
Free art software
pastel colour ref
Mass art ref
Soft SAI brushes
ways to draw stuff
SAI brush settings
baseball cap ref
Penis ref
Drawing human wings
Cool free art software
Huge art ref
Colour blender
2 SAI brushes
Photoshop for free
MAKEUP
eyeliner
how to apply blush
how to draw eyebrows
ombre eyeliner
lipstick trick
the kitty eye ^.^
nude lips
smokey eye make up
what you need to know about beauty
5 of the best foundations
best powder foundations
quick foundation tip
how to apply liquid foundation
breaking it down
makeup highlights tutorial
blush for your skin tone
how to apply bronzer
how to contour your face
apply blush like a pro
blush according to your face shape
d.i.y. gel liner
get the perfect winged liner
get winged liner using tape
awesome eyeliner tricks
9 different eyeliner looks
different eyeliner styles
guide to applying eyeshadow
suit your eyeshadow to your eyes
glittery smoky eye
get the perfect smoky eye
a shade for every occasion
kool-aid lip stain
best lipsticks for blondes
hot red lips
how to get gradient lips
lipstick shades for fall
how to make any lipstick look matte
get soft kissable lips
long lasting makeup tricks
victoria’s secret model tips
saving face
beginner’s guide
when will it expire?
10 makeup tips from mac
best tips from professionals
18 beauty essentials
basics you should own
make-up brush tutorial
brush tricks
clean your makeup brushes
make-up brush guide
make up hacks
easy make up tips
BODY CARE
the runaway to gorgeous skin
winter dryness
acne foundation routine
wash your face correctly
how to wash your face 101
HAIR
messy bun tutorial
different ways to braid
three-braid updo
waterfall braid
how to fishtail
romantic curls
braid + bun updo
how to do pastel hair
8 ways to wear a bow
4-strand braid
braided bun
braided headband
dutch braid crown
pin curls!
how to contour
everyday makeup routine
lipstick using crayons
eyeliner ref wow
filling in eyebrows
banana facial mask (moisturizes)
strawberry facial mask (acne prone skin)
avocado facial mask (dry skin)
yogurt facial mask (sensitive skin)
list of oils to add to your face masks
already made masterpost :*
OTHER
sleep calculator
survive nature
rain
tumblr music
calming rain
need a hug?
like the sound of a coffee shop?
can’t remember the name of a song?
the thoughts room
how to love yourself
upload anything from your iPhone etc. to your laptop
learn another language
make HUGE unpoppable bubbles
play some piano
draw a stick man and watch the story!
thousands of stars (you can zoom in/out and learn about them)
check if a username is taken (any site! twitter/tumblr, etc)
draws stuff as you move your curser
tell your thoughts to no one
play with cob web
make music with balloons
learn to play the guitar
learn to build a ship in a bottle
learn origami
learn some yoyo tricks
make your own stuffed animals
how to decorate iphone cases
make a candle
important things you should remember
how to kill your anxiety
how to help someone with their anxiety
look for literally any book you want (free)
waterproof your shoes
know what your emotion is
how to love yourself
ultimate writers resources masterpost
learn how to make punk edits without photoshop
dont know what to read?
learn a new habit
how to answer the top 35 asked questions when applying for a job
want to draw?
The quiet place
MOVIES
Giant Movie masterpost
Disney movies masterpost
Superhero movies masterpost
Movies for when you’re sick
Scary movies masterpost
Tumblr dedicated to finding movie links
When to pee during a movie
Just watch it.
the world of thedas
f a s h i o n
Nice: IGN combined all three minutes we have from “STAR WARS: The Force Awakens” trailers to what they think might be the right order.
swtfa.tumblr.com – Star Wars 7 – The Force Awakens #StarWars7 #StarWars #SWTFA #StarWarsVII #EpisodeVII #Episode7
telltale: Walking Dead Season 3 confirmed!!
telltale: