Inking in itself is fairly simple. But there's many different tools and techniques that affect the way your inked picture will look. The following are some examples of inking with these various tools and techniques. This time we'll use Gen as an example.

The most recommended of the inking tools is the brush. With a flexible tip, you are able to get lines of varying width and size out of a single brush. The downside is that they're very difficult to master. This picture was inked with a size 0 brush. A good brush to try and use is the Winsor & Newton "202" Sceptre Gold brush. If possible, try and get a set of three, a size #2, #4, and a size #6. It'll be all you need. If you decide to use this technique, I reccomend getting your hands on the cap of a soda bottle or milk jug to hold the ink in, rather than working straight from the ink bottle. If you spill one of those, the mess will be much smaller, and they're much easier to dip a brush in. (Just make sure you CLEAN the cap first!) Have a glass of water and some paper towels handy. Start off by dipping the brush in the water, the wipe off the excess water on the brush by drawing it across a paper towel folded into quarters. As you do this, rotate the brush; this will gather all the bristles together and will help in giving you a good consistent line. Paper towels will also help you judge exactly how thick a line with a certain brush will be, and how much ink the brush will put onto the paper. (Special thanks to Victor Wren for teaching me about all the ups and downs of brushes!)

This picture was inked with my tool of choice, a pigma pen. Pigmas are a bit like felt-tip pens, but the nib is much sturdier and the ink won't fade. They're called "pigma" pens because they're loaded with pigment, not ink. Unlike ink, the pigment won't fade or turn green for the life of the drawing. The line weight you get out of pigma pens isn't as flexible as that of the brush, but it's not as straight and mechanical as the tech-pen either. One important thing about pigmas is that the ink *DOES* fade with erasing. When you start putting your inks over your pencils, put down only the very basic lines, erase your pencils, then ink over. Another option is to let the ink set for a few days before erasing the pencils.. but even then there will be some fading, and you'll still probably have to re-ink a bit. A good technique to use for inking with a pigma is what I call "layering." What I do is try and focus on which direction my light source is coming from, then alter the line weight accordingly, make the lines thicker in the places where the shading should be, and thinner where the light is. It's not very hard to "fake" brush inking with a pigma pen.

This picture was inked with a technical pen, or "tech pen." These pens were originally designed for drafting -- you get a line out of them that has no weight variation at all. They're good for drawing background objects, fine lines (which don't photocopy worth a flip), and lettering. I use my tech pens primarily for inking cels. They're good for beginners, but they're EXPENSIVE and very hard to clean. Be prepared to spend at least $7 a pop on a tech pen.

Dip pens. These are a good second choice if you just can't get the hang of brush inking. Dip pens are also messy, and you must practice a bit to master them just as with brushes, but the line is much more controllable. The biggest problem with dip pens is in overfilling them with ink. One little mistake and *spack!* there's an ink splatter! The ink also takes much longer to dry when inked with a dip pen... mind you don't smudge your drawing! My primary use for dip pens is using them to apply white ink, which is too thick to be applied easily with a tech pen.

A new way of inking has come about with the brush pen, a marker-like pen with a brush-shaped head. Micron makes a nice brush pen. One drawback is that these pens rarely last more than one or two applications. They make excellent "portable" brushes for inking on the move or for inking at cons. They're easier to use than brushes, but the results don't look as nice.

This is ballpoint pen. Do *NOT* believe that just because a tool you use isn't considered professional, it's no good. You can get some pretty nifty shading effects out of a ballpoint, but sadly, it doesn't photocopy all that well. You might work at learning one of the other tools simply so you can draw something that can be photocopied without losing tons of detail.

One of the most important things you should try and focus on with inking is line weight. Line weight defines the character. I am a firm believer against crosshatching and stippling. Both are overused and quite often unnecessary. Overuse of either results not in adding detail to a picture, but in taking detail AWAY from it, making it look fuzzy and grainy. If you really want to use these techniques, use them sparingly and in the right places. As a wise artist once told me, draw everything with the intention of coloring it.

Also, remember to take care of your tools! Clean your brushes and pens in ink cleaner every time you use them! Dried-on ink is the hardest thing to clean out. Brushes require some additional care. You can get a good set of brush conditioner in the craft section of most Wal-Marts or hobby stores; this will keep your brushes working far beyond their natural lifespan. Store all brushes upright if possible, and *NEVER* on the brush end; that's the quickest way to kill a brush.

If you don't care properly for technical pens or use them regularly, they'll clog with ink and will be completely unusable. A good way to bring them back from the dead is to soak them in a mixture consisting of 1/2 hot water, 1/2 ammonia, and a good squirt of dishsoap. *WARNING* Do *NOTNOTNOTNOTNOT* use dishsoap with bleach in it! The bleach and the ammonia will react together and will create very dangerous fumes. These fumes have been known to kill people. Anyhow... soak the pens overnight, rinse them out thoroughly and clean out as much of the ink as you can, and soak them again.. repeat this for about three days. Afterwards, rinse them out once more, and let them dry.. then fill them up with ink again.. they should be as good as new!

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