Hey everyone, thanks so much for being here for the relaunch of my blog. This is something I've been planning for months (literally since April of this year) so to have such a wonderful reception upon my return has filled me with such gratitude and humbleness. Since we're getting close to every artist's favorite time of year (sarcastic for some, earnest for me), I've decided that the best way to get the blog back on its feet is by posting my fifth attempt at Inktober.
I've only ever successfully done all 31 days of Inktober back in 2018 (when I was a sophomore in high school, good lord has it really been that long?) I tend to fall off around week three and never really get back on it, so this time around, I'm determined to actually finish the whole challenge. Let's go back to a simpler time and briefly talk about what Inktober is.
What is Inktober?
Inktober is a drawing challenge created in 2009 by an artist named Jake Parker. He created this challenge as a way to improve inking skills and positive artistic habits (like trying to draw something every day.) Now, thousands of people all around the world participate in this challenge, connecting via social media to improve their art skills.
How Does Inktober Work?
For each day of the month of October, there's a prompt word, and you have to make an inked illustration depicting your interpretation of that prompt word. Then, you post it somewhere (according to the website, putting the drawing on a refrigerator counts as posting too,) with the hashtag, #inktober or #inktober2018 and share it with people.
Rinse and repeat until Halloween and you've completed the challenge!
Great, we've got the basics. Now, I want to talk about my plan. Unlike the last several Inktobers, and as the title suggests, I'm a full time grad student with a teaching assistantship. I also own and operate my own business, so life is getting increasingly more busy. I won't have the time I once had to sit and make extremely detailed ink pieces for every day next month (read: I'm in less pointless meetings, which is good, but also bad for art creation. I don't miss the meetings, though).
So, with all that in mind, here are some of the steps I'm going to take in order to have a fun, productive, and hopefully COMPLETED Inktober 2024.
- Doing medium to large sketches beforehand (it isn't cheating per the actual rules, but to be frank, I would do it anyway, rules or not). I may ink some of them in September too. This is supposed to be fun, not kill me, and if doing a few pieces beforehand makes it easier to complete the whole challenge, I'm all for it, especially if I plan on writing up every week. I will say, I'm not a big fan of the prompt list this year, and because of that, I'm going to be basing my drawings off each word extremely loosely. Just as a bit of a teaser, I've already sketched out my idea for "Backpack"- it's a little field mouse. I don't remember the chain of ideas that eventually got me there, but it's cute and technically counts for backpack. I'm hoping I remember the thought process so I can discuss it, but the subject is so far removed from the actual word. And I think that's okay.
- Inking primarily with a dip pen and loose india ink, specifically the Windsor and Newton brand. I find loose ink is, ironically, less finicky than ink from a fineliner pen. Also, my fine liners always dry out no matter how carefully I try to preserve them, so dip pen is just easier. Plus, I get the added bonus of being horrifically surprised when it blorps out a puddle of ink I wasn't expecting, and ruining an entirely inked drawing (because it always happens right at the end, sigh). I usually just try to work the blob into the final piece, but it never gets less irritating (still, all that is less annoying than reaching for a pen and finding it dry as a bone despite it being nearly brand new).
- I'm also trying to figure out what color accent or shape accent I want to add. Last year, I did large red-orange circles or accents on almost every piece, which made the whole group cohesive when my mother eventually took all the photos of them I sent her and made them into a fun tote bag. I have green ink this year, but I think I'm going to try to stick with the red theme and see how that goes.
- Something is better than nothing. This is something I've been trying to tell myself in the leadup to the challenge. Even if I only do a small, inked sketch for the day (and not a big, planned one), I'm going to count it. I would rather complete the challenge than fall behind because I'm intimidated by the large list of missed days piling up.
So yeah, that's my loose plan. Now all that's left to do is pick out a designated Inktober sketchbook and get to planning out some ideas for each prompt! Do you have any plans for Inktober this year? Let me know in the comments section down below.
~R
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