Hi, I'm Bob Thibeault (Tea Bow), and welcome to Tea Bow studios! I am working on a graphic novel called LUNA LILY, about a nine-year-old girl who discovers there is more to her than she ever imagined and must face dangers that are out of this world.

Many drawings start as doodles in my head. Sometimes I use photo reference, but only for reference. I never copy an image. I use art and photos as inspiration to create something that is my own. If you copy a favorite photo or piece of art, think of it as an exercise in understanding the artist or photographer who created it and their creative process. It is natural to emulate those you are inspired by, but you should always work to create your own.

The video above is a time-lapse of how I create a drawing from scratch with an image in mind. I use a non-photo blue pencil to sketch Lily and Duke out and a brush pen to ink them in. After that, I scan the image and remove the non-photo blue pencil lines. Then I touch things up digitally. I start coloring when the drawing is just the way I want it. I love seeing an image come alive with color and tone! It's the best.

If you noticed, I touched up the original drawing a lot. I never get things perfect on the first try. I will realize a head is too small, or the character does not look natural. It happens often. Less so if I have drawn the character a lot. Even then, you can expect to get something off. Does anything come out perfect the first time you do them? Does a baker make an awesome three-layer cake with flowers, birds, fancy swirls, and rainbow colors on the first try? (I like cake.) Can you sink a basketball in the hoop on the first try (some can I know)? Can you chew gum and walk at the same time? Okay, that one may be on me. My point is not to expect to create a masterpiece every time you sit down to draw something, but if you do, then you should sit back and take in the rays of a job well done. Just have fun, and the rest will follow.

Click on the image above and get your free coloring sheet of Lily and Duke. Take a picture and send it along, who knows, it could make it onto my next newsletter! Have fun coloring!

EXTRA BONUS!

As a special thank you for reading my newsletter you get a collector's card of LILY and DUKE! It's the first in a series, so look for the next one coming soon!

STAY CREATIVE! -Bob :)