I’ve been taking a break from drawing for a few months now, particularly as 2022 was coming to an end and I was really feeling the strain. I fell out of the habit of drawing however I am feeling the itch to go back and resume it. Despite the breaks I am never away from it for too long. What has inspired me to go back and pick up the pen has been the discovery of old drawings from when I was young.
Trees seemed to be a go to scribble, along with rolling hills and fluffy clouds. Flowers and rivers were also squeezed into places, in between the messy nature and floating eyeballs. Yes, inky, scratchy eyeballs were a staple when it came to doodles in my diary. I was fascinated by their shine and complexity. Also lashes. How do they work?
Faces were next, along with critters and creatures. Everything was extremely colourful, in a sweet, naïve sort of way. As if more colour meant it was better. As time went on my chunky shading became more refined, depending on the project or style needed. Pen was my go to. Scritchy scratchy lines all over the place. Shapes, patterns, boots and gloves.
These days I still enjoy a good portrait, but my fascination has expanded to encompass the whole body. How does it move? Where is the weight distributed? This way or that? Also hands. How the hell do they work?
Maybe one day it will click.
Looking over my favourite things to draw as a kid made me realise how much of an outlet drawing and comics have become. The process is meditative. So if you’re needing some inspiration, find an old book and see what you liked to draw. You might find the inspiration you need.
Did you keep any old drawings from when you were younger? What was your favourite thing to draw? Let us know in the comment section below! And join us on Sunday evening for our Quackchat at 5:30PM(EST)!
Don’t forget you can now advertise on DrunkDuck for just $2 in whichever ad spot you like! The money goes straight into running the site. Want to know more? Click this link here! Or, if you want to help us keep the lights on you can sponsor us on Patreon. Every bit helps us!
Special thanks to our patrons!!
Justnopoint - Banes - RMccool - Abt_Nihil - PhoenixIgnis - Gunwallace - Cdmalcolm1 - PaulEberhardt - dragonaur - Emma_Clare - FunctionCreep - Eustacheus - SinJinsoku - Smkinoshita - jerrie - Chickfighter - Andreas_Helixfinger - Tantz_Aerine - Epic Saveroom - Genejoke - Davey Do - Spark of Interest - Gullas - Damehelsing - Roma - NanoCritters - Scott D - Bluecuts34 - j1ceasar - Tinchel - PhillipDP - Teh Andeh - Peipei - Digital_Genesis - Hushicho - Sad Demon Comics - JediAnn Solo - Kiddermat - BitterBadger - Palouka - cheeko - Paneltastic - L.C.Stein - Zombienomicon - dpat57 - Bravo1102 - The Jagged - LoliGen - OrcGirl - Miss Judged - Fallopiancrusader - arborcides - ChipperChartreuse - Mogtrost - InkyMoondrop - jgib99 - Hirokari - Orgivemedeath Ind
Nostalgic inspiration
Emma_Clare at 12:00AM, Jan. 7, 2023
8 likes!
©2011 WOWIO, Inc. All Rights Reserved Mastodon
TheJagged at 11:06PM, Jan. 7, 2023
Ha, i never enjoyed looking at my old art. In fact i once went on a bend and trashed every old drawing i had from my childhood... Couldn't stand to look at them anymore. In hindsight, probably not so much of the poor quality of the drawings, but because they conjured up a lot of negative experiences attached to them. My childhood wasn't rosy, i hated everything back then. I feel better now than ever before about my art. I can actually look at stuff from 3 years ago and be like "huh, that's pretty ok. Maybe i don't completely suck."
DylanTale Comics at 6:03PM, Jan. 7, 2023
@PaulEberhardt you make a good point, I'll look into doing that, although I'll probably just use my phone since I don't have an actual scanner. Plus, my phone's camera (Google Pixel 6a) is really good. As someone who left DeviantArt after originally posting my Set 1 on there, I know what you mean.
PaulEberhardt at 3:55PM, Jan. 7, 2023
@DylanTale Comics: Do yourself a favour and scan it all if you haven't already, even if you don't plan on doing anything with it. After that mouse incident, I've done that with all my remaining stuff as well as all of my old photos (I used to dabble quite a bit in photography, too). Even bought a portable hard drive just for backups. /// I'm not sure about good places to post stories or poetry, short of starting a blog of your own. I've toyed with that kind of idea myself every once in a while. In the past I might have suggested Deviant Art, but in the course of the years I came to like that place less and less for various reasons that don't belong here.
DylanTale Comics at 12:01PM, Jan. 7, 2023
In one of my drawing books, I also have a couple of short stories I've written, including two Minecraft short stories that I recently remastered and then started a third new one. I originally had plans for six total stories in that series which hopefully, I can still keep to. I am currently looking for somewhere to post them, whether it's here (I thought maybe it would be cool if The Duck got its first written series of stories) or somewhere else, such as Wattpad. If anyone has any suggestions for that part, let me know!
DylanTale Comics at 12:01PM, Jan. 7, 2023
I'm really sorry to hear that, Paul. I'd hate to lose any of my history, be it drawings, videos, or anything else meaningful from my child/teen years. I have at least a decade's worth of drawings spread out across 5-6 drawing books including Set 1 of my comic series, which was originally hand drawn. I'm thinking about someday taking pictures of each of those 31 original pages and posting it here as a "Set 1 legacy version". But yeah, I drew machines, robots, landscapes, a factory at one point full of my own version of Despicable Me's minions, you name it! That was a lot of fun and it was always my escape from the throes of everyday middle/high school life.
PaulEberhardt at 5:38AM, Jan. 7, 2023
Some twenty years' worth of my old drawings, including everything I did as a child and teenager, doesn't exist any more because mice nested in the big box I'd stored them in. That discovery and the subsequent bonfire I lit made for a very black day in my life. I kind of envy those of you who can go back to their past, and please don't you ever forget: if you have to move house often, still take the time to check twice which boxes shouldn't be stored in a garage, even if they're in the way! Everything I've done since is in a critter-safe place, unless these little buggers get themselves mouse-sized angle grinders. You see, a few old drawings I did for others survived, and every time I chance to see one of them gives me a strong urge to pick up the pen again and to hell with all those real-life obligations that keep me from drawing. I've really got to look at that stuff more often!
HawkandFloAdventures at 3:15AM, Jan. 7, 2023
I have an entire crate full of old drawings drawings a long with 2 sketch books that are full.
bravo1102 at 1:33AM, Jan. 7, 2023
I have two large portfolios full. Now that I can't draw or sketch without pain, it's also pretty painful to look back at what I could do.