Copyright © 2020 by Chronicle Books LLC.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available.

ISBN: 978-1-4521-7786-1 (epub, mobi)

ISBN: 978-1-4521-7758-8 (hardcover)

Design and illustration by Rachel Harrell.

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Contents

Chapter 1 5

Chapter 2 6

Chapter 3 9

Chapter 4 10

Chapter 5 13

Chapter 6 14

Chapter 7 17

Chapter 8 18

Chapter 9 21

Chapter 10 22

Chapter 11 25

Chapter 12 26

Chapter 13 29

Chapter 14 30

Chapter 15 33

Chapter 16 34

Chapter 17 37

Chapter 18 38

Chapter 19 41

Chapter 20 42

Chapter 21 45

Chapter 22 46

Chapter 23 49

Chapter 24 50

Chapter 25 53

Chapter 26 54

Chapter 27 57

Chapter 28 58

Chapter 29 61

Chapter 30 62

Chapter 31 65

Chapter 32 66

Chapter 33 69

Chapter 34 70

Chapter 35 73

Chapter 36 74

Chapter 37 77

Chapter 38 78

Chapter 39 81

Chapter 40 82

Chapter 41 85

Chapter 42 86

Chapter 43 89

Chapter 44 90

Chapter 45 93

Chapter 46 94

Chapter 47 97

Chapter 48 98

Chapter 49 101

Chapter 50 102

1.

Start a daily practice.

Draw one thing a day for a year and you will be amazed at your progress.

2.

Change your commute and draw something new that you see.

3.

DRAW ON A LOOSE SHEET OF PAPER WHEN DRAWING IN A SKETCHBOOK IS TOO INTIMIDATING.

4.

When you have a drawing block, go outside and sketch what you see.

5.

DRAW STUFF YOU DON’T THINK INTERESTS YOU:

It will challenge you and make you more well rounded. And you might like it.

6.

Don’t underestimate your doodles.

The best ideas often come to you while you are doing something else.

7.

If you love color, draw everything in color.

8.

TRY A SKETCHBOOK WITH A DOT OR GRID PATTERN INSTEAD OF BLANK PAGES.

9.

Draw the same person five times, each in a different style.

10.

Emulate an artist.

Whether you’re copying one of their pieces exactly or drawing something the way you imagine they would draw it, you’ll find that your art takes on a style of its own. Embrace the similarities—and the differences!

11.

Realism is not the objective.

12.

Try varying the type of marks you make. Use lines, hatches, scribbles, dots, etc.

13.

If you are not into what you are making, start again.

14.

IF YOU ARE INTIMIDATED BY PUTTING PEN TO PAPER, TRY DRAWING WITH A TABLET OR PHONE APP FIRST.

It feels freeing and less permanent as a way to get started.

15.

Draw with your eyes closed.

16.

HAVE YOU EVER HAD A BURST OF INSPIRATION JUST BEFORE DRIFTING OFF TO SLEEP,

only to forget it by the time you woke up? Ever woken from an extraordinarily vivid dream, only to forget all about it by the time you’re out of the shower? Keep a sketchbook next to your bed to record those images from that half-awake state before they disappear.

17.

Try drawing without lifting your pen off the paper.

18.

Reduce things to geometric shapes: circle, rectangle, triangle.

19.

Share the drawing process

as a way to get your creativity flowing and mix up your go-to style, subject matter, and technique. Get together with a friend or group of friends, set a timer for five minutes (or more depending on how ambitious you’re feeling), and draw. When time’s up, pass your drawing to the right and pick up where the person before you left off. Repeat, repeat, repeat! A fun alternative is to send a small drawing back and forth via snail mail.

20.

Play with scale.

Draw extra-large, then scan and shrink it down. Conversely, draw really small, then scan and blow it up.

21.

TRY USING A GRID TO EASILY SCALE UP A DRAWING.

22.

Consider using a vanishing point for drawing in perspective. Then try using two points.

23.

Sharpen charcoal and colored pencils with an X-Acto knife to avoid breaking the lead.

24.

FOLD A PIECE OF PAPER INTO A GRID

of eight boxes and draw an identical, mannequin-like, featureless head in each box. Then find a crowded public spot to sit and observe people from. When you see someone with great hair, draw it on one of your heads. Once all eight heads have hair, give them facial features. Mix it up so that all of the features come from different people. In the end, you should have eight beautiful Frankenhead creations.

25.

If you are drawing a face, try drawing the eyes in the middle.

26.

DRAW SOMETHING ON A FOUR-BY-SIX-INCH PIECE OF CARDSTOCK AND MAIL IT TO A FRIEND AS A POSTCARD.

Don’t forget the stamp!

27.

Try making an art-mood playlist.

Next time you pick up your pencil, crank up the music and see where the rhythms take you.

28.

Don’t erase!

Draw with pen and embrace the imperfections.

29.

INVEST IN A GOOD ERASER. FORGET THE ONE THAT IS ON THE END OF A PENCIL.

30.

Draw what the object actually looks like, not what you assume it looks like.

31.

You probably won’t be the next van Gogh

because that was like a million years ago. And that’s OK.

32.

BUMP UP YOUR ATTENTION TO LIGHT AND SHAPE

by drawing with a light-colored pencil on a dark surface. Whether you’re going for realism or something more abstract, working “backward” like this can give you new perspective on which areas you want light, medium, and dark.

33.

Having trouble figuring out when to step away from a sketch?

Take a picture of it! Looking at a photo can help you get the critical distance you need to see what needs work and what is already picture-perfect.

34.

Start with pencil outline, build with shading, end with pen.

35.

DO A SERIES OF 30-, 20-, AND 10-SECOND DRAWINGS.

36.

Draw the same simple thing with different materials—

pen, pencil, crayon, chalk—and use varying thicknesses.

37.

Try making a pattern by drawing the same shape, mark, or object over and over.

38.

To see an object in a new way, try a “blind contour.”

Home in on the most important lines of an object and let your hand move freely across the page. There’s just one rule: No peeking at your drawing until it’s done!

39.

IF SKETCHING IN PENCIL OUT IN THE WILD, CREATE A COLOR-SWATCH PALETTE TO REFERENCE LATER.

(Caseformaking.com sells the most amazing gridded watercolor paper that is perfect for this.)

40.

If you like to draw with pencil or charcoal,

get some fixative spray so your drawings don’t smudge.

41.

Research, research, research!

Sharpen your ax for 10 hours or more, find lots of source images, or create your own.

42.

Try drawing with your nondominant hand.

Start with something simple like a square or a circle, then move on to more complex shapes. This will challenge you to focus on the subject matter and not worry about the final outcome.

43.

Draw in a color you don’t normally use.

44.

IT’S OK FOR SKETCHES TO OVERLAP.

Superimposing objects can give your drawing more depth and interest!

45.

Draw an existing still life, not a posed one.

46.

Put down a layer of charcoal dust and smudge it around.

Then draw with charcoal, add in shading, and use an eraser for highlights. For super highlights, use white charcoal.

47.

PICK AN OBJECT.

Look closely at your chosen object as a dark silhouette against the background. Draw what you see around the object. Sit back and admire how the object interacts with its environment in a new and interesting way because you drew its negative space instead of the object itself.

48.

Draw with a pair of scissors and paper.

This really forces you to break down and simplify the form.

49.

Try drawing just the shadows.

50.

Don’t stop drawing, even if you think it looks horrible.

Thank you to the extremely knowledgeable and creative crew of contributors:

Alina Buevich

Riza Cruz

Ashley Despain

Kayla Ferriera

Rachel Harrell

Kristen Hewitt

Madison Killen

Mirabelle Korn

Philip Lau

Madeline Moe

Viniita Moran

Iris Mori

Dena Rayess

Olivia Roberts

Alice Robertson

Janine Sato

Alice Seiler

Sarah Van Cleave

Allison Weiner

JS Wu