I have a tip that's for newbie folk like me. You're still allowed to sketch in pencil before inking the drawing! I think a lot of people get it in their head that you can ONLY use ink the whole time, but if you're not confident with ink, having a light sketch is a huge help.
Sketching is good but yeah like the comment above, be careful . Sketch too much and it can ruin the paper or make graphite appear when you put on the inks
So true about the challenges! It can feel like a restrictive diet, you start off feeling so optimistic and after a few days you can feel stressed, anxious and agitated! I love the idea of inktober but as someone who paints and draws everyday saying yes to inktober means saying no to something else so what am I willing to give up? Time with family? no. My work? no. Exercise? I'd love to but no, however I can commit to once a week so I'll do that. I can enjoy a "lite" version of Inktober ad That's fine with me. Anything that gets people to create more is aces in my book!
Exactly! We're all so busy, and especially artists who already have client work they have to do every day--Inktober can be a BIG challenge. Never participated in it before, but this year I might dip my toe in ... maybe just my pinkie toe! ;-)
same here.I do an alternative as I do only the prompts that spark ideas and use them instead of doing a artwork on other ideas that day. I am ok with not doing every prompt and I don t have to work as I m disabled and have several dangerous illnesses.Those have several things that influences my ability and time I can make and enjoy making art.One of them that I am extremely tired 24/7 .That urges me to do time management. It might be easier for me just cause I m unable die to illness to do the whole Inktober. Last year I was sad being unable to do them daily. I use 1 watercolor per prompt so I don thabe to buy new media and I learn myself to use all the different colors with water to change colorstrenght and help myself to ,in other months to not use a wholeset of colors and only use a couple of them.It has improved my artwork in this way, I never expected this to be what I would be learning from the challange
As always, a very sage outlook on the topic and one that I can fully relate to. I love the idea of a "lite" version of the challenge and perhaps next year, it might be worth exploring for myself! :)
thefrugalcrafter Lindsay Weirich I can understand your point of view but for me ( I also paint/draw everyday) I like it as an exercise to practice skills without being distracted by other mediums /choices. This year I'm using Inktober to focus on practicing creating smooth, expressive lines using only a brush, using only tone and line to create a picture, and discipline on not abandoning a project even if it isn't working out ( my notebook only contains 31 pages, so no do overs) exactly as I hoped. Not every picture has worked the way I wanted but I do feel that I am improving on the areas I wanted to improve on without being tempted to rely on other elements to mask errors/weak spots. I'm ok with things not being perfect with this challenge, I am excited to see my work get better each day ( or even to just try a new thing!)
Seeing your sketchbook is amazing and very inspiring. I'm not doing inktober, but actually, your tips apply to just being an artist every day. You could easily replace 'inktober' with 'art' or 'painting' and it still holds true. Thanks for sharing your wisdom, it's super helpful.
Back in the days before laptops I wrote my novels in spiral notebooks. People gave me nice journals but I felt more comfortable with the simplest supplies. No pressure, I bought them by the dozen when they were on sale for back to school. I honed my skills just as well as if they were written in beautiful script in fancy journals. I lost all my art supplies in my divorce, so I started going through dumpsters and collecting colorful soda cartons to create my collages, some of my best work came from that.
@@rai4141 that was several years ago. Over time I've collected new supplies, but I still create colleges and other 3D art using colorful packaging material!
it doesn t matter what medium you use to make the art from the daily prompts. I m a watercolor and acrylic artist. I do have india ink and a dip pen somewhere but I choose to use watercolor but restricting myself to use only one color per prompt.
"Watching another artist show off all the new art supplies they bought just for inktober, can make us wanna go out and buy new art supplies for ourselves, even if we dont have the money or didn't plan to spend money on art supplies..." as I look through the description to see what dip pen he's using 😅
As I drool over the art supplies, I find inspiration to dig through my clutter of pens, pencils and partially filled sketch books to find the supplies I plan to use this Inktober. Last year was my first, and while I tried to do a drawing a day, life and other important things happened, so instead of trying to catch up, I'd just flip through what I'd missed of the prompts, choose something and start. I think I got maybe 10 drawings Done last year, and they weren't great, but I did them to the best of my ability and I'm proud of that. This year, I'm going to try stretching Inktober into Artannual 2020 and do at least one challenge drawing a month, maybe one a week, sometimes one a day. I need the push.
I started doing Inktober years ago but I no longer take part. It's gotten to a point where it seems like people rush to out-do each other every year. As I write this it's only late September, but I know a few people who have already started doing their Inktober drawings a few weeks ago so that they'll have a masterpiece to post each day. Some people seem more concerned with the social media aspect than the actual 'drawing daily to improve your ink skills' aspect... Between things like this and the fights that happen EVERY SINGLE YEAR over traditional versus digital, I feel like it's become kinda toxic and beyond Jake Parker's original intention for the project. I completed it in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and I feel like I got what I needed to out of it. I didn't even post my drawings online the first year. To me the competitive, number driven nature of social media in the art community is already difficult enough to deal with mentally/emotionally. When I need to brush up on my ink skills I do it in my own time.
First, JP didn't invent a miracle unguent, but took a popular hobby among artists, put a clever label on it, and promoted it on social media. By surprise, it caught on like wildfire and now he uses it to sell products and make a buck. I don't blame him, it's just not my thing. Word prompt challenges have been around forever. The difference in history is that we had Pictionary parties in the 1980s and people have UA-cam and Instagram, now. Second, I can't argue with you. You're right. I was on Facebook yesterday looking at people posting, "Just finished Day 10! Tell me what you think?" I felt queasy with that toxic feeling you mentioned. I always say that we should do Inktober in a way that works best for us. But, people doing it a month in advance... I don't get it. In one thread, someone said, "I will be out of the country, so I'm doing them ahead because I won't be able to post them during the challenge." I imagined they were going to Atlantis or Xanadu where internet service can be sketchy. Lastly, where you wrote, "people try to out-do each other," I still maintain the "I try to out-do _myself_" approach and focus on improving my own skills, habits, and discipline and let other's worry about their own work. I'm glad you've had the experience to view the challenge with a good perspective. I fully understand the need to stay out of it, too. I'm still enjoying it and I do enjoy seeing the work of others, even the "out-doers." But, yeah, the competitiveness of it has become silly, so like anything, I do it for me. And when I'm not into it, I don't do it. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and the intelligent dialogue. I don't see many posts like yours too often, so to read it and sit back and say, "wow," and then such a long reply, well... thanks. I appreciate your time. Cheers!
@@MDCampbell Thanks for the thoughtful response. I was just kinda venting to be honest lol. Prompt challenges are great and they've certainly helped me over the years but I guess participation in them should come from a desire to improve your art, learn new habits, etc. rather than from a 'fear of missing out', which seems to be a negative side-effect of social media in general these days, not just in relation to art. I still think Inktober is a great thing and at the end of the day as long as you're setting yourself personal goals and achieving them, that can only be a positive thing no matter the context.
Looking forward to my second inktober this October - 2019. Last year I just did thumbnail pictures in my journal - 1.5" by 1.5" squares. Pretty stress-free - but still a challenge for my skill level. (stick-men) I won't be posting mine. All the satisfaction involved is purely from what I manage to come up with when given words like "air" or "intrinsic" LOL
This will be my first time doing Inktober. I'm a little nervous because I'm not great at drawing, even though I love to draw, also the other people who participated in Inktober are amazing artist. So this year I decided I'm not going to focus on the other amazing artist drawings and just go for it... praying nobody laughs at my drawings. Thank you for the advice on how to prepare for Inktober. Hugs from Texas
I feel exactly like you do, I hope that you do great at the challenge if you'll be doing it. I consider myself terrible at drawing but I want to give it a shot.
OwO yes, I definitely will be doing it this year. I've sat on the sidelines watching for a couple of years now, so I figured it's time for me to just jump in and do it. 😊 I hope you have a fun and great experience doing this your first time as well. Are you joining any of the Facebook groups for Inktober?
I'm exactly the same! I have decided to complete inktober and THEN I will check out what other artists did. Otherwise I'll just start procrastinating if I see how bad my art is in comparison. Good luck in your first inktober!
“inktober can be a distraction” yeah i can tell by the way i’m watching this video and sketching out my ideas for some prompts instead of doing my readings due tomorrow
Hey Mark! Looking forward to seeing what you come up with this year. I don't think I saw all your book from last year. I remember a lot of them but not all. Fun, creative ideas! I especially like the prompt/text inclusion on the opposite page. I confess I don't follow the prompts and I only did about 7 ink pieces last year but still had a blast. I think I will try to do all 31 this year. You're commentary points were right on as usual. Take care my friend!
Thank you for checking this out, Steve! I'm grateful for your thoughts and continued motivation. I am thrilled to see your pen and inkwork and glad to share the experience. Hope you're having fun with the challenge, as well! Cheers, my friend! :)
I love the line that you said creating something at all is worth being proud of -- not to focus on making something perfect!! And I also needed the reminder that Inktober isn't a competition :) Just the tips I needed to get even more excited for Day 5! xxx - Dana -- ps your inktober 2017 sketchbook was really inspiring.
This was my first year doing inktober, and I've done 7 days in a row, posted the images on numerous social media sites each day, and also the youtube videos for them each day. But, today, I've sufficiently decided that I've reached my burnout point. Your video makes me feel better about taking a break. I think I will continue to do inktober, but maybe I'll split up a day into multiple days, and I'll keep working on it beyond the end of october to account for my level of stress-handling. Thank you for this video!
I'm glad this was helpful in some way. I totally get the whole burnout point! I hit it around day 15 or so. Even today for "Frail" I was trying to go super-simple, yet, I got caught up in it and I've spent far longer than I wanted. Now I need a break!! lol! Cheers and always do what's best for you - this challenge draws in a lot of people who put too much on themselves and they don't realize it until it's too late. You've got a great handle on it! Also, really enjoyed watching you draw that dragon in your video! Nice work! :) ~ Mark
@@MDCampbell Haha! Yeah, I feel like by giving myself more time, I won't be limiting myself to a simple drawing and will get to draw really complicated things when I'm inspired to do so. Like for instance, on "Build" I wanted to try to make a really complicated city or castle drawing, but instead I settled on Jenga blocks cause they were simpler. I also would like to try several drawings with the same prompt. Like for "Freeze" I had the idea of drawing the earth in a refrigerator to make some sort of comment on global warming, or something about polar bears or penguins wanting the ice to stop melting, but I also wanted to try to draw icebergs with reflections in the water, so I had to settle with that in the end. I actually discovered in the past year that I put too much pressure on myself in general, so this is just another step in the direction of finding the right balance. Ooh, I'm glad you like my dragon! Thank you! Which one was it in particular? I have a few: The blue one, the one with rainbow wings, or the Chinese one? Thank you for commenting, you seem like a big channel to me, and it's refreshing to get responses from big channels!
I wanted to use inktober to learn working with a dippen, but all I ended up doing was - 1 make a drawing I am NOT happy with and - 2 wasting a lot of money because I poured out my inkbottle in frustration over another project. Maybe I was trying to eagerly by already trying to do 2 drawings in 1 day, Actually by just typing this comment it made me realise that it was because of pushing myself too much I kind off ruined it, if you read this I only have the following to say: keep doing what you do on this channel, I am sure people can agree with me on this that you are in fact a great teacher, and the wisdom you share that you once received is the greatest gift I can imagine. You have helped me trough a lot of struggles with my art, even with just small anekdotes, so THANK YOU for providing a helping hand in this journey of art I would otherwise walk rather lonely.
@@erickdraws9563 That's good advice! And that's basically what I'm doing too. I want to draw my comic characters, and want to get into a habit of drawing them every day, so I link the prompt word in lightly, but don't overthink it, and just draw what I would draw anyway - my comic characters. At some point if the prompt fits a scene in my comic, I might just draw my comic. The point is to get into a habit of drawing. If you don't care about making an illustration strictly out of the prompt word, and it feels unoriginal and unimaginative, then don't do it like that. Your imagination comes from your experiences, life, interests and what you have created before. You can cooperate those with the prompts, it's not forbidden.
Hello Ink Panther. I can only say thank you for your kind and generous words. It means more than you know that just a single person out there found some benefit to the work I'm doing. I don't do this as a job - it's merely a hobby for me. So, as a labor of love, I enjoy making these videos, and have always vowed that if they ever become a chore, then I stop. That's the only advice I can offer you with regard to your artwork and especially with dip pens and such: if it's more of a chore than it is fun, then perhaps consider rethinking your interest. I'm happy you've enjoyed the channel and I promise to continue to striving to bring relevant content, as best I can. Thank you for making my day! Cheers! :)
7:53 to 8:30 is my philosophy as an artist. You hit the nail on the head, and this has to be one of the most comprehensive Inktober Tips I have ever watched. An actual HELPFUL one and not some supply list. I failed inktober last year due to time constraint + failure to plan. But dis time??? Posted "poisonous" this morning and already drafting "tranquil"!
I actually work ahead. I sketch ahead when I have time (normally weekends) so I only have to do the inking when I come home from work. So I finish the piece the day it's supposed to following the prompt list. And I also post it that day. This is how I manage my time and it works out fine so far
This was really helpful! I've been going through a horrible period where I've lacked motivation and I thought a good way to get back into art would be to take on Inktober for the very first time! I thought about the prompt for hours last night and sketched several ideas out but it all became so overwhelming. Looking up info on the challenge online made it even worse as I came across a lot of strong opinions and varying viewpoints. This video was clear, concise and put everything together really well. Yes, it is a challenge. No I don't need to spend a ton of money, using what I have is fine. My goals are to have fun and hopefully become a better artist but I have to be careful to not get too caught up and lose myself in the process! Thank you so much for this upload. Have a wonderful Inktober everyone!
Thank you, BZ, and I understand about the lack of motivation - I've gone through it recently, myself, and can appreciate your perspective. I'm hoping this challenge will unbind that block and get me back on my creative track. I hope you find that same path to your creative track, but remember to just let it happen naturally. It's best to get in a place where you're relaxed and can immerse without distraction! Stay well and best wishes! :)
Oh! It's Oct 1 here today and I was *just* about to start my first ink sketch which was going to be pretty simple and then I saw your awesome work.. and now I feel deflated :-/ I should have watched this on Nov 1st lol!
Don’t feel that way! Do the challenge with the plans you had, even if it’s simple plans. This way next year October you’ll be able to compare that inkober to this one & see your improvement.
Theres no need to feel bad! He has had sooo many years of practice so don’t expect to have art like him. If you just start with a simple little ink sketch you will be able to work to having more complicated drawings!
I know how that feels. My teacher would tell the class that comparison is the thief of joy. I hope you all have fun with the challenge and remember that you did it. You created new piece of art and that is amazing
October coming soon, It's good i stumbled upon your video. I think I will participate this year , but thanks to you, I will be able to approach it in a healthy and beneficial way.
This is a great video Mark! As always, it's very thoroughly thought out with many valuable points to keep in mind for this challenge. I know that my own goals for October at not compatible with this challenge this year but I still look forward to creating some ink pieces!
Thank you so much, Denise! I really appreciate your time and feedback on this. I'm looking forward to seeing your unique perspective and artwork for the upcoming months! Stay well! :)
This will be my first Inktober, and I'm going to treat it like NaNoWriMo: practice time. I've been using the 2018 Inktober prompt list to do some digital sketching as sort of a Sketchtember thing. It's been fun so far.
I remember when Inktober didn't have a prompt list. It was just a challenge to draw a picture in black ink every day for the month. Now there's a prompt list, "Drawloween" and other challenges during the month. And you can use colors now too. I think you've got a great point about the supplies. Ballpoint pen on a napkin counts within the guidelines presented. Burn out happens to most people when they try to tackle inktober so that's why the prompt list should only be view as suggestions. It's art afterall, draw what you want.
Thanks very much for all the insight on Inktober! Very useful info for someone who's just starting out like me :) Will attempt the challenge myself this year, God willing. Let's see what'll come out. God bless!
Well, it's me who should also thank you, D's Artistry, for taking the time to both watch and leave such kind feedback. Let's definitely see what comes out, for both of us! God bless, you too, and thank you! :)
I didn’t know there was a word promo list. I’ll check it out. May or may not use it. I try to do a quick sketch or some doodles every morning before work, after I’ve arrived, just to clear my head and get focused. Helps me a lot. So figured this would be a good way to get me to draw a little something on the weekend as well and maybe get more than a simple drawing done
Thank you for making this video. Personally for me, i have never been able to finish or even properly start inktober. I would overthink my plans, feel uncreative, and October is typically a busy time for me. I really felt like I was the only one who felt so much pressure from Inktober. Then, I doubt myself a lot emotionally, feeling incapable to pursue art and all these small thoughts that get too crazy.I’m also not too great at managing my social life online, nor do I want to forget my daily routine that I worked years to work on. Because of it, I tried doing another art challenge in April instead. It’s doing an art challenge on my own time, choosing art challenges that suit me. I strongly suggest this for other people who want to do art challenges, but feel overwhelmed by Inktober.
Funny, Marie Ana, another view wrote recently, "how are you people getting stressed over Inktober? You're taking it way too seriously!" To me, that lack of perception can make an already stressful challenge even more stressful. Like you, October is a hugely busy time of year for me, my family, and my work. But, I always make the commitment that as long as it's fun and doesn't interfere with anything else, I'll do the challenge. As of now, it all works for me. But, also like you, I do it on my terms in the way I want. That's what works for me and it sounds like that is what may work for you, as well, with whatever you decided to do, challenge or not. I believe in keeping the stress at a minimum. Cheers and glad you chose to write! Thank you! ~ Mark
Thank you for this video! I'm not a fan of ink, so I use whatever medium I want. So far this year, I've done one gouache, one watercolor, and one acrylic. For me, the whole point is to encourage myself to practice my art every day and to begin a good routine. If I don't like a prompt, I skip that part, too. What's most important is that we're creating art!
Coming to this because of inktober 2019... this is such a useful breakdown of the psychology and things that go through your mind. Thanks so much for really useful constructive content
You're definetly right about people turning into a competition, my advice to anyone sharing their work is not to post on reddit, the people on there are so toxic
Thanks for this. This is my first Inktober. Last year I learned about Inktober but I thought it was too late to join. So this year I had a lot of prep. I got some friends involved too, so we can share our art. Being a homeschooled kid, I have the time, and I knew this would help me as a artist. As soon as the prompt list came out I started thinking of what I'd draw each day. Day three I've already learned alot. Praying I get through the month, wish me luck.
This video's been very comforting, thank you. :( Inktober has been very overwhelming for me due to my depression and being tired all the time. I couldn't do more than a few days of the challange and still wasn't satisfied with my drawings. Also after a while I didn't have any ideas and felt like it was all forced. I felt... worse than others. Because they can do it, and I can't. Thank you for telling me there's nothing wrong with it.
I completely understand that feeling that the drawings are forced. I go through that more than I like to think about! I'm happy you found comfort in the video, and with regard to your depression, I sincerely hope you are doing well and are finding successes both great and small in your travels of everyday. It's the small achievements most of us forget to take big joy in, right? Take care and thank you for taking time to reply! ~ Mark
Wow very interesting a friend sent me a link to Inktober I thought it was a contest, but its a challenge, didn't think to much about it... but after hearing your thorough explanation of it, I might delve into this and tell others... I better start with the first one and challenge myself!
For this year, I've decided my priority will be to finish Inktober. So I will use ball-point pen, some fine liners, and have a reference for each day, so I won't think too much about what I'm about to draw. And draw at the beginning of the day, when I'm fully rested. Have fun everyone!
This year will be my first time participating in Inktober. I'm looking forward to it but it also scares me. Your video was very helpful in showing me what I can expect in the next 31 days. I already know that one of the things I hoped to accomplish - posting a daily video of my drawing process - will not be a part of it. Editing the footage takes too much time. As always, great art. I wish I could pick your brain sometime because I'd love to know where you come up with ideas. Your drawings are always so unique and fascinating. Thanks for sharing.
Trust me, books2art, I'm terrified every year I do this challenge! lol! Seriously! I never know what I'm going to do or how I'm going to find the time! But, I always remember - this is MY challenge for myself; it's not about anyone else. As for videos, well, there's a reason I do not record my Inktober drawings. I know a lot of other people do, but most of them have that kind of time to spend - I do not. So, I just go with what I can do! As for my brain, well, doctors picked it apart back in 2012 when I had a craniotomy for a brain tumor. I bet that's where a lot of ideas got into my head from! LOL!!! Cheers and thank you so much!! :)
That's a good way to look at it. I will admit that I hoped to use the daily videos during Inktober to help me grow my channel but between work and painting/drawing there isn't enough time to make those videos. But you're absolutely right. The challenge itself should be for me not for other people. Thank you for reminding me of that. Sorry to hear about your tumor but I'm glad you're doing good. I look forward to your next video. Maybe by watching you draw more, I'll be able to absorb some of your creativity lol
Couldn't agree more with you on time management and especially how Inktober can be expensive. It's tempting to get new drawing materials but it's always better to think of whether or not I'll end up using the newly obtained drawing supplies after Inktober. You really conveyed Inktober in all of its positive and negative lights perfectly. Truly enjoyed watching your video! :D
What I like about inktober is that it made me fall in love with my dippen. I took a drawing class in college that required us to have dippens, and I honestly hated it after the first try and never gave it another chance (i'm surprised I didn't throw it or gave it away) up until now and I love it!
Thank you for this video. It really helps me plan and prepare for inktober this year. And you are so right inktober is not a competition! I have to remember this and try not to compare or beat myself up when I don’t meet the challenge
Truly what no one else would have mentioned to us, especially beginners and those new to Inktober. Thank you for video, these are things many could have never thought of without experiences and years of doing art. Everything you said have been carefully (not lol) jotted down and I would probably be thinking over this the whole evening.
I love how you have a philosophical view on inktober and it was very interesting and inspiring to watch you create that piece. I feel very inspired for my next inktober drawing. This is my first year trying it and I am very excited. If I complete the challenge i want to get myself some new ink as an award!
It’s day 9 into my first inktober and I’m feeling frustrated and discouraged after I started off strong for the first week. It really is a challenge! I haven’t drawn every day for a long time, and struggle with loosing my creative streaks.. but I’m also pushing myself to commit to something that I know in the end will have challenged me as an artist to push through and show myself that I can take this on and push through even when I feel like I’ve stepped into the lions den!
Thank you so much for all these Inktober videos. I've been struggling for the last couple years because I found myself burning out within a week, but it was mostly fro frustration - I felt like Inktober implies you're gonna celebrate every work publicly, and that self-imposed pressure made finishing projects even more difficult than the concept already was. I felt pressured to complete my projects, which compounded the anxiety I already feel about anything I draw, and I inevitably burned out every single time. I'm starting this year with a different approach - even sketches are okay. Even if they look like "garbage", I'm still gonna try. Even if it's a base frame for something I'll never finish, I still tried. I'm gonna hold myself to being okay with whatever I make, regardless of how "good" it is. You can't grow if you never try, right?
Absolutely, Autumn Nicole! To be perfectly honest, you sound like you have the most realistic grasp on the challenge and given that attitude and approach, I think you're going to have a great time - and best of all, on _your_ terms! Well said and a great plan to go into it! Thank you for watching and for sharing your honesty and insight! ~ Mark
Awesome advice and insight. I had plans to participate in Inktober 2019 but surgery at the time put a damper on that plan. But I'll be there in 2020. Thanks for posting!
Thank you, Rometiklan, for not only taking your time to watch, but for you generous feedback. I certainly hope your surgery was successful and you are in post-recovery at this point. I have experience with putting life on hold due to surgery, so I most definitely empathize!! Hope all is well on your end! Cheers and thank you, again! ~ Mark
My first inktober! I asked my friends to join me, they probably won't but if they do I'd be sooo happy! My first drawing (Sept 30) was mediocre but acceptable. Thanks for this video!
I'm thrilled to hear you're jumping into the challenge! Any which way you go into it, it's going to be great for your art. To me, a mediocre piece of art is better than no art, at all. Go as far as your creative spirit can take you, Kamilah Bryant! Cheers! :)
I sort of jump in and out of it whenever I have time. About 20 minutes doing a quick sketch. I also do my own version. I follow the original maker’s prompts but I do it all digitally, limiting myself to only ink-style brushes, no undos and only one layer.
Hi. I just came across this video. I am not a pen and ink drawing person, I pour acrylics. 2 years ago after an injury I challenged myself to pour every day. I really appreciate this video because everything you said applies to a personal challenge as well, all of the positives and negatives. I am constantly renegotiating my challenge to myself. Thank you for your insights. I will probably return to this video to listen again.
I really love poured acrylics, mostly because I don't do them! It's a wonderful expression and I'm glad you were able to challenge yourself to pour every day, and that you are willful enough to revisit your challenge goals, regularly. I need to get better about that, myself. Thank you for checking this out, theun speakable, but even moreso for sharing your thoughts and kind feedback. Cheers! ~ Mark
Thanks so much for this. I've been wanting to do this challenge for a few years now and I'm finally doing it this year. You brought up some awesome points! Always love to hear from those who have already done the challenge.
Thank you for this great video. The challenge can add pressure to our daily lives, espacially when there is a certain amont of people waiting for our drawing of the day (and video of the drawing of the day). But in the end it helps me to be more disciplined and learn about how I can work well (and how I sometimes fail).
Ah yes, the failure aspect of it all! I know it well! lol! I'm glad you enjoyed this one, Benjamin Cerbai, and hope it helped in some way! Thank you for checking out and your thoughtful feedback! ;)
I did this for the first time last year and loved it.......I looked forward to it each day and did the sketch. I am not good, but that did not matter, it was fun!!
@@delila351 that's how I feel about it. I have always gone in traditionally, but I keep in the back of my mind that if I miss a day, can't get to my pen & ink, or just don't want to do it anymore - that's okay. As long as I'm happy with my decisions and don't beat myself up about it. Cheers! :)
Thank you for this video! This is my second year of doing the challenge, and although I completed last year, I really needed a video like this. :) Happy inking!
Awesome to read this, Soupie Art! I wish you the very best in your challenge! Happy inking to you, to, and not for nothing... my nickname throughout my life was Soupie! Too great!!! lol! Cheers! :)
Hey Mark. Thanks for this video. I found out informative even if it's several years old. I'm on day 10 of my first Inktober and I've been keeping your pointers in mind, especially when that little voice in m my head stays saying I should do more complicated drawings or that my offerings are trash compared to others. After I watched your video, I've been ignoring that voice and even not really paying attention to other people's drawings or the lack of comments on my own. Thanks again.
Thank you for your feedback and your time watching, @susancarr9955. I'm so happy you found it informative. To ignore that little voice in our heads and to crave the attention from others (especially people we consider "better" than us - or even people we don't even know) is, to me, the biggest part of the challenge. It's also an elevated way of doing the challenge: without social reward. To create solely for our own, personal fulfullment _must_ be the primary reason for being creative. Too many participants forget that and struggle with not getting proper accolades, no matter how good their work is. I'm glad you're participating and have a good perspective on the challenge! Cheers and thank you, again! ~ Mark
Thank you. I just found you tonight. You have great insights. I appreciate you letting me know what INKTOBER was all about. If I am do try it I will have to use just what I have on hand. I am trying to learn how to draw this year. I know if I had really kept with it in the 80's I would be better at it know. It is not to late just harder to do it at this age I am 78 and I have arthritis so lines don't quite go where I want them too. I am really enjoying doing pages trying to make ovals and lines. I draw everyday. There is always something for me to do. Fun things to do and watch others TEACH me a new adventure in life THANK YOU SO MUCH.!!!!
So awesome and thank you for checking the channel out! At 78, I'm so impressed that you've got such an interest in your creative journey! You must have amazing stories to tell, maxine boren! Thank you for watching and I'm so grateful for your time! ~ Mark
Great advice, i failed last year, my first ever one. Now im a little more clued im hoping i can complete this. Watching this gave me confidence and eagerness to get started.
I had first heard about it just two years ago! It was already october 5th so i held off until the next year. Last year i only missed either 1 or two days so i dont really think i failed. I still definitely improved my skills!
This is great advice, not just for drawing but for creators in general. I'm going to participate in the writing challenge for November and this applies to that as well. Great video and thank you for sharing your experience.
I have to make another point, I discovered a ton of inspiring artists this last inktober, you yourself included :) I am looking forward to this years challenge and Art pieces. I wish everyone a fun and inspiring experience!
I watched this vid last year and made it thru my first Inktober. Good refresher for this year before I plunge in again. I bought a few new supplies to have fun with : a dip pen, nibs and ink. A mixed media sketch book cos last year I discovered I had the wrong type of paper for including watercolor. A cheapie brush pen and a white gel pen. I got the list of prompts early but decided I'd rather be surprised each day. I'll use reference drawings and plan it in my lunchbreak and complete in the evenings. Have fun everyone!
I love it, DiGi377! Sounds like you're going into this challenge with a positive, ready-to-go attitude, which is familiar to me! Have a blast this year and thank you so much for watching and supporting the work I do here. I really means a lot! ~ Mark
Such great tips Mark! Thank you for sharing. You have a very healthy approach to the challenge. I hope it helps people who are getting too frustrated about it. I have to watch this video a few more times to stop beating myself up over not managing to make time to participate this year...
Great video Mark. Lots of good tips and commentary on things I haven't really thought about. I started participating in inktober to get over my fear of ink. Eventually it became a way for me to produce inventory for the winter and spring art fairs and conventions in my area. This year I plan to produce a booklet of the drawings I am doing for Inktober.
Thank you for making this! It gave a voice to that nagging feeling I have about Inktober. I still participate, but I have had to get past the consumer and competitive urges to enjoy it this year. Thank you for putting to words why it can be intimidadting.
Thank you for explaining inktober I was wondering what all the fuss was about. Love your sketch book, oh my goodness your drawings are amazing!! Tfs :)
Hilariously, i learned so many lessons about why I should stay away from inktober because OMG.....and yet I just happen to coincidentally be working with ink right now?!?! Oy. So I guess I’m doing inktober in a way, but at my own speed and with zero prompts because eff it, I do what I want. I’ve been talking to people about how to prep, safely listen to themselves, and allow themselves to forgive when things don’t go as planned or hoped. We survived this last year and it seriously felt like a survival. Good luck this year-I’m marching to the beat of my own drum!
I think the decision _not_ to do Inktober is equally as important as deciding to do it. I thought hard about it this year, and decided that, if at any point, it's not fun and interesting, then I'll stop. So far, it's been both fun and interesting, so for now, I'm going strong... of course, it's only day 9. lol! I can't wait to see what you're up to and the beat your own drum produces! :)
As an amateur with no interest in an art based career this is such a positive and useful guide! My art is for me - I never share it and so I always battle with the "why bother? your art doesn't look like ____'s" type thoughts because social media is so full of wonderful (and often professional) creators posting their work, and it can be so easy to fall into a negative mindset, especially when other amateurs who create their work for themselves don't post up their work either. Now I will strive to think about the people like me who just enjoy an occasional doodle, and enjoy inktober for the sake of enjoying it. No more competition or negativity!
Thank you so much! This was so accurate and so helpful. I'm 12 days in and already feeling depressed and anxious but this was really helpful. Also amazing drawing by the way
"The lure is very strong" this is so true. This my first time doing it and I was tempted to buy load of supplies, but I realized it was too much. I have already quite a few ink supplies. In the end I bought only some markers I wanted anyway. That video was really great.
Haha, thank you for sharing this 'unpopular Inktober opinion'. :D This year I've seen that many artists (myself included) have posted videos being more critical towards Inktober and why not partecipating can be a good idea in certain cases. I think that becoming more critical towards certain choices we make is in itself a sign of growth as artists, even though it has nothing to do with style, or practice, or advertising.
I don’t really think that it’s a sign of growth, I feel lot of them are extremely close minded. Shaming people using digital lineart, for example, even when on the official inktober website it’s say you can. If you read the FAQ on Inktober.com you can see that the challenge is MUCH more open and accessible than what people make it look like. The point is challenging yourself, not others. You don’t even have to do it everyday if you have time for once each two day it’s fine two, as long as it is consistant
By critical I meant that instead of just jumping on and doing it, we think about what doing it can bring us as artists. Some people still decide to do it and some don't. When one thinks about *why* they're doing something and not simply do it because everyone is doing it, that's growth. I honestly don't care about how one goes to do it, everyone is free to do what they want, my train of thought would be very straightforward: it's called 'INK'tober and there are 31 prompts, so you need to use ink and draw every day of October. But if someone wants to do something else, be it digital, be it a drawing every three, then they can.
Karijn's Watercolors oh yeah I understand what you mean ^_^ those people criticizing other for the way they decide to do inktober are a minority tho :) Have a nice inktober 😊😊
Even though this video is nearly a year old finding it helped me out a lot. Each point was laid out very well and some I didn’t even realize that I should’ve thought of. I’ve never done an inktober and was looking forward to trying it. I loved the drawing but also the discussion that it provoked in my own mind. Thank you.
Really appreciate your videos. Started Inktober for the first time last year, but ran into the wall on day four (with time and ideas and lack of prep, all points you mention). This year, I plan to do it just for myself as a challenge to just draw every day to improve my drawing skills. I also am going to narrow my focus to botanical art and tackle a different flower or plant every day. That time of year is super busy for me at work and I felt last year that I just too pressed for time to come up with a creative idea to illustrate the word prompt. All this to say that I think you are so right that we should all use the challenge to challenge ourselves in whatever way makes the most sense for us not to serve the challenge or for outside approval. Just my two cents. Thanks for all your fab content--keep the videos coming!
I really enjoy reading your feedback, Judy Mason, as it motivates me and gives me confidence that the work I'm doing here has benefit. Thank you so much for that and your kind support of the channel. I don't ask people for money or contributions, as I do this purely as a hobby. So, the feedback I get is the profit that keeps me going. Very grateful for your time! Be well! ~ Mark
This is my first year doing it, and all these tips are things I tried to conclude before starting in on it. As much as I would like to do really high quality detailed drawings, I don't have the time for it and don't want to be discouraged, so I've aproched it as just doing it for the action and creative thinking, even if I'm not 100% happy with the drawing, at least I did one, without so much pressure for perfection. I've also tried to plan them out ahead of time, and just work on them before work and during my lunch, has been working out well. Also, side note. I started using the exact sketchbook you used last year and I love it.
I'm still not willing to participate this year's inktober because of real life stuff (and I do already have a week challenge this month for something I really like, with more specific prompts) but I'm LOVING your video! I knew that there was a little ruckus on last year's inktober because of drawing materials and mediums, but I think the challenge is there for the fun and the artist growth! I think it's a nice commitment for anyone who's able to manage their time.between the drawings and yes! Yes! Yes! I too think the fun of it is draw the prompt on the day it is supposed to happen, not to draw beforehand. Thank you for this video, mark, I'll use for reference for the time I want to do inktober!
Thanks for the video, quite thought provoking.... I'm terrible for quitting things like this, so decided to put a massive effort into preparation (that way if I thought I was getting bored I could look back at that effort and not want to see it wasted). So I made my own hardback journal from scratch and bought a fountain pen kit which I then designed and made the body/cap for with 3D printing. It took over a weekend of time and effort, and hopefully will keep me inspired to actually complete the month....
This is such wonderful advice, and can be used with any challenge, thanks so much for sharing! I'm hoping to participate next year in inktober, it sounds like such a fun challenge and a personal one at that :)
I’m glad I’m watching this before I head into my fourth inktober. It’s going to be a bit harder this year because I’m in my GCSE year at school and I needed to hear the advice about keeping ego in check
How to avoid the negatives, never participate in any social media circus events. Make your own challenges for yourself, instead of reading some guy´s comment on the internet. This also applies to my comment. Go draw!
Wow, 6 days into inktober and i got this video on the recommendation tab 😂 But you brought up some really good points there! I'm actually on my 2nd inktober (i failed on the 4th day last year) and honestly it did hurt my ego. But i realized that i made it too "complex" for myself. So for this year I'm challenging myself to actually create something for 31 days, whether that be a doodle or a full artwork. So far there's mostly just doodles, oh well. What i'm aiming for is consistency and consistency is something i shall get ✊ Thank you for the tips! I definitely needed to hear this from someone else so I don't think that these frustrations are all just in my head. Happy Inktober!
I won't lie, Jess, it's a tougher challenge than I think people really give it credit for. I'm already seeing a _lot_ of people posting days in advance, doing single drawings with multiple prompts to "get them out of the way," and skirting the challenge to their own creation - and that's all fine for them. But, for many who like to stick to the intent of the original goal, it is a challenge worth revering and understanding that a lot of sacrifice goes into it (time, rest, routine, etc). Anyhow, whatever you're comfortable with is what it should be about - so long as we're challenging ourselves to get better at our craft or hobby. I'm glad you posted your feedback. It was very thoughtful and I'm glad to read your thoughts. You're definitely not alone in the frustrations! lol! Be well! ~ Mark
Thanks for good information on your experience! Last year was my first try. Being newly retired it was the best project, and yes it takes a great deal of creative time but worth the excitement.
I watched this a few months ago and rolled my eyes. In fact, I stopped watching at about tip number two.(I’m sorry.) It took hearing that a friend of mine was going to do it and then I remembered your video. I watched it through this time and thoroughly enjoyed it!!! Thank you so much for your honesty. I don’t think that I could commit to anything like that but I won’t discourage anyone who does.
I like the way you are creative to use items of the scenario to set the background line and also set the perspective of your drawing and i think your drawing looks really good (i hope this one contribute for your artistic ego).
This is a great video with a lot of good points worth thinking about. I won't be taking part, mostly because I was never a big fan of working in traditional mediums and because I've already got enough projects on my plate that demand my attention. Though I still enjoy checking out the work produced by others every October. Best of luck!
I started my Inktober early and got quite a few drawings done in advance (late October is very hectic for me), but I've been posting accordingly and haven't posted anything in advance, but I also am not following a prompt list this year.
I'm using an ultra-fine point Sharpe for lines, and watercolors for shading and color pops. My challenge for myself is to work in at least one metallic watercolor into each piece. Good luck!
I resisted inktokber for so long! When I finally tried it out, I honestly didn't spend much - I bought one single bottle of ink (I had pens I had and some free notebooks I got many years ago.) For me, working on a small (3.5 inches x 5.5 inches), manageable book size was key for me to complete the challenge and it meant I didn't bite off more than I could chew on a daily basis - I figured small was better than not doing it at all! As someone who has done many forms of art, but not much ink drawing, it was certainly a challenge, but I continuously surprised myself in what I was able to draw and produce! I still look back and I'm amazed at what I did and for that I am insanely grateful for inktober as inspiration to push myself! On the last day of inktober last year, I treated myself to a new ink set as a gift for completing the challenge. Some of my drawings are awesome, some I would redo, but I did them and that was a huge feat in itself. Challenges are challenges for a reason and progress and learning aren't always a linear path and I'm ok with that!
I have been doing something like Onktober these past 17 days and I set a 31 day challenge for myself because there is this huge watercolor painting I want to try to accomplish on the 31st day and so every day have been watercolor painting things and slowly building up for the picture. and boy it has been quite the ride!! from using acrylic brushes and not remembering a lick of watercolor painting techniques to finally having correct paintbrushes and ways to paint. people are coming up to me at church complimenting me on my art and they say they look forward to seeing the newest thing I painted! Some have even bought the paintings they liked it so much!! friends and family are saying I've got a gift and its great to see me using it. But there of course is my struggles too... the painting doesn't turn out how I wanted it, I 'm too embarrassed to post it (funnily enough that one TWO ladies wanted to buy that. so now I gotta make another one of that slightly different for the one who didn't get it!!) I don't know what to paint so I put it off till later in the day. Wednesdays are hardest with work in the early morning, come home, change, quickly paint SOMETHING!, post it and turn around and go to church in the evening. being discouraged when one didn't get really recognized. but also understanding that it was my testing a technique painting rather than one I want to sell. DRAWING! oh its such a nightmare for me! It has gotten better thankfully but sometimes when I erase the black stuff on my eraser smudges and now my paint can't go over it and there's a horrible point in the picture! I STILL cannot do a galaxy painting to save my life and I honestly thought it would be easiest! sorry, i'm ranting but I really do understand a lot of these challenges other artists have for Inktober. by day 14 I REALLY just wanted to draw a little chibi with me in a bed saying something like " Wore out, be back when I can!" but I didn't want to let the people down.. and actually I really loved the paintings I have drawn since day 14 and I'm glad I didn't stop! ...so yeah... keep going. but seriously, if you need a break, TAKE A BREAK AND GET AWAAYYYYY !!♫♪
Thank You so much for the insight. I was thinking of getting the "official" inktober scrawled box but after doing calculations, it worked out to be cheaper to buy the individual supplies... with one thing that made it a "deal". And that was the Inktober creator's special ink art class. It worked out to being a discount off what the box would have cost all together, with the class... but if you think about it, the class is free for him. Unless you believe the old time is money adage. But with the box selling out, he's more than made up for that time I'm sure. I, personally, went out and bought a box of Windsor and Newton inks. But ink is my favourite medium, so I was going to get the set anyway. Plus it was a birthday present. Also, I've told myself to push, but I am a realist, and a severe arthritic. So I have to kind of play by my own rules. I'm still going to try posting one piece a Day, but I will do art when feel well enough to. And I won't delude myself into thinking I'm going to have full colour, nor the same quality throughout. But if I do make two in a Day, I'll make a little ink sketch in my sketchbook to make sure I still draw something each day. So I kind of already thought about a bunch of your points, but really appreciate the others. At the end of the day, I know I can't be hard on myself.
I have EDS and have done last year with my own rules being I would only make a drawing daily if my body wasn t tired of hurting to much and I telt inspired by the prompt.I managed 4 prompts I shared on FB and Twitter and felt proud. I use my ink and dippen I have had tot years and only buy a simpele cheap artist sketch ook ( quality so I can keep it tot years without it becoming faded as I open it often and use it tot make bigger paintings from it. Ink I use is India ink black, which is archival and lightfast. I normally am a artist that makes watercolor and acrylic art)
Thanks for the info. I am using the opportunity to get back into drawing. It's been years but I have wanted to return back to it. I feel this is a way to give me a kick in the rear. However, if I miss a day or so, no sweat. I'll just pick up where the day, currently, is. I never realized it was a money maker for some and that there was such competition!
I don't post what I do online. I just make some ink doodles whenever I can to get myself into the habit as a beginner artist. That way I have nobody to prove myself to except myself.
Hey Mark! Thank you for this fantastic video and your viewpoints and tips. This is the first year I’m participating, but I’m going at my own pace. I feel like artists have to be realistic with the challenge concerning time. If we’re working rushed or frustrated, I feel the challenge becomes moot point. The best challenge for us is to create while inspired, and if we’re not inspired, our work may not be our best and become contrived. I loved your honesty of your experience. I think if artists go at their own pace with the challenge, they can set their own goals. A quality over quantity method! I think the best thing we can do is have fun with it. Being satisfied with the creativity part is more important to me personally rather than scramming to make the deadline of each day. Anyways, I loved your video and thank you for sharing this! No one has ever really been this vulnerable about inktober and I appreciate it. Subscribed!
Hi Artist Jane Bush and thank you so much! I really appreciate your generous words and thoughts. Right on point! I have to say, one of the unexpected things that comes out of Inktober is actually when we DO force the art, especially when we're not inspired. Like me. Right now. lol! I had a major project today at work and I'm creatively exhausted. Yet, I still have to do the prompt #11:FLOWING for today. I'm burnt out, tho! The unexpected thing that comes out of the lack of inspiration/motivation is that I am at risk of producing work that I don't like. For me, that's important to learn from - knowing my limitations and what looks good vs. what doesn't look good to me. Last year, I produced a couple of pieces I cringe at now. But, I look for the good in them and try to remember _why_ they're bad to me and what it is that makes me cringe. Regardless, I don't take on other challenges because I just don't have time. This one, however, I will make time for because it's right in my vein of interest. I wish you the best of luck with your work and hope you have a blast doing the challenge! Definitely go at your own pace - I still do that, myself, and I'm happier for it. Thank you so much, again, for watching and your lovely comments! Cheers! :) (ps. also subscribed back to you! looking forward to checking out your channel and your work!) :D
First Inktober for me this year. Don't know how to draw but I really want to learn, this "challenge" is a blessing for me. Wasn't much inspired by day 3 "Roasted" also was really tired, so I just spent like 2 minutes on it and drew a roasted chicken... No prep, no reference, and I actually managed to draw something that looks like a roasted chicken, that was a pleasant surprise! I'll spend more time on the "Spell" word, this will be more difficult but I want to give my best, wish me luck
Very much appreciated the wisdom you shared here. As a first time inktober participant I decided to be easy on myself but do my best to draw once a day. Even if it is only a tiny drawing it counts. Some days just don't have 36 hours in them. I decided it is also important for me to document some of my thoughts as I move through this challenge too, so my writing journal, in which ink will be used, will have a record of the mental and emotional impact etc.
Good luck with the challenge Mark! This is my 3rd Inktober, and I can agree with most of your points. Will direct people here if they ask about the challenge!
I have a tip that's for newbie folk like me.
You're still allowed to sketch in pencil before inking the drawing!
I think a lot of people get it in their head that you can ONLY use ink the whole time, but if you're not confident with ink, having a light sketch is a huge help.
however be carefull with this, if your pencil underdrawing is too detailed, the inking will feel mundane, because you draw the same thing twice!
Sketching is good but yeah like the comment above, be careful . Sketch too much and it can ruin the paper or make graphite appear when you put on the inks
So strange that people think that. Even Jake Parker, the creator of inktober, sketches first and inks after.
I also have question, can I do it digitally?
Jake Parker himself drew the first prompt digitally (digital ink he said) so I think you can too.
2 art supplies for inktober:
paper
black pen
done.
Yes!
Same..pen and paper is enough for me ..I just need a few different pens to have some areas darker ofc 😁
Yeah I'm using a cheap Biro and a sketch book that was £2 in Wilkos (UK)
As it should be...though it's a guilty pleasure to watch artists as they show their shiny new toys😂
If I'm feeling a little risky i might just break out my blue pen
So true about the challenges! It can feel like a restrictive diet, you start off feeling so optimistic and after a few days you can feel stressed, anxious and agitated! I love the idea of inktober but as someone who paints and draws everyday saying yes to inktober means saying no to something else so what am I willing to give up? Time with family? no. My work? no. Exercise? I'd love to but no, however I can commit to once a week so I'll do that. I can enjoy a "lite" version of Inktober ad That's fine with me. Anything that gets people to create more is aces in my book!
Exactly! We're all so busy, and especially artists who already have client work they have to do every day--Inktober can be a BIG challenge. Never participated in it before, but this year I might dip my toe in ... maybe just my pinkie toe! ;-)
I agree Lindsay and I think I could do a weekly better than a daily challenge.
same here.I do an alternative as I do only the prompts that spark ideas and use them instead of doing a artwork on other ideas that day. I am ok with not doing every prompt and I don t have to work as I m disabled and have several dangerous illnesses.Those have several things that influences my ability and time I can make and enjoy making art.One of them that I am extremely tired 24/7 .That urges me to do time management. It might be easier for me just cause I m unable die to illness to do the whole Inktober.
Last year I was sad being unable to do them daily.
I use 1 watercolor per prompt so I don thabe to buy new media and I learn myself to use all the different colors with water to change colorstrenght and help myself to ,in other months to not use a wholeset of colors and only use a couple of them.It has improved my artwork in this way, I never expected this to be what I would be learning from the challange
As always, a very sage outlook on the topic and one that I can fully relate to. I love the idea of a "lite" version of the challenge and perhaps next year, it might be worth exploring for myself! :)
thefrugalcrafter Lindsay Weirich I can understand your point of view but for me ( I also paint/draw everyday) I like it as an exercise to practice skills without being distracted by other mediums /choices. This year I'm using Inktober to focus on practicing creating smooth, expressive lines using only a brush, using only tone and line to create a picture, and discipline on not abandoning a project even if it isn't working out ( my notebook only contains 31 pages, so no do overs) exactly as I hoped. Not every picture has worked the way I wanted but I do feel that I am improving on the areas I wanted to improve on without being tempted to rely on other elements to mask errors/weak spots. I'm ok with things not being perfect with this challenge, I am excited to see my work get better each day ( or even to just try a new thing!)
Seeing your sketchbook is amazing and very inspiring. I'm not doing inktober, but actually, your tips apply to just being an artist every day. You could easily replace 'inktober' with 'art' or 'painting' and it still holds true. Thanks for sharing your wisdom, it's super helpful.
Thank you, Dr. Oto Kano! I appreciate that perspective! I'm grateful for your feedback. :)
*Artists go to stores and get expensive fountain pens and sketchbooks to use for Inktober*
Me:
*Uses a cheap pen from Walmart and an old sketchbook*
Back in the days before laptops I wrote my novels in spiral notebooks. People gave me nice journals but I felt more comfortable with the simplest supplies. No pressure, I bought them by the dozen when they were on sale for back to school. I honed my skills just as well as if they were written in beautiful script in fancy journals. I lost all my art supplies in my divorce, so I started going through dumpsters and collecting colorful soda cartons to create my collages, some of my best work came from that.
@@kissedbysun2517 A shame you lost your supplies, but you do you! If you prefer the simpler supplies, good for you.
@@rai4141 that was several years ago. Over time I've collected new supplies, but I still create colleges and other 3D art using colorful packaging material!
Ex-hobo artstyle? xd
it doesn t matter what medium you use to make the art from the daily prompts. I m a watercolor and acrylic artist. I do have india ink and a dip pen somewhere but I choose to use watercolor but restricting myself to use only one color per prompt.
"Watching another artist show off all the new art supplies they bought just for inktober, can make us wanna go out and buy new art supplies for ourselves, even if we dont have the money or didn't plan to spend money on art supplies..."
as I look through the description to see what dip pen he's using 😅
lol! Now that's funny, right there! I love my Tachikawa, but I have others, too, that are really cheap!
As I drool over the art supplies, I find inspiration to dig through my clutter of pens, pencils and partially filled sketch books to find the supplies I plan to use this Inktober.
Last year was my first, and while I tried to do a drawing a day, life and other important things happened, so instead of trying to catch up, I'd just flip through what I'd missed of the prompts, choose something and start. I think I got maybe 10 drawings Done last year, and they weren't great, but I did them to the best of my ability and I'm proud of that.
This year, I'm going to try stretching Inktober into Artannual 2020 and do at least one challenge drawing a month, maybe one a week, sometimes one a day. I need the push.
But what's the pen? 😂😂
I've learned to use the supplies I have to make art. No purchases of fancy supplies for me.
Wish has them for $3 shipping. I waited 3 weeks for mine. Ordered while it was free. Just the shipping.🤗
I started doing Inktober years ago but I no longer take part. It's gotten to a point where it seems like people rush to out-do each other every year. As I write this it's only late September, but I know a few people who have already started doing their Inktober drawings a few weeks ago so that they'll have a masterpiece to post each day. Some people seem more concerned with the social media aspect than the actual 'drawing daily to improve your ink skills' aspect...
Between things like this and the fights that happen EVERY SINGLE YEAR over traditional versus digital, I feel like it's become kinda toxic and beyond Jake Parker's original intention for the project. I completed it in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and I feel like I got what I needed to out of it. I didn't even post my drawings online the first year. To me the competitive, number driven nature of social media in the art community is already difficult enough to deal with mentally/emotionally. When I need to brush up on my ink skills I do it in my own time.
First, JP didn't invent a miracle unguent, but took a popular hobby among artists, put a clever label on it, and promoted it on social media. By surprise, it caught on like wildfire and now he uses it to sell products and make a buck. I don't blame him, it's just not my thing. Word prompt challenges have been around forever. The difference in history is that we had Pictionary parties in the 1980s and people have UA-cam and Instagram, now.
Second, I can't argue with you. You're right. I was on Facebook yesterday looking at people posting, "Just finished Day 10! Tell me what you think?" I felt queasy with that toxic feeling you mentioned. I always say that we should do Inktober in a way that works best for us. But, people doing it a month in advance... I don't get it. In one thread, someone said, "I will be out of the country, so I'm doing them ahead because I won't be able to post them during the challenge." I imagined they were going to Atlantis or Xanadu where internet service can be sketchy.
Lastly, where you wrote, "people try to out-do each other," I still maintain the "I try to out-do _myself_" approach and focus on improving my own skills, habits, and discipline and let other's worry about their own work. I'm glad you've had the experience to view the challenge with a good perspective. I fully understand the need to stay out of it, too. I'm still enjoying it and I do enjoy seeing the work of others, even the "out-doers." But, yeah, the competitiveness of it has become silly, so like anything, I do it for me. And when I'm not into it, I don't do it.
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and the intelligent dialogue. I don't see many posts like yours too often, so to read it and sit back and say, "wow," and then such a long reply, well... thanks. I appreciate your time. Cheers!
@@MDCampbell Thanks for the thoughtful response. I was just kinda venting to be honest lol. Prompt challenges are great and they've certainly helped me over the years but I guess participation in them should come from a desire to improve your art, learn new habits, etc. rather than from a 'fear of missing out', which seems to be a negative side-effect of social media in general these days, not just in relation to art.
I still think Inktober is a great thing and at the end of the day as long as you're setting yourself personal goals and achieving them, that can only be a positive thing no matter the context.
Looking forward to my second inktober this October - 2019. Last year I just did thumbnail pictures in my journal - 1.5" by 1.5" squares. Pretty stress-free - but still a challenge for my skill level. (stick-men) I won't be posting mine. All the satisfaction involved is purely from what I manage to come up with when given words like "air" or "intrinsic" LOL
This will be my first time doing Inktober. I'm a little nervous because I'm not great at drawing, even though I love to draw, also the other people who participated in Inktober are amazing artist.
So this year I decided I'm not going to focus on the other amazing artist drawings and just go for it... praying nobody laughs at my drawings. Thank you for the advice on how to prepare for Inktober.
Hugs from Texas
I feel exactly like you do, I hope that you do great at the challenge if you'll be doing it. I consider myself terrible at drawing but I want to give it a shot.
OwO yes, I definitely will be doing it this year. I've sat on the sidelines watching for a couple of years now, so I figured it's time for me to just jump in and do it. 😊
I hope you have a fun and great experience doing this your first time as well. Are you joining any of the Facebook groups for Inktober?
I'm exactly the same! I have decided to complete inktober and THEN I will check out what other artists did. Otherwise I'll just start procrastinating if I see how bad my art is in comparison.
Good luck in your first inktober!
Becca Bullard it’s not about the quality it’s about the effort and the fact your trying
Do you have an insta or deviantart where you post the art? I would love to see :>
“inktober can be a distraction” yeah i can tell by the way i’m watching this video and sketching out my ideas for some prompts instead of doing my readings due tomorrow
Glad to see ur priorities are just like mine XD
Hey Mark! Looking forward to seeing what you come up with this year. I don't think I saw all your book from last year. I remember a lot of them but not all. Fun, creative ideas! I especially like the prompt/text inclusion on the opposite page. I confess I don't follow the prompts and I only did about 7 ink pieces last year but still had a blast. I think I will try to do all 31 this year. You're commentary points were right on as usual. Take care my friend!
oh my, one of my favorite artists is here :D
Thank you for checking this out, Steve! I'm grateful for your thoughts and continued motivation. I am thrilled to see your pen and inkwork and glad to share the experience. Hope you're having fun with the challenge, as well! Cheers, my friend! :)
I love the line that you said creating something at all is worth being proud of -- not to focus on making something perfect!! And I also needed the reminder that Inktober isn't a competition :) Just the tips I needed to get even more excited for Day 5! xxx - Dana -- ps your inktober 2017 sketchbook was really inspiring.
This was my first year doing inktober, and I've done 7 days in a row, posted the images on numerous social media sites each day, and also the youtube videos for them each day. But, today, I've sufficiently decided that I've reached my burnout point. Your video makes me feel better about taking a break.
I think I will continue to do inktober, but maybe I'll split up a day into multiple days, and I'll keep working on it beyond the end of october to account for my level of stress-handling.
Thank you for this video!
I'm glad this was helpful in some way. I totally get the whole burnout point! I hit it around day 15 or so. Even today for "Frail" I was trying to go super-simple, yet, I got caught up in it and I've spent far longer than I wanted. Now I need a break!! lol! Cheers and always do what's best for you - this challenge draws in a lot of people who put too much on themselves and they don't realize it until it's too late. You've got a great handle on it! Also, really enjoyed watching you draw that dragon in your video! Nice work! :) ~ Mark
@@MDCampbell Haha! Yeah, I feel like by giving myself more time, I won't be limiting myself to a simple drawing and will get to draw really complicated things when I'm inspired to do so. Like for instance, on "Build" I wanted to try to make a really complicated city or castle drawing, but instead I settled on Jenga blocks cause they were simpler. I also would like to try several drawings with the same prompt. Like for "Freeze" I had the idea of drawing the earth in a refrigerator to make some sort of comment on global warming, or something about polar bears or penguins wanting the ice to stop melting, but I also wanted to try to draw icebergs with reflections in the water, so I had to settle with that in the end.
I actually discovered in the past year that I put too much pressure on myself in general, so this is just another step in the direction of finding the right balance.
Ooh, I'm glad you like my dragon! Thank you! Which one was it in particular? I have a few: The blue one, the one with rainbow wings, or the Chinese one?
Thank you for commenting, you seem like a big channel to me, and it's refreshing to get responses from big channels!
Excited to get into Inktober thanks to an excuse to get back into traditional work ;3;
I wanted to use inktober to learn working with a dippen, but all I ended up doing was
- 1 make a drawing I am NOT happy with and
- 2 wasting a lot of money because I poured out my inkbottle in frustration over another project.
Maybe I was trying to eagerly by already trying to do 2 drawings in 1 day, Actually by just typing this comment it made me realise that it was because of pushing myself too much I kind off ruined it, if you read this I only have the following to say: keep doing what you do on this channel, I am sure people can agree with me on this that you are in fact a great teacher, and the wisdom you share that you once received is the greatest gift I can imagine. You have helped me trough a lot of struggles with my art, even with just small anekdotes, so THANK YOU for providing a helping hand in this journey of art I would otherwise walk rather lonely.
@@erickdraws9563 That's good advice! And that's basically what I'm doing too. I want to draw my comic characters, and want to get into a habit of drawing them every day, so I link the prompt word in lightly, but don't overthink it, and just draw what I would draw anyway - my comic characters. At some point if the prompt fits a scene in my comic, I might just draw my comic. The point is to get into a habit of drawing. If you don't care about making an illustration strictly out of the prompt word, and it feels unoriginal and unimaginative, then don't do it like that. Your imagination comes from your experiences, life, interests and what you have created before. You can cooperate those with the prompts, it's not forbidden.
Hello Ink Panther. I can only say thank you for your kind and generous words. It means more than you know that just a single person out there found some benefit to the work I'm doing. I don't do this as a job - it's merely a hobby for me. So, as a labor of love, I enjoy making these videos, and have always vowed that if they ever become a chore, then I stop. That's the only advice I can offer you with regard to your artwork and especially with dip pens and such: if it's more of a chore than it is fun, then perhaps consider rethinking your interest. I'm happy you've enjoyed the channel and I promise to continue to striving to bring relevant content, as best I can. Thank you for making my day! Cheers! :)
7:53 to 8:30 is my philosophy as an artist. You hit the nail on the head, and this has to be one of the most comprehensive Inktober Tips I have ever watched. An actual HELPFUL one and not some supply list. I failed inktober last year due to time constraint + failure to plan. But dis time??? Posted "poisonous" this morning and already drafting "tranquil"!
Thank you so much Koriand'r of the Stars! I really appreciate your thoughts and time watching! Best of luck with your Inktober journey! :)
I actually work ahead. I sketch ahead when I have time (normally weekends) so I only have to do the inking when I come home from work. So I finish the piece the day it's supposed to following the prompt list. And I also post it that day. This is how I manage my time and it works out fine so far
This was really helpful! I've been going through a horrible period where I've lacked motivation and I thought a good way to get back into art would be to take on Inktober for the very first time!
I thought about the prompt for hours last night and sketched several ideas out but it all became so overwhelming. Looking up info on the challenge online made it even worse as I came across a lot of strong opinions and varying viewpoints. This video was clear, concise and put everything together really well.
Yes, it is a challenge. No I don't need to spend a ton of money, using what I have is fine. My goals are to have fun and hopefully become a better artist but I have to be careful to not get too caught up and lose myself in the process! Thank you so much for this upload. Have a wonderful Inktober everyone!
Thank you, BZ, and I understand about the lack of motivation - I've gone through it recently, myself, and can appreciate your perspective. I'm hoping this challenge will unbind that block and get me back on my creative track. I hope you find that same path to your creative track, but remember to just let it happen naturally. It's best to get in a place where you're relaxed and can immerse without distraction! Stay well and best wishes! :)
Oh! It's Oct 1 here today and I was *just* about to start my first ink sketch which was going to be pretty simple and then I saw your awesome work.. and now I feel deflated :-/ I should have watched this on Nov 1st lol!
Dont judge your work against another. Your work is yours and can never compare to another persons work.
Don’t feel that way! Do the challenge with the plans you had, even if it’s simple plans. This way next year October you’ll be able to compare that inkober to this one & see your improvement.
JezzeBoy exactly!! That is what I’m doing!
Theres no need to feel bad! He has had sooo many years of practice so don’t expect to have art like him. If you just start with a simple little ink sketch you will be able to work to having more complicated drawings!
I know how that feels. My teacher would tell the class that comparison is the thief of joy. I hope you all have fun with the challenge and remember that you did it. You created new piece of art and that is amazing
October coming soon, It's good i stumbled upon your video. I think I will participate this year , but thanks to you, I will be able to approach it in a healthy and beneficial way.
This is a great video Mark! As always, it's very thoroughly thought out with many valuable points to keep in mind for this challenge. I know that my own goals for October at not compatible with this challenge this year but I still look forward to creating some ink pieces!
Thank you so much, Denise! I really appreciate your time and feedback on this. I'm looking forward to seeing your unique perspective and artwork for the upcoming months! Stay well! :)
I took up the challenge for the 1st time this year and as a novice artist am so proud of the drawing I did for the 1st day!
This is my first inktober, and so far it has been a great experience. I don't know how this will change as the month goes on, but I am excited!
This will be my first Inktober, and I'm going to treat it like NaNoWriMo: practice time. I've been using the 2018 Inktober prompt list to do some digital sketching as sort of a Sketchtember thing. It's been fun so far.
I remember when Inktober didn't have a prompt list. It was just a challenge to draw a picture in black ink every day for the month. Now there's a prompt list, "Drawloween" and other challenges during the month. And you can use colors now too.
I think you've got a great point about the supplies. Ballpoint pen on a napkin counts within the guidelines presented.
Burn out happens to most people when they try to tackle inktober so that's why the prompt list should only be view as suggestions. It's art afterall, draw what you want.
Thanks very much for all the insight on Inktober! Very useful info for someone who's just starting out like me :) Will attempt the challenge myself this year, God willing. Let's see what'll come out. God bless!
Well, it's me who should also thank you, D's Artistry, for taking the time to both watch and leave such kind feedback. Let's definitely see what comes out, for both of us! God bless, you too, and thank you! :)
I didn’t know there was a word promo list. I’ll check it out. May or may not use it. I try to do a quick sketch or some doodles every morning before work, after I’ve arrived, just to clear my head and get focused. Helps me a lot. So figured this would be a good way to get me to draw a little something on the weekend as well and maybe get more than a simple drawing done
Thank you for making this video. Personally for me, i have never been able to finish or even properly start inktober. I would overthink my plans, feel uncreative, and October is typically a busy time for me. I really felt like I was the only one who felt so much pressure from Inktober. Then, I doubt myself a lot emotionally, feeling incapable to pursue art and all these small thoughts that get too crazy.I’m also not too great at managing my social life online, nor do I want to forget my daily routine that I worked years to work on. Because of it, I tried doing another art challenge in April instead. It’s doing an art challenge on my own time, choosing art challenges that suit me. I strongly suggest this for other people who want to do art challenges, but feel overwhelmed by Inktober.
Funny, Marie Ana, another view wrote recently, "how are you people getting stressed over Inktober? You're taking it way too seriously!" To me, that lack of perception can make an already stressful challenge even more stressful. Like you, October is a hugely busy time of year for me, my family, and my work. But, I always make the commitment that as long as it's fun and doesn't interfere with anything else, I'll do the challenge. As of now, it all works for me. But, also like you, I do it on my terms in the way I want. That's what works for me and it sounds like that is what may work for you, as well, with whatever you decided to do, challenge or not. I believe in keeping the stress at a minimum. Cheers and glad you chose to write! Thank you! ~ Mark
Thank you for this video! I'm not a fan of ink, so I use whatever medium I want. So far this year, I've done one gouache, one watercolor, and one acrylic. For me, the whole point is to encourage myself to practice my art every day and to begin a good routine. If I don't like a prompt, I skip that part, too. What's most important is that we're creating art!
Coming to this because of inktober 2019... this is such a useful breakdown of the psychology and things that go through your mind. Thanks so much for really useful constructive content
You're definetly right about people turning into a competition, my advice to anyone sharing their work is not to post on reddit, the people on there are so toxic
Thanks for this. This is my first Inktober. Last year I learned about Inktober but I thought it was too late to join. So this year I had a lot of prep. I got some friends involved too, so we can share our art. Being a homeschooled kid, I have the time, and I knew this would help me as a artist. As soon as the prompt list came out I started thinking of what I'd draw each day. Day three I've already learned alot. Praying I get through the month, wish me luck.
Shortly before Inktober this video was recommended for me! Great video btw!
Thank you, Alice Yaoi! I'm glad you enjoyed this one! :)
This video's been very comforting, thank you. :( Inktober has been very overwhelming for me due to my depression and being tired all the time. I couldn't do more than a few days of the challange and still wasn't satisfied with my drawings. Also after a while I didn't have any ideas and felt like it was all forced. I felt... worse than others. Because they can do it, and I can't. Thank you for telling me there's nothing wrong with it.
I completely understand that feeling that the drawings are forced. I go through that more than I like to think about! I'm happy you found comfort in the video, and with regard to your depression, I sincerely hope you are doing well and are finding successes both great and small in your travels of everyday. It's the small achievements most of us forget to take big joy in, right? Take care and thank you for taking time to reply! ~ Mark
Wow very interesting a friend sent me a link to Inktober I thought it was a contest, but its a challenge, didn't think to much about it... but after hearing your thorough explanation of it, I might delve into this and tell others... I better start with the first one and challenge myself!
For this year, I've decided my priority will be to finish Inktober. So I will use ball-point pen, some fine liners, and have a reference for each day, so I won't think too much about what I'm about to draw. And draw at the beginning of the day, when I'm fully rested. Have fun everyone!
This year will be my first time participating in Inktober. I'm looking forward to it but it also scares me. Your video was very helpful in showing me what I can expect in the next 31 days. I already know that one of the things I hoped to accomplish - posting a daily video of my drawing process - will not be a part of it. Editing the footage takes too much time.
As always, great art. I wish I could pick your brain sometime because I'd love to know where you come up with ideas. Your drawings are always so unique and fascinating. Thanks for sharing.
Trust me, books2art, I'm terrified every year I do this challenge! lol! Seriously! I never know what I'm going to do or how I'm going to find the time! But, I always remember - this is MY challenge for myself; it's not about anyone else. As for videos, well, there's a reason I do not record my Inktober drawings. I know a lot of other people do, but most of them have that kind of time to spend - I do not. So, I just go with what I can do! As for my brain, well, doctors picked it apart back in 2012 when I had a craniotomy for a brain tumor. I bet that's where a lot of ideas got into my head from! LOL!!! Cheers and thank you so much!! :)
That's a good way to look at it. I will admit that I hoped to use the daily videos during Inktober to help me grow my channel but between work and painting/drawing there isn't enough time to make those videos. But you're absolutely right. The challenge itself should be for me not for other people. Thank you for reminding me of that.
Sorry to hear about your tumor but I'm glad you're doing good. I look forward to your next video. Maybe by watching you draw more, I'll be able to absorb some of your creativity lol
Couldn't agree more with you on time management and especially how Inktober can be expensive. It's tempting to get new drawing materials but it's always better to think of whether or not I'll end up using the newly obtained drawing supplies after Inktober. You really conveyed Inktober in all of its positive and negative lights perfectly. Truly enjoyed watching your video! :D
What I like about inktober is that it made me fall in love with my dippen. I took a drawing class in college that required us to have dippens, and I honestly hated it after the first try and never gave it another chance (i'm surprised I didn't throw it or gave it away) up until now and I love it!
Thank you for this video. It really helps me plan and prepare for inktober this year. And you are so right inktober is not a competition! I have to remember this and try not to compare or beat myself up when I don’t meet the challenge
So glad you enjoyed it, beautifulstorm027! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and best wishes on this year's Inktober! ~ Mark
Truly what no one else would have mentioned to us, especially beginners and those new to Inktober.
Thank you for video, these are things many could have never thought of without experiences and years of doing art.
Everything you said have been carefully (not lol) jotted down and I would probably be thinking over this the whole evening.
I love how you have a philosophical view on inktober and it was very interesting and inspiring to watch you create that piece. I feel very inspired for my next inktober drawing. This is my first year trying it and I am very excited. If I complete the challenge i want to get myself some new ink as an award!
It’s day 9 into my first inktober and I’m feeling frustrated and discouraged after I started off strong for the first week. It really is a challenge! I haven’t drawn every day for a long time, and struggle with loosing my creative streaks.. but I’m also pushing myself to commit to something that I know in the end will have challenged me as an artist to push through and show myself that I can take this on and push through even when I feel like I’ve stepped into the lions den!
Thank you so much for all these Inktober videos. I've been struggling for the last couple years because I found myself burning out within a week, but it was mostly fro frustration - I felt like Inktober implies you're gonna celebrate every work publicly, and that self-imposed pressure made finishing projects even more difficult than the concept already was. I felt pressured to complete my projects, which compounded the anxiety I already feel about anything I draw, and I inevitably burned out every single time.
I'm starting this year with a different approach - even sketches are okay. Even if they look like "garbage", I'm still gonna try. Even if it's a base frame for something I'll never finish, I still tried. I'm gonna hold myself to being okay with whatever I make, regardless of how "good" it is. You can't grow if you never try, right?
Absolutely, Autumn Nicole! To be perfectly honest, you sound like you have the most realistic grasp on the challenge and given that attitude and approach, I think you're going to have a great time - and best of all, on _your_ terms! Well said and a great plan to go into it! Thank you for watching and for sharing your honesty and insight! ~ Mark
You're the best. Subbed for life.
Awesome advice and insight. I had plans to participate in Inktober 2019 but surgery at the time put a damper on that plan. But I'll be there in 2020. Thanks for posting!
Thank you, Rometiklan, for not only taking your time to watch, but for you generous feedback. I certainly hope your surgery was successful and you are in post-recovery at this point. I have experience with putting life on hold due to surgery, so I most definitely empathize!! Hope all is well on your end! Cheers and thank you, again! ~ Mark
My first inktober! I asked my friends to join me, they probably won't but if they do I'd be sooo happy! My first drawing (Sept 30) was mediocre but acceptable. Thanks for this video!
I'm thrilled to hear you're jumping into the challenge! Any which way you go into it, it's going to be great for your art. To me, a mediocre piece of art is better than no art, at all. Go as far as your creative spirit can take you, Kamilah Bryant! Cheers! :)
@@MDCampbell Thank you! I wish you luck with your inktober!
I sort of jump in and out of it whenever I have time. About 20 minutes doing a quick sketch.
I also do my own version. I follow the original maker’s prompts but I do it all digitally, limiting myself to only ink-style brushes, no undos and only one layer.
Hi. I just came across this video. I am not a pen and ink drawing person, I pour acrylics. 2 years ago after an injury I challenged myself to pour every day. I really appreciate this video because everything you said applies to a personal challenge as well, all of the positives and negatives. I am constantly renegotiating my challenge to myself. Thank you for your insights. I will probably return to this video to listen again.
I really love poured acrylics, mostly because I don't do them! It's a wonderful expression and I'm glad you were able to challenge yourself to pour every day, and that you are willful enough to revisit your challenge goals, regularly. I need to get better about that, myself. Thank you for checking this out, theun speakable, but even moreso for sharing your thoughts and kind feedback. Cheers! ~ Mark
Thanks so much for this. I've been wanting to do this challenge for a few years now and I'm finally doing it this year. You brought up some awesome points! Always love to hear from those who have already done the challenge.
Thank you for this great video. The challenge can add pressure to our daily lives, espacially when there is a certain amont of people waiting for our drawing of the day (and video of the drawing of the day). But in the end it helps me to be more disciplined and learn about how I can work well (and how I sometimes fail).
Ah yes, the failure aspect of it all! I know it well! lol! I'm glad you enjoyed this one, Benjamin Cerbai, and hope it helped in some way! Thank you for checking out and your thoughtful feedback! ;)
I did this for the first time last year and loved it.......I looked forward to it each day and did the sketch. I am not good, but that did not matter, it was fun!!
and I guess I cheated...I did not sick to pen and ink :0. I did it however I wanted to do it.
@@delila351 that's how I feel about it. I have always gone in traditionally, but I keep in the back of my mind that if I miss a day, can't get to my pen & ink, or just don't want to do it anymore - that's okay. As long as I'm happy with my decisions and don't beat myself up about it. Cheers! :)
Awesome video friend! I love the sketchbook art... looking forward to seeing more from you.
Thank you for this video! This is my second year of doing the challenge, and although I completed last year, I really needed a video like this. :) Happy inking!
Awesome to read this, Soupie Art! I wish you the very best in your challenge! Happy inking to you, to, and not for nothing... my nickname throughout my life was Soupie! Too great!!! lol! Cheers! :)
Wow, your nickname has been my online persona for years! That's so crazy! Oh, what a beautiful world it is we live in!
Excellent advice! Thanks for sharing your experience with us. Awesome illustration.
Thank you so much, Creative Nomad Studio! Happy you enjoyed! :)
Hey Mark. Thanks for this video. I found out informative even if it's several years old. I'm on day 10 of my first Inktober and I've been keeping your pointers in mind, especially when that little voice in m my head stays saying I should do more complicated drawings or that my offerings are trash compared to others. After I watched your video, I've been ignoring that voice and even not really paying attention to other people's drawings or the lack of comments on my own. Thanks again.
Thank you for your feedback and your time watching, @susancarr9955. I'm so happy you found it informative. To ignore that little voice in our heads and to crave the attention from others (especially people we consider "better" than us - or even people we don't even know) is, to me, the biggest part of the challenge. It's also an elevated way of doing the challenge: without social reward. To create solely for our own, personal fulfullment _must_ be the primary reason for being creative. Too many participants forget that and struggle with not getting proper accolades, no matter how good their work is. I'm glad you're participating and have a good perspective on the challenge! Cheers and thank you, again! ~ Mark
Thank you. I just found you tonight. You have great insights. I appreciate you letting me know what INKTOBER was all about. If I am do try it I will have to use just what I have on hand. I am trying to learn how to draw this year. I know if I had really kept with it in the 80's I would be better at it know. It is not to late just harder to do it at this age I am 78 and I have arthritis so lines don't quite go where I want them too. I am really enjoying doing pages trying to make ovals and lines. I draw everyday. There is always something for me to do. Fun things to do and watch others TEACH me a new adventure in life
THANK YOU SO MUCH.!!!!
So awesome and thank you for checking the channel out! At 78, I'm so impressed that you've got such an interest in your creative journey! You must have amazing stories to tell, maxine boren! Thank you for watching and I'm so grateful for your time! ~ Mark
Great advice, i failed last year, my first ever one. Now im a little more clued im hoping i can complete this. Watching this gave me confidence and eagerness to get started.
i don't think you've failed if you have learnt something! No matter if you haven't completed all 31 days ^_^
I had first heard about it just two years ago! It was already october 5th so i held off until the next year. Last year i only missed either 1 or two days so i dont really think i failed. I still definitely improved my skills!
Thank you, Daniel. I'm very grateful for your time watching and hope you have a successful Inktober! Cheers! :)
This is great advice, not just for drawing but for creators in general. I'm going to participate in the writing challenge for November and this applies to that as well. Great video and thank you for sharing your experience.
I have to make another point, I discovered a ton of inspiring artists this last inktober, you yourself included :) I am looking forward to this years challenge and Art pieces. I wish everyone a fun and inspiring experience!
I watched this vid last year and made it thru my first Inktober. Good refresher for this year before I plunge in again. I bought a few new supplies to have fun with : a dip pen, nibs and ink. A mixed media sketch book cos last year I discovered I had the wrong type of paper for including watercolor. A cheapie brush pen and a white gel pen. I got the list of prompts early but decided I'd rather be surprised each day. I'll use reference drawings and plan it in my lunchbreak and complete in the evenings. Have fun everyone!
I love it, DiGi377! Sounds like you're going into this challenge with a positive, ready-to-go attitude, which is familiar to me! Have a blast this year and thank you so much for watching and supporting the work I do here. I really means a lot! ~ Mark
Such great tips Mark! Thank you for sharing. You have a very healthy approach to the challenge. I hope it helps people who are getting too frustrated about it. I have to watch this video a few more times to stop beating myself up over not managing to make time to participate this year...
Great video Mark. Lots of good tips and commentary on things I haven't really thought about. I started participating in inktober to get over my fear of ink. Eventually it became a way for me to produce inventory for the winter and spring art fairs and conventions in my area. This year I plan to produce a booklet of the drawings I am doing for Inktober.
Thank you for making this! It gave a voice to that nagging feeling I have about Inktober. I still participate, but I have had to get past the consumer and competitive urges to enjoy it this year. Thank you for putting to words why it can be intimidadting.
This is one of the best videos I've seen on youtube regarding Inktober. Thank you for putting forward those points!
Every time I am watching you to do your doodle like drawings I truly amazed how much time you spend on details.
Ohh i never done inktober, in fact i never done ink drawing before, i think i will give it a try..
This is my first too! Good luck, you'll do great.
I did it in art class, it wasn't my favorite thing because I'm not very good at drawing.
@@stickyice6947 thnx a lot.
@@PhaethonCrafts please visit my Channel too.
I don't even know what the heck is inktober
I love your art, it’s very unique and dark
Thank you for explaining inktober I was wondering what all the fuss was about. Love your sketch book, oh my goodness your drawings are amazing!! Tfs :)
Hilariously, i learned so many lessons about why I should stay away from inktober because OMG.....and yet I just happen to coincidentally be working with ink right now?!?! Oy. So I guess I’m doing inktober in a way, but at my own speed and with zero prompts because eff it, I do what I want.
I’ve been talking to people about how to prep, safely listen to themselves, and allow themselves to forgive when things don’t go as planned or hoped.
We survived this last year and it seriously felt like a survival. Good luck this year-I’m marching to the beat of my own drum!
I think the decision _not_ to do Inktober is equally as important as deciding to do it. I thought hard about it this year, and decided that, if at any point, it's not fun and interesting, then I'll stop. So far, it's been both fun and interesting, so for now, I'm going strong... of course, it's only day 9. lol! I can't wait to see what you're up to and the beat your own drum produces! :)
As an amateur with no interest in an art based career this is such a positive and useful guide! My art is for me - I never share it and so I always battle with the "why bother? your art doesn't look like ____'s" type thoughts because social media is so full of wonderful (and often professional) creators posting their work, and it can be so easy to fall into a negative mindset, especially when other amateurs who create their work for themselves don't post up their work either. Now I will strive to think about the people like me who just enjoy an occasional doodle, and enjoy inktober for the sake of enjoying it. No more competition or negativity!
I SOOOO love that you did the left side with the day number and prompt word! Great tips too...
Thank you so much! This was so accurate and so helpful. I'm 12 days in and already feeling depressed and anxious but this was really helpful. Also amazing drawing by the way
"The lure is very strong" this is so true. This my first time doing it and I was tempted to buy load of supplies, but I realized it was too much. I have already quite a few ink supplies. In the end I bought only some markers I wanted anyway. That video was really great.
Haha, thank you for sharing this 'unpopular Inktober opinion'. :D This year I've seen that many artists (myself included) have posted videos being more critical towards Inktober and why not partecipating can be a good idea in certain cases. I think that becoming more critical towards certain choices we make is in itself a sign of growth as artists, even though it has nothing to do with style, or practice, or advertising.
I don’t really think that it’s a sign of growth, I feel lot of them are extremely close minded. Shaming people using digital lineart, for example, even when on the official inktober website it’s say you can. If you read the FAQ on Inktober.com you can see that the challenge is MUCH more open and accessible than what people make it look like. The point is challenging yourself, not others. You don’t even have to do it everyday if you have time for once each two day it’s fine two, as long as it is consistant
By critical I meant that instead of just jumping on and doing it, we think about what doing it can bring us as artists. Some people still decide to do it and some don't. When one thinks about *why* they're doing something and not simply do it because everyone is doing it, that's growth.
I honestly don't care about how one goes to do it, everyone is free to do what they want, my train of thought would be very straightforward: it's called 'INK'tober and there are 31 prompts, so you need to use ink and draw every day of October. But if someone wants to do something else, be it digital, be it a drawing every three, then they can.
Karijn's Watercolors oh yeah I understand what you mean ^_^ those people criticizing other for the way they decide to do inktober are a minority tho :)
Have a nice inktober 😊😊
Haha, I am a purist only when it comes to cooking pasta. :P And a nice Inktober to you as well. :)
Even though this video is nearly a year old finding it helped me out a lot. Each point was laid out very well and some I didn’t even realize that I should’ve thought of. I’ve never done an inktober and was looking forward to trying it. I loved the drawing but also the discussion that it provoked in my own mind. Thank you.
You and I seem to have a very aligned idea about the challenge of Inktober. :) It's nice to see I'm not the only one that feels this way!
Really appreciate your videos. Started Inktober for the first time last year, but ran into the wall on day four (with time and ideas and lack of prep, all points you mention). This year, I plan to do it just for myself as a challenge to just draw every day to improve my drawing skills. I also am going to narrow my focus to botanical art and tackle a different flower or plant every day. That time of year is super busy for me at work and I felt last year that I just too pressed for time to come up with a creative idea to illustrate the word prompt. All this to say that I think you are so right that we should all use the challenge to challenge ourselves in whatever way makes the most sense for us not to serve the challenge or for outside approval. Just my two cents. Thanks for all your fab content--keep the videos coming!
I really enjoy reading your feedback, Judy Mason, as it motivates me and gives me confidence that the work I'm doing here has benefit. Thank you so much for that and your kind support of the channel. I don't ask people for money or contributions, as I do this purely as a hobby. So, the feedback I get is the profit that keeps me going. Very grateful for your time! Be well! ~ Mark
This is my first year doing it, and all these tips are things I tried to conclude before starting in on it. As much as I would like to do really high quality detailed drawings, I don't have the time for it and don't want to be discouraged, so I've aproched it as just doing it for the action and creative thinking, even if I'm not 100% happy with the drawing, at least I did one, without so much pressure for perfection. I've also tried to plan them out ahead of time, and just work on them before work and during my lunch, has been working out well.
Also, side note. I started using the exact sketchbook you used last year and I love it.
I'm still not willing to participate this year's inktober because of real life stuff (and I do already have a week challenge this month for something I really like, with more specific prompts) but I'm LOVING your video! I knew that there was a little ruckus on last year's inktober because of drawing materials and mediums, but I think the challenge is there for the fun and the artist growth! I think it's a nice commitment for anyone who's able to manage their time.between the drawings and yes! Yes! Yes! I too think the fun of it is draw the prompt on the day it is supposed to happen, not to draw beforehand. Thank you for this video, mark, I'll use for reference for the time I want to do inktober!
Thanks for the video, quite thought provoking.... I'm terrible for quitting things like this, so decided to put a massive effort into preparation (that way if I thought I was getting bored I could look back at that effort and not want to see it wasted). So I made my own hardback journal from scratch and bought a fountain pen kit which I then designed and made the body/cap for with 3D printing. It took over a weekend of time and effort, and hopefully will keep me inspired to actually complete the month....
This is such wonderful advice, and can be used with any challenge, thanks so much for sharing! I'm hoping to participate next year in inktober, it sounds like such a fun challenge and a personal one at that :)
I’m glad I’m watching this before I head into my fourth inktober. It’s going to be a bit harder this year because I’m in my GCSE year at school and I needed to hear the advice about keeping ego in check
How to avoid the negatives, never participate in any social media circus events. Make your own challenges for yourself, instead of reading some guy´s comment on the internet. This also applies to my comment. Go draw!
Agreed. Anyone who needs a contest in order to draw every day is probably in the wrong business
Wow, 6 days into inktober and i got this video on the recommendation tab 😂 But you brought up some really good points there! I'm actually on my 2nd inktober (i failed on the 4th day last year) and honestly it did hurt my ego. But i realized that i made it too "complex" for myself. So for this year I'm challenging myself to actually create something for 31 days, whether that be a doodle or a full artwork. So far there's mostly just doodles, oh well. What i'm aiming for is consistency and consistency is something i shall get ✊
Thank you for the tips! I definitely needed to hear this from someone else so I don't think that these frustrations are all just in my head. Happy Inktober!
I won't lie, Jess, it's a tougher challenge than I think people really give it credit for. I'm already seeing a _lot_ of people posting days in advance, doing single drawings with multiple prompts to "get them out of the way," and skirting the challenge to their own creation - and that's all fine for them. But, for many who like to stick to the intent of the original goal, it is a challenge worth revering and understanding that a lot of sacrifice goes into it (time, rest, routine, etc). Anyhow, whatever you're comfortable with is what it should be about - so long as we're challenging ourselves to get better at our craft or hobby. I'm glad you posted your feedback. It was very thoughtful and I'm glad to read your thoughts. You're definitely not alone in the frustrations! lol! Be well! ~ Mark
Thanks for good information on your experience!
Last year was my first try. Being newly retired it was the best project, and yes it takes a great deal of creative time but worth the excitement.
I watched this a few months ago and rolled my eyes. In fact, I stopped watching at about tip number two.(I’m sorry.)
It took hearing that a friend of mine was going to do it and then I remembered your video. I watched it through this time and thoroughly enjoyed it!!! Thank you so much for your honesty.
I don’t think that I could commit to anything like that but I won’t discourage anyone who does.
I like the way you are creative to use items of the scenario to set the background line and also set the perspective of your drawing and i think your drawing looks really good (i hope this one contribute for your artistic ego).
This year(2019) will be my 1st Inktober,and watching this video helps a lot :D
This is a great video with a lot of good points worth thinking about. I won't be taking part, mostly because I was never a big fan of working in traditional mediums and because I've already got enough projects on my plate that demand my attention. Though I still enjoy checking out the work produced by others every October. Best of luck!
I started my Inktober early and got quite a few drawings done in advance (late October is very hectic for me), but I've been posting accordingly and haven't posted anything in advance, but I also am not following a prompt list this year.
I'm using an ultra-fine point Sharpe for lines, and watercolors for shading and color pops. My challenge for myself is to work in at least one metallic watercolor into each piece. Good luck!
I resisted inktokber for so long! When I finally tried it out, I honestly didn't spend much - I bought one single bottle of ink (I had pens I had and some free notebooks I got many years ago.) For me, working on a small (3.5 inches x 5.5 inches), manageable book size was key for me to complete the challenge and it meant I didn't bite off more than I could chew on a daily basis - I figured small was better than not doing it at all! As someone who has done many forms of art, but not much ink drawing, it was certainly a challenge, but I continuously surprised myself in what I was able to draw and produce! I still look back and I'm amazed at what I did and for that I am insanely grateful for inktober as inspiration to push myself! On the last day of inktober last year, I treated myself to a new ink set as a gift for completing the challenge. Some of my drawings are awesome, some I would redo, but I did them and that was a huge feat in itself. Challenges are challenges for a reason and progress and learning aren't always a linear path and I'm ok with that!
I have been doing something like Onktober these past 17 days and I set a 31 day challenge for myself because there is this huge watercolor painting I want to try to accomplish on the 31st day and so every day have been watercolor painting things and slowly building up for the picture. and boy it has been quite the ride!! from using acrylic brushes and not remembering a lick of watercolor painting techniques to finally having correct paintbrushes and ways to paint. people are coming up to me at church complimenting me on my art and they say they look forward to seeing the newest thing I painted! Some have even bought the paintings they liked it so much!! friends and family are saying I've got a gift and its great to see me using it.
But there of course is my struggles too... the painting doesn't turn out how I wanted it, I 'm too embarrassed to post it (funnily enough that one TWO ladies wanted to buy that. so now I gotta make another one of that slightly different for the one who didn't get it!!) I don't know what to paint so I put it off till later in the day. Wednesdays are hardest with work in the early morning, come home, change, quickly paint SOMETHING!, post it and turn around and go to church in the evening. being discouraged when one didn't get really recognized. but also understanding that it was my testing a technique painting rather than one I want to sell. DRAWING! oh its such a nightmare for me! It has gotten better thankfully but sometimes when I erase the black stuff on my eraser smudges and now my paint can't go over it and there's a horrible point in the picture! I STILL cannot do a galaxy painting to save my life and I honestly thought it would be easiest!
sorry, i'm ranting but I really do understand a lot of these challenges other artists have for Inktober. by day 14 I REALLY just wanted to draw a little chibi with me in a bed saying something like " Wore out, be back when I can!" but I didn't want to let the people down.. and actually I really loved the paintings I have drawn since day 14 and I'm glad I didn't stop!
...so yeah... keep going. but seriously, if you need a break, TAKE A BREAK AND GET AWAAYYYYY !!♫♪
Colorless Oz nice ham reference
Thank You so much for the insight. I was thinking of getting the "official" inktober scrawled box but after doing calculations, it worked out to be cheaper to buy the individual supplies... with one thing that made it a "deal". And that was the Inktober creator's special ink art class. It worked out to being a discount off what the box would have cost all together, with the class... but if you think about it, the class is free for him. Unless you believe the old time is money adage. But with the box selling out, he's more than made up for that time I'm sure. I, personally, went out and bought a box of Windsor and Newton inks. But ink is my favourite medium, so I was going to get the set anyway. Plus it was a birthday present.
Also, I've told myself to push, but I am a realist, and a severe arthritic. So I have to kind of play by my own rules. I'm still going to try posting one piece a Day, but I will do art when feel well enough to. And I won't delude myself into thinking I'm going to have full colour, nor the same quality throughout. But if I do make two in a Day, I'll make a little ink sketch in my sketchbook to make sure I still draw something each day. So I kind of already thought about a bunch of your points, but really appreciate the others. At the end of the day, I know I can't be hard on myself.
I have EDS and have done last year with my own rules being I would only make a drawing daily if my body wasn t tired of hurting to much and I telt inspired by the prompt.I managed 4 prompts I shared on FB and Twitter and felt proud. I use my ink and dippen I have had tot years and only buy a simpele cheap artist sketch ook ( quality so I can keep it tot years without it becoming faded as I open it often and use it tot make bigger paintings from it. Ink I use is India ink black, which is archival and lightfast. I normally am a artist that makes watercolor and acrylic art)
Thanks for the info. I am using the opportunity to get back into drawing. It's been years but I have wanted to return back to it. I feel this is a way to give me a kick in the rear. However, if I miss a day or so, no sweat. I'll just pick up where the day, currently, is. I never realized it was a money maker for some and that there was such competition!
I don't post what I do online. I just make some ink doodles whenever I can to get myself into the habit as a beginner artist. That way I have nobody to prove myself to except myself.
Hey Mark! Thank you for this fantastic video and your viewpoints and tips. This is the first year I’m participating, but I’m going at my own pace. I feel like artists have to be realistic with the challenge concerning time. If we’re working rushed or frustrated, I feel the challenge becomes moot point. The best challenge for us is to create while inspired, and if we’re not inspired, our work may not be our best and become contrived. I loved your honesty of your experience. I think if artists go at their own pace with the challenge, they can set their own goals. A quality over quantity method! I think the best thing we can do is have fun with it. Being satisfied with the creativity part is more important to me personally rather than scramming to make the deadline of each day. Anyways, I loved your video and thank you for sharing this! No one has ever really been this vulnerable about inktober and I appreciate it. Subscribed!
Hi Artist Jane Bush and thank you so much! I really appreciate your generous words and thoughts. Right on point! I have to say, one of the unexpected things that comes out of Inktober is actually when we DO force the art, especially when we're not inspired. Like me. Right now. lol! I had a major project today at work and I'm creatively exhausted. Yet, I still have to do the prompt #11:FLOWING for today. I'm burnt out, tho! The unexpected thing that comes out of the lack of inspiration/motivation is that I am at risk of producing work that I don't like. For me, that's important to learn from - knowing my limitations and what looks good vs. what doesn't look good to me. Last year, I produced a couple of pieces I cringe at now. But, I look for the good in them and try to remember _why_ they're bad to me and what it is that makes me cringe. Regardless, I don't take on other challenges because I just don't have time. This one, however, I will make time for because it's right in my vein of interest. I wish you the best of luck with your work and hope you have a blast doing the challenge! Definitely go at your own pace - I still do that, myself, and I'm happier for it. Thank you so much, again, for watching and your lovely comments! Cheers! :) (ps. also subscribed back to you! looking forward to checking out your channel and your work!) :D
First Inktober for me this year. Don't know how to draw but I really want to learn, this "challenge" is a blessing for me. Wasn't much inspired by day 3 "Roasted" also was really tired, so I just spent like 2 minutes on it and drew a roasted chicken... No prep, no reference, and I actually managed to draw something that looks like a roasted chicken, that was a pleasant surprise! I'll spend more time on the "Spell" word, this will be more difficult but I want to give my best, wish me luck
Very much appreciated the wisdom you shared here. As a first time inktober participant I decided to be easy on myself but do my best to draw once a day. Even if it is only a tiny drawing it counts. Some days just don't have 36 hours in them. I decided it is also important for me to document some of my thoughts as I move through this challenge too, so my writing journal, in which ink will be used, will have a record of the mental and emotional impact etc.
Good luck with the challenge Mark! This is my 3rd Inktober, and I can agree with most of your points. Will direct people here if they ask about the challenge!
Aw, thank you for your kind encouragement, Gemma Clough! I wish you the very best with your adventure this year, as well! Best wishes, always! :)