Beginners' Guide

This guide is intended to help new artists, or artists new to the event called the Artists' Alley. It is not a set of rules. If you want to know what's allowed, you need to go to the Rules and Repercussions portion of the Artist Alley section.

What you find below is years of editing by the Artist Alley Staff, who are sometimes comprised of Artists' themselves, as well as some advice by other Artists' who've attended this event at Anime Boston before.

In fact, some artists have gotten together to make little comics about what they perceive are some of the more important things to know, and these comics have been interspersed throughout the page as small images. Click on it to see the larger image. These pieces have been collaborated so that no artists are repeating what has already been done.

REMEMBER: All that follows is advice after years of experience from various people and that you may find different things may work out better for you. This guide is intended solely to give you a base to start from. It is expected that you will change and expand as you attend event after event.

1. How do I know if I'm ready?

That's a tough question to answer. Some people never really know if they are. Some think that they are when they're not. And some would be ready artistically if they could only gain the confidence needed to be ready mentally. Our Advice: You never really know until you try and you won't really lose anything by trying, even if you don't do well at your first attempt. Whether the reason is you didn't prepare enough, or your art isn't good enough, the whole event becomes a learning experience. Your neighboring artists are often happy to offer advice on a wide variety of subjects (from displays and preparation to what to sell and how to color) to a fellow artist that they may not have given otherwise. This is because an artist's alley at just about any convention becomes a community of artists and not just total strangers sitting in the same room.

2. But what do I bring, and how much?

If you've been to conventions before, you've seen artists with huge and tremendous displays. You've seen artists who've branched out from the traditional 2D Prints and have started doing things like comics, plushies, tee shirts, posters and more! Don't Worry about that! Some artists have tried to branch out to find that for some reason, their prints may sell, but the same art on a tee shirt won't. Or that they can't draw sequential art consistently enough to get people interested in the comics and it's a flop. Those are things discovered over time and are investments that can cost you money. Our Advice: Keep it small Keep it simple Don't try to fill up a huge space. Buy a small one if you can, or share with a friend. Don't try to branch out before you've even started. Take your investments a little at a time or you could be out a lot of money. Instead, try to focus on those traditional 2D prints I mentioned earlier. Depending on how much time you give yourself before a convention, I wouldn't try to make more than 5 - 10 pictures to start with. You want quality, NOT quantity. If things go well, try to make 1 or 2 new pieces before every con you go to and before you know it, you'll have that big inventory that the other artists all seem to have. Then, say you succeed in making 10 really good pictures with time to spare. I wouldn't make more than 5 of each to start. That's an investment of 50 Prints! And it is pretty much guaranteed that at your first con (unless you are an EXCEPTIONAL artist) that you will NOT sell them all. You may sell out of one particular picture, but odds are that it won't even be the one you like best. From this you can learn what people like and don't like so that you can gear your art towards that. Don't stop drawing what YOU like though. Much as we all want to make money, we also want to enjoy drawing. Business Cards: Our Advice: Make at least 100 You can never have too many of these People tend to take cards even if they don't buy something. It's a good way to get your name out there and try to drum up business outside of a convention. And it never hurts to have extra. If you keep your cards simple, you can re-use them at any event. A simple card could have the following:          Name What you specialize in (i.e. portraits, comics, etc) URL (if you have one) At least one way to contact you (if you move a lot, make it an email address) Logo - if you have time, make a simple graphic people can associate with you.

3. What are Commissions and why are they a good idea?

Commissions - or 'on the spot art' - are always a good way to supplement the art at your table. Sometimes people like your style, but don't happen to have any interest in what you've got showing. If you can take commissions, these people will then tell you what it is they DO want to see and you'll make a sale that takes some of your time, but also gets you more money than a print would have. It can also give you more ideas on new prints to make. So if you have the ability to handle the pressure of doing art with a deadline (you have to be able to complete it before the convention, and if you want to make it worth your while, you'll want to be able to do more than one) and with people looking over your shoulder, then this is a good route for you to take. Our Advice: Set out a sign up sheet and pen with limited slots (say 5 to start) and costs listed. As you get better gauge on how many you can do, expand the number of slots. If you have 5 people sign up and you're still on the first one, you might forget the description of the picture that person #5 wants. So, it's also a good idea to make sure that you get their descriptions written down, so leave a little room on the sign up sheet.

4. Presentation and Displays

Remember to keep it simple. We suggest: A card holder for business cards. A book to put your prints in that can be flipped through Price stickers on each page of the book so that each print is clearly marked A piece of fabric to use as a tablecloth can make your table look nice if there are no table clothes available and can make your table stick out and attract notice. Stand up Sign - don't get a banner, those are expensive. Buy an 8 x 10 plastic photo frame and slip a printed sign inside. Put your Name/Studio Name on it. Or you can use it to advertise special sales, that you take commissions and what the prices are if so.

5. I don't know what to charge, I feel so guilty. How should I PRICE my work?

This is another tough question. All artists have to kind of work this one out on their own. All we can do is provide a base that you will need to change as needed. A good way to work this out is to see what other artists charge for various types of things and average it out. Either start to take notes at conventions when visiting their artist's alley, or asking artists on the forums. Keep in mind that what you charge for a print, as opposed to what you charge for a commission, will vary widely. A one of a kind, pre made original and a one of a kind - on the spot - commission will be close if not the same for pricing while a print, being that it is a mass produced copy of an original, will be much less. A Starting Base (depending on size and quality):          Prints:       Black and White: $3-$10 Color: $5-$12          Originals:       Black and White: $20-$40 Color: $30-$50          Commissions (prices lower due to rush)       Pencils: $5 Black and White: $10-$15 Color: $15-$20 As you gain experience and confidence, you can adjust these as needed. You may offer different types of color at different prices. For instance, if you usually color using the computer, but can't offer that as a commission option at the con, you can then lower your prices a little and use color pencils or even markers. The down cost to offset the difference in quality. Note that most standard prints are 8 ½ x 11 size, though sometimes people sell other sizes, including smaller and larger. If you're going with smaller sizes you would want to price them less, and larger sizes would be more. The prices above are based on Standard print sizes.

6. So what kind of Materials do you recommend that I use?

This is a matter of personal preference. I can list what other artists use, but you have to make your own decisions. (Note: Cold usually means that the paper has texture, while Hot means it's smooth.) Paper for Drawing: 100lb Bristol Board (good standard drawing paper with archival quality) Use smooth (Bristol) for pens and markers Use Vellum for pencils and chalk pastels Cardstocks - it's a good cheap substitute, but isn't archival. Protected, it'll keep for 20+ years Hammermill 80lb Bright White Cardstock (available at Kinko's) is a particularly nice and smooth cardstock to work with. Good for pencils, inks and markers Watercolor Paper - Warm and Cold - around 100lb can be nice for some effects as well. Paper for Printing: Photo Glossy Photo Matte Hammermill 80lb Bright White Cardstock Pens - Most of these are available in most craft stores or art stores with different sizes available such as .005, .1, .3, .5 and more, and are available either individually or in sets. Microns (My personal favorites) Staedler Pens (good for designs and logos) Faber-Castell Copic multi liners (available at the Copic website or at the Copic stations at various conventions) Pencils, Color (keep in mind that color pencils do not travel well. Being banged about breaks the soft lead inside MUCH easier than regular pencils, which can be a problem when you're trying to sharpen them to continue a picture.) Prismacolors Designs Random - (don't be afraid to try random brands. I have an entire collection of pencils that were cheapo sets that had colors I really liked in them, or the pencil lead was harder and so they A) didn't break as easy and B) gave a much lighter tone. Prismacolors and Designs both tend to come out dark, no matter what colors you use) Markers Prismacolor (most people start with these, they are $2-3 a piece but you can get the sets pretty cheap on eBay.) Copic Markers (expensive and should not be invested in, unless you have learned marker and painting techniques. They have generic sets as well as specialty sets such as the 'skin tone' set. Costly, but if you use markers a lot, they may well be worth the cost.) Le Plume is another good brand that can be used with water.

7. Artist Resources

One of the most commonly asked questions in the forums are where do I get this printed? Where do I go to make T-Shirts? How do I publish my comic book? Every place has its advantages and disadvantages; you'll have to find which one works best for you. One place may only give good prices for mass orders or another place is good for small orders. These are not your only options, but here are a few options to look at:          Book Printing: Different places have different requirements. Lulu is a buy on demand site and makes it possible to keep your inventory small if you don't have the cash for it, but it also costs more per book to get them made. Lulu Publishing (www.lulu.com) Comix Press (www.comixpress.com)          T-Shirt Printing: Of course, you don't have to send out your tee shirt design to a third party such as the ones listed below. You can also buy special transfers to use with your printer and hand make them. If you do it that way, you may get less in quality, but you get more versatility since T-shirts cost more to make, the more colors you add to the design. Lunatic Fridge (www.lunatic-fridge.com) Signatures (www.signatureslimited.com) Contagious Graphics (www.contagiousgraphics.com/shirts.html) Cafe Press          Prints: This one is always the hardest question to answer. I, myself, use a combination of my own printer and Kinko's. I've never had a problem with Kinko's, but other artists have and they recommend finding a local small printing place for better prices and service. If you have the time, then that may be the way to go. But if you don't, here are some bigger places that most folks can find no matter where you are in the country. Remember that Kinko's, unlike some of the others on the list, specialize in printing. Kinko's Staples Office Max Deviant Art

8. Traditional Art versus Digital Art - which is better?

The truth is, neither. You'll find opinioned people all over the place, lording it over this way and that over which IS better, but the truth is, neither one of them is. They both require skill and time and a love of art to do a picture WELL. There is the distinction. I myself use a mix of traditional and digital. I love to draw with my hands and I just can't get the hang of a drawing tablet. But I like the quality of color that I get when I do it digitally, and the fact that if you do it right, no mistake is unfixable. A picture isn't better just because it was done the old fashioned way. If we were truthful, we'd admit that we've all seen monstrosities that shouldn't exist that were made 'traditionally'. Digital methods have the same fallout, maybe more, but that doesn't mean ALL pictures done digitally are bad, or didn't require the same amount of effort. What you have to keep in mind is, unless you can guarantee electricity at your site at a convention, and you WANT to haul an entire computer system and printing setup with you, is that you will not be able to do commissions right there at the con. You also have to remember that with digital work, what is an 'original' and what is a 'print' start to have fuzzy lines. With traditional work, it's easy to figure out if you're holding the original. You take a piece of paper and you draw on it. You can see the lines and the bleeds if you flip the paper over. Especially if you've used ink or markers, you can sometimes see how far it went into the paper. Then you scan and print copies, or you use a photocopier to make copies. When placed next to each other, you can generally see the difference between the original and the prints. With digital work, a print looks the same no matter if it's the first off the press or the second. If you want it to be billed as an original, you have to make sure you NEVER print it out a second time. OR you have to alter the picture, make a stamp on it or something, which says the picture is a print and not the original.