If anyone knows anything about comics, it is pretty obvious what question comes to mind when first spotting the title of this book, and that is, “I thought Stan was a writer; what does he know about drawing?”
Well, that question is a fair one to ask, or rather, it would be if the person about whom we were speaking wasn’t Stan “The Man” Lee, who, along with Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, John Romita, Sr., George Tuska, Herb Trimpe, Bill Everett, and others laid the very foundation to the Marvel Universe, and in turn kick-started the Silver Age of Comics.
Drawing Comics the Stan Lee Way
It was Stan, alongside these great illustrators, that helped revitalize an industry that had essentially been dismissed as junk kiddy fare by the general populace. Stan went on to serve as Chief Writer and Editor in Chief, over what are arguably some of the finest and most innovative comicbooks that have ever been published.
Today, at 89, he is still going strong, contributing to comics, film, TV, and various publishing ventures, as this book certainly indicates.
What Stan Lee Knows about Art
As for the rest of the initial question, “What does Stan know about drawing?” it is safe to say that you don’t work with the amount of consummate storytellers that Stan Lee has worked with over the past 50 or 60 years without picking up some tricks of the trade. Anyway, As Lee himself points out in the prologue to this wonderful tome, the very way that comicbook art is currently assembled, produced, and transported is widely different from the way things were done when he wrote How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way in 1984.
This volume takes into consideration new technology and methodologies, which, quite naturally, make all the difference. Plus (and we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention this), Stan did have some help with this book, relying heavily on input from David Campetti, who not only ran Glass House Graphics and Innovation Publishing, but also worked with an impressive array of extremely talented artists over the years himself.
Layout and Design of Drawing Comics the Stan Lee Way
The design and layout of the book make it easy to follow and interesting to read (even for non-artists.) Lee starts with tools of the trade and works his way through layout, coloring, lettering, rendering backgrounds, figure drawing, inking, and even how to present yourself to editors and transmit work to them (and other collaborators).
The book uses both classic comicbook art as well as new illustrations created specifically for this publication. Stan Lee (with the help of David) walks artists through the various steps necessary to expertly create top-quality, professional comicbook art. To be sure, the talent to be able to illustrate in the first place has to come from the artist, but talent with no training is no good. Following the expert advice found in this book will certainly help even the most talented of artists learn more about their craft.
Chapters in Drawing Comics the Stan Lee Way
Each chapter neatly follows the previous set of instructions, even as it leads into the following lesson. Lee takes time in each chapter to not only explain what needs to be done, but why, and how. Never talking down to the reader, Stan patiently explains each step in his jovial, upbeat way that permeated all of the Stan’s Soap Boxes from his years at Marvel. In fact, it is as if Stan was actually in the room, like your favorite art teacher, patiently explaining each step, and giving not only excellent advice, but fabulously rendered visual examples at the same time (from such luminaries as Kirby, Romita Sr., Neal Adams, Gil Kane, Mike Deodato, Frank Cho, and Jonathan Lau).
Tips from Stan Lee
In addition to all of the amazing advice and astonishing tips Stan delivers throughout the book, he sprinkles it with his trademarked wit, as well as a few stories from his own experience. He includes things that might not seem intuitive, or art-specific, but are important to burgeoning professionals — like having an email address that is clearly you, not just “WickedCoolArtGuy@anipaddress.com” — or by properly naming and numbering your art pages so that they can be tagged to you (e.g.; “John_Doe_Page_1” — ) so that your editor can find it, know that it is yours and know how to reach you again, once he detaches it from your email.
Yes, this is a well-written, beautifully-illustrated, much-needed instruction manual for anyone who is even moderatly serious about getting into comicbook illustration. Packaged by Dynamite Entertainment, and Published by Watson-Guptill, Stan Lee’s How to Draw Comics retails for $24.99, and can be found in book stores and online. High marks go to everyone associated with the publication of this book as it most assuredly achieves its goals and should prove to be an invaluable addition to any comicbook artist’s reference library.
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