Warriors Redux: James Barry journeys rough sketches to published manga -- just in time for Christmas

Original Warriors drawing by James Barry.

Just in time for the holidays, yesterday we learned a little bit about the newest Warrior's manga releasing tomorrow. But before picking up a copy of Ravenpaw's Path #1: Shattered Peace for your kid's stocking, get the low-down regarding the exhaustive process undertaken to create a comic book. Warriors manga illustrator James Barry provides impressive detail regarding how much manual, and technical, work goes into creating a Warriors manga.

A lot more goes into creating these comic books than most of us ever realized!

KD: What is your process illustrating a book, and how does technology fit in?

JB: When creating a comic, I first hand-draw the entire book as a series of rough sketches. These are called thumbnails even though I draw them 1.5 times larger than the published book. I scan these pages in not only to send to my editor, but to also add the straight panel borders and make sure the text will fit in the areas I’ve left blank. I’ll play around with the scale of some panels to make sure it all fits or move characters around a little bit. I use Adobe Photoshop, In-Design, and Illustrator to make a mock-up of the entire book, and I then send this to my editor as an Adobe Acrobat PDF. This whole beginning process usually takes about a month.

Once the editor does their review, I’ll get some notes and make any changes. I then start penciling the final pages. To do this, I print out the thumbnails and then lightly trace these rough drawings onto a piece of Bristol smooth paper. I use a light box to trace, making sure to draw in the panel borders with a ruler and leave blank spots where speech and thought balloons will be. I usually trace about four pages at a time, and I then turn off the light box and start adding details, such as expressive eyes, clothing, or fur patterns, and a lot of the background. This is done with a darker pencil.

I draw over the area where text will be; usually a simple background because I (or the letterer) will add the final word balloons using Adobe Illustrator. (I used to hand draw balloons on a separate piece of paper and then lay those down in Adobe Photoshop, but its much easier and more professional looking to use the computer to make word balloons.)

When I'm done doing that, I send a low-resolution scan of these drawings to my editor who checks for any little thing that should be fixed. Once they've approved everything, its time to ink the drawing!

I do this by hand on the same piece of Bristol board and then erase all the pencil lines. I mostly use a a G-Pen and black dip ink. I use some markers for the large black areas and then fix any mistakes or add light spots with white ink. I make a black and white, high-resolution scan (1200 dots per inch) of each drawing and then reduce them by 67 percent; that’s the size each page will be when printed in the book. (A lot of “mistakes” get lost when you reduce a drawing, and this is something most artists do.) I used to draw the pages two times the size of the printed page, but I found 1.5 times the size is more manageable.

Once these inked pages are scanned in, I send the electronic files to my publisher via an FTP site. If I am coloring or adding tone to a piece of art, I will use Photoshop and a Wacom tablet to do that.

For the Warriors mangas, a talented artist named Lincy Chan adds all the grayscale on top of my black ink drawings using Manga Studio. She lives in C.A., and downloads the electronic files from our publisher's FTP site. When she's done with her part of the process, she uploads the files back to the FTP site. From there, the publisher just has to add the word balloons and text, and the manga is then ready to be printed.

Some artists use computer for more or even all of their work, which I think looks great. But I still prefer to do most of it by hand. I still hand draw all my speed lines and panel borders using a ruler and do all my own cross-hatching!

KD: How has technology helped you with illustrating over the years, what changes and enhancements have you seen, and does technology make it easier for you?

JB: Well, I just got a new iMac so everything is a little faster! I definitely use Photoshop more in the thumbnail stage… resizing panels and making guides for my borders that are perfectly straight (although I still hand ink them). Most importantly, it helps me with the word balloons; making a mock-up before I draw the final page has helped a lot.

I’ve gone through a lot of scanners and printers, too. I currently use an Epson printer, which seems to work fairly well. I’m also glad that I get to keep all the original art, sending the publisher electronic files instead. Illustrators used to send off their work, and it would take months to get it back -- if ever.

KD: What other new manga have you worked on recently?

JB: I recently illustrated a short Warriors manga that can be found in the back of the novel Bluestar’s Prophecy.

I’m also working on art for the Warriors Role Playing Game (RPG). New RPG adventures will be found in the back of upcoming novels.

(Play the slideshow below for a sneak peak at the manga found in the back of Bluestar’s Prophecy.)

KD: How else has technology helped you… perhaps in ways not available to you a few years ago?

JB: As I mentioned earlier, I created my own on-line portfolio using Macromedia Flash and Dreamweaver. Having a Web site is very important for an illustrator because you must be able to share your work with editors -- and share via e-mail, too.

It is also a great way to connect with fans. I have a profile on TokyoPop.com, but I’ve found that a lot of readers e-mail me directly from my Web site.

I love the original drawings that young artists will send me via e-mail. Its especially exciting when someone will draw a Warrior cat like Graystripe in the style that I’ve created. I’m happy to look at anyone’s work and answer questions about art or the Warriors.

Having a Web site also allows me to sell my original art to collectors. This is definitely a resource that artists did not have in the past. I created my own “store” using Flash and the instructions found on the PayPal Web site.

KD: How do you share you experience with others?

JB: I’ve taught a number of workshops at comic book conventions (NY Comic Con and Middle Tennessee Anime Con), book festivals, and libraries.

I really enjoy these events and usually demonstrate how I draw Warrior cats or show the process of making a comic. It’s amazing how many people of all ages are interested in creating their own manga, and it’s fairly easy to do. All you really need is a pencil and paper… a scanner and a computer make things even easier, and you can make any copies on a copy machine!

I currently teach cartooning to Middle School Students in New York City.

KD: Have you ever been to the Rochester, N.Y. area, and if so, do you plan to come back?

JB: I was invited to Rochester for the Teen Book Festival (TBF) in 2008. It was an amazing event, and I hear it will be even bigger in 2010.

I was really impressed with the librarians in Rochester and how devoted they were to their young readers. It’s a great event.

I would love to visit Rochester again, for TBF or any other reason!

Much thanks to James Barry for all of the information regarding this art-and-technology process in manga creation. Young and old, we all love learning how things like comic books are made, and it's wonderful to see an artist not only survive but also thrive in New York City. Congrats, James!

And don't forget that Ravenpaw's Path #1: Shattered Peace goes on sale November 24 -- just in time for the holidays. With a suggested retail price of only $6.99, be sure to pounce out and buy your copy tomorrow!

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