GUEST BLOG: Robert Atkins on the Advanced Comic Book Art course

In this guest blog, Robert Atkins, artist on Snake Eyes, GI JOE, and Heroes for Hire, and Instructor of the Comics Experience Advanced Comic Book Art class, shares his thoughts on the course. Classes will be held live, online, beginning January 12, 2012.

The Advanced Comic Book Art class is open for enrollment -- and I'm excited to be starting up a new class! We're filling up, but still have some positions available for those able and interested. The seven week course begins Jan 12th, so you still have some time to prepare.

While the Intro to Comic Book Art class is a bit more general, this Advanced class gets down to very specific rendering techniques and advanced storytelling methods that there isn't time to cover in the Intro class.

In the class, you will create an 8-12 page comic book story and "workshop" your storytelling pages. But in addition to that, you will learn how to:

• network within the industry;
  
• find good scripts that best suit your style;
  
• pencil for inking and/or straight to coloring, (which is becoming a much more essential skill); and
  
• render a wide variety of textures and objects.
  

Plus, you will receive very personalized and specific critiques of each assignment, all with a focus on a professional level of finishing and getting published!

The overall objective in the Advanced class will be to approach each individual student's needs, and taking into account their style, providing the means to make your portfolio as professional as possible.

The convention season starts back up in late February with Mega Con in Orlando and really starts rolling along mid-Spring with C2E2 in Chicago and Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle. Each of these conventions are fantastic opportunities to meet with editors and small publishers in a more laid back setting, as oppossed to the crazed frenzy of SDCC and NYCC later in the year. This class will end just in time to make the most of the coming con season!

For those who can't make the con circuit this year, it's still an opportunity to get one-on-one critiques of your work. With the extended time built into the schedule of the class, it allows me the opportunity to personally mentor each student. I will be able to address your assignment with specific, professional feedback.

I can't stress how much I wish I had a class like this available to me before I really started showing my portfolio around to get work! I get to share with you many of the techniques I have had to learn through trial and error and it's taken me years to put them all into practice. This doesn't mean the Advanced Class will be easy work for you, but it will definitely speed up your learning process.

Because the class will be made up of advanced students, we get to hit the ground running and really apply specific techniques over your solid storytelling foundation!

I hope to see you all in January!

Robert Atkins
Comics Experience Art Instructor

The next session of the live, online Advanced Comic Book Art course begins January 12, 2012. Enrollment is still open, but seats are limited, so sign up now!

Please note that past completion of the Comics Experience Intro to Comic Book Art class or demonstrated, significant comic art experience is a prerequisite for enrollment. If you have a question about your eligibility, feel free to send an email to Rob Anderson, Comics Experience General Manager, at rob@ComicsExperience.com