Can you learn to draw by making maps?

[KaiAeon]

Yes, you learn to draw by drawing maps.

I always loved drawing but sucked at it. I did art at school for 1 year - grade 8 - but was put off by teacher who instructed us to shade a drawing. The only kind of shading I knew was smudging. I got scolded for it and wasn't shown how to do it properly. The same thing with painting. Now, many years later, I'm learning the basics I was never taught using the materials I always wanted. That's the reason my maps aren't seeing such a huge leap in skill as I'm going over the basics again and again.

The three media I'm focused on fineliner, dip pen and watercolour.
I tried my hand at digital painting but had technical issues in addition to feeling disconnected from my artwork. It just doesn't feel the same as traditionally made maps.

So, make the maps and liven up your stories. You can also check out Sketchbook Skool on YouTube. They motivate me when I feel a bit down with regards to art.

Looking forward to seeing your creations on here and your growth as an artist and story teller. There is a story telling section in one of the subforums that you might be interested in participating in.

All of that to say... Welcome!

[Grimrskegg]

Since you have a tablet ...

About that. Hilarious story, it died after just 2 days of use. It did however show me how good it felt to draw on one vs with a mouse. So, I'll get a new small one soon. Thanks for the suggestion. I'll have to check if it runs on Linux. If it does, then great. I'll give it a try and see how different it feels from GIMP.

All of that to say... Welcome!

Thank you very much!

Everyone has been nice and welcoming so far and I've been following a few tutorials these past three days. It has been a blast. I'll keep spending a few hours every night to get a few lines in and post my progress over at the WIP section. Hope to reach a point where I feel happy with the lines I draw.

[Pacio49]

Drawing takes practice, not talent. No one is born who innately knows how to draw, or paint. We all have to learn. I myself just had a birthday and decided to return to fine art studies as a hobby this year, practicing an hour a day on some aspect related to drawing or painting. I take courses online at Udemy.com but there are other sites which offer similar. Udemy has periodic sales where courses that list for $100+ are on sale for $11 to $20. Just watch for them. Then you can watch videos, follow along, and practice on your own time. Over time, if you keep at it, you will improve. I guarantee it. Whether you dare to dream for fantasy cartography, character design, portrait drawing, concept art, or even just keeping a sketchbook for a while for fun.

Have fun with the journey. You are not alone. Look up Meetup clubs in your area, or think about starting one. You don't have to take a class, either. You can just get together with friends who also enjoy sketching, and go somewhere together and sketch what you see, and then later over coffee or drinks look at each other's work and encourage them to continue making progress.

I highly recommend the book "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. I bought it back in the early 1990s when it first came out, and it has a 12-week self-guided "course" for 'creative recovery'. If you do the exercises, no matter how silly they seem, you will begin to tap into your own unique creativity. The second book in the series, "The Vein of Gold" is also highly recommended. Whenever I feel stuck I return to the 'Creative calisthenics' she teaches in the books, and it's amazing how quickly I become un-stuck and reconnect with my heart again.

I also recently read a shorter inspirational book by Austin Kleon called "Share Your Work!" and he has some great ideas there as well.

Dare to dream! And most importantly, Dare to be Imprefect!

[Spiderheart]

You can totally learn to draw by making maps--and honestly, making maps of worlds that don't exist helps me write, too! Every time I make a map for a story, more story happens as a result of the map! It's fabulous. And I started with just a mouse too (though I would not recommend that if you want to save your wrists!).

Ascension has a great tutorial for GIMP that you don't need a lot of artistic skill to use, that's where I started.

[Falconius]

I highly recommend the book "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron.

It's a really important book about creativity. It doesn't get recommended enough. Good call.

[Grimrskegg]

Ascension has a great tutorial for GIMP that you don't need a lot of artistic skill to use, that's where I started.

I highly recommend the book "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. I bought it back in the early 1990s when it first came out, and it has a 12-week self-guided "course" for 'creative recovery'. If you do the exercises, no matter how silly they seem, you will begin to tap into your own unique creativity. The second book in the series, "The Vein of Gold" is also highly recommended. Whenever I feel stuck I return to the 'Creative calisthenics' she teaches in the books, and it's amazing how quickly I become un-stuck and reconnect with my heart again.

I also recently read a shorter inspirational book by Austin Kleon called "Share Your Work!" and he has some great ideas there as well.

It's a really important book about creativity. It doesn't get recommended enough. Good call.

Thank you very much for your kind words of encouragement and recommendations. I found Ascension's tutorial on day 1. Yet to try it out since I've been messing around with random ideas and getting used to drawing in general. I will start following the tutorial and look for the books mentioned.

Honestly, after going through a lot of sh*t these past three years, this is the most fun I've had in a while. Spending a few dedicated hours everyday with my tablet. Learning about new techniques, trying and failing to make straight lines and circles. It's been a blast these couple weeks. Thank you again everyone for the warm welcome and the great tutorials written here.

[FaharaThevoo]

Hiya, great question and I'm sure its already been answered! Looking forward to chatting with you and seeing your work!