We’re sure that at least once in your life you’ve come upon a book, magazine, or newspaper that had some sort of cartoon. Usually, it’s trying to be funny and wants to make you laugh. Other times, it is trying to put something serious across to you. And of course, there’s the ones that are just there for fun. No matter the reason, after coming across one, you might be intrigued. You might want to try it yourself. It’s a fun activity to do alone, with someone else, or even in a large group. Now, we are going to teach you how to make one. You will learn not only how to create a comic strip, but what the components are for a truly laugh-worthy cartoon. 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

• Pencil
• Paper
• Sharpie: regular and thin tip
• OPTIONAL COLOR:
  • Colored pencils 
  • Crayons
  • Gel pens
  • Anything to your heart’s desire (except paint. Sorry, it just doesn’t work.)

          DIRECTIONS:

1. Come up with an idea with at least 2 different characters. Some ideas are: your favorite animal, something funny that has happened to you before, or maybe even just what you had for breakfast. You also need to figure out what the funny part of the cartoon is going to be.
2. Take a piece of  paper ( preferably light colored ) and make 3 – 4 lines horizontally with a pencil.  You should have columns with plenty of space in each one.

3. Next, try to convert your idea for the strip as best as you can into comic form on some scratch paper. Don’t be too serious, try to act casual and kind of joke around. It doesn’t have to be no-nonsense, even if your topic is somewhat important.

4. After you’ve done that, position your first character on the first panel in a way where the reader can see it. Don’t angle it so that the reader can’t tell whether it’s a horse or a telephone pole. It has to be able to be easily identified. 

5. You’re almost done! Just continue drawing your story and then if you want to color, go ahead. I would suggest that you don’t go heavy on the marker and only lightly color in gel pen. 

There! You’re done! All you need to do is share it with the world. Now that you know how to make a comic strip, send us pictures of your success. ( We want to see whether this article worked or not.)