Co-publishing Surmount & How to draw like a pro

Demo is back on Steam!

Feb 14, 2024

Hallå my pals!

Jonas here with another issue of Indie Notebook to get some ideas out of my noggin, and to inspire you to do the same.

Got some exciting Surmount-related news this week! This has been decided for quite a while behind the scenes, but now it’s finally official that me and Jasper are co-publishing the game together with Popagenda! They are a great gang, I’m so happy we get to work with them!

We also put the demo of the game back up on Steam, so if you missed it last time it’s BACK. And better than ever. (works on PC + Mac)

There will be more Surmount news soon(ish). The game has come a long way and it’s so close to the finish line. That’s all about it for now!

As for the meaty part of this week’s issue, I’ve written another piece for the “Shiny Dime” writing-challenge. Only 3 more to go (but might write more).

How to draw like a pro

To draw well you need to have a mind capable of rotating objects effortlessly with your inner eye, you need to understand the meta physics of light and have a detailed memory of every bone and muscle in the human body (as well as every animal). Only then can you call yourself a true artist. Otherwise there’s no point in you even putting the pen to the paper. In fact you shouldn’t even be allowed to.

None of that is true.

And yet, this is what a lot of people think, probably most people. Otherwise lots more people would draw.

But you know what? We are all in luck. We don’t need to have Super-Human-DaVinci-AI-Computer-Brains to make GOOD LOOKING ART. All you need is to understand how good art actually works.

Look at this drawing.

Why doesn’t it look great? You could point out a billion reasons if you want (anatomy, shading), which is the reasoning we started with. But we don’t wanna improve this drawing with the Super-Brain approach. As I said earlier, there are a billion possible ways to improve this drawing. So where to begin? There’s one simple issue we can focus on to get some great mileage: The artist doesn’t seem to be intentional.

It seems like the artist was so unfocused that they didn’t notice that the lines are all smudgy. And then they took the only camera they had at hand and took a crappy phone picture.

There are plenty of smart ways to go about these issues. Sharpen the pen or draw digitally to get rid of the smudgy lines. Present the drawing in a more flattering way; pick a better camera, draw it in MS Paint. Make people believe that this was the result you were going for.

Now it’s presentable. So much about it is just to make it look finished. It looks like this artist decided to draw this way, not as if it was the only thing they could do. If you get sloppy or uncaring - in other words, if you stop being intentional, then the quality of your work will suffer. This applies to artists on all levels, not just beginners. Let’s take a legend as an example.

The creator of Peanuts was an excellent cartoonist, he had great control over the pen, he made neat, fluid lines and perfect shapes. Just look at the simple yet flawless form of Charlie Brown’s head in this panel, that takes practice.

This is what Snoopy looked like originally.

20 years into drawing the strip, Schulz got a condition called “essential tremor”. It made his hand shake when he tried to hold it still or do precise movements. He once said that, “sometimes my hand shakes so much I have to hold my wrist to draw.” It became impossible to continue drawing the same smooth lines every day. That could have been the end of Peanuts. Instead, he started working on bigger paper and replaced his tools, reducing the need for precision.

He adapted his way of working. This new way of working didn’t hide the fact that his hand was trembling, and yet, it didn’t ruin his work either. His wavy lines almost makes his world feel animated, it breathed new life and motion into his simple shapes.

Peanuts continued for another 30 years after this. Imagine how much of it we would have missed out on if he had not been so determined to find a way to continue.

You could let the fear have you believe that you need to have a Super-Human-DaVinci-AI-Computer-Brain to make good art. Or you can say f*** that and decide for yourself what makes your art look good. Be intentional and make sure people believe you are.

Draw like you mean it, with both hands if you have to.