Penciller

A penciller (or penciler) is an artist who works on the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms, with a focus on the initial pencil illustrations.

In the American comic book industry, the penciller is the first step in rendering the story in visual form, and may require several steps of feedback with the writer. These artists are concerned with layout (positions and vantages on scenes) to showcase steps in the plot.

Tools and materials

Traditional printing technology for newspapers and comic books did not allow for quality reproduction of pencil drawings. Accordingly, artists would do the preliminary drafting in pencil, then draw over the pencil work in India ink for final reproduction. When these tasks are divided between two people, they are often referred to respectively as penciller and inker.

The penciller, as the name suggests, works in pencil. Beyond this basic description, however, different artists choose to use a wide variety of different tools. While many artists use traditional wood pencils, others prefer mechanical pencils or drafting leads, which do not require sharpening. Pencillers may use any lead hardness they wish, although many artists use a harder lead (like a 2H) to make light lines for initial sketches, then turn to a slightly softer lead (like a HB) for finishing phases of the drawing.