In 50 box challenge it feels too late for lines this rough!

5:22 AM, Saturday April 27th 2024

Despite now being 15 boxes in to the 250 box challenge, and having my work verified by an official instructor, I find that even when carefully ghosting lines I often lift my pen to find a wild and wavy line despite making the mark without thinking. I feel that my lines have gotten no straighter or more comfortable since I started, and I'm starting to worry that it's innate, that I might be unable to make marks with the accuracy this course demands. Is there some additional advice that helps anyone else in this situation? The idea that I may be innately bad at this is stressful!

1 users agree
8:16 PM, Saturday April 27th 2024

Generally if your line is wobbling, it suggests that you're likely hesitating when executing the mark. This is entirely possible even when you're putting plenty of time into the planning and preparation phases of the ghosting method, if you still ultimately choose to hesitate when executing the mark. It's not easy, but we have to make a conscious decision to push through from the moment the pen touches the page, rather than hesitating out of a fear of making mistakes.

While accuracy improves with practice and mileage, the execution of smooth, confident marks is a matter of approach. And certainly none of this is innate.

If you take a look at your lesson 1 work, you are clearly capable of achieving this, but as the exercises become more challenging, we can become prone to shifting priorities away from these seemingly basic things, and we have to pull ourselves back into ensuring we are following the instructions closely.

Lastly, you're going to be drawing 250 boxes. That's a lot of mileage, and it will help your accuracy a great deal. Having completed lesson 1 and done 15 boxes, you've barely begun with the sheer volume of practice you're going to get in freehanding your linework.

0 users agree
6:34 AM, Tuesday April 30th 2024
edited at 6:56 AM, Apr 30th 2024

Hi...my name is panos...i'm also a beginner and 160 boxes in to the 250 challenge...In my case i observed that i executed my lines better if i didn't do my exercises immediately after i had a meal. Also, at some point i started this course, i also started weight lifting and my lines became worse. Moreover, if i executed my lines after many ghosted passes, lets say 8, i drew worse than doing 2 or 3. Of course every person is different. All i want to say is that probably there are many factors at this time that may affect your lines. Experience will compensate for these. Just keep trying.

Generally my mindset is "everyday dedicate some time for 3-4 months and after that time decide if i have become better". Meanwhile i'm suspicious for everything, even the type of a meal i eat "-.-. For those still reading there is a list of things i did and helped me:

1) stopped drawing after eating

2) stopped lifting weights

2.5) stopped doing lots of ghosted passes

3) my chair was short in relation to the table so now i sit on two extra cushions and now the angle of my arms and the distance from the table is better

4) i changed the way i hold the pen and also slightly the angle

5) the surface of my table wasn't smooth so now I'm drawing with 2 extra pieces underneath the paper

6) I try not to think anything else (what to eat afterwards )but what I'm currently doing

7) Sometimes when my lines are not as good i become frustrated and this affects the next one. So now i try to change my reaction to this.

P.S English is not my first language :)

edited at 6:56 AM, Apr 30th 2024
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