Drawing Dynamic Manga Characters: The Easy 1-2-3 Method for Beginners

by Junka Morozumi, Tomomi Mizuna

This book provides a revolutionary new 3-step tracing technique that beginning artists can use to quickly learn to draw manga characters just like a pro!

Every page presents a classic manga pose, from walking and running to jumping for joy, in three different
Popular manga artists Junka Morozumi and Tomomi Mizuna guide you through a series of carefully graded lessons to build up your skills gradually. Each pose and scene has a star skill level, so you can build your way up from 1 to 5!
These six chapters are supplemented by expert tips and easy exercises for capturing the right facial expressions, drawing the clothes and getting the perspective and body proportions right.

Beginning manga artists are in good hands with Morozumi, who lectures at art academies in Tokyo, and Mizuna, whose work has been exhibited in the U.S., Europe and beyond. If you've been looking for an easy-to-use guide to drawing manga, The Manga Artist's Drawing Basic Manga Characters is the perfect place to start!

96 pages, Paperback

Published April 14, 2020

Reviews

[Kye Ryvers · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was helpful, but some of the more dynamic poses looked forced and unnatural to me. Faces, expressions, and clothes were drawn very well, but the bodies didn't look quite right (i.e. legs were to straight, arms lacked shape, etc.). Also, the cover advertises that this book is for beginners, but it really isn't. You have to at least have proportions and some foreshortening down. Also, there is no step-by-step process shown for any of the poses. But the poses are a great reference, and some of the tips scattered throughout the book were helpful.

[Meghan Dzurichko · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book's primary teaching method involves tracing a base pose then adding one's own details. Tracing is an excellent method for teaching true beginner artists, and I like that it encourages more individual creativity than the step-by-step tutorials of other how-to-draw books. There are also little tips and notes about the poses throughout the book and not a lot of useless fluff. It is very well organized. That all said, students looking to graduate beyond tracing won't find much use in this book.