Daily Progress Report: All cross-hatching is forbidden

69/365

We’re moving right along, folks. According to my calculations, which I hope are wrong, I have 16 more drawings to ink in the next 11 days. The gist of it is that I have to finish all of the artwork by March 7, because, on that day I’ve scheduled myself to start adding color, and simultaneously start learning enough about InDesign to create an e-book. Yes, I’m starting to feel some decent pressure now. To meet my self-imposed deadline, I have to pick up the pace and do two drawings a day, which I’ve never done before. But I have a plan.

The plan is that everything has to get simpler. I realize that this should have been the plan from day one, but better late than never. This obvious truth dawned on me yesterday when I realized that hatching consumes enormous amounts of time. I make literally thousands of pen strokes to create the illusion of form and value. And, the larger the image, the number of hatch marks are squared. As the project manager, I now forbid myself from any kind shading, hatching, cross-hatching, or contouring.

Now that I’ve settled the hatching issue, let’s move on. March 31 is now 38 days away and there’s a helluva lot to do.