Progress on Chuffin’ Billy: Brush Work and Character Sketches

I’ve been spending time on the next page of Chuffin’ Billy, and right now it’s all about black and white brush work. There’s something satisfying about stripping everything back to line and textures, just the raw energy of the strokes as the kids say. My goal is to get all the drawing work finished while I’ve got momentum, and then later I can decide whether to dive into digital colouring. For now, the monochrome look feels bold and keeps the focus on the storytelling.

After this page, the story takes a turn with the introduction of a new character: Chuffin’ Willy. He’s little angry leftovers, a rough-edged counterpart to Billy, I’ve been sketching ideas to refine what he might look like. It’s always a balancing act - capturing the essence of a character without overcomplicating the design. Willy needs to feel raw and chaotic, but still recognisable as part of the 'Billy' world. I’ve tried out different shapes, exaggerated expressions, and messy textures to see what sticks. He’s meant to embody frustration and grit, so I want his design to carry that weight even before he says a word.

This stage of the process, brush work for Billy, exploratory sketches for Willy, feels like laying the foundation stones. Colour, polish, and detail can come later. Right now, it’s about capturing the spirit of the story in its most direct form.