, but as a non-native English speaker, I don't quite understand the topic of the assignment. So, is the griffin somewhere below or sinking down, and is Jack up on the castle's edge?And is Jack taking a leap somewhere? Or is the griffin flying somewhere?
so any help would be wonderful!
Hey everyone!
This month we have a really cool prompt! We have a hero, a castle, a flying griffin, and a courageous leap. We also have an obvious set of moments we could choose to depict: jack reaching the edge, the griffin swooping low, and jack leaping. There is also the implied moments of running to the edge, and either falling uncontrollably or landing on the griffin. Another notable element of the prompt is the lack of explanation for why jack is in this situation and what he is trying to accomplish—this is left up to you to fill in or hint at as you wish.
Lots of you started setting up this month’s story in last month’s “design a griffin” prompt, but if you didnt you can still participate in this month’s prompt! If you have purchased the HTFYA course you can go back and watch the rock fortress livestream and the flight livestream where they go into how to make an interesting rock fortress (hint: make a pinterest board of actual castles) and how to make something look like its flying (hint: seperate the form from its shadow, put the form above the horizon line).
On the story front (which is what matters most)
The guys say that the best illustrations show the moment of greatest drama and everything in the frame contributes to the story—its all about simplicity and clarity. You can narrow down what you will show by asking yourself these questions (prescribed by Dr. Lee White in the “how do i tell good stories” episode of the podcast): What is my story about (in as few words as possible)? What details make it interesting? Then write 3-5 sentences explaining the story. For purposes of the prompt there should be a boy making a leap from the edge of something and a griffin involved. Then ask yourself what is the most interesting: the beginning, middle, or end/before, during, or after the action?
The broader story you come up with will inform what is in your illustration (who is jack, where is he, why is he running and leaping, what is his story’s context—what does he wear and how does he look like, what does the castle look like) and deciding on before, during, or after will tell you how to show it. Your style is how it looks.
Your story doesn't have to be complex to be good, simple is usually better actually! Check out Norman Rockwell's illustration career for great examples of simple yet compelling visual stories.