For initial character design, I will sketch everyone in a couple of different angles. I will see what works and doesn't, and then I will know how to improve my characters on the next round of drawings or page sketches.
I will really go over different concepts for the main characters. I wanted the girl to be someone very relatable. Not too fancy, not too stylish, not too boyish. I landed on the center sketch for this character.
Next, I decide on character palette.
After the initial character design, I will put everyone together, decide how I want to color them, make character color palettes, and make notations of which brushes or techniques were used.
Often, I want the characters to flow with their environment in colors and technique. I did a rough concept sketch of their house. It's a hacienda/adobe style, with cactus, rock work, stained glass, flowering vines, and happy color. This is where I see my family living.
Once I have an idea of the character design, I divide up the story to the desired page count and with the most interest for our young readers. I then make a very rough thumbnail sketch to explain the ideas to the author.
Some stories will have a color palette throughout the entire story to make it very cohesive. If this is the case, my storyboard will have colors dropped in for reference.
Once the thumbnails are approved, I will go page by page in sketches. I will create a template that shows gutter, bleed, and safety lines so I don't make errors in my sketch. I keep the thumbnail close at hand. I insert the text in the correct size so I have an idea of my boundaries. I draw the different elements in different colors so that I don't get lost in the sketch.
Once the sketch is approved, I will color everything and add the text in Adobe In Design.
At this point- the cover sketch was approved, but color was up in the air. I made quick little icons of what the cover colors could be and their coordinating end papers. We went with "F" for Home for Spike.
To be sure we like our color selection, I will quickly drop color into a much larger sketch to make sure everyone is in agreement.