Illustrate for Pulp Magazines
"Pulp fiction" is a term originally coined to describe early 19th century magazines and dime novels printed on cheap, pulpy paper. "Weird Tales" is an example of the pulp fiction genre. The Shadow and Doc Savage are iconic characters from the pulps. Art was a big part of the genre. Illustrations, most often in black and white, almost always accompanied pulp stories, both in magazines and novels.
Instructions
1. Decide what you will draw. Pulp illustrations are often aliens, monsters, detectives like Sherlock Holmes, buff men with ripped clothing and busty Amazon women. Pulp illustrations should have an action/adventure theme and are often set in the 1930s and 40s, depicted by the hairstyles of that time. Even pulp magazines today try to maintain that early- to mid-20th-century feel.
2. Assemble your sketch tools. Use a standard sketch pad and either lead, charcoal or graphite pencils. Black-and-white illustrations were predominant in early pulp fiction, and this gives your illustrations a more realistic feel. If you choose to color your drawings, go for a flat, washed-out look that will reflect the non-glossy format of the pulps.
3. Consider a single character at first and think in terms of a great cover for a pulp magazine. The character should be an original creation. View some of the classic pulp covers for inspiration (see Resources).
4. Sketch your character first. Do a rough pencil sketch to get the character's overall dimensions, then begin working on a background for your pulp character. Sketch the background in around the rough sketch of your character. The background should tell a story. Choose something that places your character in action or indicates he or she is on an adventure. Do the background in a loose sketch to fill in the space around the central figure. Think Tarzan in a tree, holding a woman who is unconscious.
5. Fill in the details of your character, keeping in mind the general body characteristics of the pulp action heroes and heroines. Use darker strokes of your pencil to bring out the muscle definition and the hairstyles that will indicate early 20th century style. Once your character is defined, go back and do the shading to bring the background to life around your character.
6. Check with Ralan's and other market databases (see Resources). These list anthologies and magazines in the pulp genre seeking submissions. Read the guidelines for those publications looking for the type of work you do, and submit it to them. This is a good way to get paid, get your work out to the public and help keep the pulp fiction experience alive for generations to come.
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