My Inktober Pen Collection (and Paper Woes)

You know how Inktober rolls around and suddenly you're reassessing every pen you own? That's me right now, staring at my ever-expanding collection of ink tools.

I've got the whole spectrum here. There are handmade bamboo dip pens gathering dust. My Micron-style fine liners seem to multiply on their own, along with the usual Sharpie felt pens. And yes, I have Copic markers, but I'm not their biggest fan, except for the soft brush ones.

I like Gel pens, especially the water-soluble ones. Here's the trick: I'll sketch my lines, then quickly grab a brush pen and tease out a wash from those fresh gel lines for instant shading. It's brilliant for quick sketching. I've hoarded quite a few coloured gel pens as well, though I really should use them more.

For the last few years, my absolute favourites have been Faber Castell Pitt pens. Proper Indian ink pigment, they last ages if you're disciplined about capping them (which I am). I've also got traditional Indian ink for dip pens, Chinese ink with a grinding stone, Chinese brushes. Ok, I can't help myself, I splurged on a set of Schmincke AquaDrop watercolour pigment inks with a pair of refillable pens. So yes, I'm well stocked.

      

I've been illustrating my pens and brushes on the back pages of my sketchbooks for years. I even made a video about this "obsession" once. This Inktober, as I use each tool, I'm drawing it in the back of my colour compendium. It adds a playful meta-layer to the whole challenge.

Where I'm slack is with surfaces to draw onto. I'll just grab whatever scrap is nearby, often printed on the other side and start sketching in a 2B pencil before inking over it with a Sharpie. It scans fine for dry work, but add any water? Instant crinkled mess. This year I'm trying to be better, grabbing actual sketchbooks with a page or two left when I need to use a colour wash.

When I have time to be properly organised, I reach for mixed media pads (120gsm cartridge paper, designed for ink and light watercolour). Hot-pressed watercolour paper works too, but it feels too expensive for casual Inktober fun. Bristol Board was the gold standard for ink work from my cartooning days, but I haven't found a good source lately. Honestly, I do most cartoons digitally now anyway.

So that's my setup. Now, where did I put that scrap paper?