The Birth of a Book

Hard labour...

The process of creation of a comic strip is rather complex and varies a lot from one author to another. In the case of Hergé, it was a rather methodical progression. Moreover, after World War II, he was given largely the aid of his collaborators of the "Hergé Studios", in particular Edgar P. Jacobs and later Bob de Moor. But to know some more, read the text "Comment naît une aventure de Tintin" in Le Musée imaginaire de Tintin or Tintin et les Bigotudos by Philippe Goddin, both published by Casterman.

The graphic script
The first step is quite naturally to find the scenario, the simplest possible, and to lay down the limits of the history to be told. The graphic script comes thereafter to develop and enrich this scenario. At this stage, Hergé quickly draws the sequence of frames and makes sure each page ends with a situation that will keep the reader's interest. The dialogues and the characters are drawn very quickly, without the scenery. It is at this stage that the history really takes shape.
The graphic script

The pencil sketch
Once the graphic script is done (there can be tens of drafts...), Hergé passes to pencil sketch, for which he uses large 30 cm by 40 cm paper sheets. It is at this moment that he truly starts the drawing. He draws the characters and never hesitates to erase and erase and start over, sometimes transpiercing the paper!... Often, he asks his collaborators to sketch him in the posture which he wants to give to its character: that shows how he is concerned with the realism of his work. Finally, when all the pencil sketches are finished, he takes a copy of all the frames, choosing the stroke which is the best, and sometimes move some elements. He then transfers the drawings on a clean board.

The final drawing
The board obtained from the pencil sketches shows all the characters but the sceneries are only summarily sketched. It is at this moment that Hergé's collaborators come into play and draw the vehicles, the landscapes, uniforms etc, trying to respect the general style as much as possible. Once again, for the sake of realism, Hergé and his collaborators do not hesitate to go on the ground to take sketches and photographs. When everything is completed, the board is ready the final drawing, with a drawing pen and Indian ink. Meanwhile, the dialogues are proofread, the number of letters and characters counted and the balloons drawn. After a last checking, the boards are sent to the photoengraver.

The colouring and dialogues
Later, the studio receives a series of photographic prints, of publication size. Those intended for the colouring are printed in a blue-gray tone, accompanied by a print of the black and white board. The colouring is carried out by Hergé's collaborators who use watercolour, ecoline or gouache. A feature characteristic of Hergé is that the colors are applied in flat tints, without shades, which gives according to him a greater lisiblity and more freshness. As for the dialogues, they are drawn by a specialist on a special print, one for each foreign translation. Lastly, the onomatopoeias are generally drawn by one of its assistants.
The colouring and dialogues

The final result
Once this work is completed, the prints are sent to the photoengraver who combines the black lines, the colored board and the dialogues. The printing-presses can start and soon the very fresh albums will be available in bookstores all around the world...