» The Joys Of Speech Bubbles: Lesson Three (Making 'Em Work...Now With Layers!)

Welcome back! This is the concluding piece in my speech bubble series. If you haven't read parts one and two, you can find them in the previous two issues of SmackTalk. Check the archives.


In our last issue, I discussed a rather simple, though time consuming way, that one can do speech-bubbles if one does not use the precious layer. This time, I'm going to try to explain how to use layers in a way that does not dictate that any one program is used. In fact, my only requirement is that you have access to layers. Great, huh?

Please Note: This is by no means the only way to handle this. However, it is what I use when I am using layers to produce my bubbles. It makes them very easy to produce.

Ok, First off, before we introduce our character, let's go ahead and do a quick and dirty run-down of what layers are...
Quoted From The Dictionary of Joe, which actually doesn't exist.

Now, as I have said, you'll need a program that can handle layers. There are lots of options out there, but the free ones are: The Gimp, and Inkscape. There's also some very expensive, but popular ones out there, like Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro.

Alright. On to the bubble-making. Let's go ahead and say a final fond hello to our angel and devil, who, as usual, are in the midst of not getting along.

Now, the easiest way to handle speech bubbles with layers is to break the image into three. On the bottom, we have the actual image, which is, in our case, the devil and angel standing there. Next comes the bubble layer. This is just a normal layer (for drawing on), and is meant to give you the space to draw and redraw your text bubbles without worrying about destroying anything underneath. If you use a lot of copy-and-paste work in your comic, you'll find that keeping that original image intact is so wonderfully convenient from panel to panel. But I digress... Our final layer is the layer for the text. We want the text to be separate from both the bubbles and the background because it will change the most, as you tweak and re-tweak your dialogue.

So in short, take your image and add two layers. Label one "bubbles" and the other "text".

Now, you don't need to stop with three layers. I have several comics that demand no fewer than seven layers all interacting. Even in those cases, though, you will find that the content is separate from the bubbles, which is separate from the text. It just works that way.

Anyways, select the layer you've chosen to be your text, and go ahead and type out whatever you want to say...Remember to position it correctly. English Text always reads left->right, top->bottom, so you should always try to nest your text sequentially along those lines. Doing so will ensure that the eye flows naturally along the conversation. If you are unsure, get someone else to read it. People can see this flow even if they can't identify it.

Now select your bubble layer, but keep the text visible (you usually can set the program to keep all layers visible) and draw your bubbles. Make sure your bubbles completely surround the text, and that you're not wasting too much space on ill-fitting bubbles. Ideally, you want as much of your image to show as possible (after all, why draw it if you're just going to hide it?). If you end up having collision problems, you can go back to the text layer and adjust as needed. You don't need to worry about destroying your background because it'll be preserved regardless.

Now then, after tweaking your text, go back to your bubble layer, and draw lines connecting your bubble to your character. After that, simply fill the bubble and the lines with the same color. Try to avoid using anti-aliased lines until after you've filled, as you'll be stuck with ugly pixel-blocks in between your outline and the fill if you don't.

And what do you know?

We're done!
See Layers aren't too difficult, and speech bubbles aren't that hard to use. You can do it, I promise. You officially have my permission.

This concludes my series on speech bubbles. And while this has been a blast, I feel it is time to concentrate on other matters. If you guys want more tutorials from me, you'll have to shout it out in the forums, found here.
Thanks for reading!

-The Bitter Joe