How I Create Fantasy-Inspired Art

I love reading fantasy and creating fan art of my favorite characters. I enjoy capturing and translating the magic and essence of these characters into exciting art pieces. Here’s a little rundown of how I create fantasy-inspired art.

My fanart of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Why I love creating fanart

Fan art is an excellent way to find inspiration, especially when you’re not sure what to draw. I love reading, so combining this hobby with my passion for creating art creates a nourishing cycle of inspiration.

Especially with manga-inspired fanart, it’s a great starting point for creating artwork because there are plenty of references available, and you already know what the character looks like. You don’t have to make those basic design decisions.

Instead, you get to recreate the character in your own style and highlight the traits that resonate most with you. For example, with Frieren, I enjoyed emphasizing how she represents both stability and change within the story, blending melancholy and joy. She’s a character who looks to the past and the future, connecting them both.

Understanding the Character

To draw fan art, it's important to understand what makes characters unique—not just their appearance but also their personality.

Replicating their hair and clothing will make them instantly recognizable to fans, while understanding their personality will influence your overall composition, background, and the expressions they have. Remember, it's just as crucial to convey YOUR understanding of the character as it is to highlight their more general traits.

For example, with my fanart of Anju Maaka, my personal impression of the character is that she is both young and vulnerable, yet fierce enough to stab you if you looked at her wrong.

I translated her unique physical traits by using references to draw her hairstyle (which is a very defining trait in manga) and gothic clothing, while changing her eye color from gold to red to make my color story more cohesive and draw more attention to her eyes, highlighting the depth of danger she could pose to those threatening the ones she loves.

What makes this drawing uniquely my style is her expression, as I often draw female characters who have a fierce, "don’t mess with me" look.

How Do I Draw Fanart That is Unique?

Before I started with fan art, I was intimidated by existing fan art and character art—how do I draw something without copying? How do I make it unique? The key is to mix recognizable elements with your own ideas, like the composition, pose, or scenario you choose for your character.

For example, with my fan art of Maomao, I stayed true to her hairstyle, clothing, and the colors used in the first volume of the manga. I added flowers to the background and created a composition that differs from other fan art by varying the pose, imagery, and style.

All these differences contribute to making a new piece. It's important to interpret each element in your own way, so you’re not merely replicating. For instance, you can get inspired by existing poses but create your own variation, or use similar colors but add your twist.

I hope this gives you some confidence to start drawing your own fanart pieces. If you want to read more about How Manga Inspire My Artwork, you can read that on my blog or look for Beginner Tips to Digital Art.

If you want to follow along with my creative journey, check out my social media profile @shadowbloom_art for updates, tips, and my latest projects.