What Is Inktober?

When you want to get involved with any sort of artwork, or learn a new form of art like drawing, getting started can be one of the most difficult parts of the whole process. However, what if there were thousands of people around the world participating in the same art challenge, surely this can help make it easier for you to get started? If all of those people were involved in the same project as you, offering ideas and inspiration, would it not be the perfect art project for you to be part of? This drawing project or art challenge is known as Inktober. But what is Inktober, exactly? In this article, we will be providing more detail about this art challenge, which takes place in October of each year.

Inktober is an art challenge that was created by Jake Parker, who wanted to improve and develop his drawing habits. So, starting from the first day of October each year, anyone that wants to participate in this art challenge, to improve their drawing skills, can create an ink drawing using black ink on a sheet of white paper. You can then post it online by using the hashtags #Inktober or #Inktober 2021, for everyone to see your drawing. In this Inktober art challenge, you can draw your first drawing on the first of October and carry on each day and create your last drawing on the last day of October.

There is an official contest that is hosted by Deviant Art, who is in partnership with Inktober, and there are official prizes and awards for artists of all skills. However, if you are not interested in posting it on any of the online platforms, you can still participate. However, when you have finished your drawing, just stick it on the fridge or file it in a folder so you can look at it later.

Remember, this art challenge is not a contest to see if you are better than the other artists, but it is an art challenge to help you improve and develop your drawing skills.

There is also Inktober 52, where all the participants can create their art challenge drawings every week making a total of 52 drawings for the year. Why is this a great idea? You will be able to keep your drawing skills sharp for the whole year and not just for one month, and you can also use your drawings as a framework to help you complete a project you are working on.

History of Inktober

Jake Parker, who has over the past 20 years worked as an animator for films, comics, and picture books is the creator of the very popular drawing art challenge Inktober. He created Inktober in 2009, where he used it as a tool to develop and improve his drawing skills, and 2022 marks the 13th year for this amazing art challenge.

He created the idea, as he realized how easy it is to put down your pen or pencil and stop drawing. Soon enough, the time goes by, and months have gone by before you realize how long it has been since you last created a drawing. The Inktober art challenge has gained popularity over the years and is now practiced by thousands of artists all over the world.

Are There Rules for Inktober?

There are a few basic rules, but they are very relaxed as the main idea behind Inktober is to get you to be more creative and consistent and improve your drawing habits and skills. You can even do your ink challenge digitally, or by using calligraphy, typography, lettering, or by writing a poem or short stories, as long as you unleash your creativity and do it daily for a whole month.

Many people have wondered what type of medium is acceptable.

Whatever type of medium you have available you can use, from watercolors, pens, pencils, stamps, or marker pens. The whole aim is to make it as simple as possible to create a drawing a day, using a piece of white paper, some black ink, and away you go. Let us now look at those few basic rules for Inktober as a challenge, which helps provide consistency. However, the rules can also be adjusted to suit yourself if you are not too serious about the challenge.

You should create a drawing on a piece of paper using ink, whether it is from pens, markers, or stamps.
Add your artwork to social media platforms like Facebook or Instagram. You can either post it each day or hold on until month-end and then post them all in one go.
Make sure you make use of the hashtag #Inktober, #Inktober 2021 so that your drawing can be seen by all other artists.
You can then repeat the process every day for the whole month of October.

What Are Inktober Prompts?

If you are stuck and cannot come up with a theme of what to draw, then there is an official Inktober prompt list that is created by Jake Parker. This prompt is issued every September on the Inktober website, which has 31 words or themes that provide you with a theme to draw for each day.

However, you are not bound to follow the prompt list and you are quite at liberty to draw your own themes and let your imagination inspire you. If you do decide to use the official Inktober prompt list, it may be a good idea when you post your drawings to label them for day one as #dayone and name the theme and continue like this until the end of the month.

Is Inktober in Jeopardy?

In 2019, many users and fans of Inktober have been annoyed and frustrated by legal pressure, which may threaten the existence of Inktober. Many artists, including Jake Parker, have begun releasing books of their works online exhibiting their efforts, and Jake Parker has asked his lawyers to protect his trademark. Jake Parker himself has also been accused of plagiarism.

Many of these artists were not aware that the Inktober logo was trademarked, have been sharing the hashtags of their works, and are now being penalized for selling their works of art. Trademarking is different from copyright, as trademarking proves that you are the owner of the product, but it also prevents other users from selling their brand without sharing in the profits.

Due to this controversy, a large portion of the artists have decided not to participate any longer in this event, even artists that participate in Inktober for fun and not for gain are afraid that their participation may affect them as well. Even some art websites are not supporting him, and some bookstores have removed his book from their shelves.

Does this mean that Inktober has been canceled? No, Inktober is still going, and you can still participate in it with your artworks, and the prompts for 2020 and 2021 can easily be accessed from the Inktober website.

What About Inktober 2022?

With all this controversy, many artists are asking if there will be an Inktober 2022. Yes, Inktober is still very much alive and ready for all who want to participate in 2022, just wait for September 2022 and log onto the Inktober website and find the 2022 prompt list and start drawing.

None of these problems need to have any effect on your drawing at all if you are just drawing for fun. You can still post your work on social media with the hashtags, or simply keep them for your own benefit. Apart from Inktober 2022, Inktober 52 has been functioning since January 2022 and is still available for anyone who wants to participate, so get going and start drawing.

Some Helpful Tips for Inktober 2022

Inktober has become very popular over the years because it is designed to challenge your artistic skills. To help you bring out the best of your art skills in Inktober 2022, we have put together some helpful tips to make Inktober 2022 the best year to improve your drawing skills.

Making Use of a Prompt List

Before you start drawing, you must have some kind of plan to follow, which means you need to have some theme or prompts to follow. These need to be able to carry you through the whole month of October.

This is why it may be helpful to follow a prompt list, even if you have your own theme or ideas; it helps to have something to rely on when you are stuck and wondering what to draw.

Use a Schedule

When the month of October approaches, you need to prepare yourself and set some of your time aside from your busy schedule, as all those who have used Inktober testify that it can take from two to four hours or more of your time per day to complete the challenge. Therefore, it is important that before October arrives, you have planned your schedule in enough time to do your drawings.

Do Not Let Missing a Day Stress You Out

You may find that during October there is a time when you are not able to draw for that day. Do not stress or worry if you are not able to complete a drawing every day, the whole aim of the challenge is for you to enjoy yourself and have fun drawing.

Many artists have not completed the challenge, but they had fun doing it and they also have a collection of drawings they did to be proud of.

Prepare Your Workspace

Try to arrange your tools and materials, so you are ready to start drawing in advance. You will then not waste any of your creative drawing time scratching around for lost paper, pens, or ink. It may be a good idea to start in September and prepare your drawings and ideas, so that when October arrives all you have to do is start drawing.

Adapt the Inktober Rules to Suit Your Needs

As the Inktober rules state, you must finish one piece of artwork each day for the month of October. However, you can adapt this rule to suit yourself, for example, only drawing every second day or even one drawing per week.

It all comes around to the fact that you do the art challenge for fun and use it to improve your own skills.

Use Social Media

You need to get involved with social media and use the Inktober hashtags that you will find on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. You will soon find that there are lots of people on these platforms that are only too willing to help you and give you some advice. So, start sharing using the hashtags for your artwork, and then your work can be appreciated by all who see it.

October is the creative month when all your friends and colleagues can enjoy sketching and drawing, even if it is only a hobby. You can add the following hashtags when posting your artwork.

#Inktober
#inktober2021

Attempt Something New

If you have been drawing for a long time or if you have just started, then Inktober is the ideal time and place to try something new. You can try changing your style of inking, or try some different ways of inking, but let it help you to improve your drawing skills.

Alternatively, think way out of the box, and try something completely new, like mosaic or embroidery.

How Can You Benefit From Inktober?

What are the benefits of participating in the Inktober art challenge? By using a ballpoint pen to draw, you can produce distinctive textures, lines, and shading. On the other hand, when using Indian inks, they are a lot more fluid and your lines may bleed into each other, but this can create different tones and ideas for your drawing. Below are a few more benefits that Inktober art challenges can provide.

The challenge gives you a different perspective, as you see things differently when using the unusual prompts.
You are also challenged to use a minimum number of materials, which increases the challenge.
This art challenge can help you forget your stress and problems, as you can focus on the drawings.

Participating in this challenge also helps you to work with some unfamiliar mediums.
By joining the challenge, you can break through creative blocks, as you focus on something different.
The Inktober art challenge is simple and easy to follow, and is designed to assist you in developing your art skills.

What Materials Do You Need for Inktober?

When you start with your Inktober art challenge, it is a good idea to select the medium and materials you need in advance, and then stick with them through the art challenge, so you can create some form of consistency.

You may also want to try a different range of ink techniques and see how they turn out for you, but above all, have fun and enjoy the experience. Here are some tools like pens, and materials that you may want to use.

Ballpoint pens do not blend but they may be a bit tricky to the desired effect you want.
Fine liners have a better feel and are more refined, and they come with a range of thicknesses.
Felt pens give you vibrant color, and the Inktober c art challenge does not confine you to black only.
Professional brush pens and coloring pens are an excellent choice for easy blending and layering and give you that comic or animated feel.
Watercolor paper is a better choice if you are going to use Indian fluid ink, as it can cope with the excess amount of liquid.

A good quality sketch journal or sketch pad of about 140 grams per meter and that has acid-free paper will be able to handle most of the art inks.
Cartridge paper of about 220 grams per meter is also a good choice, as it is thick enough to take a variety of drawing tools.
However, if you decide to stay with the black ink only, it may be a good idea to use colored paper to give you an added effect.

There you have it, the Inktober art challenge has inspired and encouraged personal growth for many artists that have participated each year. The art challenge is open to everyone, all you need to do is pick up your pen and begin to draw and follow the prompt list or simply do your own thing. Let this challenge transform your drawing skills and bring out the best of your drawing habits.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Inktober?

Inktober is an art challenge that runs for the whole month of October. The challenge was created by Jake Parker and is there to help grow your drawing habits. Every day in October you can participate in this art challenge and post your finished drawings using the hashtags #Inktober and #Inktober2021, so everyone can see your artwork.

Can You Join Inktober Later?

There is no strict starting time for Inktober, so you can draw daily, post them every other day, or you can draw and post weekly, it is entirely up to you, but you do need to try and be consistent. Remember, Inktober is all about improving your drawing habits and skills, but how you go about that is up to you.

What If You Do Not Belong to Any Social Media Platforms?

Even if you do not have your own social media account, it does not stop you from participating in the challenge. You can always share your drawings with your family and friends, keep them, or you can place them on your refrigerator.

Must You Follow the Order of the Official Inktober Prompts List?

You do not have to follow the order in which the prompt list is written. If you feel like changing the order, by all means, do so, but remember the idea of the prompt list is to have everyone draw a similar theme on the same day.

Matthew Matthysen( Drawing and Painting Artist )

Matthew Matthysen is an educated multidisciplinary artist and illustrator. He successfully completed his art degree at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa, majoring in art history and contemporary drawing. The focus of his thesis was to explore the philosophical implications of the macro and micro-universe on the human experience. Matthew uses diverse media, such as written and hands-on components, to explore various approaches that are on the border between philosophy and science.

Matthew organized various exhibitions before and during his years as a student and is still passionate about doing so today. He currently works as a freelance artist and writer in various fields. He also has a permanent position at a renowned online gallery (ArtGazette) where he produces various works on commission. As a freelance artist, he creates several series and successfully sells them to galleries and collectors. He loves to use his work and skills in various fields of interest.

Matthew has been creating drawing and painting tutorials since the relaunch in 2020. Through his involvement with artincontext.org, he has been able to deepen his knowledge of various painting mediums. For example, watercolor techniques, calligraphy and lately digital drawing, which is becoming more and more popular.

Learn more about Matthew Matthysen and the Art in Context Team.

What Is Inktober? – Join the Popular October Art Challenge Trend