Web Resources

Here are a few sites you'll want to bookmark and some folks you'll want to follow on social media!

• Sunni Brown

  Sunni Brown is the Graphic Recording Queen, and she posts some fun stuff on her Instagram from time to time. Worth a follow.

• Doodlers, Unite!

  Sunni Brown is one of the rockstars of graphic recording. In this short TED Talk, she discusses the value of visual note-taking and why it should be encouraged.

• Mike Rohde (@rohdesign)

  Mike Rohde is the godfather of sketchnoting. In fact, the dude wrote the book on it! His Instagram is filled with wonderful drawings and sketchnotes and is a MUST FOLLOW for anyone who wants to be a graphic recorder.

• Drawing in Class: Rachel Smith at TEDxUFM

  In this TEDx Talk, Rachel Smith discusses the value of visual note-taking and even spends time showing the audience HOW to take visual notes. Regardless of your artistic ability, you'll learn some good graphic recording tips in this message.

• International Forum of Visual Practitioners

  Here it is! The official organization for graphic recorders all across the world! I bet you didn't even know we had one. Well, we do! And it's pretty rad! I was offered 4 gigs within weeks of joining!

• Sketchnote Army

  Started by Mike Rohde, the Sketchnote Army is a blog featuring a variety writers discussing the art of visual note-taking. If you want to get better at graphic recording, you should definitely bookmark this site and check-in regularly.

• 8 Tips for Being a Graphic Recorder

  A quick read with some great info that will help you be prepared for your first graphic recording gig!

Books

I love web resources, but sometimes I want a book that I can pull off the shelf and use for reference whenever I need it. Here's a solid list of books every aspiring graphic recorder should check out!

• Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon

  Austin Kleon is one of the leaders in creative thought and philosophy, and STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST could be considered his master work. In this short book, Kleon shows the reader how to properly "steal" from his/her favorite artists to create wholly unique works of art. I recommend this book because a lot of graphic recording and sketchnote art looks the same. If you use the tips in this book, they'll help you develop a style that will stand out from all the other graphic recorders out there!

• Show Your Work! by Austin Kleon

  SHOW YOUR WORK is the follow up to STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST. Like it's predecessor, this book is a short read packed with ideas, tips, and encouragement. In it, Kleon teaches artists how to share their work with other people. This is an invaluable resource for sketchnoters and graphic recorders because our work is VERY shareable, especially on social media!

• Creative Lettering and Beyond by Gabri Joy Kirkendall, Laura Lavender, Julie Manwaring, & Shauna Lynn Panczyszyn

  I recommend this book to any artist who wants to improve their hand lettering, but it's especially useful for sketchnoters and graphic recorders. It helps to have a few "fonts" that you can use throughout your notes to help keep things organized and highlight certain ideas. This book is a great reference when you need some ideas or just want to practice.

• Draw Your Big Idea by Nora Herting & Heather Willems

  This book shows the reader how to apply visual note-taking methods to entrepreneurial dreaming and strategizing. For that reason, it's a little different than most "how to draw sketchnotes" books. The main reason I recommend it: the drawings are awesome.

• bikablo® 1 (English/Spanish)

  These little bikablo books published by Neuland are pretty handy. Lots of useful doodles to help convey ideas in your notes. You can buy the books by themselves, or you might luck out like I did and receive a TON of them when you place a big order. I'm pretty sure Neuland used these books as packing material for a large marker order I placed; I can't think of any other reason they'd toss in 30 copies of the book.

• The Graphic Facilitator's Guide by Brandy Agerbeck

  This book is a wonderfully-illustrated and easy read loaded with valuable tips and content. While I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to be a graphic recorder, I *highly* recommend it to folks who are wanting to do it professionally. Not only does Agerbeck give the reader drawing and listening tips, but she also provides advice on how to run your business! Definitely worth a read if you're ready to step out on your own.

• The Doodle Revolution by Sunni Brown

  Sunni Brown is the queen of graphic recording, and this book is a wonderful showcase of her creative knowledge and talent. Not only does she show you how to take great visual notes, but she explains WHY visual note-taking is so awesome. This is a great book to help you develop your "graphic recording sales pitch" in case a client needs some convincing as to why they should hire you to draw their meeting.

• The Sketchnote Handbook by Mike Rohde

  This is the first book I read about sketchnoting, and I still reference it often. I love the way Mike Rohde draws, and he provides a lot of great tips on how to make sketchnotes. He discusses everything from tools, drawing basics, layouts, and listening tips. It's a wonderful book that should be on every graphic recorder's shelf.

• The Sketchnote Workbook by Mike Rohde

  If THE SKETCHNOTE HANDBOOK is a 101 class, then THE SKETCHNOTE WORKBOOK is the 201. In this book, Rohde provides tips and practice pages for difficult-to-draw concepts and ideas. He even shows how to draw sketchnotes for movies, TV shows, and sports telecasts. The book also comes with several instructional videos featuring Mike. I hesitated to buy this book for awhile, but — when I finally broke down and bought it — I quickly realized it's totally worth the money.

• Visual Meetings by David Sibbet

  Great book on how to use creativity and drawing in your meetings. Honestly, there's a lot of overlap with some of the other books I've recommended, but there's enough unique advice that it's worth a read.

Sketchnote Tools

I've broken up the tool section into two categories: Sketchnote Tools and Large Format Tools The supplies listed in Sketchnote Tools are all the tools I use to create smaller format sketchnotes. This is the perfect setup for students, conference attendees, and anyone else who wants to sketchnote on the go!

• Kuretake Disposable Pocket Brush Pen

  The Kuretake Disposable Brush Pen is my primary pen for sketchnotes. The lines are great, the felt tip lasts a long time, and they're relatively inexpensive. My advice: stock up on these.

• Prismacolor Kneaded Rubber Eraser

  Kneaded erasers have been a part of my drawing arsenal since I was in elementary school. These things are a must-own for any artist, especially if you work with pencil. You can twist 'em up to get in tight spaces, and they don't leave any crumbs. I usually buy a few of these just to have on hand.

• Energizer Lightweight LED Clip Book Light

  Sometimes you gotta make your sketchnotes in low-light situations. When that happens, you'll want to have one of these. The Energizer book light is inexpensive and easy to tote.

• Kuretake Fudebiyori Brush Pen

  I love this pen for adding gray tones to my black-and-white sketchnotes. Best of all, it doesn't bleed through the Moleskine paper!

• Uni-ball Signo Broad UM-153 Gel Pen

  I use this pen every time I create sketchnotes. Sometimes I use it to create white letters or outlines on dense black areas that I've inked with my brush pen. Other times I simply use it to fix errors. It's a great utilitarian pen that should be a part of your bag of tools.

• Lihit Lab Teffa Pen Case

  I've gone through a lot of pencil bags in my life, some I liked more than others. This bag, however, has been my favorite BY FAR. I've been using it for two years now, and I can't find a bag I like better. Keeps your pens and pencils organized, displays them nicely when opened, and holds a lot without getting bulky. I can't recommend this bag high enough.

• Moleskine Art Plus Sketchbook, Large, Plain, Black, Hard Cover (5 x 8.25)

  I'm a Moleskine junkie, and, when it comes to sketchnotes, I've gotta work in my Moleskine Sketchbook. The paper is thick enough so that my pen doesn't bleed or show through, and they're pretty durable. My sketchbooks are open and shut several times a week, and I've never had a cover fall off or a book come unbound. Sure, there are sketchbooks that are cheaper, but Moleskines are worth the extra cost in my opinion.

• Pentel Pocket Brush Pen

  MY FAVORITE PEN OF ALL TIME. I use the Pocket Brush primarily for my comic and illustration work, but it's lately been making its way into my sketchnote work. I've been using it for bold text and outlines.

• Pentel Sharp Kerry Mechanical Pencil

  Can you buy cheaper mechanical pencils that work just as well? Absolutely. But if you're a connoisseur of pens and pencils like I am, you're going to want to own this one. Perfect size, feels great in the hand, and it looks good. I prefer 0.7mm lead, but it's available in 0.5mm.

• Copic Doodle Pack

  If I'm using color on my sketchnotes, I prefer to keep it as simple as possible. The Copic Doodle Packs are PERFECT for this purpose. I typically only use the brush pens, but the multi-liner and glitter pen will allow you to add more visual interest to your sketchnotes without overdoing it.

Large Format Tools

I've broken up the tool section into two categories: Sketchnote Tools & Large Format Tools The supplies listed in Large Format Tools are all the tools I use for graphic recording gigs where lots of people are watching me draw. If you're wanting to get into the biz of live-drawing during meetings, here are the supplies you'll want to grab!

• Blick Artist Tape

  I've found that a roll of white artist's tape is quite handy to correct mistakes when you're working fast. The tape doesn't hold ink very well, so you'll need to be careful not to smear it. But I like working with dry tape rather than liquid white out. The liquid stuff takes a moment to dry and may run down your artwork.

• Neuland No.One® Outliner

  Hands down my favorite marker of all times. I've got a couple of these in my toolbox as I use it more than any other marker in my arsenal. What makes this marker so great is that it's a DEEP black, and you can color over it without smearing it or leaving black streaks on the nib of your colored markers! So rad!

• RefillBox

  The RefillBox only costs a dollar and it is very handy. It holds your markers up while you refill them, and you can walk away while the ink settles. Buy a couple of these. They're only a dollar!

• Blick Studio Aluminum Tripod Travel Easel

  I bought two of these easels to hold my foam core boards, and they work GREAT. They're easy to transport and set up, and they don't wobble. On top of that, these easels have a friendly price! If you're going to use foam core, you'll need at least two easels.

• Fadeless Art Paper

  I use rolls of 48" white art paper for graphic recording. The presentation isn't as pretty as the foam core because I use a bunch of ugly masking tape to hold the paper to the wall, but the paper is easy to travel with (unlike foam core). The paper takes marker very well with little to no feathering, and it doesn't bleed! If you need to ship it you can just roll it up and put it in a tube.

• Foam Board

  Uline stocks a huge selection of foam Board, foam Core and foam Core Board. Order by 6 pm for same day shipping.

• Neuland BigOne® Outliner

  I love these Neuland Outliner markers, and the BigOne is a wonderful tool for laying down dense black areas. You may want to have a couple of these on hand. I've found that, for me, one marker will start to run dry after a day's worth of drawing.

• Neuland Ink Refill

  It doesn't look like much, but a bottle of Ink Refill goes a LONG way! You should definitely buy some for your Outliner markers. When booking gigs, try to figure out what colors you'll be using heavily and order refills for those.

• Blick Masking Tape

  Masking tape is a great tool for taping up sheets of paper to the wall without worrying about damaging the paint or drywall. I use lots of it. Have a roll or two in your toolbox.

• Neuland No.One® 13 Colour Sets

  When starting out, I highly recommend buying one of these marker sets. There are three different sets, so pay close attention to the colors in each set. If you're looking for specific colors you may find that they're not packaged together in the same set.

• VarioOne®

  Neuland offers a bunch of nice bags and cases for their markers, but I needed something simple and easy to carry. This VarioOne portfolio case has been awesome. It holds almost all of my markers (way more than I need for one gig), and it's easy to carry. When it's time to get to work, the portfolio lays flat and keeps your markers organized. Highly recommended.

• X-Acto Retract-A-Blade #1 Knife

  If you're going to use rolls of art paper, you're going to want one of these in your toolbox. Cuts your paper fast and easy, and leaves a nice, smooth edge.

About the Author

• About Wes

  Wanna know more about me and what I do? Check out the ABOUT page on my website and find links to my other work!

• Wes Molebash

  Did you find the Graphic Recording Guide helpful? Then why not stop by my Facebook page and give it a "Like"? I'd really appreciate it!

• Wes Molebash on Instagram

  Instagram is my current favorite social media platform. Follow me to see some of the rad stuff I'm creating. Heck, you might even see my kids from time to time!

• Bublup

  I made this roll using a new app called Bublup. If you like the way it looks and want to make one too, click here to check it out!