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A Doodle A Day

ADAD

Last year I started a project to get myself drawing again. I started drawing a doodle a day, each with a little lesson. I didn’t keep up with the habit, but here are 82 doodles and their lessons. You can also see the lessons as a list. There are two galleries here, one horizontal format and the other vertical. If you want to scroll through them all, you’ll need to select the second gallery at some point ;)

Don’t be judgemental, just do the doodle.
You don’t have to draw what other people want to see.
One line is also a drawing.
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Every doodle is perfect for its own reasons.
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You don’t have to take up the whole page, but you do have to take up at least a little space.
blank
No one really cares, but it’s not a doodle until it’s a doodle.
blank
The sound of the pen on the page is part of the reward.
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It’s all practice. Art is practice. Doodling is practice. Yoga is practice and calmness is practice.
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Drawing from life is easy, drawing from your imagination is something else entirely.
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ADAD might mean that things go unfinished but…
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Life is both outside and inside. On some days it’s ok to prioritise the one you need to prioritise.
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AfD can suck a duck.
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Even snowmen shiver in the wind.
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Sometimes you’ve got literally nothing, even on the third try.
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Don’t try to draw portraits until you’ve relearned how to draw.
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Think about your scene before the pen hits the paper.
blank
Regular life has all the inspiration you need.
blank
What’s inside and what’s outside are both the same and completely different.
blank
Intelligence and wisdom are not the same.
blank
ADAD is a diary.
blank
Love the doodle, love the day.
blank
What starts and fails still started.
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Free association doodling is a valid doodle form. Just let go of the doodle needing to be anything other than a doodle. It’s ok to have no idea and take up the pen anyway. At this point you’re 42 days in and you still have expectations. Let go.
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Life is the inspiration.
blank
There’s still broken in those empty rooms in my brain.
blank
It’s blank for a reason. It’s bland for a reason.
blank
Up in the nature.
blank
Hamster wheel, but life is not a bell curve, it’s a wave.
blank
It’s just a doodle some doodles are sad doodles. Some are pointless. Some are rushed.
blank
Sometimes a doodle is just scribbling and that is A-OK.
blank
At some point, there’s very little that you haven’t already seen.
blank
Doodling because you want to always results in better doodles. Stop forcing yourself.
blank
Just relax.
blank
Some things are better made of wood.
blank
When you think of your friends give them a call and say hello.
blank
Streaks are overrated and you can’t tear out pages when there’s something on the back.
blank
There’s an invisible lizard on the table.
blank
You’ve already overcome and changed and become someone you like better. You can always decide to make changes.
blank
If you need a reminder of all you do and have done just close your eyes and have a think.
blank
You become attached to objects because you hate shopping not because the thing is especially interesting or memorable.
blank
Fearing the inevitable takes some more constant effort than accepting it and moving on.
blank
A few trees and some fresh air and everything looks a little better.
blank
A thick black line makes it look like it was on purpose.
blank
You don’t have to have a style; you just have to be committed.
blank
Sometimes you just don’t like the doodle and that’s ok too.
blank
Practice will eventually pay off and you don’t have to stick with these pens if you don’t want to.
blank
Blending is both friend and foe.
blank
Sometimes you don’t know what you’re doing.
blank
Any line can and will be come something if you allow it to.
blank
No one is drawing Boston from memory, it’s a silly task.
blank
A ghost could, theoretically, wear pants.
blank
A quick and dirty doodle is perfectly 100% fine.
blank
Fall in love with a peaceful, dirty cross hatch.
blank
What starts as one thing quickly becomes another when you see emotion and embody infinite sadness.
blank
Sometimes the action is the reward and the outcome of that action is irrelevant.
blank
Doodling needs its own dedicated time, but any time is better than no time.
blank
Like we said ADAD is just about ADAD.
blank
Dinosaurs are not cats.
blank
See? You do remember how to draw, you just have to choose to do it.
blank
Bikes need more space and we need more time in the trees.
blank
Character design is an entire agency.
blank
We’re all tired.
blank
Perspective is relative.
blank
We are all masters of the universe (somewhere in the space-time continuum).
blank
Some days are just a shrug, but a chat with someone you love makes it extraordinary.
blank
It’s all the little things.
blank
Unordered mind leads to unordered everything.
blank
Foreshortening is especially difficult without image reference and lots of practice.
blank
A pool is possible and you can’t erase pen.
blank
Life is long and we are still young.
blank
If you have nothing to say, then you will say nothing.
blank
Springtime doodles are happy doodles.
blank
Bah. Crap.
blank
Is it even worth it? If you’re doodling just to record that you doodled? I mean, it’s also a diary. There’s a reason for the sheep.
blank
Memory and imagination are two sides of the same coin.
blank
Breaks are good, so it’s starting something again.
blank
You already said and wrote some pretty cool stuff. How about easing up on the self pressure campaign a bit?
blank
Some pens work on some kinds of paper. Maybe you need different paper rather than different pens.
blank
You actually do need to be alone every once in a while.
blank
Virtue is in coming back after some time away but acknowledging that time away also has value.
blank
So many things are always going wrong maybe it’s time to accept that wrong is right and right is irrelevant.

ADAD’s 82 Lessons

  • Lesson 1: Don’t be judgemental, just do the doodle.
  • Lesson 2: You don’t have to draw what other people want to see.
  • Lesson 3: A thick black line makes it look like it was on purpose.
  • Lesson 4: One line is also a drawing.
  • Lesson 5: You don’t have to have a style; you just have to be committed.
  • Lesson 6: Every doodle is perfect for its own reasons.
  • Lesson 7: Practice will eventually pay off and you don’t have to stick with these pens if you don’t want to.
  • Lesson 8: No one really cares, but it’s not a doodle until it’s a doodle.
  • Lesson 9: You don’t have to take up the whole page, but you do have to take up at least a little space.
  • Lesson 10: Blending is both friend and foe.
  • Lesson 11: The sound of the pen on the page is part of the reward,
  • Lesson 12: Sometimes you just don’t like the doodle and that’s ok too.
  • Lesson 13: Sometimes you don’t know what you’re doing.
  • Lesson 14: Any line can and will be come Something if you allow it to.
  • Lesson 15: No one is drawing Boston from memory, it’s a silly task.
  • Lesson 16: A ghost could, theoretically, wear pants.
  • Lesson 17: A quick and dirty doodle is perfectly 100% fine.
  • Lesson 18: Fall in love with a peaceful, dirty cross hatch.
  • Lesson 19: It’s all practice. Art is practice. Doodling is practice. Yoga is practice and calmness is practice.
  • Lesson 20: Drawing from life is easy, drawing from your imagination is something else entirely.
  • Lesson 21: What starts as one thing quickly becomes another when you see emotion and embody infinite sadness.
  • Lesson 22: Sometimes the action is the reward and the outcome of that action is irrelevant.
  • Lesson 23: Doodling needs its own dedicated time, but any time is better than no time.
  • Lesson 24: Like we said ADAD is just about ADAD.
  • Lesson 25: ADAD might mean that things go unfinished but…
  • Lesson 26: Life is both outside and inside. On some days it’s ok to prioritise the one you need to prioritise.
  • Lesson 27: AfD can suck a duck.
  • Lesson 28: Even snowmen shiver in the wind.
  • Lesson 29: Sometimes you’ve got literally nothing, even on the third try.
  • Lesson 30: Every day is its own challenge and its own reward.
  • Lesson 31: Don’t try to draw portraits until you’ve relearned how to draw.
  • Lesson 32: Think about your scene before the pen hits the paper.
  • Lesson 33: Regular life has all the inspiration you need.
  • Lesson 34: See? You do remember how to draw, you just have to choose to do it.
  • Lesson 35: What’s inside and what’s outside are both the same and completely different.
  • Lesson 36: Intelligence and wisdom are not the same.
  • Lesson 37: Dinosaurs are not cats
  • Lesson 38: ADAD is a diary.
  • Lesson 39: Love the doodle, love the day.
  • Lesson 40: Bikes need more space and we need more time in the trees.
  • Lesson 41: What starts and fails still started.
  • Lesson 42: Free association doodling is a valid doodle form. Just let go of the doodle needing to be anything other than a doodle. It’s ok to have no idea and take up the pen anyway. At this point you’re 42 days in and you still have expectations. Let go.
  • Lesson 43: Character design is an entire agency.
  • Lesson 44: We’re all tired.
  • Lesson 45: Life is the inspiration.
  • Lesson 46: There’s still broken in those empty rooms in my brain.
  • Lesson 47: Perspective is relative.
  • Lesson 48: It’s blank for a reason. It’s bland for a reason.
  • Lesson 49: We are all masters of the universe (somewhere in the space-time continuum).
  • Lesson 50: Some days are just a shrug, but a chat with someone you love makes it extraordinary.
  • Lesson 51: It’s all the little things.
  • Lesson 52: Up in the nature.
  • Lesson 53: Unordered mind leads to unordered everything.
  • Lesson 54: Foreshortening is especially difficult without image reference and lots of practice.
  • Lesson 55: Hamster wheel, but life is not a bell curve, it’s a wave.
  • Lesson 56: A pool is possible and you can’t erase pen.
  • Lesson 57: Life is long and we are still young.
  • Lesson 58: It’s just a doodle some doodles are sad doodles. Some are pointless. Some are rushed.
  • Lesson 59: Sometimes a doodle is just scribbling and that is A-OK.
  • Lesson 60: If you have nothing to say, then you will say nothing.
  • Lesson 61: At some point, there’s very little that you haven’t already seen.
  • Lesson 62: Doodling because you want to always results in better doodles. Stop forcing yourself.
  • Lesson 63: Just relax.
  • Lesson 64: Some things are better made of wood.
  • Lesson 65: When you think of your friends give them a call and say hello.
  • Lesson 66: Springtime doodles are happy doodles.
  • Lesson 67: Bah. Crap.
  • Lesson 68: Is it even worth it? If you’re doodling just to record that you doodled? I mean, it’s also a diary. There’s a reason for the sheep.
  • Lesson 69: Virtue is in coming back after some time away but acknowledging that time away also has value.
  • Lesson 70: Memory and imagination are two sides of the same coin.
  • Lesson 71: You actually do need to be alone every once in a while.
  • Lesson 72: Streaks are overrated and you can’t tear out pages when there’s something on the back.
  • Lesson 73: There’s an invisible lizard on the table.
  • Lesson 74: Breaks are good, so it’s starting something again.
  • Lesson 75: You’ve already overcome and changed and become someone you like better. You can always decide to make changes.
  • Lesson 76: If you need a reminder of all you do and have done just close your eyes and have a think.
  • Lesson 77: You become attached to objects because you hate shopping not because the thing is especially interesting or memorable.
  • Lesson 78: Fearing the inevitable takes some more constant effort than accepting it and moving on.
  • Lesson 79: You already said and wrote some pretty cool stuff. How about easing up on the self pressure campaign a bit?
  • Lesson 80: So many things are always going wrong maybe it’s time to accept that wrong is right and right is irrelevant.
  • Lesson 81: Some pens work on some kinds of paper. Maybe you need different paper rather than different pens.
  • Lesson 82: A few trees and some fresh air and everything looks a little better.