Editing Letterer (section)

== Tools and methods ==

=== On-the-board ===
The traditional comic book letterer needs little more than a [[lettering guide]], a pen or brush, [[India ink]], and white paint for corrections. Some situations required the letterer to use [[vellum]] overlays on top of the original art.<ref name="Gaspar Saladino — Atlas Shrugged!"/>

=== EC Comics ===
The lettering in the comics of the sensationalist [[horror comics]] publisher [[EC Comics]] (c. 1945 – c. 1955) was different from other publishers – its mechanical appearance gave it a sterile aspect, and helped define the particular style of comics EC was known for. EC's letterers achieved their particular look by using a Leroy lettering set, a device popular amongst draftsmen and architects. The Leroy lettering set consisted of a stylus and a [[pantographic]] lettering form.<ref>Burns, Casey. [http://caseyburns.com/artwork/font-design/ "Squa Tront and Spa Fon (2001)"], Casey Burns official website. Accessed May 21, 2011.</ref>

=== Computer lettering ===
Most Marvel and DC books are now lettered using a graphics program such as [[Adobe Illustrator]], [[Adobe Photoshop]] or [[Adobe InDesign]], and a [[font]] that resembles hand lettering. Computer lettering provides a lot of technical shortcuts, especially by combining the lettering work directly with digital art files, eliminating the tedious physical paste-up stage altogether. Some letterers handwrite part of the script. Hand-lettering is often used for sound effects and [[onomatopoeia]] in comics.

There are also still comics artists and inkers who prefer to have the lettering directly on their pages. First, it saves drawing time (not having to put art where a big caption will be); and second, comics tell a story, and a page of comics art without the lettering is only half the story.

Long-time letterer [[John Workman]] toes a middle ground between traditional and digital lettering. In addition to his "on-the-art boards work", Workman has been electronically hand-lettering by way of a [[Wacom (company)|Wacom]] tablet.