A Day in the Life of a Saturday Workshop Volunteer!

By Cady Ann Davies

When I tell people I volunteer at Comics Youth, one question I often get asked is ‘what do you do?’ and I can never respond with a short, simple answer. So, I thought it would be a great idea to make a comic about it, breaking down a typical volunteering day into five panels. Every volunteer at Comics Youth has their own schedule personalised to them, and this comic is based solely on my own personal experience. As a group we have shared our own tips and tricks with one another, which has helped me along my volunteering journey with Comics Youth.

Throughout this blog, I’m going to tell you more about my volunteering role and share top tips. I’ll also be sharing a bit of information on the processes behind making my comics! I’ll be labelling all my comic-talk as ‘BTS’ (which stands for behind-the-scenes, not the K-Pop group!)

Step 1: Preparation

One of my top tips is to have water, or a favourite drink of choice, during a workshop. Especially if you’re delivering a session and talking a lot! Water especially helps keep my stamina up during a session, but choose whatever drink works best with you! Orange juice is always my alternative go-to.
**BTS**: Originally, this panel was a lot more simplistic, just showing my shoulder holding my bag. But, after receiving feedback and looking at it more, I decided to redo the panel to show me packing my bag. This made the panel a lot more dynamic, and really shows the beginning of my day!

Step 2: Setting Up

If you’ve ever been to a Comics Youth Saturday session, I imagine the supplies trolley is quite recognisable to you! Setting up for a workshop is very important, and we have plenty of time to do so. Alongside getting the supplies trolley, setting up includes getting the correct number of chairs out of storage, and setting up the room the workshop is taking place in, so that it’s suited to the session. It was a lot to remember at first, but with help from other volunteers and staff, I got a hold of it!
**BTS**: It was very fun to draw the perspectives on this panel, so it wasn’t entirely flat. One tip I’ve learned in comic-making is to put the lettering down first, so you know where the illustrations will go, and this panel is where I learned that the most! I had to shift the whole illustration over right at the end, so the text would fit and there wouldn’t be a lot of blank space. Always good to learn for next time!

Step 3: Session Time!

It’s always a joy to see what new ideas the staff and volunteers have come up with every week, to turn into workshops to deliver to young people. I have the chance to share my art skills with others, whilst also learning new skills myself! Being amongst so many creative minds in one space is so inspiring, and it’d take me a whole other blog in itself to list all the tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way! My top tip for now is to be yourself, and feel confident to share your skills and hobbies with others.
**BTS**: This was my favourite panel to draw. I limited myself to a single panel to illustrate what assisting during a session is like, so I picked my most memorable session as of recent. I posed for the young people to draw me, so they could learn figure drawing skills. Condensing my volunteering experience down into five panels was a lot trickier than I anticipated, but it was worth it in the end! I chose this as my first panel to finish the line art for, as the dynamic pose caught my attention the most, and warmed me up for the other panels.

Step 4: Tidying Up!

From personal experience, making sure everything is organised as you’re tidying up is key! I keep a close eye out for any belongings that have been left behind, too.
**BTS**: Tidying up is usually quite tedious, so translating it into an interesting comic panel was fun!

Step 5: Treating Myself!

After a session, it’s important for me to do something nice to treat myself! Whether that be taking a break and eating something nice, going on a walk, or just having some time to myself. Relaxing after a session is important to ensure I’m looking after myself, and I would highly recommend anyone else to do the same!
**BTS**: Bringing all the panels together and seeing them all finished is one of my favourite things about comic-making. I worked on this panel last, then went through and checked for inconsistencies and things that needed tweaking. Being your own editor can be tricky, so having another pair of eyes to look over things really helps. I also find that walking away from working on a piece, and coming back to it with a clearer head-space, is just as good an option.

To Conclude…

It’s always a joy to volunteer at Comics Youth during their Saturday sessions. There’s always something new every week!

If you’d like to attend a Saturday session, there are two options available to you:

Saturday Comics Workshop aims to support young people aged 8-13 who want to create comics and cool stories! https://comicsyouth.co.uk/saturday-comics-workshop

Here for the Nerds is a session where young people aged 14-25 can make friends or connect with other creatives, through guided tasks or games! https://comicsyouth.co.uk/here-for-the-nerds

For any updates regarding our Saturday sessions, please follow @ComicsYouth on Facebook and Instagram.

If you require any further information, please email hi@comicsyouth.co.uk.