Comics Drawing Workshop | Learn Sequential Storytelling with Emily McGovern

Comics drawing workshop in Lisbon for anyone who has ever wanted to turn everyday moments into illustrated stories but had no idea where to start. Led by Emily McGovern, a full-time cartoonist and graphic novelist with nine years of professional experience and two published graphic novels behind her, this 2.5-hour session teaches you the fundamental grammar of comics through hands-on creation of your own one-page autobiographical comic. No previous drawing experience needed and no artistic background required. Just a sketchbook, a pen and something worth remembering.

The session opens with a focused primer on the fundamentals of comics making: panel composition, speech bubble placement, character expression and the principles of visual storytelling that turn a sequence of drawings into something that genuinely reads as a story. From there the session moves into 1.5 hours of intensive guided drawing, where you transform a personal anecdote into a one-page illustrated narrative with Emily offering personalized tips and feedback throughout. The kinds of stories that work best here are the small and specific ones: a funny metro interaction, a conversation fragment, a quiet moment with a pet. The ordinary details that fade if you do not catch them. The session closes with an optional group sharing where participants can present their finished comic and see what others made of their own moments. Maximum 15 participants to ensure everyone receives individual attention.

What you’ll learn

✏️ Panel composition techniques and how to structure a page of comics

✏️ Speech bubble placement and the visual grammar of dialogue in sequential art

✏️ Character expression methods for communicating emotion without words

✏️ How to transform a personal anecdote into a one-page illustrated narrative

✏️ The fundamental principles of visual storytelling that carry beyond this workshop

What’s included

🎨 Professional comics instruction from Emily McGovern throughout the session

🎨 A focused fundamentals primer on panels, dialogue and visual storytelling

🎨 1.5 hours of guided drawing to create your own one-page autobiographical comic

🎨 Personalized feedback and tips from Emily as you work

🎨 Optional group sharing of finished work

🎨 A drink voucher to use during the workshop

What to bring

Sketchbook or paper, pencils, eraser and a pen. Your own materials are required for this session.

What you leave with

A finished one-page comic made from your own life, illustrated by your own hand, and a set of visual storytelling fundamentals you can keep using independently from here.

I am Emily McGovern, a full-time cartoonist and graphic novelist based in Lisbon. My first comic Bloodlust and Bonnets was shortlisted for the Observer/Jonathan Cape Graphic Short Story Prize in 2016 and published as a graphic novel by Simon and Schuster (UK) and Andrews McMeel (US) in 2019, shortlisted for the 2020 Comedy Women In Print Prize. My second graphic novel Twelve Percent Dread was published by Picador (UK) and Dark Horse Comics (US) in 2022. I have been making comics full-time for nine years and I teach these workshops because autobiographical comics are one of the most direct and satisfying ways to make art from the life you are already living.

Minimum age 12. Maximum 15 participants. Session runs in English. No prior drawing experience needed.