"Inktober" is a recurring drawing challenge that takes place every October. The principle is very simple: to participate, one has to draw and share one ink drawing every day in October. There is a list of official prompts that one can choose to follow - or draw whatever they want. I love this challenge and have done it in 2017, 2020, 2021, and this year. 

Inktober to me is an opportunity to plan for improvisation in the days. Every day one will open that bubble in time where there are only one certitude: at the end of the bubble, there will be a drawing that one will have to share. But what, how, when? Are unsure. It is a blank canvas of freedom in the day. It is like training a muscle for spontaneity in drawing. 

Inktober is a good reminder that drawing is a practice. Like any practice, when we do it every day, we bring the whole of life to it with us. Some days are good, fluid, and the work goes smoothly; other days are a drag - whatever the reason. It doesn't matter. It's part of the practice. Whatever mood one might be in, whatever circumstances of the day, become the material with which to create a drawing that day. 

There are many techniques that involve drawing in ink. My favorite ones are inking with a brush; with a nib; or with very thin pens - fine liners. Inktober is a good opportunity to vary, experiment, or hone techniques in ink. It also makes one explore visual themes out of one's comfort zone. 

Click on the drawings to read the caption.