I’m… not sure! It’s pretty much the polar opposite with me, actually; I find myself wanting to show my sketch through my doodles, as I think it suits my style/methods more!

All I usually do is sketch out whatever I’m drawing, outline fairly quickly (I don’t pay keen attention to how ‘professional’ the lines may look), and, as I color, keep the layer the sketch is on on “Multiply” and above the color layer. It helps me feel adjusted to the lines showing through, as well as how to place marking properly so they’ll like up to the sketch. And in the end, I lower opacity of the sketch significantly (if not make it invisible altogether).

And, of course, I go crazy with setting colors on ‘overlay’ over my pics to help set the tone of them (if not make them more vibrant)!

… Aah, if that little wall of text didn’t help, perhaps visuals may better assist! <:)

And guinea pig in this case is a more stylized Foxy (how I’d probably draw him if I didn’t do it so dependently on his actual look)! :)

And for the final product! -

(Apologies I don’t go into more specifics with how I shaded and all, but I do a BUNCH of crap, it’s just… pictures couldn’t comprehend. <:’D)

BUT, I hope this maybe helped give some insight! I just have a sketchy style, I suppose! :)

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CHRIST, I forgot how small Tumblr makes images in replies to asks. <:’D My apologies; here’s a link to the pics! <3

http://imgur.com/a/y4FBe

Heya!

To be frank, I don’t think I’m the best person to approach about character design, since I don’t consider that my specialty. <:) Though, I do doodle a lot in one sitting, and it is possible I do start making more of a ‘character’ out of something I just create.

Particularly, I started drawing this lil guy more than once last night while trying to make a thing for another ask I want to get to soon:

I don’t recall having anything specific in mind when making this guy, other than a bunny with hanged ears in a sweater. Then, I just worked in a design for him as I went along. How rounded to make the cheeks, how to shape the teeth, the legs/feet, etc. It all just comes to me as I go!

Not the most helpful of advice, I know, but I’m weird like that! <:’D

And with different poses, I also wing at! I pretty much make a random line of action when starting my sketch, and build off of there! Apologies for the very quick (and bad) sketches here, but if it helps give an idea of what I mean:

And L.O.A. can lead to many different directions for a character, other than simple stance! But don’t be afraid to branch out with it a bit more! Buff out the chest, bump up the torso, make a character stretch, slouch- there is no limit! <3

(Hehe, and thank you so much! <3)

Heya! First off- thank you so much, dude! I try my best with my work and I’m beyond flattered if anyone likes it, let alone considers themselves a fan. <:) <3

Now, onto your main concern - I’m afraid I actually can’t give any ‘professional’ or proper instruction on it, as (while it’s probably a really bad thing) I haven’t truly studied anatomy (in terms of drawing). Of course, I’ve pulled up the oh-so-occasional real life photo or two to help myself get a sense of things (both animal and human), but I’ve mainly looked at other artists works for body reference; considering my main interest leaned more towards digital art/cartoon works (and still does, of course, hehe). :)

HOWEVER, one notable thing that I always, ALWAYS incorporate into my drawings when doing bodies is something called ‘line of action’. In a nutshell, it is like an imaginary line that can go through the main subject/characters of your piece in one clean swoop, and it lets you know if something seems off.

Here’s some examples in a lil thing I did for a good friend of mine a long while back:

And not only in final (or ‘close-to-final’)pieces should you check to make sure you have such good flow through your piece, but especially in sketch phase, like such! -

(I wonder if those two are somewhat recognizable.. :D)

And the way I make sure my proportions seemed to be laid out okay is with something that everyone should be able to do - stick figures!

This may be the one steady example I have for this! -

You may be able to notice the stick figure thing with Gilda (the griffon) and the sloth in this! Obviously, character design can alter the common ‘human stick figure’ anatomy. Yet, it may be possible to see that even for such a simple representation of a being, it goes in flow with the character in the layer underneath. :)

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Now onto your other concern about hands, my lack of ‘proper’ knowledge on that is same as above! <:D  All I’ve simply relied on is other drawings/inspiration from other artists, ‘tutorials’ and hand charts that would come from Disney/Warner Bros. books, the occasional photo reference or two, and most significantly the actual ‘feelings’ of my own hand in particular positions. I can’t explain that last one, but just… I simply draw how my hand feels (even if a comical/toony stretch or squish of some sort).

And while I can’t go into detail because I such at it, I whipped this lil thing up real quick to show how -I- generally do hands in the long run. -

Overall, it’s all from constant drawing/practice from me (and of course admiring others’ works and their skill to pull off hands). Contrary to a common thing with a lotta artists, I actually find hands to be one of the most fun and enjoyable things to draw! Granted, there are many situations/angles you could be given to draw them from that make them a challenge, but they are enjoyable nonetheless.  ^^

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All in all, this is how I do things. Sorry for rambling here (I tend to do that a lot with these things), but I hope I possibly fulfilled your request!

Though, aside from just admiring other artists you happen to find, I’d highly recommend looking up different kinds of books that are written by artists/animators from animation studios, like the ‘Animator’s Survival Kit’  by Richard Williams, or ‘Character Animation: Crash Course’ by Eric Goldberg. While I’ve only had a chance to skim the first few pages of the first one and only looked at one page of the second, I hear a LOT of great things about these books, and the authors themselves have done amazing things (Eric actually being the person responsible for the animation of Louis from one of my favorite Disney movies, ‘Princess and the Frog’)!

But again, there are TONS more one could find on their own accord!

Hope I could’ve possibly helped here. One thing to keep in mind is that you must draw EVERY day, EVERY chance you get - no exaggeration here. If you’re at home with nothing to do, at a restaurant with plenty of napkins and a pen near by,or any place you find doable - draw and/or doodle something. Even if it’s something silly, very simple, quick - it’s a bigger step towards improvement.

As many artists say, we have thousands of bad drawings in us. As soon as we let ‘em out, it’s likely the good ones’ll start surfacing. :)