Hello everyone, and I’m back with a new round of the Drawing Children’s Book Characters In My Style series. This time, I am tackling Harry Potter’s supporting cast and the other characters from J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World in celebration of the release of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
You’re probably looking into this post with a little bit of curiosity. Why am I only now putting out a Harry Potter post, despite the fact that the series is not only the one thing you think of when “magic” and “children’s books” come to your head, but when children’s books come to your head, period? That the series is a happy ending to the rags to riches story that is not only the richest children’s book author on the planet, but the richest author on the planet, also period? That it is so popular that it’s not only the bestselling children’s book series of all time, but the bestselling book series of all time, again, period? That it’s been adapted into the highest grossing children’s book film series of all time, and was the highest grossing film series ever until Avengers: Age of Ultron made the Marvel Cinematic Universe first dethrone it? That it’s over twenty years in and we still have the unfulfilled prophecy of who will become “the next Harry Potter”? That Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will be pretty much PokĂ©mon GO all over again?
Believe it or not, I’ve already answered the question. I like to put out content that’s not talked about often or cared about as much, and find that sweet niche to fill so I can immediately attract attention. But the thing about Harry Potter is that it’s given so much attention that it’s insanely difficult to find a niche for it, with the only thing I can think of being a Harry Potter Edition of this series. Sure, the negative press surrounding Crimes of Grindelwald is quite the story to tell, as well as the questionable actions Rowling has done lately, from Cursed Child and those retcons to the canon, to the Rotten Tomatoes rating of the film (even if a lot of fans don’t really seem to care). But again, those aren’t niches, and because all of that has become so controversial, I’d rather not get into it, and feel that this is best left to those who are actually talking about it. If you really want me to give my two cents though, then I’ll be happy to discuss what may not be a “Harry Potter Fall” per-se, but certainly a “Harry Potter problem”.
But before we begin this round, I would just like to say that drawing these characters were no joke. They have plenty of detail, and I spent quite a bit more time on them than I usually do for other characters. I referred to multiple sources to get them right, from the way Rowling described them in the books (or otherwise) to their film appearances to even their Funko Pops (a toy I love, by the way). A particularly fun part about this round was drawing the characters’ wands, which were all drawn from the films and of course have as much individuality as the characters themselves.
Anyway, here are the usual rules before I begin:
- I’m only doing children’s book characters – meaning characters featured in books intended for audiences up to 12 years of age. Even if a character first appeared in another medium such as a comic strip or a game, I will still consider the character to be a children’s book character.
- I’ll usually do ten characters per round, though I might do more or less depending on what I’m feeling up to doing or how much time I have on my hands. If multiple characters are often associated together (i.e., Jack and Annie from Magic Tree House), I will consider them as one character for the round (featured in the same image).
- Since there are characters I will probably end up ignoring/not acknowledging, I’m open to requests to do these characters, as long as they are children’s book characters. I might also consider some young adult characters depending on the property.
- Some characters have styles that are specifically distinct from mine, so some characters will look more differently in my versions than others. Depending on how distinct the style of a certain character is from mine, I may ignore that character on purpose, unless requests entice me to challenge myself.
- Although I am creating a new interpretation of these characters, I will try to maintain the essence of their original designs, if there are certain features about them that in my style wouldn’t look the same. For example, I generally don’t give my characters dots for eyes, but if I am drawing a character with this trait, I will simply make the irises bigger.
- As usual, if you wish to share my work, you may do so for as long as you credit me. If you wish to use my work in any way, feel free to either comment or send a contact form on the Contact page.
And so let Harry Potter Edition begin!
Ron Weasley, Harry Potter
He always considered himself second-best, so why not make him first in this round? Like many of the characters in this round, I continued the theme of making the characters wear their house scarves, as I did with Harry. In keeping things book accurate, I tried to make Ron appear taller than the other non-adult characters in this round, and give him his long nose and freckles. I didn’t want to make his hands and feet too big, so it’s not terribly evident here when compared to the other drawings. His hair was a chore in a similar way to Harry’s, which lends itself to many styles.
Hermione Granger, Harry Potter
Don’t tell me you didn’t know who was next! For this feminist icon, I knew I had to give Hermione a book to reflect her penchant for learning, and to also give her the larger front teeth that not too many artists give her. Her hair and vinewood wand were particularly fun to draw. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child proved to us that these characters aren’t necessarily Caucasian, and while I stuck to what we’re used to for this round, I’m open to rendering this drawing with a Hermione of African descent if I get a request.
Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter
Ah, the great Headmaster of Hogwarts, a legend of the wizarding world! While I’m clearly aware of the younger version of the character you may be watching in theaters today, for the purposes of this round, we’ll be sticking to the good-old classic Merlin-like version. The character has many robes, but I ultimately went with the crimson-red ones. It took me some time to understand the specifics of the character’s facial hair and how it went against his head hair, but I eventually got it. It was particularly fun to draw the Elder Wand, given its significance as one of the most powerful artifacts ever to grace the pages of children’s literature. And of course, you got to have that long nose that’s crooked in two places.
Rubeus Hagrid, Harry Potter
I did something interesting for the benevolent half-giant, and purposefully made his drawing a bit larger here to accentuate his size. I also wanted to give him a joyful facial expression to highlight his tendency to bring light to an otherwise dark situation. I didn’t realize it at first, but his facial hair is designed in a similar manner as Dumbledore’s. As what remains of Hagrid’s wand is stored in his umbrella, I decided to add it in by making it stick out of his pocket, which I decided on after I folded his arms. He first brought us to the wizarding world, and I’m sure he’s more than happy to be brought here.
Neville Longbottom, Harry Potter
The first thing you may have noticed right away about Neville here is that he has blond hair compared to his brown hair in the films. Another thing you may notice is that he’s holding the Mimbulus mimbletonia plant in one hand and his wand in the other, the former which I wanted to include as a reference to his love for plants. His facial expression reflects the personality he had in the earlier books, compared to what he eventually becomes later in the series (pretty much after he gets that particular plant, and especially after he gets that wand).
Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter
And so here’s the girl who had a crush on Harry before he eventually reciprocated her feelings, even if their relationship isn’t a total fan-favorite. Ginny was a relatively simple character to draw, at least compared to the rest of this round, and I shook things up for a school with uniforms by not giving Ginny her robes. Her hair, scarf and wand were the best ways in which I could’ve made her pose interesting, by making her hair and scarf fly to one side and making her wand stick out at the other.
Luna Lovegood, Harry Potter
This was definitely the most time-consuming character to draw in this round, and it’s pretty fitting too – the process was as crazy as she is! But a huge reason for this was the extra detail I put into her outfit, particularly her Spectrespecs. I wanted to embrace the weird with Luna, so I gave her an odd smile and not only pointed her feet towards each other, but made it appear as if she was off the ground, for no particular reason. But this is Luna Lovegood we’re talking about – is that supposed to make sense?
Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter
Feeling unsettled again? I was initially unsure if I wanted to do Draco for this round, as up until now I’ve only drawn heroes. But bullies aren’t necessarily evil, even if they come off as such to their victims, and this was especially proven with Draco towards the end of the series. As a Slytherin, it was refreshing to draw the Slytherin scarf instead of Gryffindor for once. I also wanted Draco’s pose to really evoke his status as a bully, as if you want to keep his distance from him as soon as you see him. His hair is typically slicked back and thus easy to draw, but I didn’t like the lack of detail, so I added a couple more strands in the front for some attention.
Severus Snape, Harry Potter
Yeah yeah, I know what I said about heroes. Like Draco, I was initially unsure if I wanted to do Snape for the same reasons. But I eventually decided to be more open-minded about it, as Snape is really more of an antihero if anything – in fact, one of the best in children’s literature. I quite enjoyed putting Snape in this domineering, disapproving pose, which makes you want to inch a bit closer to Draco by comparison. The hardest part about Snape was the way I made him hold his wand, in which I positioned his arms in multiple ways before I got it in a way I liked.
Newt Scamander, Harry Potter
And so we conclude this round with the character that you may (or may not) go see in theaters today – the Magizoologist himself! For this fantastic beast-loving Hufflepuff, I obviously referred to the design the character got with the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them films. I originally had the suitcase and his wand in different hands, but I decided to reverse them to show more of Newt’s coat. I also turned his head to the side so I can get a good angle of his sideswept hair, which was a heck of a chore to get in a way I liked.
Well, that’s enough magic for one post, if you ask me. As is the usual for these supporting character rounds, if there are any other Harry Potter characters that I didn’t draw that you want me to draw, I won’t mind requests to draw them. While I’m increasingly gaining an interest in drawing villains, I still have plenty of hero ideas before we get to their sinister opposites. Of course, that includes the eventual drawing of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
As for the next round? Well, we’ll have to see what comes of the next major event in the world of children’s literature. Depending on the property that event is focusing on, the supporting characters of that property will be the next to get my art style treatment.
Enjoy Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, folks. (Hopefully). 🧙‍♂️
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