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Read for advice on how to begin coloring your coloring books digitally. Just the beginning part. The application of color is all up to you. And...yeah, some chatter too...just a little bit. Worth reading though. I really do want to help and contribute to the artist community. That's why I'm posting this.
  It's an experiment. I want to know if this book can be colored digitally. Answer is, I think so, but only if you have a book scanner. Without one, no. I tried to take photos of the pages with my phone with limited success. The picture came out a little off because of the bend in the pages. A problem that gets worse with a two page drawing. Actually, it is possible to color digitally, if the coloring pages are totally flat. Like getting the coloring pages from online for example...or finding a way to scan the image in a totally flat position on a scanner of some kind. Then upload the image to your drawing program and then use your layering tool. That's key. I've already done this with another drawing I got online...kind of stole it, but I'll never take credit for the artwork and I remember who did it, so I can tell people who the artist is later.
The trick is to trace everything in precise detail in another layer after fading out the original artwork some, but still very easy to see. After the trace is done, turn off the layer with the original artwork on it. Then you have a kind of transparency to work with. You can color below the lines and above them. Go lineless or incorporate the lines into the coloring work. Working in layers like this makes it easier to color and make changes as well. I was working on one by Kerby Rosanes as I said...minus the artist's name. I should go back to it.
This inability to color my book digitally isn't a failure entirely. I still can color digitally, but only with what I can pick up online. I'll get the freebie stuff so I won't get into the habit of theft. As much as I like the art, I don't want to do that too often.
I had been wondering if I should pass on my colored pencils. Now I have reason to restock them. I'd be okay now, but I'm entirely out of black everything. No black markers, no black colored pencils. I use black in every drawing and coloring project. So, I'll eventually get more pencils and get back into the practice of using them again in coloring books! I really like the idea.
So, not a total failure. It was definitely worth a try.

(Update: I have a scanner. I just didn't know how to get it to talk to my computer. Finally asked for help on that subject and the answer was a simple one. I simply needed to download the driver for it. That was it.
  I've been scanning the pages for as long as I had time. So far, I've managed half the book. The problems are that some of the pages are scrambled a bit because I had to do them over again and I can undo that, if a bit time consuming. That and for some reason the scans keep showing up in my documents and not in my photos. I'm going to fix that by putting two pages together in order in by graphics program. Those pop up in my photos folder just fine. As they do, I'll delete the extra files in my documents folder. I don't want them there. I don't know if anyone else has this problem, but I do. Also, there's text in the coloring pages. I think I'll erase everything except the text as I complete the traces. I've done some experimenting and I see no difference with the backdrop of the type compared to the backdrop of my graphics program. That will save me some typing. My graphics program can type, but it doesn't have type sets. If it doesn't work out, I can always type in the text. It'll just be a pain in the butt. Scanning the full book is going to take me a couple of days, but worth it. And then there's the editing of each picture one by one...then sticking them together once that's done. I'm learning as I go. I'll keep this updated as I learn more. Oh, one more thing, sometimes the outer edges of the line arts are blurry or sometimes get slightly cut off. The cut off ones you'll probably have to scan again, but the blurry part, well...if it isn't too bad, it won't be an issue. Just trace over the blurry parts sharp and clear and keep your coloring book open for reference.
I have no idea how into coloring books I'll be. That's the other part of the experiment. I'm content with this one so far. I can't buy another one anyway. I have so many of my own ideas too. No idea of how I'm going to catch up to them. Now I've gone and added this book to the pile. By the way, this method also works for Manga comics and novel illustrations.)

Update #2:  Bought a coloring book as an experiment. I like the artwork in coloring books, even picked out a few favorite artists. But, with my head full of my own ideas, I think this very worthwhile experiment will go no further than what I've done so far. No regrets. I'll color the book digitally off and on. I did manage to get my scanner to work. Turns out it just needed a program downloaded into my computer for it to work. It's always the one simple thing that I don't know that makes things not work until I figure it out. This one took years for me to figure out. Not all the scans turned out as good as I expected and can't be fixed because the pages don't always lay flat. I'll work with it. Set up's a bitch though. All scans must be edited then placed in a "panel" with the facing page. Time consuming. I'm not going to go back to traditional. Too expensive and I like the digital medium better anyway. Anyway, so far, that's my thoughts on coloring books. Something I had to learn through experience to know what to decide. So, I like my coloring book, but no. No more coloring books. I'd rather focus mainly on my own ideas. I've got lots and lots of them. And keep in mind that my scanner is really outdated...by I don't know how many years and it was a hand me down to start with. I'm sure there's better scanners out there that'll make the job of converting a book into a digital format so it can be colored digitally. Happy coloring though. I personally think I spread myself too thin and to me I'm a kid in a candy store, that store is my brain, and I can do anything I want so long as I manage to do it in a limited amount of time. Very frustrating.

Description
Read for advice on how to begin coloring your coloring books digitally. Just the beginning part. The application of color is all up to you. And...yeah, some chatter too...just a little bit. Worth reading though. I really do want to help and contribute to the artist community. That's why I'm posting this.
  It's an experiment. I want to know if this book can be colored digitally. Answer is, I think so, but only if you have a book scanner. Without one, no. I tried to take photos of the pages with my phone with limited success. The picture came out a little off because of the bend in the pages. A problem that gets worse with a two page drawing. Actually, it is possible to color digitally, if the coloring pages are totally flat. Like getting the coloring pages from online for example...or finding a way to scan the image in a totally flat position on a scanner of some kind. Then upload the image to your drawing program and then use your layering tool. That's key. I've already done this with another drawing I got online...kind of stole it, but I'll never take credit for the artwork and I remember who did it, so I can tell people who the artist is later.
The trick is to trace everything in precise detail in another layer after fading out the original artwork some, but still very easy to see. After the trace is done, turn off the layer with the original artwork on it. Then you have a kind of transparency to work with. You can color below the lines and above them. Go lineless or incorporate the lines into the coloring work. Working in layers like this makes it easier to color and make changes as well. I was working on one by Kerby Rosanes as I said...minus the artist's name. I should go back to it.
This inability to color my book digitally isn't a failure entirely. I still can color digitally, but only with what I can pick up online. I'll get the freebie stuff so I won't get into the habit of theft. As much as I like the art, I don't want to do that too often.
I had been wondering if I should pass on my colored pencils. Now I have reason to restock them. I'd be okay now, but I'm entirely out of black everything. No black markers, no black colored pencils. I use black in every drawing and coloring project. So, I'll eventually get more pencils and get back into the practice of using them again in coloring books! I really like the idea.
So, not a total failure. It was definitely worth a try.

(Update: I have a scanner. I just didn't know how to get it to talk to my computer. Finally asked for help on that subject and the answer was a simple one. I simply needed to download the driver for it. That was it.
  I've been scanning the pages for as long as I had time. So far, I've managed half the book. The problems are that some of the pages are scrambled a bit because I had to do them over again and I can undo that, if a bit time consuming. That and for some reason the scans keep showing up in my documents and not in my photos. I'm going to fix that by putting two pages together in order in by graphics program. Those pop up in my photos folder just fine. As they do, I'll delete the extra files in my documents folder. I don't want them there. I don't know if anyone else has this problem, but I do. Also, there's text in the coloring pages. I think I'll erase everything except the text as I complete the traces. I've done some experimenting and I see no difference with the backdrop of the type compared to the backdrop of my graphics program. That will save me some typing. My graphics program can type, but it doesn't have type sets. If it doesn't work out, I can always type in the text. It'll just be a pain in the butt. Scanning the full book is going to take me a couple of days, but worth it. And then there's the editing of each picture one by one...then sticking them together once that's done. I'm learning as I go. I'll keep this updated as I learn more. Oh, one more thing, sometimes the outer edges of the line arts are blurry or sometimes get slightly cut off. The cut off ones you'll probably have to scan again, but the blurry part, well...if it isn't too bad, it won't be an issue. Just trace over the blurry parts sharp and clear and keep your coloring book open for reference.
I have no idea how into coloring books I'll be. That's the other part of the experiment. I'm content with this one so far. I can't buy another one anyway. I have so many of my own ideas too. No idea of how I'm going to catch up to them. Now I've gone and added this book to the pile. By the way, this method also works for Manga comics and novel illustrations.)

Update #2:  Bought a coloring book as an experiment. I like the artwork in coloring books, even picked out a few favorite artists. But, with my head full of my own ideas, I think this very worthwhile experiment will go no further than what I've done so far. No regrets. I'll color the book digitally off and on. I did manage to get my scanner to work. Turns out it just needed a program downloaded into my computer for it to work. It's always the one simple thing that I don't know that makes things not work until I figure it out. This one took years for me to figure out. Not all the scans turned out as good as I expected and can't be fixed because the pages don't always lay flat. I'll work with it. Set up's a bitch though. All scans must be edited then placed in a "panel" with the facing page. Time consuming. I'm not going to go back to traditional. Too expensive and I like the digital medium better anyway. Anyway, so far, that's my thoughts on coloring books. Something I had to learn through experience to know what to decide. So, I like my coloring book, but no. No more coloring books. I'd rather focus mainly on my own ideas. I've got lots and lots of them. And keep in mind that my scanner is really outdated...by I don't know how many years and it was a hand me down to start with. I'm sure there's better scanners out there that'll make the job of converting a book into a digital format so it can be colored digitally. Happy coloring though. I personally think I spread myself too thin and to me I'm a kid in a candy store, that store is my brain, and I can do anything I want so long as I manage to do it in a limited amount of time. Very frustrating.