Artist David Colman (his blog, his website) has recently published a book, “The Art of Animal Character Design”. I just got my copy and overall I am very happy with it. Colman is extremely talented, and this 174-page hardcover book is filled with great eye-candy. While light on text (Colman’s writing is short and to the point, which I like), he sprinkles the book with great little tidbits of advice on character design. (One of my favorite quotes: “Drawing is more thinking than actual drawing.”) The sketches are loosely grouped in “chapters”, each of which focuses on a different aspect of good character design. Even if you are more of a “people artist” than an “animal artist”, you will find a lot of principles and tips that will apply to you as well. I should mention that there are a few sketches of the nude female form in the chapters “Humans and Animals” and “Creature Design”. Still, in terms of artistic inspiration and advice this book has a lot to offer.