#i've always wanted to make art in this style but never knew where or how to begin

[solsarts]

Led through the mist By the milk-light of Moon All that was lost, is revealed

Our long bygone burdens, mere echoes of the spring But where have we come, and where shall we end?

If dreams can't come true, then why not pretend?

Oh, how the gentle wind Beckons through the leaves As autumn colors fall

Dancing in a swirl Of golden memories The loveliest lies of all 🍂♪

#over the garden wall #oc #original character #furry #look at my guys #i've always wanted to make art in this style but never knew where or how to begin #halloween inspired me it gave me strengths i didn't even know i had #also say hello to my new fursona #the bat winged moth!

[comradekatara]

so i read azula in the spirit temple. i actually quite liked it! it helps that she looks absolutely gorgeous in wartman's art style. it's so much easier to digest this new batch of hicks comics, not only because they're actually being written by someone who understands the themes and characters of atla, but because they're so much more aesthetically pleasing than the former art style, which didn't do any characters any favors.

now, i'm gonna venture into spoiler territory as i discuss specific panels, so if that's something to wish to avoid for now, i've put the rest of this post under a readmore. also, send me an ask if you want the link for the full comic, and thank you to @samtamdan for providing me with it!

i. thesis.

first of all, the idea that azula could have found "redemption" in the temple was teleologically illusory, due to the fundamental premise of how such "redemption" was being facilitated. that said, i don't think it was her "crossroads of destiny" moment (a potential for change wherein zuko chose wrong), but rather the leadup to "crossroads of destiny," which is to say, his metamorphic fever dream. like zuko, she's seeing visions of her loved ones manifested from her subconscious giving her conflicting accounts as to who she is and what she should do. so while the seeds are being planted, her growth is still to come.

but genuine growth cannot be facilitated in this manner. how can azula embrace "growth" she knows to be an illusion? she's definitely not being overly paranoid here by refusing to "just accept what is offered," especially considering she has experienced psychosis in the past. while i think that this spirit does accurately acknowledge the root of azula's core issue, which is that she was raised in an environment where she was denied unconditional love in such a way that she convinced herself she was fundamentally unlovable and undeserving of care (thus motivating her to overcompensate through avenues she could excel in), the visions the spirit offers don't actually provide azula with unconditional love. they list her accomplishments and state how she is a credit to her nation, but that won't allow for azula to recognize that what she truly craves is a love that transcends stipulations and is not facilitated through fear. she can't have any sort of emotional breakthrough when she is being praised for aspects of herself that were valued and fostered by her abuser who indoctrinated her into an imperialist ideology, and so the promise of "redemption" (in this particular instance) was hollow from the start, and i think that she was right to ultimately reject it.

however, her moments of genuine vulnerability wherein she voices her repressed subconscious fears may lead to her eventually arriving at a greater self-awareness and emotional clarity on her own somewhere down the line.

ii. manifestations.

a small detail i loved was when ty lee appeared to her, i could immediately tell that she was an illusion, because she was acting how azula sees her. the beginning of the comic even foreshadows this "reveal" (i mean, i think it would have been more shocking had she actually been real, but you get what i mean) by showing us a glimpse of ty lee acting more authentically now that she's no longer under azula's thumb. and it's particularly amusing to me that in azula's mind, ty lee is a perky airhead and mai is a massive cunt.

not gonna lie, the fact that this is how azula sees mai made me laugh.

of course, ty lee does always feign oblivious cheer around azula, and mai is blunt and honest to the point that she can sometimes seem mean, but it also speaks to the fact that as much as azula clearly cares so much about them, she's never truly understood them. that said, azula's last clear memory of mai is her choosing to say the exact words that she knew would hurt azula most ("you miscalculated, i love zuko more than i fear you") so it makes sense that her subconscious would now manifest a version of mai who voices azula's innermost fears.

furthermore, the fact that mai would manifest to azula as an extension/double of ty lee instead of as her own person, wearing the kyoshi uniform even though mai herself is not a kyoshi warrior, is such an interesting choice to me. i think it signifies how azula views mai and ty lee as a cohesive unit; they are inextricably linked in her mind due to the fact that they chose each other over her. while zuko does appear later as a manifestation out of the same figure, he is wearing his firelord robes, indicating that azula's memory of mai in kyoshi warrior garb back in book 2 is significant to her. i think it can be read as a clever allusion to that very subtle moment of foreshadowing in book 2, but it primarily indicates how azula sees mai and ty lee as two faces of the same body, donning the garb they once wore as a disguise – only now it indicates that their dual loyalties were also in opposition to azula.

ty lee, on the other hand, can only be a bitch to azula obliviously, when she appears ignorant of how much her words have the capacity to hurt her. considering this is a continuation of the yang established canon, the fact that (azula's vision of) ty lee would so casually suggest azula seek help from a psychiatric institution would read as condescending mockery and is clearly incredibly triggering for her, but her phrasing allows for an ambiguity of intention that azula has come to associate with ty lee's discursive affect.

of course, we as the audience know that ty lee was always perfectly conscious of how to veil her insults towards azula with enough plausible deniability that azula didn't even register them as deliberate insults at all. however, i wonder whether time away from ty lee with the hindsight of her betrayal allowed azula to reframe the nature of their relationship. and while she does still see ty lee as enduringly cheerful, that also makes sense considering she never truly witnessed ty lee drop her mask.

these nuances are the kinds of subtle distinctions only someone who truly understands their characters could write, which is why i'm so grateful they ditched yang and hired hicks.

iii. love and friendship.

i also love these panels in particular as they speak to azula's feelings for mai and ty lee. despite her... less than stellar treatment of them, it's always been clear that azula does love her friends. the reason their betrayal hit her so hard is because she wanted them to care about her as much as she cared about them, and she rationalized that hurt after the fact by claiming that she was actually upset because they betrayed "their nation." this rationalization is a pattern for her, psychologically. azula uses her status as a means of elevate herself, while simultaneously debasing her personhood/humanity (not only viewing herself as a vessel/weapon, but fearing that she is in fact a "monster") as she fears that she is uniquely unworthy of love. the irony there is that her status as the prodigious fire nation princess was what led to her dehumanization, and (like zuko and iroh before her) deconstructing her imperialist ideology would be a necessary step in her ability to uninternalize the way she sees herself stemming from ozai's abuse.

i also found it interesting that azula calls zuko a "stupid boy who didn't even want her." there are so many layers to that claim. first of all, zuko isn't just a random boy (although he might be stupid). he's her brother, and as much as she may deny it, she cares about him deeply. but here, the fact that zuko is a boy takes precedent over the fact that he's her brother, which screams teenage lesbian logic to me. azula cannot understand why her friends would choose a boy over the close female friendship that meant so much to her because her attempt to inhabit mai's perspective, as a girl who has romantic feelings for a boy, is genuinely impossible to her. i know this interpretation may seem like a stretch, but i really don't think that azula would say "she broke up our team for a stupid boy" and not "for my stupid brother" otherwise, considering that azula does have an established precedent of feeling specifically hurt by her loved ones choosing zuko over her. her wording is distinctly gay here.

furthermore, azula claims that zuko "didn't even want her." i've talked before about how azula is hoisted by her own petard regarding mai's betrayal, since she initially set zuko and mai up (there is a comic that establishes this, but since i don't consider the comics canon, i will also say that this reading is heavily implied in "the awakening"), whether to control both of them through each other, or as an incentive to keep zuko on her side, or out of a genuine altruistic desire to matchmake, or a combination of the above, or otherwise, and that choice to bring them together ended up backfiring spectacularly. but i think the fact that azula had to pull the strings to get them together also led her to assume that any care they might have had for each other wasn't genuine, and while i think that to a degree she is correct, because their relationship was largely a hollow facade, she could not have expected that their relationship would lead to their breakup which led to their conversation in the boiling rock that motivated mai to take a stand. (and of course there's also the fact that the wording of the latter clause, azula claiming that zuko didn't want mai, is equally as gay as the former. she may as well have called zuko a slur here.)

sidenote: while i could definitely spend ample time dissecting this entire panel, for now i'm just going to address the fact that the boy azula sees in her initial dream sequence isn't even chan (the guy she kissed) but ruon-jian. obviously azula in this moment knows that her hair looks like shit (although i think the overgrown uneven bangs are a really cute look on her tbh) and she's stinky from running around in the woods for however long she has, but the fact that the voice presenting that compliment to her isn't even coming from the boy she ostensibly "liked" makes it even more evident that she cares about validation from boys insofar as she believes that she is supposed to, but doesn't actually care enough about them as individuals to distinguish between them. chan and ruon-jian are interchangeable symbols to her that function to affirm her (heterosexual) femininity, but she still cannot fathom why anyone would forsake their cherished female friends out of genuine feeling for "a stupid boy." azula is such a baby lesbian.

and finally, the fact that this entire plot is incited by her replacement girl group choosing one of their own over her command illustrates how much mai and ty lee's betrayal still resonates. she is attempting to cling to an idealized past via recreating their friend group, but she still hasn't learned her lesson that she cannot make genuine friends by being controlling and ruling through fear, and so history repeats itself, and they, too, leave her. hopefully her next endeavor to find a friend group of likeminded girls will be tempered by newfound knowledge that love and mutual support creates stronger bonds than fear, but since she has yet to be shown genuine care from anyone in her life, that has yet to be seen.

iv. parents.

one quibble i do have is that because hicks has to adhere to the precedent set by the yang comics, despite navigating and adapting to those precedents deftly, some choices simply fall flat. for the most prominent example, the retcon that ursa is still alive necessitates that azula's understanding of her mother's absence is slightly muddied, but that's always gonna be a choice i disagree with, so i can't exactly single out this particular comic when it nonetheless does such a great job of attempting to mitigate prior issues, mostly by focusing entirely on its role as a psychological character study rather than attempting to deal with the mess of a plot that yang established.

that said, i do think that this panel is really poignant, and the fact that azula is even able to speak to her fear of ozai is a really big step for her. i think that azula acknowledging that she legitimately didn't have a choice is actually a really important milestone on her path to healing. her cognitive dissonance regarding her denial that ozai's abuse dictated her actions through fear is a matter she needs to address and articulate fully if she is ever to find peace. it's understandably difficult for her to reconcile her lack of agency and how terrifying the circumstances of her childhood were, and she even oscillates here between acknowledging that she was terrified of ozai and claiming that ozai is the only family she has left who hasn't betrayed her. i think that azula almost wants to be a monster who drives everyone away because that means that she nonetheless has enough control to be responsible for her fate, and actually facing the extent to which ozai's abuse shaped her is really scary. moreover, it's still difficult for azula to recognize how much harm ozai has caused her because she has no other form of material support, and without the hollow approval of her abuser, she is truly and utterly alone. which, incidentally, is exactly why he isolated her in the first place.

v. conclusion.

while, i know that some people may be disappointed that the telos seemed like a net zero, i think that the push towards isolated character studies that don't affect the plot since hicks was hired actually works really really well considering she understands each character well enough to write these compelling little character studies that largely serve to reinforce the themes of the show via placing a single character under a microscope. and while i think the toph and katara standalone comics were cute but unmemorable, the suki and azula comics were really good because they are both characters who can benefit from having their perspectives foregrounded, whereas we already get plenty of foregrounded pov from toph and (especially) katara in the show itself. azula is a character whose inner life is largely relegated to subtext, so seeing her literal subconscious battle itself upon her spiritually-manifested psychological landscape was a really cool way of communicating her latent internal struggle that has compelled me for so long. despite it being a relatively short comic, there was so much to unpack here that i could really only choose so many key panels to discuss, but that depth and richness to the text is something i appreciate greatly. azula is one of my favorite characters to analyze, so this comic was really like a field day for me.

and here are just some panels i found particularly amusing:

gotta find a way to take potshots at zuzu even when she's completely alone. she's such a little sister sometimes.

tl;dr: overall, i really enjoyed this aesthetically pleasing character study of azula's shattered psyche, and although i only unpack a handful of my favorite panels in this post, i am happy to discuss any further thoughts you guys may have regarding other facets of this comic in my inbox!

#id in alt text #this got really long lmao #analysis #azula in the spirit temple #azula #mai #ty lee #azula&mai #azula&tylee #maixtylee #azula&zuko #mai&zuko #azula&ursa #azula&ozai #<– THERE'S A LOT HERE OKAY #good comic 👍🏼

[mermaidchan05]

Vesuvia Weekly: LI and Apprentice Dynamics

Finally getting to join the party started by @vesuviaweekly!

(fair warning I love writing about this kind of stuff so there are a looot of words here lol)

Meleia & Asra

(sketch by the amazing @missrabbitart it's wonderful I love it so much)

Truly two halves of a greater whole.

Soft soft soft soft soft

They're both each other's first love, which is really cute.

(And both of them were super awkward about it at first because neither of them knew how to actually Talk to people)

Meleia loves Asra's wanderlust. Life is never boring with him.

Asra adores the way Meleia throws her all into whatever she cares about, be it as mundane as a sewing project or as huge as protecting the people she loves from the likes of Lucio or the Devil.

And on the subject of sewing... they're both crafty people!

Meleia makes her own clothes and Asra knits, so the two of them combined are a force to be reckoned with.

Meleia has a lot of self-confidence issues for a lot of reasons. Asra's always been there to help her through her rough spots.

Neither of them have a good sense of direction, so Faust and Forge (Meleia's familiar, a fennec fox) always end up doing most of the navigating when they travel.

They love reading together, making things together, exploring together, dancing together... they'd basically do anything and everything together.

(Except cleaning. Asra leaves stuff everywhere, and Meleia likes to keep the shop neat. It's about the only thing they have teasing arguments about.)

To Meleia, Asra is home. She can truly be her awkward and shy and geeky self around him, and she appreciates that more than she can ever say.

To Asra, Meleia is a beacon of light and joy. She cares so deeply about things and people, including the little kid who grew up alone on the docks.

Songs that remind me of Them: "A Whole New World" from Aladdin, "All I've Ever Known" from Hadestown, "Curses" by the Crane Wives.

My other apprentices are under the cut!

Damian & Julian

In a nutshell, they are that one scene from Coco.

(Drawing by me, it's a redraw of the final panel of this old thing)

In all honesty, though, they tease each other but they are very much in love.

They're both intelligent and leaders in their fields of study.

Damian's an alchemist, Julian's a doctor... their styles have more in common than Julian ever thought at first.

They can and will be found having intense discussions about various practices in both medicine and alchemy using highly technical terms that no one else in the room understands.

They were a dream team when working to find a cure for the plague. Except for the arguments where Damian insisted that the plague itself must have been magical in nature and Julian was firmly convinced it was nothing more than a disease.

Damian's stubborn, and never afraid to show his anger or annoyance, but Julian always has a way of making things up to him. And they never stay upset or mad at each other for long.

Both of them are musically inclined, Julian with his vielle and Damian with his guitar. So whenever emotions are too strong for words, they connect through playing together.

Julian is all for the drama, while Damian's humor is more dry and witty.

Julian is the only person who can get Damian to dance on a table.

Songs that remind me of them: "I See the Light" from Tangled, "Inferno" from Promare.

Chimalus, Nadia, and Portia

Chimalus and Nadia art by the fabulous @ace--of--swords!

I've talked about Chimalus' dynamics with Nadia and Portia before, but I wanted to go into more detail about the polycule here :)

Dream Team 2 Electric Boogaloo

Chimalus and Portia are both always at the ready to help Nadia with whatever plan she has, be it city reservations, the next Masquerade, or just a picnic out in the garden.

Chimalus is the Heart of the trio, with their pure loyalty, good judgement, and a particularly kind heart.

Both Nadia and Portia admire Chimalus' quiet strength and clever mind. No matter how tough the problem, Chimalus finds a way to keep a relatively cool head and work their way through it.

Whenever Chimalus' lingering trauma pops up from their dark past, Nadia and Portia are always right there to help them through it.

Portia loves "dragging" Nadia and Chimalus off on adventures. Not that Chimalus or Nadia complain.

Book buddies!

The three of them basically have their own book club. They always meet up as soon as they're done reading the current book and chat about it over snacks (and usually tea and/or wine).

They all bond over animals, too! Between the palace horses, Chandra, Pepi, and Chimalus' familiar Skye the bluebird, they have quite a few critter friends to fawn over together.

Songs that remind me of them: "More With You" by MALINDA, "Running With the Wolves" from Wolfwalkers, "To the Ends of the Earth" by Natewantstobattle.

#vesuvia weekly #mc/li dynamics #the arcana #the arcana game #arcana fan apprentice #apprentice meleia #apprentice damian #apprentice chimalus #oc info dump

[kapitein-oranghien-29]

You draw bodies so meaty and juicy! It must've taken years to polish your style that well! What was your process on studying anatomy and what/where did you pick up your art references/influences from? I'd love to study how to draw that plump for myself, your art hits so many of my buttons, afsgfsfdfafsgsfa

Hm well I've been drawing for an average of 3 hours a day for a decade now. But we're all constantly evolving too.

I started with drawing comic book characters. Also, I have a money waste hobby, which was collecting mecha's and the avp action figures that i could use for refs. And the yautja while having muschles also had the cupcake belly, so i just copied what i saw. Later in school, when you get art classes, they are forcing you to learn how to draw realistically. which I was never having a good time with. It was so boring and hard for me. But there where i was just looking at the doctors' posteres with skelatons and muchles, which just stuck with me automatically? I was already doodling characters whose characteristics showed in they way they were shaped. Not who looks the most real.

There's this artist called Bill Mauldin, who I was in love with the way he drew characters. Scruffy tired men why weren't really the bright 6-pack super young dudes, and I was gravitating towards them verry much so.

And that's where my mix of bold lines and lazy curved men comes from? Becouse, this is going to sound so stupid. My teachers knew I made a drawing, when they saw the nose of my characters. Becouse I have a specific way I do that, and later it was also me drawing fur. But the note I always got was that it was not cartoonist enough to be a cartoon/comic thing, and not realistic enough to be an official portrait thing or whatever. So I never really felt like I had a style, I was just doing it wrong on all fronts...

Moving in more modern time, I wanted to be mainstream (and make money, sorry can't ignore that that is one of the main reasons ive mobed to where i amXD), so I looked up what sold well. The bottom line is NSFW and furries. So i focused on that, and the more ridiculous, not realistic human, I made it the better it got relieved. Also, coming back on Mauldin, I was attracted to the 'pudgy', so instead of perfect muscle, I'd just give them a little more food and water, so to say.

And just see what you like, In my case, I have a weird obsession with tits and thighs, so I highlighted what I like (‿!‿) ԅ(≖‿≖ԅ)

This is a whole rant, and I don't know if you got your awnser, but, yeah ฅ^•ﻌ•^ฅ

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA if i don't design my grandpa a tattoo of his dead mom I never met?

I (20 M) and my grandpa (50s? M) have a pretty good relationship. We don't talk very often because he lives in a different state, but we see each other a few times a year when he visits town. Our relationship has grown pretty shallow because of how little we interact with each other, as we haven't had any deep conversations or interactions since I was about 14 when he moved out of state.

Due to this, he still pretty much sees me exactly how he did when I was around the ages of 7-10 as this was when he was in my life the most. I've been actively going by another name since age 13, he knows, but he refuses to call me my name (despite it literally being my legal middle name that he's always known and used to call me it before I decided to reject my legal first name). He's sat me down in private telling me he would never call me my chosen name because it's too hard for him to remember. I'm kind of bitter to him towards this and am allowing our relationship to become more shallow. I'm trans and I know he'll never see me as a man, because he basically sees me as a 10 year old girl and no matter what I do he won't respect my identity. I don't think he like...believes in trans people but we've never had a direct conversation about it.

Now heres the actual situation: a week before father's day, he messages me on facebook at midnight asking me to design him a tattoo alongside my cousin (25 M) who is in a complete other state and is also kinda shallow towards him due to being closeted as bi and my grandpa being homophobic to mlm (he's ok with lesbians bc my cousins mom is one and she's the favorite child lol). he wanted a tribute tattoo dedicated to my dead great grandmother that I never met and don't care about at all. This is completely out of my scope of artistic skill as I mostly draw suggestive art of thick anthro women and I don't want to make a tribute tattoo for someone i never met? Considering how porn-y my style is I think it would be disrespectful to do it as well. Also I was high as fuck when he messaged me. I don't know why I did, but I agreed to do it and then asked my cousin to do it, despite him also never meeting her. He agreed to handle it. Weeks pass

A week or so ago, my grandpa came in town and the first thing he said to me is "Hey girl! Where's my tattoo?" and I was instantly uncomfortable but i just shrugged it off and made a joke and it didn't come up for a while. It turns out my cousin didn't draw the tattoo either, but I don't blame him too much ngl. The whole week he was in town, he kept bugging me about doing this tattoo for him and I kept shrugging him off. My mom, who actually knew the lady, made a tattoo design and it was really clever and personalized and well thought-out, but he rejected it because it wasn't my cousin or I who designed it.

I never plan on making it. Should I just do it to get it over with?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

[faffreux]

can you tell us about when you fell in love with fawful? :)

Yep. In fact, I'll write a whole mini essay for you so I can add it to the FAQ section of my website coming up shortly LMAO (SINCE I NEED TO FULLY ANSWER THIS QUESTION FOR THERE ANYWAY, RIGHT???) CLICK UNDER THE READ MORE TO SEE IT BECAUSE THIS IS GOING TO BE THE LONGEST THING I'VE EVER POSTED HERE, LMAO.

To preface, I have been a fan of the M&L games going back to the early-mid 2000s when I was a kid. I had no involvement with fandom or anything of the sort back then but I used to hop on my mom's bulky computer and look up fanart and other related content as early as 2004/5 and as a result, ended up captivated by the characters long before I knew who they actually were. (As a result of this, I have the names and art styles of various old M&L fandom creators permanently ingrained in my head and often wonder where they are today since a good deal of them vanished..!) It wasn't until 2006 that I got my first handheld console (DS Lite) and of course, what did I do? Immediately begged my mom to order me a used GBA copy of Superstar Saga. 

When I finally had the game in my hands it was like coming home to a colorful world that I'd been captivated by for so long but never gotten the chance to actually explore until now. The characters felt like old friends and the Beanbean Kingdom as a location felt familiar and comforting to me. (As a side note, Popple quickly became my favorite. Shocker, right?)

I used to sketch various beans in my notebooks as well as on printer paper we had lying around the house. Long story short, I finished Superstar Saga and then a few years later in 2010 I picked up Bowser’s Inside Story and THAT’S WHEN THINGS SHIFTED–

BIS brought Fawful and his personality to life in a way that captivated my imagination like nothing else had prior. He quickly overtook Popple as my favorite character from then on forward… and that’s where it ends! Or.. is it?

Nah, that’s where it gets funky. Life got a little chaotic after that and not only did I stop playing video games altogether for many years, but I also almost completely gave up on art - the one thing I was most passionate about above all and thought I would make a career out of someday. A series of depressing events caused me to lose all hope and motivation for anything I created and the spark I’d kept inside of me for so long all but died out as a result.

We’re going to timeskip again, this time to late 2019. I’d just moved away from home permanently for the first time and had been getting settled in and no matter what I did to make my new apartment a cozy place it always felt like something was missing. My mind would keep wandering to the fact that I never made art anymore despite it having been such a key part of my life when I was younger. I so desperately wanted to change this and over the next few months the frustration only kept growing until on January 1st, 2020, I sat down in the living room with a pencil and paper in my hand and shut my eyes tightly before saying under my breath:

“I do not care what it is, I don’t care how it comes. Just please… PLEASE send me something to bring my art back. Anything… anything at all. I don’t care what I draw, I just want to be drawing again.” And with that, I placed the lead onto the paper and began to sketch…

And from there… a familiar face appeared!

(Now I could ramble to you about how much I do NOT like this drawing and how off model it is from how Fawful actually looks… but I’ll forgive myself since I hadn’t touched the M&L games in over a decade at this point and had forgotten most of Fawful’s character. And yet?? Here he was.)

How else can I explain it except that in that moment it felt like the pencil in my hand had suddenly become one of these:

A joy that I hadn’t felt in SO long suddenly filled my entire being and without wasting another second, I immediately went online and ordered both Superstar Saga and Bowser’s Inside Story to replay again. In the time waiting for the games to arrive I had started drawing daily again - sketching out various old characters of mine with dozens of doodles of the bean man stacked in between them all.

There he was… always smiling, always happy to see me, and oftentimes with his arms outstretched as if to give an encouraging hug. When the games arrived I worked through them quicker than I ever had prior - finishing up Superstar Saga in less than a week and subsequently moving onto Bowser’s Inside Story with a LOT of excitement built up for it. 

It was my first day playing and I was having the time of my life! The way Fawful looked in his little grey cloak with that enormous, charming grin of his as he bamboozled Bowser into eating the Vaccuum Shroom had me giggling with joy while words repeated in my brain over and over of: “I need to draw this later, I NEED to draw this later!!!” I WAS EXCITED ABOUT ART AGAIN… AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. I was practically hopping in my seat from the happiness I felt in my heart and chest every time Fawful appeared at this point!

This was how it felt until the moment I arrived at the Fawful Theatre and watched as he began dancing on the stage floor. THIS time.. something different came over me. If you’ve felt it before, then you’ll know what I mean when I say that it was like my entire body turned warm all at once, like some sort of flame had been lit inside. I’d never felt it for anything or anyone prior to then, and that's partly why it hit me as hard as it did. I was practically sweating.

Heck, I was so absorbed in my feelings that I had forgotten there was anyone else in the room with me! That is.. Until my roommate at the time spoke up: 

Her: Are you alright? Me: Uhhh… yeah, why? Her: You’re red as a beet. Are you sure you’re okay?

By this time I had realized what was really going on so I reassured her I was fine, grabbed my 3DS, and ran to my room to finish the playthrough on my own so I wouldn’t embarrass myself any further, hahaha.

In the days, weeks, and months following that moment I became dedicated to drawing the best art of Fawful I could possibly create! What started as a challenge to myself to ‘give back’ to the person who’d given me back the ability to create again turned into someone I genuinely could not stop drawing for how much fun I was having doing it. The desire to make better and better art in order to honor him drove me to improve at a speed I never had prior, and soon thereafter I created Jolligig as a way for me to be in this colorful world with him and to express the deepening affection I was feeling for him with every day that passed by.

By some miracle, my prayer had been answered and here it was in the form of a grinning lima bean.

[End of Part 1. Interested in the rest? Yes… there’s more, I’m sorry. Please let me know in the comments. This took a while to write so I thought splitting it up would be best if folks are interested, LOL.]

#ASKS #MY GOD I AM SORRY (no i'm not) #fawfultalk #important

[charliesgoodboy]

I’m not sure if this is where I request for anything but I wanted to see if you were able right something like Rengoku x a feminine chubby male reader who’s one inch taller than him and has a ice type breathing, and they use fans to use their ice abilities.

Like I imagine the reader having a very blank face most of the time which makes him seem intimidating at times but is actually very nice once you talk to them and such

Ofcourse I can! I hope your ok with a full fic, it's kinda short cause of my writers block and I'm trying to get out of art block, but I'm happy to do this rq for you! Thank you!!♡♡(if you wanted and imagine/headcannon just dm me and i'll do that instead of this)

---------------------------------

Ice cold☆

Rengoku x Feminine Male!Reader

Summary:Rengoku never wants to seem to have the wrong impression on anyone so he tries and gets to know you better, and finds your breathing style very unique.

Warning(maniac):not rlly any just fluff my dude.

Read this carefully. If you are straight or you do not have your sexuality in your bio, I can and will block you and the rules will become more strict.

-------------------------♡♡♡

"Good work M/n!! I've never seen your breathing style!! And with fans?? Amazing!!" Looking up at you with his usual smile as you give him a blank face, you wanted to smile and talk to him, you really did but you didn't want to interact and you were so damn tired so you just nodded and made a 'm' sound as you followed your crow.

Rengoku knew that you didn't speak much and thought that you hated everyone that crossed your path, but that didn't stop you from wanting to get to know you better, deep down he knew you were sweet, and that you cared for others all the time.

And he is very correct, 100 percent in fact, you cared for everyone especially Rengoku. You always loved his energy and how he was always positive, even in grave situations.

But what you didn't know is that he really admired you, might as well be in love in fact, the way you use fans instead of a sword to slay demons, and it was ice style, he found it amazing really.

He loved how tall you were, even if it was only one inch, he admire you so, your chubby, yet feminine like, which he finds adorable at times, people have even caugt him stealing glances at you before,he just loved you so.

You reached the butterfly estate for some of the Hashira were injured, even Rengoku was injured, but mans could hide it good, like he was in inmese pain.

Once you reached the estate you were greeted by Aoi who let you all in and set each of you guys in a pair of a room, and ofcourse you got Rengoku.

She camd to Rengoku first as she, wrapped Rengoku's wounds in which you noticed how bad they were.

"I'll be taking my leave now." She bowed and left the room, leaving you and Rengoku.

"Hey...are you ok?? I'm sorry I didn't notice your wounds before, they seem really bad..." you look down in guilt even so it wasn't your fault.

Rengoku had a shocked face, he knew that you'd talk to him soon, but not this soon. He gave you a heart warming smile. "I swear I am ok, and none of this is your fault M/n."

You didn't belive that he was 'ok' so you grabbed him and made him rest on you. "Just rest and I'll take care of you..ok??"

He was suprised by your actions but obliged to them anyway. He snuggled deep into your stomach, you where looking outside so you didn't really notice Rengoku traceing your curves.

"You know for a man, you are quite feminine...did you know that??" Your face turned beet red when he said that to you, nobody had ever even said that you looked feminine, but you took this as a comoliment.

"U-uh thank you?? I guess??" He smiles at you once more.(damn how is yo jaw not broken??)"And your body is quite squishy, It's nice." He says as he burried his face into you.

"Hah!?!? Your not just saying that!? Do love my body that much??" He got up and came to you face-to-face.

"Absolutely! And not just your body, I love you as much as I love food!!" You were so red at this point, no one has ever said these things to you.

"T-thank y-you, and I'm glad your ok Rengoku..."

#kny x male reader #Chubby male reader #demon slayer x male reader #kny x reader #rengoku demon slayer #kimetsu kyojuro #kimetsu no yaiba x reader #rengoku x male reader #Rengoku x male y/n #kimetsu no yaiba x you #X male reader #Male reader #rengoku kyojuro x reader #Kyojuro x male reader #Male reader insert #Rengoku fluff #kimestu no yaiba #kyojuro rengoku #rengoku fluff #Male reader x Rengoku

[just-a-carrot]

Yo yo yo Carrot.

I did do research on character design a bit ago. I was just wondering if there were any specific tips/things you kept in mind while designing any of your characters. I have a general idea of where I'm heading but I figured it couldn't hurt to try. No need to push yourself though.

(Orlam has a white shirt because he's basic :). It's perfect character design. )

hhhhh... i can try 💦

behind the cut because this got long

i think the problem is i never have any specific things in mind. for the life of me i can't even think back to how i came up with any of the characters i've ever come up with. usually they are like a mish-mash inspiration of various ideas tumbling around in my head, often influenced heavily by sheer vibes and/or music i'm listening to and/or media i've consumed or images i've seen

for me i think the biggest thing i've noticed is that i develop characters incredibly slowly lol. like i have a really hard time jumping into a new story with new characters that i haven't spent a long time thinking about (i.e., literal years). they all start from like a small random kernel of an idea or inspiration and then they grow and develop as the rest of the story starts slowly turning into random scenes into my mind, and i continue to learn new things about the characters even while actively writing (i think i've said before but some of the biggest themes and plot points in OW that feel like core parts of the story i didn't even come up with until i was actively in the midst of writing it, like, post writing arc 1 and even arc 2; arc 4 in particular like i had not planned 80% of what happened in that arc until i was writing it laksjdfa)

and i feel like a big part of this is because i'm actually really bad at designing/developing characters at the drop of a hat and can only figure them out through long periods of thinking and writing

2018 vs 2023

2018 vs 2023

i first drew the OW characters in 2018, but i'd had the idea for the general story (arc 1) even before that. from what i can remember when trying to come up with what they'd look like, i would try to think about their vibes from their role in the story. iggy is somewhat soft, awkward, and anxious, so i guess my mind developed a somewhat nerdy disalarming look for him with kinda muted colors (we don't talk about the fact that his shirt/overshirt combo makes no sense laksdjfads). orlam i knew i wanted a kinda scraggly little guy with greasy hair (sooper sekrit never-before-heard!ow lore: i actually did originally design him with a ponytail but it changed to a rattail while working on arc 1)

i'm quite bad when it comes to fashion design in general so i often come up with fairly plain-looking outfits. but some of the things i like playing around with the most are things like height dynamics and color variety (i always try to use a diverse range of hair colors for instance, as i feel like it's one of the big things that can instantly differentiate characters in a group)

you can see this in easter too i guess:

admittedly with easter it was a bit different in that tho i had some mental images in my head of generally what i wanted the chars to look like, some of the details and choices got limited because i had to use a sprite generator someone had made to create the sprites for the game (because it was an RPG maker game and i wasn't good/still am not good at creating animated sprites). so their final designs were a bit of a mix between my original ideas and my ideas translated into sprite generator options, hence some of the... odd design choices lakjdfsd

going back even further to characters i designed for other stuff like novels and stories, though my art style was different back then i feel like a lot of the same types of design choices can perhaps be seen LOL:

also please enjoy this old old old old OLD carrot!art from 2005 of three chars i created as a child that i thought were the coolest things ever...

i feel like i've lost the plot here a little bit LKAJDSFLKADSF

though i guess this is simply because i can't really explain what my head does when it comes up with characters. i don't have any sort of formal training in character or game design. i do have an art degree but that was more formal stuff (and i was often told that my personal cartoon-esque style of artwork and the stuff i drew in my sketchbooks was Not Creative). so i don't really have any set sort of guidelines or rules or even strategies that i use for coming up with characters. they tend to just kinda form over time in my mind according to my own aesthetics???? like i create characters that i would like to write and draw. i create groups of characters because i really really like group dynamics. i create characters with varying heights and body types and vibes. i create lots of short loud-mouth snarky asshole characters ldkajfsldkadlfafLDJFADFAD

if you have any more specific-type questions i can try to answer them but i think this might be the best i can do for just talking about my general mindset for characters... 💦

#ow: asks #game dev asks

[blu3b3rryj4mp1r3]

i love your art so much!!! how long have you been drawing? :D

thank you so much!!! 😄💖💖

well as long as I can remember! so ever since I could hold a pen probably 🤣💕 but if we're talking about it from a pony point of view...

this is the first pony drawing I remember drawing:

my personal favourite here is pinkie pie, she looks a bit like a puppet 🤣💖 this one is really old, i definitely drew it before starlight glimmer was introduced, so I'm guessing sometime around when season 3 or 4 was airing here 🤔💜

then around 2017 I started drawing a lot more as a coping mechanism, but I stopped drawing ponies, stopped watching mlp, stopped playing with toys, stopped engaging with my interests and basically got really depressed, I've always been bullied but this was when it got really bad, I was bullied for the things I liked and being autistic before I even knew I was, sad times, however I do remember watching rainbow rocks in secret once! 🤣 (that movie is very special to me now 🌈🎸😊)

when g5 was anounced I drew a few ponies again, but I still didn't watch or engage with mlp in any other way, this is how they looked (this is the least weird looking one I could find lol):

then in feburary last year I started being myself more again, I watched the winter wrap up episode, listened to a few of the songs and wished for the rainbow rocks movie for my birthday, THEN I got super into smurfs and after that realized there wasn't actually anything wrong with liking the things I liked and I started watching mlp again!!!!! I rewatched it all the way from episode 1 and when I tell you I bawled my eyes out watching pinkie pie sing the laughter song for the first time in so long I mean it! 🤣💗 after that I fully embraced mlp as my special interest once again, I dug out my pony toys and stuffies and started playing with them again, I started singing the songs from the show again and I started drawing them, and I didn't stop, here are the first ponies I drew after finally allowing myself to like ponies again:

at first I tried drawing as close to the tv show's style as I could, then my style became more like this (excuse the very unfinished drawing):

then this:

then this:

and then more like this:

and now were here where I am today and this is one of my more recent drawings:

as an autistic person not engaging with my special interests and not allowing myself to be me in fear of being judged is one of the worst things I have ever done, I'm not doing well right now but at least I have my little pony, at least I can watch twilight sparkle and her friends go on adventures, draw small doodles of pinkie pie, hug my applejack stuffie when I get scared and sing about rarity making dresses for her best friends! mlp and equestria girls is something that's so special to me and now that I know what it's like to live without it I never want to do that again. thank you so much to everyone who as ever just sent me a kind message or liked anything I've made, it makes me so happy 🥰💖💖

and I'm sorry this got so long anon 🤣💖

#my art! ☆ #mlp #mlp ask #☆.asks #my pony art ☆

[oobi-oobi]

Hihi!

Question: How did you develop your art style, and do you have multiple?(like a more realistic and a more chibi?) Also! Who inspires you to make such pretty masterpieces?

𓅭 𓅰 𓅭 𓅰

Thank you so much!!! You’re so kind!

Sorry, in advance for the extremely long response :') My hand slipped/j

These are the 3 big tips for developing an art style I wish knew when I was younger:

Find the things that inspire you, and break down what you specifically like about them.

Experiment! Try new things! Practice! Your art style will develop on its own as long as you keep creating. 

Have fun! Draw what you enjoy and what makes you happy. Your style is yours; you should enjoy it.

When I was younger, I caught myself thinking things like, "I would like to draw the eyes like this, but I can't because it's not my art style." Then I realized that I was getting in my own way. Once I overcame that mental blockade, I started having fun drawing again. When I allowed myself to experiment, it also caused me to improve faster because I could figure out the things I liked and the things I didn't like. Everyone's art journey and process are different, but this helped me personally.

Yes, I do have multiple different art styles. I have my regular art style, a cartoony art style (I am not currently happy with it. I have a lot to work on), a silly doodle art style, and a realism style (or as close as I can get to it). I also draw eyes differently depending on the feeling I want. For example, I draw tear ducts on characters that I want to have a sort of scary horror vibe, and I don't on other characters (I don't really know why or how it started). I also experiment a lot, which causes my art to always look slightly different. 

I also like to prioritize drawing the things that I enjoy the most. I really like drawing faces and expressions so I've practiced that the most (along with neglecting things I don't enjoy like coloring, I'm working on it I swear, I digress). 

There are also a ton of little trademarks that show up over and over again. Like giving characters sideburns or hair strands that frame their faces, never adding highlights in eyes, adding swirls in hair, and there is this weird thing where I associate the number of eyelashes I give characters to their personalities (I couldn't explain it if I tried 😅). I think it's important to stumble upon little things you enjoy drawing and to keep doing it. 

I never made a list of things that inspire my art even though I really should. Below, I'll list off some artists who inspire me who you can find here on Tumblr.

☆Cryptidw00rm 

(also highly recommend their YouTube animatics they're absolutely breathtaking)

☆Seiishindraws

☆Sinlizards. 

☆Nanamis-username 

☆Viria

(their drawing tutorials have left a lasting impact on me from when I was younger. I really suggest looking them up; they're really in-depth. I couldn’t find the original posts, but it's the first results when you Google "viria art tutorial".)

I'm always instantly enamored whenever I see these artists' works. They are such a huge inspiration. Please go check them out!

There are also a ton of other artists and things that inspire me too, but I'll spare y'all for now. >:)

As a bonus, here is a little example of how my art has developed. I just found my old art from each of the listed times. This is my OC Amaryllis over the years.

Below are some collages of sketches that I hope will showcase my style (these took forever to compile)

And finally, have a Megamind that I am proud of but never posted *thumbs up*

#oobi talks #oobi answers #oobi-oobi art #my art #let's hope the image quality doesn't tank :')

[wishful-seeker]

As a real artist i can easily tell when art is real or ai generated no matter how "good" it looks because, ya know, I've literally studied art and the world around me for over 15 years.

It cannot even look like art. You could show many any ai photo that exists and i could tell you with 100% accuracy that a human didn't make it. The skin looks uncanny, like plastic, the hair goes no where, not to mention the hands, even the lighting is wrong.

Art has human imperfections, the skin isn't flat, the colors all have a purpose, EVERY SINGLE STROKE WAS PLANNED AND THOUGHT ABOUT, and layering thousands of strokes over the course of hours finally creates a masterpiece.

How tf can any of you think ai art is art?

Arts purpose is to express HUMAN emotion, and a machine CANNOT express your emotions for you. The emotion is literally translated by the artist onto paper, and every artist has a completely unique language that takes years to even create.

Taking random photos you like and putting them into ai is not a new style. Part of an artists style is literally the way they hold a brush or pen, which direction they make their strokes in and how they blend and choose color. Style is not a look ITS A LANGUAGE and you ai fuckers think you're doing something on the same level and its just not fucking true.

I remember in high-school i took notes on what i liked about other art styles as i tried to blend them together to make my own, but its not just the artists you take inspiration from, its the way my strokes always curve to the right, its the way i use turquoise paint every chance i get, its the way i choose to give all my characters different shaped eyes, its the way i use sparkle paints on top of gouache, ITS MY LANGUAGE, ITS ME, ITS MY EXISTENCE AND PERSONALITY TRANSLATED ONTO AN OBJECT. And only i can draw that style in that way. If anyone tried to copy my style it would ultimately become their own through their own physical quirks and the way their body moves and the way their brain thinks.

Do you wanna know why everyone is okay with people drawing and painting recreations of the stary night painting and it's not okay to put it in ai? Because no matter who you are or how skilled you are the way you paint, Draw, whatever, AND THE WAY YOUR BODY PHYSICALLY MOVES WHEN YOU DO IT, AND THE WAY YOUR BRAIN LITERALLY PROCESSES EVERY INDIVIDUAL STROKE, MAKES THE ART YOUR OWN.

With AI you cannot do any of those things. It is not human expression, It is not your style, It is not your language, It is not you. Therefore it is not your art. And because a human did not create it, It is not art at all.

Art is a goddamn spiritual experience, It is looking inward and understanding your own body and mind, It is refining something for decades, It is learning what matters most to you, What is most beautiful to you, And why. And this isn't just with painting or drawing this is with writing and photography too. This is with carpentry and welding, cosplaying, and sewing, leather working and crochet! This is in every form of human creation!

But not AI.

I genuinely hate you ai mother fuckers because if you are anything, its IGNORANT. You think you know about art when you've never touched any of these art forms before. And I have never met in "ai artist" That does anything else when it comes to creating. They don't draw or paint or write, They see creative people around them and want to be like them without putting in any of the work, And when they found their shortcut they acted like they knew more than us. More than people who have studied art their entire lives. I bet if you ask any of these ai artists, How does perspective work? How does anatomy work? Color theory? Lighting? They. Wouldn't. Know. Shit. And they still have the audacity to say they know more about art than we do.

A child, scribbling on the wall is more of an artist, and more spiritually connected with art than any of you ai fuckers will ever be.

#ai art is not art #ai art #ai artist #ai pictures #ai generated #ai artwork #art #artwork #painting #drawing

[cornus27florida]

Floriography of the Flower Bouquet that Frederick gives to Gwen during her dinner party (Gwen's dinner party arc)

Hello everyone!

I decided to make this CPC-related post to be quite 'short' and the focused one - This post is blossoming due the simple question in the discord CPC server which as following :

i was wondering if anyone knew what flowers those were!! really curious if they have a meaning in flower language or something that could apply here (look at the top image)

Before going further let me explain first what's "Floriography" means. Floriography is the language of flowers. All flowers hold different meanings (also all flower arrangements is beautiful in their own way! - Saffron), often based on the type of flower, the colour of the flower, or both. And floriography is the art of communicating through different flower types. Once you learn and understand the meaning of flowers, giving flowers as gifts becomes so much more thoughtful as you can convey just how you feel with a bouquet! [taken from this following link : https://www.bloomandwild.com/floriography-language-of-flowers-meaning]

About Flower Arrangement, there's actually a craft study about it which differentiated to western style (the ones that more familiar to mass as it sold in flower shops at orders) and eastern style (which called as Ikebana). The link if want to know more about Ikebana as following:

Ikebana (“living flowers”) is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It is also known as Kadō (“way of flowers”). The tradition dates back to the 7th century when floral offerings were made at altars. Later, they were placed in the tokonoma (alcove) of a home. In contrast to the western habits of casually placing flowers in a vase, ikebana aims to bring out the inner qualities of flowers and other live materials within certain rules of construction and ultimately – express emotion.

Its materials are living branches, leaves, grasses, and blossoms. Its heart is the beauty resulting from colour combinations, natural shapes, graceful lines, and the meaning latent in the total form of the arrangement. It is a disciplined art form in which the arrangement is a living thing where nature and humanity are brought together. It is steeped in the philosophy of developing closeness with nature. Ikebana is a way of arranging flowers according to ancient principles. Branches and flowers are placed at specific angles to represent ten (heaven), chi (earth), and jin (man). The way they’re placed represents the strength, delicacy, and ephemerality of living flowers. Funnily enough, the word ikebana comes from ‘ikuru’ – to live and ‘hana’ – flowers: literally means ‘living flowers’.

IMHO before analyzing the Flowers, I've theorized (or more in sense, as Headcannon) that Frederick has low sense of flower selection (due to being bullied in the military school with the nickname 'Sunflower', he kinda used to think that Flowers are generally negative/mundane things - hence he never bordered to looks deeper in term of Floriography) so it might that he bought (earlier before the trip, as if it happened mid-trip it will pushed his brothers to do the same=which seem that neither Blaine or Lance do it) or brought (Frederick taking some 'random' Flowers in Plaid Palace royal garden, then preparing them himself to make some nice flower bouquet for Gwen ). Frederick's flower bouquet is accentuated simplicity but also some senses of mysteries in there (identifying+recognizing, determining than searching the floriography of the flowers of his bouquet is challenging but not by means something to disliked.. I LOVE IT!! I am not confident with the answers, but deep down I always love flowers and in my College life - I joined study club where one of the task is to determining plant names)

For myself personally I feel the latter (making the flower bouquet himself) is more in-character to him. He's dumb but has big heart + he know some things about making bouquet from all his experiences preparing party. I think it's not hard to imagine that he also the one that preparing the get-off gifts to the guests by preparing bouquets. So, Frederick probably have no thought about the meaning of the Flowers when making the bouquet but he just make sure the flower bouquet for Gwen will be presented nice. Although to answer the question, I have my own intake which as following!

So.. if I could make the conclusion (is more theory, as I am not 100% sure) - The flowers that Frederick tried to give to Gwen during the dinner party and their meanings :

Angel breath or Baby breath: symbolyzes Innocence

Heather flower: Admiration, Good Luck, Protection powers

(1) The White clusters : probably Heather and Angel breath; Innocence, Admiration, Good luck, Protection powers

(2) The Green clusters - as imho those are not leaves, it looks like some cluster of flower petals : Bells of Ireland ; Great way to ease worries (or own wedding day espc), symbolize luck

(3) The Orange clusters - the hardest one as have many option and need to search the meaning - but if I limited to choose only one then I'll pick Pansy; The word “pansy” is derived from the mid-15th century French word “penser,” which means to think or ponder. The pansy flower meaning can differ according to the color variety. The Orange pansy flower isn’t as common as some other colors, but usually, they are going to symbolize joy, happiness, and optimism. Orange pansies are often used in salads as edible decorations. *hence silly comedy that comes to my mind: Frederick also giving those orange pansy as addition (or garnish) to the salad menu for Gwen's dinner party

So those are all there!

As always if wanna see the full conversation rather than the compiled version, just heads up to the discord https://discord.com/channels/825884625087758347/825884835481911337/1087831356811255938

#cursed princess club #cursed princess club frederick #cursed princess club Gwendolyn #floriography #flower bouquet

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

When thinking of your trademark in your writing, I think it is the way you go into details and paint a picture for the mind's eye. The way you balance descriptive imaginations and realistic detailing is just very captivating.

Your art has a funky loose feel to the lining that just feels fitting to the enigma that is your brain, too full to truly poor it all out onto the paper no matter how hard you try. But boi do we love the attempts that give us any slightest peek into that brilliant mind of yours.

You clearly don't draw or write without thinking it over thoroughly.

Bwaaaaaaaa

Thank u! that's super sweet of you to say.

I do tend to overthink a lot of things.

I'm not very good at making like... Outlines or roughs of poses. I very rarely make base outlines, like I usually just start drawing and the rough sketch becomes the final lineart. So I often rely super heavily on references when I draw. For some reason over my 28 plus years of drawing, I never really gotten a grasp on how the torso, legs and fingers all really connect and form one entity. I know I could try with enough discipline and practice, as art is a skill. So I have this weird blend of like... Super confident lines, but not knowing how a torso, shoulders and legs connect which make a really interesting balance, and leads to things like this:

Like I can always see the framework of what I want, especially when little reference is used, but it really seems like nothing connects. Like the understanding of SHAPES is there, but not the understanding of how they are coherent together, if that makes sense? And you can kinda see that in my more high profile art, but I feel there was a period where It did click and I understood how it all connected but I forgot it all.

Like at some point, with these two, (rest in peace. the ship tag has not been updated since I left the naruto fandom) around 2019 I was getting it! Like I felt I was really getting it, Like I MADE THESE!!!! but then I kinda forgot it all. Like I still didn't use a base outline for these and did rely on heavy references, but I feel I was getting a grasp on shading and autonomy and how the human body works and fits together. And then it... Just kinda vanished from my brain, and I regressed to a more chibi simple art style. Either because it was easier, or because I was experiencing more chronic pain in my back and hand.

At the end of the day, I think my art style regressed a lot due to lack of practice, and lack of encouragement from outside sources besides the internet likes and reblogs like RL friends or Family. That, and I feel my attention span and patience for things has just gotten worse as I've gotten older. I'm guessing my Dad's death had a lot to do with that. As, I am over the loss of my Dad as a person. but mentally, I am not over coming the fact that mortality is very fleeting. You think I would spend most of my time living life to the fullest. But that isn't the case. I kinda feel like I've been stuck in that "What is the point of anything if anyone can die suddenly without warning for any reason" Stage of grief that I have NEVER really got over.

Needless to say my Dad suddenly dying with no warning due to a ruptured aurora was just something everyone was unprepared for. He wasn't sick from an illness, no one knew he was in poor health. It wasn't even a car accident. Like he just suddenly died cus part of his heart exploded essentially.

I mean, I know I rarely talk about it, other then mentioning "My Dad died Eight years ago. Haha I'm over it tho, it was awhile ago"

And, While I think I'm over it in the sense with, I'm at peace with always missing him a little bit, and don't think about him constantly... I'm not over it in the sense of how fragile mortality is and how it can be taken away. For no just cause or reason.

I guess I'm over it, in that I'm over that my Dad, the person is dead. I am NOT over the fact of HOW he died. And I think it'll be a long time till I cross that hurtle.

And yeah, that's a heavy part of life, that we all get old and die one day, but some people don't even get to grow old. you think it would make me more.... "make time with what you have, enjoy what you like."

but if anything, it makes me more fearful in "what is the point of doing anything if I were to die tomorrow, what have I done. Folks will miss me, sure. But I will still be gone." So then I just end up doing nothing for long periods of time, and that's mostly why my art skills suffer because I don't see the point of doing a discipline or working towards any goal whatsoever. And I'm just going through the motions. And yeah, sometimes, I will be super productive and be happy and do a lot of things for a bit, but they're always short lived moments and it's hard to stick to things.

Looool sorry if that's all just too heavy.

Oh, if this sounds too complaining... Or "pity party. Woe is me, Dana is Depressed again" ahahahah. Like, that's not the point of this. I mean, it's my blog and I can talk about my feelings I guess, and I feel that Depression, even before my Dad's death impacted my art journey. So I'm still trying to struggle to remain consistent in my endeavors.

Or I could just be lazy. XD That too. XD

Anyways... Moving on in terms of my writing style, that's very nice of you to say.

I am a deep appreciator of inner monologues if it wasn't obvious. I like to dissect what characters are thinking and I sometimes feel I overdo it, and justify every single action and breath they take by getting so close in their own head that there's hardly any breathing room for error.

But I just write how I tend to think in terms of Overthinking, so I don't think I've ever written a character from a close third person (or first person) perspective that hasn't overthought every action before they speak.

But usually within the context of the story, their inner monologue spanning 20 pages actually takes place in the span of less then a few seconds.

I don't think I could write from Bob's POV if I tried. He's a man of action rather then overthinking. And if I held his hand as a third person narrator, he would sho me off and do his own thing gladly without my interference. XD

Anyways. Didn't mean to get so venty on this ask.

Thank you so much for the lovely compliment. Also some insight into my process I guess. XD

#danachan's rants #danachan's asks #vent #mild vent #family death #danachan's art

[tossawary]

Hi! This is another Fandom Trumps Hate post for people who are thinking about joining up as a creator but aren't sure. I'm not making this one rebloggable because I'm going to talk a little about my personal experiences with fan events in general and FTH in particular over the years (feel free to link a friend to this post, though, if they're on the fence about participating).

About 10 years ago now, when I was very new to online fandom, I didn't know how to feel about fan charity events. Some of them seemed kind of shady (and some fan-run things are shady, let's be real, but FTH's donations go straight to the charities and the mods never touch it). But some of them seemed legitimate, and as I was spending a lot of my free time making fic and art anyway, I thought: didn't I kind of owe my creative skills to a good cause? When I did decide to refrain from joining these events because I knew that I was too busy, I still felt kind of guilty about it.

Now, a little older and a little wiser, I feel pretty confident saying that if you're really not sure or enthusiastic about participating: don't do it. I am personally handing you a "Get Out Of Jail FTH Guilt-Free" card and telling you it's cool if you're too busy. It's seriously fine.

Here's why:

Fan events, whether we're talking about charity auctions or big bangs just for fun, are often pretty significant commitments. Being "required" to write fic, especially being required to follow someone else's prompt can be a very different experience to writing whatever you want for fun. (Not not fun, just different.)

Some people write fanfiction instead of attempting to publish original fiction to become "real writers" because, as they'll talk about on their own blogs, they want to write as a for-fun hobby. Like painting for fun or baking for fun. Just because someone likes making a fancy cake every once and a while doesn't mean that they want to open a catering business, you know? Things can change when you've made a commitment and when there's money on the line, even if that money has gone to charity. There's an added layer of stress.

If you've never written prompt fic on request before, then it's hard to know how you'll find the experience, if you'll find the stress of it a light burden you barely feel or a heavy burden weighing you down every day. Sometimes, you'll end up writing something you're not 100% into. I've had artistic projects (talking mostly about school and work here, not any fan projects) where the idea was fun and I was proud of the end result, but the work itself was kind of grueling because it wasn't what I personally would have chosen to do.

My FTH bidders over the years have always been incredibly cool people who have proposed fun ideas, which I have really enjoyed writing, and they'll often work with you to find a prompt that you love. I have found my FTH projects rewarding experiences. But I'd be lying if I said that when working on a FTH fic, I've never once occasionally thought, "Man, I kind of wish I was working on something else."

You have to be able to resist the allure of your latest plot bunny and finish the current project. If you're really bad at finishing your WIPs or if you're really bad at finishing your WIPs within a time limit (FTH deadline is Dec 31st of the same year), then maybe creating for a fan event just isn't for you. And that's fine!

There's a reason that FTH recommends in their Signup Tips for First-Time FTH Creators post that new creators start with only one offer and to start small. Write a 5k fic, not a 50k one. Draw a single, cartoony drawing, not a 5-page comic in a realistic style. It's a very responsible thing to do to test the waters of an experience before jumping in the deep end.

Part of the stress of these experiences comes from the fact that if you don't fulfill your promise to create for your bidder, you can get banned from future FTH auctions. Big Bangs and Secret Santa events will also ban you (not because of FTH, FTH doesn't blacklist you to anyone or anything). And you don't want to disappoint your bidder! They seemed really cool and you can feel like you're letting them down just if you make them wait too long.

(I promise you that most bidders are pretty chill people. I personally am happy just donating to the charities and I really don't care when/if my creator gets back to me. Their wellbeing is more important to me than a fic or a piece of art.)

If you feel like you won't be able to fulfill an offer in time or if you don't really want to take a prompt from someone else instead of doing your own thing, then it's fine not to make an offer. (Likewise, if you ever have missed creating something for a fan event because real life stuff came up, then it's fine. You're not a bad person. Life gets in the way sometimes. You thought you could at the time. There are other things to participate in when you know you're ready.)

The thing is that creative skills are much, MUCH more valuable than people are putting them on auction for here. If I was charging a minimum wage of $15/hr for my writing skills for what I've done for FTH over the years, I would have made them THOUSANDS. (I doubt I've made them $1000 total.) I participate in FTH usually when I'm feeling at creative loose ends and want to work on prompt fic. I want the collaborative experience of writing something specific for someone else. It's a project that scratches a particular writing itch for me (the stress of a commitment is there, yes, but it's so easy to carry that I barely notice it), which isn't for everyone, and the fact that this event raises some money for charity is kind of just an added bonus.

If someone is donating $25 dollars to charity so that you'll write them a thank-you gift of a 5,000 word one shot that took you at least 10 hours to write, that is NOT a balanced exchange. If we take the $15/hr wage, that is $150 of labor for $25. This is NOT an efficient way to donate to charity. This is a fan event.

Now, some people require a higher minimum bid for their work than I generally do. (Which is good. They are right to do this. I should probably also do this more seriously.) Some people require $100 dollars for a 1k fic. Some people say they'll write 1k words per every $10. There are ways to bring things back into balance and make things more efficient.

So, if you think that a disparity between the amount donated and your donated labor will piss you off, then put serious minimum bid requirements. Your creative skills are valuable. It is okay to enforce boundaries on your donated time and energy so that you don't end up writing 50k of an idea you don't really like for $25, because that sounds like a recipe for resentment. (I keep mostly to myself, so I have never heard of a situation like this with FTH and am just exaggerating to make a point.)

And if people don't bid on your offer? It doesn't mean that your creative skills aren't valuable. It just means that your offer wasn't what someone was looking for at this particular time. (Honestly, as a side note, it's incredible how much the success of a pitch for a book or show or movie depends on just happening to be made to the right people at the right time. I'm serious. It's a very real thing in the entertainment and publishing industries. I have attended talks by people who say that they've had to pass on great pitches specifically because they're looking for a property to sell to 5yo boys that year and already have a property being sold to 10yo girls.)

If you need to pass on participating because you're busy: look after yourself first! Don't end up disappointing your bidder and yourself because you don't have the time or energy to spare. If you can do it, but it means really stressing yourself out and sacrificing other things to find the time: don't do it. Look after yourself. Don't hurt yourself and your creative muscles over a fan event. Breathe. Take a nap. Play some video games. Participate as a bidder if you have the spare money or just advertise the auction if you don't (if you want to). Or just cheer on creators in AO3 comments or with kudos. FTH allows you to make a donation and add it to their count, even if you don't bid or if you don't want to make a bid.

Would you be happy to know that someone was grinding themselves down trying to please you? Don't do that to your bidder. They're your fellow fans, often fellow creators, who just want to chill and donate to charity, and they'd be really upset to hear that you were making yourself miserable because of their donation.

I have never failed to fulfill a FTH offer. I have only participated in fan events when I know I can do it. I have always enjoyed myself. But I work in a creative industry and I have seen a lot of creative people hurt their own passion for something they love or burn out by trying to force themselves to work on things. (I know this sounds very dramatic. I'm not saying you will burn out. You may be totally fine or maybe only lightly stressed at the end. You'll probably be great, honestly. I bet you're a kickass creator. But it's fine to be wary of burn out until you're in a more confident place.) So, to any creative person, especially younger ones, I wanted to write all this out to tell you that it's fine not to do these things. It's not that serious.

Keep fandom a positive space by giving yourself room to breathe and coming back even stronger when you're ready, as a creator, bidder, or just a supporter. If you've already signed up but you want to pull out of FTH before bidding starts because something came up, email the mods. If this extended rambling about burn out has only strengthened your resolve to kick this fan event's ass, then that's awesome! Good for you! I think it's good to reassess your creative energies every now and again, and I think it's fine to say, "Okay, I think I need a break, I don't want to let anyone down," as much as it is to say, "Yeah, I'm pumped up! I'm good to go! Let's do it!"

EDIT: This whole post sounds kind of negative, so to add more positivity: if you really, really want to do it, then I think you should go ahead and join FTH! Just know your limits. It's okay to start small and to set firm boundaries. FTH can be a lot of fun! You can meet cool people! You can feel like you're making a difference! You may end up writing great and rewarding fics that you never would have written otherwise! Plenty of people have joined FTH for the first time feeling really uncertain and had a great time, no regrets.

Don't do FTH just because you feel weirdly obligated to participate because it's for a good cause. Do FTH because you want to do it.

There will be other events.

#ask tossawary #tossawary fth 2023

[malevolantkitcheen]

hai!! I saw you're JJK match works and they are really good so if they're still open I thought i could make a request? she/they (female) | Leo | ENFP bisexual so men or women is fine I don't really have preference Looks wise, I'm pretty tall around 165 cm, tan, dark brown eyes and short dark brown hair (I think the best way to explain my hair cut is like a wolf cut but not that many layers?), I'd say I'm thin and kinda flat, my hands are kinda veiny and my nails are uneven since I tend to cut them when I'm nervous Personality wise, I'm very extroverted so much so that I get energy from being around people I like, especially people I consider close friends (I'm an only child so sometimes I wish I had a sibling). I'm also very friendly I love making friends and I'd say I'm very loyal too I just like talking to people in general. I can also get a bit overwhelming for some people which I totally understand I'm the type of girl who flirts with her girl friends and teases them constantly but I also get really flustered when someone teases me. I don't like some people though and If I don't like someone I can get really rude and moody but I'm also really moody if I'm just not in the mood sometimes I tend to lash out at people but I feel really bad after. I also end up crushing on the worst people I've never been in an actual real relationship so I just crush on people for some drama in my life. Hobby wise, I'm a music girl I play guitar, piano, kalimba, ukulele, and I sing (I'm also currently learning how to play bass) I'm actually a lead singer in a band. I'm also interested in art, video editing, coding and gaming. Subject wise I like math physics chemistry and computer but they can get kind of stressful at times. I also love dressing up and buying random merch and cute things I've always wanted to cosplay and my clothing style changes every day I'm also a really big jewellery person and i love collecting fun earrings and stationary. Thank you I'm sorry if it's a bit too much hope you have a good day!! <3

For Jujutsu-Kaisen, i match you with

Yuji Itadori

(male match, send in a nother request if you would like a female match too! I am more than happy to do both! <3)

- At first, Yuji came across as relatively awkward, especially around you. He would mainly stick to following Megumi and Nobara around, but the two of you would share occasionally glances from time to time. He was hesitant to come and talk to you but you made it clear very quickly that you were far from intimidating. It took little to no time for you two to find things in common because as soon as you would find a topic of conversation, Yuji would let his words run away with him. At times he wasn’t a great listener due to the fact he was a little bit of a motor mouth when he got comfortable with his friends, but he would always realise eventually and be extremely apologetic, which you found adorable. Despite his very vocal opinions, he loved listening to you talking about almost anything and everything; he found you fascinating.

- At times you would worry that you were getting on his nerves because you were getting carried away with the conversation, but Yuji would always reassure you that it was more than okay and that you were simply just really interested in whatever you were talking about. You loved this about him because most people would get frustrated and just stop listening all together. He just truly understood you. Of course there were still some occasions where you would be a little off, especially if you hadn’t had the greatest of days. At first, Yuji didn’t really know what to do because he hadn’t been in these kinds of situations, more so because he didn’t want to upset you any further. However, it didn’t take him very long to figure out what the best ways to help you were, even it just meant sitting in comfortable silence with you, so you knew that he was there if you needed anything.

- Sometimes, Yuji would feel as though you weren’t interested in him as you would bring up other people on occasions, of course you weren’t doing this maliciously, but it still made him a little bit doubtful at times. Despite this, he was determined to stay by your side no matter what because you truly meant everything to him. He hadn’t really made any advancements towards you romantically but he didn’t really hide his feelings very well because much like you, he got flustered extremely easily and even just being around you would often make him smile and blush.

#jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen #fanfic #jjk matchups #matchups #commission #yuji itadori #jjk yuji #anime and manga #cute

[kimhargreeves]

Concert Confessions-Ian Bruce x Reader (The Correspondents)

Summary: You've been long time friends with the boys from The Correspondents, the mutual pining between you and Bruce is making your friend Tim desperate for you both to just date. You decide to do the impossible before their concert at night.

(This is based on the English band The Correspondents. I was about to write a fic soon, but saw someone asking for someone to write so I volunteered! So this one shot is for the person who accepted in me writing it. @atomicbug Hope you enjoyed it!!)

It's been many years since I've known Bruce and Chucks known as Tim also but his closest friends call him that. I've been with them from the very beginning, meeting both of them when we were still studying. I used to see them always hanging around with each other until eventually I met Bruce in art class, i was enamored with his work from the very start.

We started with small conversations until it started with hanging out at classes and spending almost everyday together. I still remember the same day easily getting along with Chucks like we had been friends for years.

It took a while until they finally started a band together and started touring and meeting fans with their unique music and still continuing to be themselves. I absolutely loved their music style and how artistic they are

I started working alongside with them as well, thinking and worrying that I wouldn't be able to see them often, well sometimes I would work with them whenever I was free since I started working alongside with a company in making music as well.

Today is one of those days where I would be hanging out with them and finally being able to see Bruce. Often they would insist on me working with them on a song, or sing on stage but I was afraid of what their fans might say if they were to see a female with them, clearly having feelings for the bands singer.

"(Y/N)!" I heard voices calling out to me. I turned around as I stood in line at a cafe, many people weren't around anyways so I turned around and shrieked when I saw my best friends.

"Guys!! You're finally here!" I exclaim running over to them and hugging them tightly, they hugged me back until we parted and we smiled.

Chucks almost hasn't changed a bit, and Bruce continues to look the same as ever with his glasses and neatly styled hair. Both of them were wearing jackets because of the cold weather.

"We're happy to know you accepted the invite." Bruce said looking down at me since I was shorter than him since he's tall.

"You know we'll I'd never say no to you." I smile as I blush looking up at him.

I hear a hum and I glanced and saw Chucks smiling at us both but said nothing. I knew well what that smile meant.

"It's nice to know that, you've always been our number one fan after all." He said as he reached down and patted my head.

The three of us stood in line ordering whatever we wanted to eat, I blushed when Bruce would get close to me. I could feel my heart beating faster whenever I am next to him, these feelings for him hasn't faded a bit at all.

"Why don't you both head back and grab a table? I'll be there with our food." Chucks said to us both, before I could follow Bruce I felt Chucks grab my arm.

"The tension is killing me here, (Y/N). Please just confess your feelings to the lad, you've both been pining each other for years now. I'm getting old here, woman. I want to be an uncle soon!"

He joked but that only made me only more embarrassed. "Shhh I'm getting to it!" I said making sure no one listened what we had said.

I composed myself and quickly followed Bruce until we sat down on a table with him sitting in front of me. "It's really nice to be able to see you again." was the first thing he said when we sat down.

My face must've looked like a tomato due to how hot I felt. "It's n-nice to see you again! I really missed having you around."

"I also noticed that you dyed and cut your hair." He said reaching up and touching my hair. "It suits you. I think you look even more pretty than before."

How am I supposed to answer to that? I felt like passing out. I smiled at him still blushing as I tried my best to hide my face, "You're way too kind, Mr. Bruce." I say making him chuckle as he adjusted his glasses.

"Tell me, (Y/N). How's life been treating you lately? Any news going on?" He excitedly asked getting himself comfortable in his seat.

I chuckled and shook my head. "Nothing much has changed, same work, same schedules, my parents visited me last week and I took them around my working place, I will say things have been a bit weird."

"Hmm? How come?"

"There's been a guy around who hasn't stopped asking me for lunch at work..hmm? Everything alright, Ian?"

"Everything's fine!" He exclaimed and made an odd look. I shook my head and took my his hands in mine.

"There's nothing to worry about, I declined his offer since I've been too busy, besides he isn't my type."

Bruce sighed loudly and seemed relieved at my answer. "It might sound selfish but I'm glad you declined. Who would be there to protect you if something were to happen to you."

I looked at him and noticed he was blushing as well, still not letting go of my hands for a second. "Thing's haven't been easy on tour lately, there's something that's been stuck on my mind ever since you left a year ago."

It had been a long while since I had seen the boys. I wonder what he's been hiding from me. I will say seeing him again makes me want to have him all to myself and not leave.

"I'm back!" We quickly let go of each other and looked at Chucks surprised. "Here's everything we ordered, dig up fellas."

We nodded and began to each at the many desserts we ordered and noticed Bruce has ordered my favorite dessert, he still remembers that I used to order it almost everyday before heading to classes.

"You know tour has been very fun, but there's just one girl who hasn't stopped trying to call this guy." Chucks said almost too loud for the building to listen.

I've known him for being dramatic so I don't know wether to believe in him, but I decided to play along. "Oh really?"

"Has that woman tried calling me? I haven't noticed." Bruce said drinking his coffee. "Besides no woman can be as equally charming as I am."

"Hmm that's true. You are too flamboyant." I said making Bruce almost choke on his coffee. Chucks and I laughed. "I'm just joking..I actually really love how weird, quirky and how artsy you are. You're just my type." I smiled.

Chucks took a sip of his tea and looked at us, "Just date already you lovebirds."

The lights to the stage were dimly lit with the crowd of people calling out the bands name. People all around us were making the final adjustments for the show tonight. Everyone was too busy to stop for a second to speak, wires were being brought up on the stage, microphone stand was adjusted along with keyboard's were being placed in it's correct spot.

I stood aside so people wouldn't run into me or each other, leaving them to do their job. The stage was nearly done.

"(Y/N)." I looked to the side and noticed Bruce now dressed at his finest, in a black suit with matching tie. He looked very handsome. I look to the side to shy to look at him, seeing him dressed like this always stirred something in me.

"You're almost ready for the night?" I asked leaning against the wall and Bruce did the same, crossing his arms and looking at me.

"Almost ready. There's just one thing missing. Come on." I was taken back when he reached down and grabbed my hand pulling me close to him as I followed him.

We made it to the other side of the stage without being seen and stood behind a black curtain, we were all alone. Bruce stood behind me and leaned down to rest his head on my shoulder. I could feel my heart beating faster, could he hear it as well?

"See those people out there." He pouted without moving from me. "They're all here because of you. If it weren't for your support we never would've made it. This is all for you, (Y/N)."

Bruce now began to hug me from behind and I reached up and held him. "I haven't been myself for a year, you're the only person I've been thinking of whenever I have to travel."

I looked up at him and now stood in front of him when he stopped hugging me. He reached his hand and held my face, "I love you, (Y/N). I always get upset when I have to see you leave, won't you stay here and make me the happiest man alive?"

I began to shake and tears began to fall down my face, making Bruce panic when he saw me crying. "Did I say something to upset you?!" You asked concerned.

Quickly I shook my head not wanting him to get upset thinking he had said something we shouldn't have said. "It's nothing like that!" I assured wiping my tears and looking back up at him through his glasses.

"It's just… I've always secretly liked you from the start and I didn't want to get your career involved is all."

"You should never feel like that. All the time you were away, I kept on drawing and making paintings of you, as cheesy as it sounds it made me cope with you bro being around."

That's too sweet. "Ian Bruce… I've always loved you too. I'll make sure to not leave you then." I blushed and took a step closer and I wrapped my arms around him and leaned up and pressed my lips against his.

I felt him hugging me back and deepening the kiss, I had my hand tightly held onto his suit and felt his hand behind my head. Slowly we parted and before we could exchange words someone ran into us and hugged us.

"About time you both confessed. It was dragging on for far too long." Chucks hugged us both and seemed like a proud parent. "I love you both, but he was driving me crazy with always talking about you while on tour. He even said he's writing a song about-"

"That's enough." Bruce said trying for Chucks to not comment on the topic.

"Well, I can't wait to hear my boyfriend's new song then." I smiled looking at them both.

Bruce seemed to blush at the mention of the word 'boyfriend'. "Boyfriend..I love the sound of you saying it." He came over again and kissed the top of my head and hugged me.

"How about after the show we all head out for drinks? My treat for you both." Chucks said winking making us blush again.

Before we could go on talking, they were being called on stage, now ready for the big concert. I wished them both luck when they ran on stage and I stayed behind with the rest of the team behind, ready to enjoy their big night.

#the correspondents #mr bruce #ian bruce x reader #the correspondents x reader #the correspondents band #mr bruce x reader