#part of my resolution is to also make more fanart

[posebean]

2023 the year i draw more things than just pikachu....

[sanagii]

Hi,Tumblr! I’m open for digital and traditional art commissions again! I'll do a lovely art piece for you and/or your loved ones! Lately I’ve been struggling to find new gigs and I really need money to pay my bills, so If you can please consider to commission me. If it's not possible right now, a reblog would me help me a lot! Thank you for your support ♥

The art commission service includes:

Work in process updates

Monochrome background with simple elements if requested.

Transparent background version if needed

If asked, a Cropped version for client

And of course, full resolution png file.

Delivering time:

Your commission will be delivered in 2-3 weeks (Or more, for bigger projects). If you need te art for an specific date please let me know and I'll try have it ready in time! Send me a message if you have any questions.

ADDITIONAL CHARACTER INFO: Prices are below each example, 75% of the base price for each character. *Busts with additional characters are not available. Pets can be added for 60% of the base price!

Terms of service:

I will draw anything (OCs, fanart, real people, humanoid and pets) except mecha, because I’m really bad at it, sorry! I’m okay with NSFW as long is not really explicit. I’m OK with nude art.

Extra detailed accesories like wings, weapons, amors will count as extra details and they will be charged starting at $6 USD. Simple backgrounds such as monochrome bgs, gradients and simple compositions have no extra cost. For detailed backgrounds please send me your ideas and I’ll send you a quote :).

Payments are only through PayPal invoices in USD (US Dollars) or their equivalent in MXN (Mexican Pesos), for the protection of both sides. I also can take Ko-fi.

I Accept two-part payments. I’ll start working on the piece as soon as I receive the first part, first updates will be sent in less than 15 days. The rest of the invoice would be paid before I send the finished illustration.

These prices are only for personal commissions. If you need art for commercial purposes, please read my full TOS (link below) or send me an e-mail and I’ll gladly make a price quote for the commercial rigths.

I have the rights of every commission made. Please don’t take the credits of the art or reproduct it on commercial products.

For more important info, please READ MY FULL TOS.

How to commission?

If you’re interested to commission, please send an email to sanagie4@gmail.com or send me a DM filling this form:

Character/person name(s):

Art style: (Colored sketch, full rendered, handmade watercolor)

Size: (Bust, half or full body)

Photo references:

Outfit/costume references:

Quick Description of the character(s): (Age, height, hairstyle, complexion, personality, likes)

Pose, background and/or extra details

PayPal e-mail:

If you have any questions please leave a comment or send me a message and I’ll respond as quickly as I can! Thank you for your interest ♥ 

PS: You can also commission me directly on Vgen and Artistree!

Twitter | Instagram | Support me on Ko-fi | Portfolio | Carrd

[edennill]

If Tolkien characters had Tumblr blogs part 2:

part 1

Finduilas:

url: waitingtothewind

pfp: drawing of a fictional crush in pastel colours (babygirl fulfills her royal duty to exercise patronage over artists by comissioning reams of fanart lol)

bio: ✧˖･* princess finduilas of nargothrond :) ✧˖･* 47 ✧˖･* poetry appreciator ✧˖･* romantic at heart ✧˖･* girl of many fandoms ✧˖･* favourite animal: doggos ✧˖･* favourite food: strawberry juice ✧˖･* and if I had a voice that could make mountains melt I would walk over stars just to see how it felt ✧˖･*

title: ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧ .˚ₓ

has a very pink custom theme with a fancy font. runs a fandom/aesthetic blog and stays clear of discourse. writes really good meta that is quite popular and poems that get notes in the single digits. doesn't really know how to deal with anon hate. participates in every tag game she comes across.

Maeglin:

url: keeps changing it between @molelol and @twilitdark because he likes small animals, but wants to sound edgy.

pfp: keeps changing it between a baby mole and the kind of very dark photo where you can't really see what it's supposed to be.

bio: M / not a minor

title: the dark under the trees

guards his personal info incredibly closely (a good practice, but how much of it is due to his father having been so controlling that he learned secrecy early on is up for discussion). rarely posts, mostly reblogs photos and shitposts. vaguely vents about his idril/tuor/gondolin/treason problems. when he gets into discussions with people he can be uncomfortably fierce, has sent anon hate on occasion.

Celebrimbor:

url: craftingsilver

pfp: red eight pointed star (default variation, not technically fëanorian) on yellow background

bio: older/younger than you think | look I've seen the Trees that's enough | Noldorin jewelsmith | male

title: time and soul, wrought and tempered

mostly posts and reblogs crafting tiktoks and tips, sometimes adds a dash of science, philosophy or something personal. has made a resolution to filter out any posts pertaining to his family on his dashboard and keeps to it almost till the end. shows a strong sense of humour and has gathered quite a following.

Idril:

url: celebrin-does-things

pfp: blurred photo of her with her back to the camera

bio: 500s - architect, wife and mother - everyone is welcome

title: "ammë, there's winter in my boots"

started off as a miscellaneous blog, but shifted to being mostly about Eärendil's shenanigans. she vaguely vents about maeglin/gondolin/cousin's treason sometimes, but still comes off as way more laid back than irl. hardly used her tumblr before her son was born and still treats it mostly as a place to document things he has said + a way to talk with like three treasured mutuals. the architect part in bio is mostly a ruse because she has only ever completed one or two projects but can hardly reveal she's a princess, can she? (before the fall of nargothrond if she got on tumblr it was to nag Finduilas to remove her personal info from bio hah)

@eri-pl, this is in part because you asked (a while ago, sorry), though I'm afraid I don't have much to say about all your suggestions. I prefer not to get into Sauron's headspace actually, but the idea of him having access to social media is horrifying lol. And Pharazon has all the worst characteristics of Reddit atheists, non-ironic modern white supremacists and racist trolls rolled into one with the added horror of the new unsavoury state cult. Míriel is not allowed a sim card🙁😬

also I'm just now realising I tagged a compatriot in something I wrote at 3 am so if you have time stamps on you now know my messed up sleep schedule and if you don't I've just told you lol but never mind.

[revelingrexan]

an assignment in my 3D modeling class was to create two busts (head and shoulders) and spend two hours on them each.

we were allowed to even make fanart. so i. uh.

i got inspired by this art print

and i made a duck man.

"what if i add hair to the duck man"

I LAUGHED SO HARD. I DIDN'T EXPECT IT TO WORK SO WELL

anyway here's the finished version. i hadn't planned on giving him his hair when i started, just the horns, halo, and clothes, but the hair REALLY WORKED, SO--

(more angles and further detail on the assignment under the cut!)

____

(this class, we're mainly using a program called ZBrush. highly discounted for students at participating schools, $10 for six months of access)

this class taught by my particular professor, the first few weeks' assignments were incredibly forgiving:

weeks 1 and 2 of getting an assignment was "four busts, spending one hour on each." (so, eight busts total in those two weeks)

weeks 3 and 4 of getting assignments was "two busts, spending two hours on each." (four busts total in those two weeks)

each week had a few different parameters, such as not using subtools or yes using subtools (a subtool is basically a separate "part" or "piece," like the hair, halo, and several other parts on this model), having the model's final resolution set at different levels, or using specific techniques the professor went over in class

but the MAIN GOAL of the assignments was to just get comfortable in the program. spend time in it so it hopefully won't be so scary

the professor EMPHASIZED, MULTIPLE TIMES, that he wanted us to stop at the one or two hour mark and not spend hours and hours making the models perfect. that, YES, the main goal was as said above, just to get comfortable, not to make masterpieces

i've failed multiple 3D modeling classes (i'm much more comfortable animating, which is making things actually move), and this is the first where we had assignments like this. it was such a relief. (this guy is seriously one of the best professors i've had, for any subject)

so yeah, there's a lot of stuff i'd like to change on this model, and it woulda been fun to include a little flame under the halo, but it's also nice to see what i did manage to get done, given the constraints.

(also, again saying that i've failed multiple 3D modeling classes. which means this is NOT my first time in this 3D modeling program lol. i may not have passed some classes, but i did get SOME practice in while taking them, and i did gain SOME understanding of what i'm doing. so, to anyone who may be struggling with this or similar programs, IT'S OKAY)

anyway, sharing what the professor assigned because it's a good mentality that helped me (especially with the assignments being so low stakes), and i hope it'll help other people too: just spend time getting used to new things. just get practice in! :)

[eclectic-sassycoweyes]

Bonjour!

🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

Bonjour Cig! This took me ages to get to I’m so sorry 🫣😫 (and it also turned into an essay as always🥲)

🍄 - Share a head canon for one of your favorite ships or pairings

- Tarlos😌

I have this head canon that is (partly) based on one of by very best friends! She very much wears her emotions on her sleeve and sometimes so much that frustration/embarrassment/tiredness/anxiety/whatever else can come out as accusatory😅

It’s very incompatible with my way of dealing with conflict which we’ve talked about many times - I hardly ever get annoyed unless I’ve rationally processed and decided that I have reason to be annoyed - and so it can be difficult for me to deal in a good way with it when strong emotions come out at me suddenly that hasn’t been processed yet and when it’s undeserved - even though I’d rather see behind it and care for whatever she’s going through instead of getting defensive🙃

I think TK and Carlos can be somewhat similar! + plus some more character traits that play in:

We know (or it seems pretty fanon) that Carlos tends to bottle up his emotions, whereas TK rather sometimes can’t hold it in - he speaks first, processes later sometimes. I think that Carlos sees himself as a pretty rational and reasonable guy, with a tinge of timidness and fear of being vulnerable - so he likes to wait to put feelings into words until he’s processed them rationally himself and has control over them and feels he has the right words.

The problem is just that Carlos didn’t grow up learning to process and discuss emotions so those parts are actually quite difficult for him, and sometimes he doesn’t ever feel comfortable sharing - and thus it becomes bottled up.

TK is the opposite - I think that growing up with Gwyn and Owen, plus many a therapy sessions means that he’s actually very good at talking about, and understanding and processing his feelings - and other’s.

But in contrast to Carlos, TK often lets his emotions out before he’s processed them, which sometimes results in him being accusatory because he lets it out on someone else and sometimes hurts Carlos without meaning to.

I think this is both one of the ways they’re extremely compatible, but also sometimes incompatible when it comes to conflict resolution!

TK is learning from Carlos to take a breath sometimes and communicate that he needs space/what he’s actually feeling instead of running out without a word or saying something he doesn’t want to say.

Carlos is learning from TK process his feelings, put them into words, but also to sometimes just let himself feel.

And we know that Carlos is excellent at being patient with TK, being his own soft dom self and seeing behind what’s going on and comforting and calming TK down - sometimes by just saying silly jokes or giving him kisses🥰

But we also know that people don’t always have the energy to be perfect all the time and so relationship aren’t perfect like this all the time either😅

So in my head canon this is one of the most frequent catalysts of their conflicts - sometimes TK will lash out and Carlos just doesn’t have the energy to catch himself in time to react all calm and comforting - he will get hurt and then he’ll get angry/annoyed at TK for being unreasonable and hurting him when he doesn’t deserve it - and he’ll call TK irrational or something like that which will only make it worse or he’ll just be baffled and leave it and they’ll spend a couple hours not talking until one of them apologizes🥲

🎨 - link your favorite piece of fanart and explain why you like it

Gosh this was so DIFFICULT!! There is so much great art in this fandom omg! I scrolled through my own fanart tag and I wanted to ref to all of them!! In the end I decided to stick to a theme 🦎and went with this art:

By @whatsintheboxmh

Just - the internal chaos in TK and the calm, a bit confounded Carlos who is just leaning into being spontaneously seduced (at least he thinks that’s what’s happening😂).

The emojis that fit that perfectly, and the dynamic of TK’s hand contrasting with the calm of Carlos’ body language - it’s just all in there and it’s pure 👌 perfektion. Equally parts adorable and so funny 🤣🥰

To go with it, I had to link this edit:

By @ronensass

Idk even know what to say - it’s world class hilarity from start to finish and I don’t even know how to edit like that it must have taken so much work!

The way Carlos at one points go full on 👺👹 gets me every time 🤣🤣🤣

🪐 - Name three good things going on in your life right now

1) I got an affordable two bedroom apartment in the city from the 1st of July!!!! 🙏🥳

It means I don’t have to worry about having a place to live once my studies start up again. I get to, for the first time after moving out from my parents, have a bedroom AND a living room!!! And all to myself so I can collect my spoons, decorate how I want, and concentrate on studies and fandom!! The lease is only for a year but I’m so excited!

2) I finally made the decision to go traveling again, this time to help my friends sail the boat home some of the way - it means I’m leaving in two days and crossing the Atlantic from Miami to the Azores. It was a super difficult decision - I’m almost full on experiences atm and I’ll be away from my friends and summer at home, and fandom and exam-writing for another month. And also I’m hella nervous😳

But every time I do something big I’m hella anxious, and every time I’m a so much healthier and more adventurous version of myself after. And I’ll feel like it makes my travels come full circle, crossing the Atlantic is a total bucket list thing for me inspite of my anxiety, and the timing fits perfectly with moving in to my apartment when I get home and still have time for summer and exams. It’s all very exciting and I’m so privileged to get this chance!!! 🙏⛵️

3) I’m writing more, and getting ideas for fandom content in general. My fandom brain is turned on in a way that feels good, (although I’m also excited to find a healthier balance in it when studies start up and I’m living where my friends and life are at). I feel like what I’m actually writing is OK and that it will get finished and posted at some point and I’m excited for that!

A small 4) that you didn’t ask for hehe

- my bike got stolen. Which sucked. I had a very close relationship with that bike and it was expensive - the most expensive thing I owned.

But!! I actually got insurance a couple of years back. And I called them, and got almost full funding for a new one! It made me feel very adult😌

Why do these always get so damn long??!! Gosh, sorry and thank to everyone who made it this far😅😅

Thank you again Cig!! <3

[thotpuppy]

✨Bidding Now Open!✨

I'm a bit late in making a promo post, but I just wanted to share with you that I'm offering both a Teen Wolf fanfic AND any fandom fanart for @fandomtrumpshate this year! It's my first year participating. I think it's a really cool project, and I'm really happy to be a part of it. (:

My Offers:

(long post including art examples)

DoughritoArt Auction #1 (^ click to see listing!) Organizations this auction benefits: Bidder's choice of any of the listed groups (See full list.) Type of fanwork: Fan art Subtype(s): Banner, Book cover, Drawing/painting/etc., Photo manip Fandom(s): Any Length/scope: Minimum bid is $10 for simple edit, eBook cover, or plain illustration. $20+ full book layout or more complex illustration. $40+ willing to do complex painterly illustrations. Basically, the more you donate, the more complex and detailed the result. Fan art details: High Resolution/print quality Illustration, Banner, or Book Cover. Willing to do full sleeve book cover (Cover, Spine, and Back [including text]) as well. Comfortable with Edits or Illustration, capable of using commercial use assets, happy to discuss specifics. Especially interested in: I am particularly fond of stories involving queer romance, trans characters, and occult imagery. I am fond of both historical and modern fantasy. I really enjoy working with Original stories, but I also like 'underrepresented' fandoms, older fandoms, and superhero media. Unwilling to address: No extreme gore (i.e. Splatterpunk), no graphic horror (mild horror is okay), not super fond of extreme musculature. Struggle with illustrating of anthropomorphism, mecha/machinery, scantily clad/nude women. Other notes: I would like to have a very direct communication with the bidder. I want to make sure I am able to tailor your art to exactly what you want. I would like a lot of input at the initial stage, so I have a good idea of what direction to go (i.e. illustration vs edit and what subject matter), and I would like feedback when presented with multiple options. Special interests: Poly ships, Canonically trans or nonbinary characters, Trans or nonbinary interpretations of canon characters

ThePurebloodPrat Auction #1 (^ click to see listing!) Organizations this auction benefits: Bidder's choice of any of the listed groups (See full list.) Type of fanwork: Written fanwork Subtype(s): fan fiction (new) Fandom(s): Teen Wolf Highest rating: E Length/scope: Depends how much the bidder contributes. Bidding starts at $5 for 2k+ words. Every $5 adds 5k words, i.e. $10 = 7k, $15=12k. Maximum word count minimum is 25k. Minimum Bid: $5 Especially interested in: I am most interested in Sterek, Stackson, Scallison+Stiles, Jydia+Stiles, or other main MLM pairings. I am very open to poly ships. I enjoy some dark themes, but typically prefer to write main pairings in healthier relationships while the dark elements are external in longer plotfics, I don't mind the main pairing featuring dark themes from a kink-oriented perspective. (i.e. if you'd like 5k of a character getting nonconned, I'm cool, but 20k of yandere!character stalking their partner, I am less cool.) I enjoy transmasc characters. fave tropes: creature!Stiles (werewolf, raven shifter, vampire, otherwise supernatural), magic!Stiles, mpreg, Omegaverse, canon divergent, med.fantasy, college au fave characters: Stiles, Derek, Jackson, Lydia, Peter, Erica, Isaac, Allison, Scott, Parrish, Finstock, Sheriff, Boyd, Liam, Corey, Danny I enjoy writing complicated people and complex relationships. I enjoy creative world building. I tend to write very introspectively. Noncon, underage: OK Unwilling to address: Not super into Bad!characters, but willing within reason. No Scat, no bugs, no necrophilia, no Major Character Death, no genderbending. Less extreme, I am less fond of: All human/no wolves AU, Post Apocalyptic AU, Time travel Other notes: I would like to have a consistent communicative relationship. I tend to go weeks without working on something and then binge write a whole huge chunk at once. I would love to be able to shoot a few ideas at you randomly and have you respond in a day or two, to make sure you like the direction I'm going. Special interests: Poly ships, Trans or nonbinary interpretations of canon characters

Here are a few examples of cover art and illustrations I've done:

[carsonian]

Cap-IM Rec Week: Absolute Faves Monday

@cap-ironman, in no particular order:

"One-Man Army" by Captain_Panda

Takes place immediately after the Chitauri attack in Avengers 1. Steve is running himself into the ground. Tony notices. Then Steve gets knocked down hard. And Tony intervenes.

Mt. Everest. The fic that I've made 20+ fanarts for, the one that's been ricocheting around my noggin since I first read it. Ahh, OMA. You big, bombastic beauty.

"Role of a Lifetime" by Annie D (scaramouche) (@no-gorms)

It’s been almost a year since Tony was rescued from the Ten Rings by SHIELD. In this time, Tony has forged a new path for Stark Industries and taken on a new under-the-radar role as a consultant for SHIELD. Tony’s SHIELD job eventually brings him into contact with the newest Captain America, who’s a pretty cool guy, though for security reasons Tony can’t know his real name or see his face without the Captain America mask. This is also about the time that Tony notices a certain Mr. Stevens, a new hire in SI’s corporate office...

This AU….this AU… I tell ya, THIS AU….this is some high-quality, top-grade, cutting-edge, organically grown, grass-fed, imdb ten of ten, five-star michelin, test-tube perfection, new york bestseller, billboard luster, knockout buster shiz.

"Meso Park" by Captain_Panda

As the head theropod keeper for A.I.M.'s extraordinary new project, Steve Rogers wants a smooth summer opening. Then the unthinkable happens, on the same day the investor of a lifetime arrives, ready to throw his support behind the world's most ambitious theme park. Can Meso Park survive the upheaval? Can Steve? Tune in to this dinosaur-themed adventure inspired by Michael Crichton's classic, Jurassic Park.

I've said it many times before, I'll say it again: if Meso Park has 100 fans, I'm one of em. If Meso Park has 10 fans, I'm one of em. If Meso Park has 1 fan, that fan is me. If Meso Park has 0 fans, I am no longer alive. It's not yet finished and I'm already sure it's the fic of the decade. That's just Meso Park for you.

"Gather Ye Rosebuds" by lazywriter7

It isn’t like that, for many people. For them, love is the point: the axis around which everything else revolves, the destination at the end of a long, tumultuous journey. Realisation, confession, resolution. Happy ending. That’s how it goes. And love was a point in Tony Stark’s journey, except it came towards the beginning, rather than the end. The issue, instead of the solution. He hasn’t been alone on the trip, of course. Steve’s been there: sometimes three steps behind, sometimes waiting up ahead by the turn of the road. They’ve sprinted and stumbled, sometimes stood still and refused to move on ahead, sometimes thought of turning away altogether. Steve and Tony’s story began after they fell in love, and this is about how they fell in everything else.

I read this Way Back When, and I remember thinking I'd never seen such a convincing portrayal of MCU SteveTony and how a genuine relationship between the two of them could emerge while still accounting for (hold your puke) canon. Still rock-solid all the way through; knock against the fic at any point, and it will answer back with a fun two-part joke. Lush stuff.

"The First Time I Went Dancing Sober" by schemingreader

Steve Rogers is a great physical therapist who works with sick kids. Tony Stark is a damaged biotech engineering genius who really wants to be one of the good guys.

I've recc'd this before so I won't blabber on but rest assured it is heartwrenchingly good.

"But Your Spirit is Untainted; I Can Dedicate You Still" by BlossomsintheMist (@blossomsinthemist)

The incursions crisis is over, and Steve and Tony have gotten back together, but nothing is the same as it was. Fearing that things are broken between them forever, Steve asks Tony something unexpected to try to make things right. Or, Steve asks if Tony really meant what he said when he asked Steve to hurt him. Sequel to Might Have Cherished You More Wisely.

I couldn't give less of a FUCK that this isn't technically finished. It is finished, to ME. The character-building in this story is just rich and fleshy and the stuff of true finesse. I read this every once in a while just to have the taste of masterful storytelling on my tongue. You should, too ;)

"Sins of Omission" by Kiyaar (@kiyaar)

A Post-Civil War, Pre-Secret Invasion AU where Steve is dead, Tony's a mess, and everything sucks. In which Tony deals poorly with Steve's death, falls off the wagon, sees ghosts, and misses a lot. Oh, and the Skrulls are about to invade.

When I first came across this fic, I devoured it in about 2 days and proceeded to be devoured by it for the next 2 months. :) Lovely stuff!

"Catechism" by manic_intent (@manic-intent)

Inspired by fanart seen on tumblr, this is an End of Days story, with all the Avengers as Archangels. Tony had always known that he was a special snowflake. He just hadn't realized exactly how special.

Listen. I'm a simple gal. This ticks off all the boxes, uh-hello!

"not gruesome, just human" by isozyme (@isozyme)

“I need to crash on someone’s couch for a while. Your couch. I need to crash on your couch,” Tony says. Steve’s mouth opens. If he asks why Tony’s going to bolt, he can feel the certainty of it under his sternum. He doesn’t have a sternum anymore, just a tangle of metal under his skin. Too many things have punched through it to get to his heart. There hasn’t been enough bone left to reconstruct anything made of flesh in a long time. “There’s borscht on the stove,” Steve says.

Raw. Punchy. Kind of makes me want to weep. Kind of makes me smile. Lotsa stuff that you can only write about when you've been down and which after reading will lift you right back up.

And I'll stop myself there because I could definitely just go on and on and on.

Go forth: SteveTony lovers, fuckers, ambassadors, champions, perverts, freaks, losers, dreamers, legends! Read, re-read, kudo, comment, spread legs and spread love.

[orionsangel86]

Welp. Okay I watched the last episode of ofmd.

To sum up my thoughts on this season I will say that whilst I enjoyed it and felt the love and passion and respect for its queer fanbase throughout, it didnt hit me the same way the first season did. It felt like maybe a little bit of that season 1 magic was missing and for that I very much blame Max's cutting off 2 episodes and slashing the budget. They had a lot of story they wanted to tell that would have worked so much better in 10 episodes.

I consider the last 3 episodes of season 1 some of the best TV I have seen in my life. From the use of The Chain in ep 8, through the dramatic highs and lows of eps 9 and 10 it was edge-of-your-seat drama and I was in awe at the creators that put it together. But one of the reasons why those 3 eps were so good is because the drama and the pivotal moments were given time to breath.

If those 3 eps were given the same lack of time and budget as season 2, no doubt they all would have been crammed into 1 episode and it would not have had the same impact.

If anything that last episode should have played out across two, with Izzy's death being the half way point and cliffhanger ending leading to a final battle and somewhat happy resolution.

I'm not mad at Izzy's death. If anyone was gonna die, it was gonna be him. His status as Blackbeards enabler and sometimes mentor is over. For Ed to truly be free, I think Izzy always had to go. From a storytelling perspective it makes perfect sense, even though I am sure a lot of fans are absolutely heartbroken about it.

Another casualty of the reduced screentime meant certain original cast members weren't given anywhere near the amount of screentime they should have had. I was expecting a lot more focus on Jim as they were basically the third lead of s1 due to them getting the same backstory as Ed and Stede. All of the crew appear to have had drastically reduced parts which does feel like a big loss to me.

Its funny actually, OFMD S2 suffered from the opposite problem to GOS2. OFMD had too much story to tell in a limited timeframe, GOS2 had very little story to tell outside of the flashbacks and probably too much time given to it. Both shows season 2s suffered from tremendously bad pacing issues.

Also, the one thing the final episode made so obvious to me, is the uncertainty of getting a s3 renewal. It is so clear in the way they tried to wrap things up in a happy bow as best they could, so that if they do get cancelled it leaves fans at least somewhat satisfied. I hate this though. I hate that studios are so fickle and ruthless that creators have to gamble with good quality writing and avoid cliffhangers because of asshole executives who dont actually care about the stories.

Because of the fast pacing, and the fear of cancellation, it felt more like a rush happy ending instead of a part way point in a bigger story, with important character development still to come. Perhaps I need more time to absorb the story in a full rewatch, but im not exactly itching for more at this point, whilst also not really being satisfied with what I got either. I wish we had left Ed and Stede in at least some minor peril, like have them captured and threatened with hanging but at least in a good place romantically, so that we can start speculating about what kind of escape plan they will come up with in season 3. Leaving them in a dilapidated old inn somewhere just felt wrong to me. Instead of ending the season with the stakes sky high (like season 1) it feels like they left season 2 with zero stakes at all, instead of at least a happy medium. At this point we should be turning to fanfiction and wondering what happens next, but instead I'm left thinking "okay then. That was good. What can I watch next?" I don't need to bury myself in fanfic and fanart to feed the hyperfixation this time around, and that is where I feel the most loss.

I'm sure others will have hugely different reactions to me though. Perhaps my expectations were too high? Perhaps my GO obsession just isn't leaving room for OFMD this time? But then again, I think if GOS2 hadn't ended the way it did, I wouldn't still be so obsessed with that either.

Sigh. I dunno. It was a good fun show and will no doubt still be hugely popular with devoted fans, but for me I just can't say it cast the same spell over me as it did last year.

[kawaakari-orchestra]

KWKO announcement: story progress, voting, birthday announcements and more!

Hi! Jay here.

I'm happy to say that, despite the recent lack of activity (as well as a bad flare up on my side and subsequent burn-out, but, you know, what happens, happens) I'm still working on writing the story! Mid-August deadline might be pushing it at this point because of all the difficulties, but hey, baby steps.

However...

Here's a topic to discuss: formatting. Yes, again.

Originally my idea was hosting everything as a literature for Toyhouse; however, I somewhat overestimated my prowess with HTML language (which is none, by the way). As a result the pages... Work, for the most part, but they're somewhat wonky depending on your screen resolution, and might not look exactly aesthetically pleasing if you're unlucky.

In addition, nothing works on the mobile yet. While I have some confidence I'm able to make the text, if for nothing else, readable at the cost of aesthetics, due to Toyhouse-specific code issues, I probably wouldn't be able to make it pleasant to read.

I'm predominantly a mobile user due to my disability and I consider everything being accessible from mobile to be an issue of accessibility. I was originally planning to bypass the issue with either a mobile accessible page (proven to be harder than I expected) or visual images gallery accessible from google drive (not accessible from screen readers). Now with Toyhouse being as unwieldy as it is, I'm wondering if just google drive is the way to go.

I'm still caught in the dilemma, but I also want to hear what other people have to say! This might just help me sort out my priorities. No results option. You fall for what you stand for. If you don't care, feel free to choose whatever.

Here's a list for pros and cons, if you're curious:

Toyhouse

• Easier navigation;

• Eventual character pages up and accessible from, ideally, all literature pieces;

• Will likely be google-able;

• Able to select and copy text, if that's your thing;

• Easier for me to fix typos and issues;

• More aesthetic and orderly in general;

- Likely not mobile accessible;

- Likely to break visually on some devices; majorly an issue of spacing;

- I'm just so bad at it to be honest.

Google docs

• Uniform format for everyone;

• More visual standardisation;

• More reliable as far as third-party storage goes;

• Downloadable to read offline!

- Very hard to navigate, if possible at all;

- Much harder for me personally to maintain;

- Not as private or anonymous for reading;

- No copying the text directly as those are just images fixed in place.

You don't need an account to use either of those, as far as I'm aware. What it'll be? (A pain for me to deal with, in any case. Why am I doing this to myself?)

Happy birthday, Kozaki Karin!

That's right! Today, on August 4th (in some timezones still), Kozaki Karin celebrates her birthday! 🎉

Let's wish her a good one!

We've received a shocking amount of fanart; I'll be reblogging it on here shortly after releasing the birthday menu lines! Thank you everyone!

Our next birthday party will occur on September 30th, this time for Kaedehara Akari! I'll make my priority to make information like this public ahead of time; I've learned my lesson.

Until next time!

- 🌻

[mathcat7]

Morgana’s 2022 Year in Review

So, another year comes to a close. Lots of interesting developments, as always, and I like looking back and seeing what's changed and what I've succeeded with, and what I want to do over the next year.

The Successes

So for starters, I think the biggest boon has been me getting to spend shy of a month with my girlfriend over the course of the year. I love her so much, and I'm so glad we got to spend so much time together, and that we reached our first anniversary together.

Secondly, I closed the year off getting promoted to a full time position, a big step towards achieving self-sufficiency down the line. This was a big goal of mine for this year, and I'm very glad I was both able to achieve it, and that I've been able to use that for pushing forwards other things I enjoy.

The Surprises

This summer kicked off an FGC arc for me, where I used P4U2's rollback announcement and implementation to finally learn how to play fighting games. I didn't become impressive, by any means, but I had a lot of fun, and I was honestly satisfied with how quickly I was able to catch on. As a bonus, this also resurged my interest in making and editing videos, which eventually culminated in my clip compilation, A Very S'okay Persona.

Unfortunately, this was cut short by my going full-time, but I still cherish what I learned and how it's shaped my creative process going forward.

I commissioned quite a bunch of art pieces this year. Most of them were Fire Emblem fanart, especially for beloved best girl Mozu, but I also some original pieces for my recently designed online persona. Writing design docs for sending to commission artists was a nice process for clearing the rust from some of my writing skills, especially where descriptions are concerned.

My transition is still going smoothly. Medicine-wise I switched to needle monotherapy earlier this year and it's been generally better for me, at least from my perspective. (A lot less awkward planning to take pills around mealtime, a lot less in the way of unwanted side effects.) I got really into my voice training, to the point where I was consistently passing over phone calls!

I’ve been bouncing around a few of the modding sub-communities and ended up becoming a server blorbo. Okay I jest, but in all seriousness I’m glad I’ve been able to make some new friends online without it being predicated upon someone else’s preexisting dynamics. I’m glad to not be a friend of a friend this time! (Now if only that could extend to irl)

Of course, it's not all sunny. I've still been struggling with the transition not being properly acknowledged by the family, with those feelings being further exacerbated by attempts of doing an official coming out seemingly falling on deaf ears. I still have hangups about this iust becoming my cross to bear, but it's clear that there isn't much else I can do/say at this point. It sucks, but it's whatever, and at least now I can put my energy elsewhere.

The Plans

As for my goals for 2023, I'm still sticking to not making full on resolutions and instead keeping on general directions I want to work towards, as such:

- I wanna continue making videos. Maybe not FGC related, but I do wanna pivot my focus back to FE. I like Excelblem's format of video style, but I'm not someone with challenge run smarts. I think I'd rather do summations that would appeal more to casual players, and talk about the little parts of the games that I love. I'm hoping that Engage's release in 3 weeks is a good catalyst for this idea, although I'll have an uphill battle with my job.

- I want to devote more time to writing Royals of the Tempest. My writer's block has finally broken again, and I want to use the time I'm not actively working (or making videos) towards trying to get as much done with RotT as possible. There's a lot to get done, so I'm unsure if a manuscript would be ready in one year, but I'm hopeful about having most of it done down the line.

- I don't think moving out is something that'll happen soon, especially since I'm waiting on my girlfriend to finish up college, so my hope is to keep building up my nest egg so when that time comes, we can be prepared. I know I'm not in the best living space mentally speaking, but I think I can bide my time until then.

- Of course, I will make an exception towards commissions. I love commissioning art, and I do want to keep that up. I'm hoping to get to do some bigger ideas this time around, especially now that I have better integrated myself with some artist schedules.

- And lastly, I want to be bolder about myself. I've joked with some of my friends about the start of the slut arc, and while I'm not so inclined to cross the en-ess-eff-double-u line just yet, I am feeling more and more confident that I could try doing saucier stuff, or at the very least stop tip-toeing around stuff I've been holding back on. What that looks like remains to be seen, but I will let my friends now when and if that happens.

So, that’s all I had to ponder on. Hope you all have a wonderful 2023 and I hope to see you all again.

(Enjoy this pic of me trying to clear out the twists in my hair lmaoooooo)

[johannwolfgangvongoethe]

Umineko, again

episode 1, part 7

i am not entering the Danger Zone where i want to see fanart of natsuhi but i cannot look her up bc i need my mind to be absolutely unblemished. if i saw a spoiler now, that would ruin everything. i actually care about this enough to actively avoid and fear spoilers. thats how serious it is getting. usually i really dont care.

so. back to the story.

eva suggests the servants did this together and its obvious she also fears what they could do, should they find out she knows. this makes sense superficially. perhaps it was even done under the directions of kinzo or natsuhi. man eva really fucking hates her. except why would the servants do this and why would shannon be a victim, too? and why would they draw that weird summoning circle on the sheds door? perhaps the closest theory that makes sense is that kinzo was behind it all and possibly got help from genji but even so... getting rid of his children and doing weird black magic shit might make sense but again, why shannon?

if this was an ace attorney game, we would now collect evidence. but it isnt and we cant because its dangerous. that would be too easy and umineko really loves to take its time before it presents you with conclusions.

never heard of her

concerningly, maria has entered her joker arc now. i cannot say whether this is her or beatrice using her as a vessel, much like i think she did during the reading of the letter. i just highly suspect shes doing that. ehhhh, not sure this needed three different cg's that get creepier each time. you're overdoing it man. its creepier if theres just a Little off about maria's face. this is my personal subjective criticism.

in general, i personally dislike the creepy child portrayal they started doing with maria. mostly bc i think its corny and instead of making things More Scary and creating tension, its just ruining the built up atmosphere. for me.

later on there is discussion whether her behaviour can be written off as Purely roleplay but i am not quite buying this. there has got to be more to it. then again if there is One thing that can change a childs speech pattern like this and influence their entire body language and behaviour.... it gotta be a witch hyperfixation and urge to roleplay.

so what does all of that mean!!!! huh!!!!!! it seems important to me that breaking free off bonds is a topic in this. everyone dead seems to at least share this common burden. some sort of social obligation to bound them. who doesnt!! but this seems to be an important topic in this game.

battler's personal resolution haver theme is really good. he is so funny. he is not buying any of this. from a rational standpoint it is correct of his to keep his guard up and suspect the worst of his questionable relative. from a meta standpoint it is extremely funny and bizarre he would rather blame a relative than escape into the more calming belief that a magical being could be causing all of this. even when the servants all straight up tell him beatrice is a person.

battler said NO escapism. i accuse my aunt of murder like a man. and then he also threatened the servants into talking, i guess. well, let him be mean, he has lost so much....

it seems battler specifically was just born with the inability to see or talk to her. skill issue. so she has to communicate with him through others? AND THE THING IS he is right. there is no reason to believe in a witch. he might look silly to others but i get him though.

is this beatrice in the room with us right now

servants of course accept beatrice as the culprit no problem and they seem to just straight up know that the six dead people were choosen by chance. interesting. so thats just one of the normal game rules? i guess? i had been wondering.

also i had not expected my comment about how natsuhi living reminded me of a game of werewolf to be this accurate. so maria's charm actually did it's due. wtf my questions are actually getting answered.

ALSO

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING OF THEM ALL

natsuhi with a gun

the lore for that gun is so fucking funny. grandpas western culture love is so unserious if you Are the western culture reading this

[vote-gaara]

Do you have any fanart or visuals of your oc?

I actually don't, and never really thought of commissioning an art piece before. I suppose I have such a strong sense of how I "see" her in my mind, that it would be almost uncanny to see her in art form.

I do have a very ultra specific description of her though.

Kaiya:

Height:

Kaiya started off strong in the height department, but began petering out somewhere at the age of 12, where she really stretched to getting to her 5'5 adult height. Her shortness is likely the cause of malnutrition, as her twin is 2 inches taller than her. She doesn't seem to mind her shortness, and will play it to her advantage most times.

Hair:

She has dull brown hair which is much shorter in the back than it is in the front due to her failing at giving herself "shoulder length hair." Due to her crooked cut, she wears a half pony tail, where the sides of her hair are pulled back, and the shorter piece in the back is down. Her short bangs are parted to the left. Her haircut - like most of her strange features - improves with age. She likes to wear small bells attached to her hair tie because total silence tends to make her feel off-put. She also has a red, bell-less, hair tie she wears when she can't be stomping around and making a bunch of noise like a tyrant.

Eyes and complexation:

She has blue eyes. Her complexion is fair, but normally with a rosy quality to it from being sun kissed. Around the age of 16 she started to develop some freckles across her face, likely due to constant sun exposure. She needs glasses and likes the ones with big frames, regardless of appearance. She doesn't wear them, though, but will insist that they aren't lost when you ask (they totally are).

Clothing:

Her clothing is also really strange. Most notably is a coat that she is weirdly possessive of, mostly because her father made it for her. It is made of suede leather (more on the tan side for colour) and has animal fur around the cuffs, the neck and the bottom trim. The coat features your normal button up pattern, aside from two toggle buttons that go over the bust. She wears this coat no matter the weather.

Underneath her coat she wears "an assortment of funny T-shirts she found in a donation box." These are referenced, but rarely shown as she declines to take her coat off in most circumstances. Gaara has seen two officially - One is clearly a PJ shirt that says "cat nap" and has a drawing of a big, fat calico cat snoozing. The second is a bright orange men's shirt that says in big, black letters 'MAKE IT HAPPEN'.

She wears full length black leggings and suede leather shoes that are hand-made (also a gift from her father).

Attractiveness:

She would perhaps be unremarkable in most circumstances, easily blending into a crowd. As she ages, some people begin referring to her as "cute".

Notable traits:

All of her fingers are a pale white, the skin slightly thicker, in comparison to the rest of her complexion. This is due to all of them having been scarred by frostbite at a young age. She also has only three fingernails left: Both her thumbs and her pointer finger on her right hand. She only has some of her left ring finger, as a good quarter or more fell off due to the frostbite. She meets Gaara this way, who incorrectly attributes it to a birth defect, and doesn't get corrected about it until she's like...21. Her fingernails do not grow back and her scars do not fade over time.

Her feet are in the same condition as her hands, but with less scarring.

Other random details:

Silently but resolutely committed to drinking cold drinks from straws, and she even brings her own emergency straw. If she doesn't have a straw and isn't provided one, she will just quietly pass on drinking from a glass. This isn't something that is really mentioned, but just something that...Happens.

She has a "pet" lizard who has been knighted as, "Mr. Chubbs." This lizard mostly just hangs around outside her house, and he'll hiss at her if she gets too close. She feeds him a lot of the time, and will talk to him about her problems. The lizard doesn't give a shit, but she finds his company cathartic. She appreciates him so much that she demands everyone else greet him with the upmost respect, insisting that he be addressed as "Lord Chubbs" but that she doesn't have to because "we go waaay back."

Personality:

Kaiya is - at her core - a very loving, excitable, caring and funny individual. She is extremely smart and well-read, but can come across as really dumb...Think: "She's so smart, she's stupid." This is usually because she is easily bored, causing her to get into a lot of trouble when she isn't putting her smarts to better use. She loves to talk, and even does so in her sleep.

Though she means well most of the time, she often feels as though she is above the law because she is further removed from society and its rules, and because she's vengeful in her own way. She tends to feel her emotions in extremes, which is nice when she is feeling kind, playful and bubbly; but extremely taxing when she gets into a rage. She bounces back from reacting strongly to some things and not at all to others. Despite this, she tends to be wise and self aware, but often loses to her impulses. Kaiya can also hold a grudge like you would not believe.

Her emotional intelligence, outgoingness, and entitlement for "having things go her way" makes her a grand manipulator. Though she talks a lot, she is actually really great at keeping secrets by a technique she refers to as "lying out loud" where she talks so much, people assume she has said it all and thus they never ask her questions. When she is interrogated, her explanations are normally meandering and somehow almost always at the edge of the full point, without ever really getting there. Truly, she is a master at "stories that lead nowhere."

Though she has her darker sides, she truly does want to make the world a better place and she supports Gaara, despite her opinions on "higher ups."

She calms waaay down around her 20's when she matures.

She is also bizarrely lucky, having won a great sum of money 3 times throughout her entire life.

[chena-h]

Man, it's been raining so much lately. On the one hand it's nice but oof, I do not like driving in rainy weather. Way too stressful.

So, I've been in a reflective mood lately. Sure it comes with the time of year. Creatively speaking, I feel like 2022 was pretty good for me. Im feeling more confident about things I create or ideas I get than I have in the past. I'm kinda happy about that.

Definitely focused more on writing than drawing. While I didn't publish much, I did feel great about the things I did managed to complete. Started taking more notes and being ok with wips. I feel like that's helped a lot. Head feels a little less cluttered and I'm relieved to know that I have a place where I can revisit my ideas when the time is right.

Didn't sketch or draw as much as I wanted to. It's hard because I have so many pencils and pens now (my brother even got me a set of pastels I'm excited about using). I'm not one for resolutions but I'd like to make some time to practice drawing more things. More practice in colored pencil for sure and trying to get through all my pens. At some point, I would like to venture into painting with inkwashes. Watercolors seem super intimidating to me. I've only painted with acrylics a few times and I don't really have the space for it. Maybe someday.

But yeah, this year, I want to try and work on my sense of organization when it comes to my creative projects. Art wise, I tend to be scatter brained ;w; I don't know what that will look like yet, but basically I want to balance time for writing and art projects.

Art wise, I still have that thing I was mentioning last year that I want to finish. I'm about a little over a quarter of the way there, I think? Just need to practice sketching some pieces out more before I draw the final versions. After that, I have a similar project I kind of want to do as well as a short series of portraits feat. one of my blorbos. At first, I wanted it to just be one drawing but I like all the ideas too much to choose just one orz. I also am undecided on which medium(s) to use. I'll see.

Writing wise...lol, I have so many wips now! Which is good. I do feel like I'll return to the Akira manga au series at some point. I've got more scenes from that AU (and I figured out how to end it)! There's also some one shots and a shorter series I hope to finish, but I'm very particular about the order in which I publish fics so idk when that'll be. Right now, though, the bnha fics are what I'm drawn to the most so I'll likely be focusing on those. Want to finish the first part of the series I posted, continue with the Villain AU, and maybe (maybe?) get the first chapter of the other series posted??? Gonna shoot for February for that one, but no guarantees there. There's also that highly ambitious AU fic that I want to write and publish this year, but there's still kinks for me to iron out with that one.

I think this is the longest time I've focused on fanart more than anything original, which is new for me. There are some projects related to my OCs that I have kicking around. Maybe I'll get to those later in the year. I've been debating whether to post original fics to AO3. I went on a deep dive the other night looking for fics tagged as QPR because I was curious and found way more original works than I expected. I know AO3 isn't technically for that, but I generally prefer to have one dedicated place to share stuff. I do have a RoyalRoad account though, so maybe I could use that instead.

Trying to stay positive about this year.

[gwently]

2023??? part 1

I spent the New Year drinking Nyquil and passing out while watching my oshi. Obviously cursed from this point onwards, when is 2024?

To be very honest I was never one for resolutions, always with a vague goal in mind that may or may not be achievable but completely disregarding the idea of a "new year" after a week or so. For the past year or two it was "get a job" which I finally done. Surprisingly a huge accomplishment given the state of the world, my lack of experience and commitment issues. Now that I am not freaking out at the idea of "what happens if {...}" and now have means to provide for myself, the obvious direction is to figure out what I want to do. Once you get a slight taste of getting better you become hungry for more. It's like greed, but positive.

The start of the New Year is where all the self mind control tricks come out, you write out your tweets and your blogs and your lists on how this year will be different, for sure, only to crash into the inevitable whirlwind that is "real life". As someone who was once (well still is tbh) indifferent to said tricks, this year I said "why not? I love self mind control." Not going to pull out the New Year, new me shenanigans but the start of the new year is indeed a good starting point, thank you Pope Gregory XIII.

Remember when I said I had no concrete goals? Well this year is no different I suppose. Can't become a new person overnight. I mean I do want to learn how to drive, but that is more so a "necessity" rather than something I want to do. Why is American public transportation so shit?

The remnants of past years improvement wish lists are back again for 2023, which are getting better at Japanese and learning how to draw (2023 Dante Must Die Edition). Japanese is something I picked up years ago to help with my anxiety issues (long story) and have been up and down with. I want to read more and improve my listening skills.

While I wanted to draw before, it wasn't for a particular reason other than "it would be cool" so I was forever stuck at the phase of practicing lines and drawing boxes a few times every few months and calling that "learning." Nowadays I want to be able to make fanart for all the vtubers that inspired me, Aia in particular. She's not the most popular so art for her could be sparse at times, I want to be able to fill that gap a bit. Though I really love her that's the reason LOL She takes over my brains at times and I need to get this out of my head and on paper or something. Really interested in Pixel Art, a medium that's kinda nostalgic but very fun to look at, and ink/pen art. B/W art is fascinating and I wanted to start of with traditional art anyways, so why not pursue it? I also can get to incorporate my newest hobby, fountain pens that will be in part 2, scheduled whenever the fuck I feel like it (tomorrow probably, it's my day off.)

[heres-someart]

I posted 325 times in 2022

That's 325 more posts than 2021!

61 posts created (19%)

264 posts reblogged (81%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@vyeoh

@bitter-hibiscus

@old-pine-woods

@its-your-mind

@heres-someart

I tagged 315 of my posts in 2022

Only 3% of my posts had no tags

#cas.reblogs - 235 posts

#cas.talks - 34 posts

#empires smp - 22 posts

#cas.art - 20 posts

#scott smajor - 14 posts

#the magnus archives - 11 posts

#empires season 2 - 10 posts

#tma - 9 posts

#hello from the hallowoods - 8 posts

#hfth - 8 posts

Longest Tag: 138 characters

#because pix can be confused for other things or have people who dont care for pixl but care for another usage of pix be bombared with pixl

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

I dont talk enough about Hello From The Hallowoods on this blog so heres some fanart that I definitely didnt just make despite it being almost 1am

I like thinking of the night-gaunts as very deer-like so I just make a really big dear with cool antlers lmao @hellofromthehallowoods​

139 notes - Posted May 7, 2022

#4

Im gonna rate the podcasts I’ve listened to

The Magnus Archives

10/10

Very very good

Slowburn go brrrr

Can’t follow the kill your gays trope if everyone’s gay!

The Penumbra Podcast

10/10

Also very very good

Like, the opposite of slowburn

Found family go brr

Station Arcadia

10/10

Again very good!

Anti-capitalism is great

Discord server is very nice!!

The Bright Sessions

9/10

Still very good!

Much more realistic fiction

Very good to binge cause of its 7 seasons

Rusty Quill Gaming

9/10

Very awesome!

Very nice binging series

Sometimes I dont understand the british jokes

Hello From the Hallowoods

10/10

Very gay!! And trans!! And great!!

Character with neopronouns!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See the full post

175 notes - Posted May 4, 2022

#3

I drew some Double Life Cleo fanart based on this post I am super happy with how it ended up turning out!

Click for better resolution! [ID: Zombie Cleo is sitting criss-crossed with her profile to the viewer. She is wearing an off-the-shoulder dark grey dress, a small crown of laurels around her head, and sneakers. She has green skin with some parts a darker green with small stiches connecting the two colors. She also has orange hair with slight curls. One her arm, there are 3 hearts. They are all very dull, the top a dull green, the middle a dull yellow, and the bottom a dull red. She also has a red string that is fading in some parts connecting to her finger, wrapping around her body, and traveling off screen. She is slightly transparent In front of her is the text “you hold on / until you cant hold on anymore” She is sitting on a small grass patch in front of a blue sky with two clouds. The artist’s signature, a circle with a line through it and a dot on either side, is also visible near her shoulder. End ID]

209 notes - Posted July 23, 2022

#2

I heard Scott Smajor said that he wants more people to draw him fanart in a size that fits a phone background. So I made this! (also if anyone does make this their phone background please tell me. I want to see it!)

Click for better detail! [ID: A drawing of Scott Smajor’s Empires SMP character walking on a path towards a windmill. The windmill is surrounded by small fields of flowers. In the bottom right corner, there is the artist’s signature: heres.someart End ID] @defonotsmajor​

304 notes - Posted July 27, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Hello Jon, apologies for the deception, but you just lost the game

799 notes - Posted April 25, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[talenlee]

The How To Be Covers of 2022

New Post has been published on PRESS.exe: The How To Be Covers of 2022

Once more we make our way to an end of a year, and I take an opportunity to reflect on my monthly How To Be articles. Or really, I show you all the covers again because I’m really proud of them, in part because they’re funny and in part because I worked hard on little details and you will appreciate them.

In January, I looked at the sprawling leviathan of media culture known as Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, and how to create a character who had the vibe of a Jojo character, rather than trying to replicate single, specific characters in that space. What I think, the most, about this kind of article is that I’m not trying to replicate a character as much as I’m trying to replicate, like, the vibe of the advertising and promotional material.

In February, I looked at another Ranma 1/2 character and I am already thinking about the next time I visit that universe. It was Akane Tendo, the second most important character in a story full of big dumb idiots who fight things rather than talk to them. She’s a really cool character – I know, I know, it’s amazing to hear that, right? – but her whole vibe is just being the most normal thing in a world of weirdoes.

In March I looked at Zelgadis, a character made for a D&D game in a different generation and edition and cultural background. I had to look at how you could take a character like Zelgadis and reconstruct him in a different (also old) game system.

Uh, this was just a joke, like last year’s Sonic The Hedgehog cover.

Then in April, when I outed myself as a person who’s been playing Final Fantasy XIV, I did a special article to focus on a character that Kate loves a lot. Since Kate loves Minfilia, I thought I’d do a special article focusing on Minfilia, as a character, and that got to be a fun exercise in creating a character build to reflect a negative space. There’s nothing about Minfilia that exists, really – there’s almost no positive ‘Minfilia does this’ or ‘Minfilia does that’ but you can tell there’s some stuff Minfilia doesn’t do, and can’t do – so you have to create a character build that doesn’t violate that experience. Interesting article!

Then there was May, where I continued my quest to find a How To Be Article about a melee fire character who could actually use the fire support in the game. Weird. But this is another fight game character and opened the conversation around ways to do something that mixed fire and not magic melee combat. It was about Kyo Kusanagi!

Each June I ask Fox what she’d like to see, because I pick characters she likes in the month with her birthday. I also got to see some truly beautiful fanart of Sheik here, and that made it a perfect opportunity to do a piece on that character.

Huh, this was a fun chain of characters with heavily queer themes or from queer-media darling shows. I don’t think there was any reason to pick up Scorpia, but she was a fun, interesting character to build.

Oh man, remember how absolutely ridiculous things were around August? When Bridget Guiltygear was on everyone’s mind and there were all these high resolution pictures of her for the first time in years and also I was doing a theme of tricks and she did this whole thing with a like, yoyo and stuff.

Man.

Man.

August, man.

That was a time.

But okay, at this point the How To Be articles are all building around kind of a consistent core of a single, specific idea space. And like, 4th ed D&D is already pretty much an anime game, what with the way that people with swords can actually do things and the way healers can shout your arms back on, it’s great, I love it. Using it to represent anime characters and fight game characters is kind of just what the engine can do.

I had to branch out, I wanted to pick something that would leave people going ‘huh?’ or at least maybe trick Kilo into clicking the link. And that’s why I did one on Lalo Salamanca.

Much like the Jojo article, I made a Meguca article because I wanted something for looking at a larger variety of things in a more shallow way. There are a bunch of characters in this space who we see more in terms of their trauma than their problem solving, so this was more about ‘how do I make a character who can wear this vibe?’

Then finally, I did a piece examining pets, and ways to have a lot or a few of them. This one stuck with me as something I kind of thing I’d want to do going forward – like maybe a character could benefit from picking up a Cool Monster Pet.

Oh hey, what’s that? Of course I made a spreadsheet to examine this kind of thing! I was curious if there was a bias in the types of characters I was drawing inspiration from, and it seems that since its inception, roughly half the articles have been women, and the rest haven’t been. This is useless data that means nothing but I like charts.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#HowToBe