#when i try new things i just draw from my pinterest folders i think you noticed

[vvitchynerd]

my brain started hating these shorts as soon as i started trying to shade them or day 2 and 3 of drawing in krita and now i like it plenty

[dr4kenlvr]

𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐊𝐄𝐍 "𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐍" 𝐑𝐘𝐔𝐆𝐔𝐉𝐈

draken x gn!reader - fluff (0.7k+)

request: hi nana, how are you doing today? i was going through draken x reader tag and saw your recent work and ofc i liked it. i just wanted to ask if you would like to share some of your headcanons for draken. i really miss him and i wanna talk about him.

nana's note: hi so i really said fuck it and wrote a whole draken as ur bf post because 1, i can't believe i haven't yet??? and 2, i too miss draken and want to talk about him 24/7 so i hope the long wait was worth it!!

every second i am alive i pray that i will find a man like draken because no one can tell me otherwise, that he would be the absolute perfect boyfriend of the whole tokyo rev. cast

no one can change my mind !!!!

draken puts his blood, sweat and tears into yours’ and his relationship—to make sure you’re as happy and content as you deserve

he wouldn’t dare to ever make you upset, and in the off chance you two have arguments (because healthy relationship include disagreements at times), draken is the world’s greatest listener and is so extremely empathetic for you

mornings with him start off amazing; he’s up and dressed, chuckling at your sleepy state as you groggily tell him “good mornin’” - he presses a sweet kiss to your cheek, urging you to get out of bed and get ready for the day

he’s always making sure you are taking good care of yourself—that could be in the form of him making or buying you a breakfast, helping you study your notes, reminding you to take breaks, and ensuring you sleep full hours

nothing worse than seeing his baby tired—but he’ll let you nap in the break room at his shop if you’re feeling particularly exhausted that day (aka me everyday)

draken loves to indulge in your hobbies the way you show interest in his by being next to him in the shop all week

if you like to read, he’ll dedicate nights in bed to read with you or listen to you read as you lay atop of him - his chest heaves gently and he always catches himself falling asleep to the sound of your voice

maybe you like to draw? draken will help you find reference photos on pinterest and create folders dedicated to things he’d think you’d like

if you’re lucky he might even pose for you! but don’t tell him, he’ll get shy heheh (wait till he finds out about your candid drawings of him)

if you’re into fashion, draken will always try to fit some time into his schedule to take you out to the mall

sometimes his friends tag along and it’s just a big happy hang out <3!! gahhh it would be so lively

y'all going in and out of familiar and new stores until you have a huge smile on your face at the items he’s purchased for you

oh draken just loves to spoil u

but you love to spoil him just as much—taking care of him is probably your real favourite hobby (LMAO)

“kenny! come here, lemme brush your hair!” is what he hears every single time he comes out of the shower

“coming!” and he’s greeted with your excited face, a hairbrush in your hand and a blow dryer in the other - it makes ken so so loved to see you so happy over something this mundane

you two love to spend quality time together doing absolutely anything, because to draken, anything with you is so much better and worth it

he loves it when you braid his hair and always find himself unconsciously boasting about it to his friends - nothing extra (like ran), 

“y/n did my hair this morning you know.”

“yeah i know because that’s like the 40th fucking time you’ve mentioned it, man.” -baji, he is so done with draken and his cute significant other

MAKES HIS SKIN ITCH FR

“my braid is more intact today, do you think it’s ‘cause y/n did it?”

“??? i don’t know ???” - chifuyu, also is tired of draken and your’s cute relationship

ONCE TOLD DRAKEN THAT YOU TWO REMIND HIM OF A SHOUJO COUPLE IN A MANGA HE ONCE READ LMAOOOO

has a tendency to baby you every now and then, he think it stems from his relationship with mikey - he’s just so used to taking care of others, that being taken care of by you is a nice change

he’ll buy you any snacks that you’re craving for, it literally does not matter when or where you guys are

he somehow finds a way LMAO

has you saved as his lockscreen and his gallery has a folder full of photos of you

draken also dedicates a wall in his room just for you - photographs, gifts, trinkets, and a drawer underneath full of clothes that you can wear when you stay over <3

(holy fuck im gonna cry and shit myself i love him so much guys)

anyways; draken ∞/10 boyfriend i wholeheartedly recommend everyone fall in love with him and join the crew

taglist: @dai-tsukki-desu @kazuhoya @gwynsapphire @sscarchiyo @reiners-milkbiddies @smileyswifeyy @bontensimp-blog @thisbicc @megumisemo (send me an ask or dm to be added!)

reblogs and comments are very appreciated!

[theoplum]

Hi Theo! I've loved your comics and illustrations for a while now, and I have such a sense that you're drawing in an informed way. Your costumes and sets feel like they have such history and context to them, and it makes me wonder, what is your research process like? Do you have folders of images, pinterest boards, magazines and cutouts? Or is it all just up there in your brain? So sorry if such a thing has been asked before. Hope to keep seeing new works from you for a long time!!

It’s been so long since you asked this, I am so sorry I haven’t responded until now…! This was a really thoughtful question and I really appreciate it! Thank you so much for enjoying my work!!!

I do keep a bunch of Pinterest boards when I do historical-inspired stuff! It's much easier to store stuff I find online there than keeping it all on my computer, which is what I used to do. I usually start from picking an era to draw about by sifting through this big collection of historical garment photos (usually compiled from the met costume institute and extensive wikipedia usage), picking one, then learning more about that era thru extensive googling haha. Very much clothes-forward, then finding the setting from there…

I like looking at art contemporary to the time period I’m drawing from, I think being inspired by what visual language & design elements ppl from the time/place were using is really fun, and leads to interesting imagery/shapes I wouldn’t have thought of myself. I like comparing the “dominant” art trends of the time vs the more niche/alternative ones too. I spend a lot of time on the internet looking at stuff before I start drawing haha.

Even for things that aren’t inspired by a specific era, I think looking at historical reference is a really fun way to go outside my “default” ideas of how things should look! 

Edit: while I really enjoy researching stuff, I’m by no means an expert on time periods I draw, and try to keep research as a springboard for expanding my ideas then a set of rules I feel beholden to follow!! The goal is rarely accuracy, the priority is ALWAYS fun! 🧍🏻‍♂️🥳

[artfoold00k]

Hey Dook, I really hope the upcoming year brings you nothing but good vibes and a perfect harmony in your awesome art! Your new pieces always make my day, seriously. You're such an inspiration, so dang talented.

Quick question for you: I often find myself stuck when I try to draw in my free time. How do you always come up with such cool ideas? Share your secrets on finding inspiration and drawing as expressively as you do, please!

(´｡• ω •｡`) Ah, you're so kind. Thank you for the good wishes. I wish you an awesome upcoming year as well.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

That's a good question! It's relevant for many fellow artists out there.

SUMMARY: Mix: your passion, your favs, a theme, portfolio and art goals. Power up with your references collection.

In details ⤵️

For me, stumbling onto those bright ideas that really click, started with digging into who I am and what I love.

It's mainly about recognizing the roadblocks and figuring out a fix that fits you. And it's like having a chill heart-to-heart with yourself:

you: I'm stuck. Can't figure out what to draw! mind: Okay. What is your main objective? Work or hobby? you: Feeling a bit rusty. Maybe I should start with something personal, you know, for practice. mind: Got it. First things first, let's jot down your favorite things. Got a list handy? you: Uh, not really. They're all up in my head. mind: No biggie. We can roll with that. It might spark some inspiration. But hey, to spice it up, let's create a visual board of you as an artist. Your focus, your style, your values — everything. Think of it like a moodboard. you: Sounds kinda complex. I just wanted to doodle in my downtime. mind: Trust me, this won't eat up much of your time. It's a breeze, and the result might just be the secret sauce for your future drawings. Start a bit now, pick it up later.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I, actually, aided it further.

All my ideas that wake me up or keep boiling in my head, I write into digital lists (in my case is TickTick app). Because when I see something inspiring (or someone) I can attach a link where needed, or add a custom note with markdown available.

Then I began to fill up my reference folders. I work on them from time to time with a timer (20-30 mins). In my case, when I focus on character design, I have a collection of styles I want to try (including art from my favorite games cuz sure I want to learn how pro artists do it), coloring and drawing tutorials, educational (anatomy and all that), poses/faces/expressions, fashion, etc. *can be on your device, online drive, or a platform like Pinterest. Each set is not enough on its own. To make it work - combine things. Example: pick a pose, add a face to it, choose something trendy and fashionable, add your favorite colors/items/theme, throw some VFX. Mix and mash, don't be afraid to combine incompatible.

By establishing my priorities, I made lists (yet again, my obsession) of what I want to practice and then added each category in a randomizator to pick for me 3 elements to match and challenge. Here is my approximate plan (WIP). Random color generator (one of many out there)

I trained myself not to take too broad themes and stick to what I want to have in my portfolio (what drives my future commissions) while staying versatile. Takes practice.

I hope it helps somehow. It's something that works for me these days but might change in the future.

Find your own way because no one knows you like you do, so the most comfortable way to resolve an issue is the one that's crafted by you. Believe, your mind can find shortcuts and tips for you if tasked to do so. Don't forget to research and store.

[tepperz]

i didnt think about it before now either xD

i know lol 20,000+ is too much, i keep getting distracted XDD I'm also always saving morrrrrrreeeeeeeee. Pixiv in particular is sooo bad for that -- if you have a subscription to it, it just keeps recommending you good art after good art. and it's like! aaaaa! I can't keep up with how many amazing works there are! (screaming)

"The example and your analysis of it are really interesting! You’re right about the unique highlights and warm color drawing attention there. I hadn’t noticed until you pointed them out! Even just the one “simple” artwork had a lot of valuable details."

You get it you totally get it!!!!!! Yeah, exactly!!! Like I get its easy to gloss over as a picture but it actually has soooo much unique value! I really like that kind of thing!! I'm a super nerd when it comes to seeing the unique value of artworks ><. I feel like most artwork has its own appeal. Not to sound weird or anything, but besides saving sooo many artworks, I sometimes also go through the manga I own too and try to write down what I think the mangaka has done super well with paneling/screentones/ect, and what I think they could improve on. It's super useful for reference, as someone who's trying to make comics! Even manga I don't like have good points that are worth learning from!

So how would you categorize something like that?? @@ I get how just one doesn’t encompass all that now!

I think i'd put that picture into "portrait - no background" and also save a copy of it into my "texture" folder? hmmmmm. dang, i should have sorted it while I was looking at it earlier!!!!!! i forgor LOL

I’d love to see how these details are translated into your own works.

I legitimately thought of drawing something new with that pic as inspiration, but im in an art block right now so I can't u_u; But! I will go find a work that I had inspiration for!

so in this one I was trying to give the atmosphere of someone with low contrast dark blue, sort of a creepy mood. The unnaturally still pose in the photo with the low contrast of the anime picture. I don't think it worked out this time, but it is an example of me pulling from other works.

oh! heres another one

that was last year so im trying to remember what aspects I pulled from. the chibis are my character references, the photo is his eye color... and from top to bottom... I think the top white drawing is his face shape? And below that is his hair color. Below that, the low saturation is inspiration, and the bottom reference is... i have no idea. Vibe? lmao. But yeah, my point is not all my references are masterpieces but I try to cobble them together like some goblin quilt lol

(asldfdsaklj I see you show your art with references later on bless you~)

heehee. I like seeing yours too ^^

Oh yeah, all the poses and expressions even in those portraits do have something that makes them stand out! Even art without backgrounds has to have good balance and use of negative space.

yeah! Exactly! Since organizing and seeing similar pieces together Im really starting to understand some patterns. It's good to learn.

A Clothing folder is sooo useful for cool details or cuts, but also the fabric types and specific folds. I struggle a lot with designing outfits so any help is lifesaving orz

8U I should do that. Have you tried pintrest? I have a lot of cool clothes saved on pinterest. I know it's kinda cliche to turn to pinterest for ideas but it always gets my mind twirling when I see the different types of aesthetics. I know you didn't ask and feel free not to bother clicking it, but if you want inspiration with clothes, heres a link to a pinterest board I use specifically for super interesting clothes: xxx

It’s been so many years since I started this organization system now… I think my Pictures folder just got too disorganized so I separated poses, and then just kept separating as the need arose. Haha letting the folder decide must speed things up a lot though! No worrying about which reference has been waiting for years to be used, just following the mood~

Wish... i wish i'd done that xD You realized the benefits of organizing a lot sooner then me. I watched a video lately about how people who are really good at drawing know what references to use in any particular situation (I think it was this one: xxx) and it sort of hit me how I was holding myself back by not being able to sort what I liked and why. It's really cool to see what pictures you chose and how they work together (with the middle distance and long distance backgrounds folders). I can definitely see the impact it has on your work already!! In my opinion I think you're very good at middle distance shots, so I can see how you'd be inspired by those works! And the interesting angles in your references and big shapes translates into your art as well, I believe ^^

I’m down for trading tutorials for sure! o// Anything to do with light or clothes would be treasured forever~ Are there specific tutorials you’d like? (And ones you’d recommend?)

Ohhh yeah let me get together a bundle for you! Here! I hope this helps! https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yGCOUpPunk038by_ztRgELAWLRgmxEVK?usp=share_link ^^

as for me, if you find any tutorials on backgrounds or gesture, I'd love it if you threw them my way! no pressure thuogh.

Man, it’s so cool seeing the references near your art. They all came together and made something with the feeling but new. Loving the moodboard lol!! xD Once they’re on your canvas, then you don’t have to go digging through folders any more, I see I see! :3c

heehee, thank you! I'm glad that comes through!! Exactly, I feel like digging through files gets me out of the flow so I just throw them all on my canvas. i dont mean to make moodboards but it does end up working for me!

Watercolor has a distinctive transparent look so it’s easy for me to tell apart at least! Gouache is a bit harder because it can look like acrylic but they can be used the same way so it’s okay if some get mixed in… (I honestly can’t tell the difference between mediums like oil and acrylics though!! I don’t use them so their nuances are mysteries~) 

ohhhhhh. i guess thats true, watercolor really does have a texture. Gouache I just recently got some this week for the first time. Did you know that they're basically watercolors??? It's wild. But when I see good gouache it reminds me a lot of hard shading, like in anime. Oil I feel like also has a texture, kind of... thick? I have literally no idea about acrylics though. All I know is I like to watch people on youtube use them to relax.

And sometimes I’ll find inspiration in an unexpected folder– It’s tiny but the pic on the bottom right was the biggest influence on this piece! I loved the strong shadows and greenish tint!

i know this is the last thing in this huge bleeping wall of text but its literally so cool to see your inspiration and the final piece. I can totally see where you're coming from with the blues and greens and it's really interesting to see the correlation. Thats why I wanted to put some of my finished works and references in this post too. I love seeing those kinds of things. If you want to share more, I wouldn't mind.

Anyway, thanks for chatting with me!

How did you learn to draw so well? Like was it from classes or a book on fundamentals or just trial and error?

//// thanks for the kind question!

I guarantee you I would have improved faster if I’d taken a class, but I hope some of the materials I’ve used over the years can be of use to you too:

Andrew Loomis’ books - I never made it past the first chapters, but those had some great advice.

Youtube - Proko’s bean method. Figure drawing references will greatly improve anatomy and “drawing what you see”. It’s boring imo, so doing just 5-10 minutes a day can keep one from burning out while still seeing improvement. Speed painting videos are a nice way to relax and study.

Will Terrell’s People Drawing series - He’s a humble man with personal advice for artists. I watch his videos when I feel discouraged or lost.

Art, art, art - Whenever I see an artwork that I like, I figure out exactly what pleases me: line thickness, nose shape, finger positions, composition, the way the hair bends in the wind, etc. Then I try to incorporate that specific characteristic into my own art.

I have growing folders of (I’m a bit embarrassed) almost 8,000 pictures, organized by characteristics, for the sole purpose of studying their prettiness. Sometimes we don’t need a tutorial to spell everything out, just an example can help us envision our own works’ potential. Also, staring at pictures is a relaxing way to study too!

And of course, trial and error~ I don’t post my sad, failed paintings or all the weird sketches I make, but they exist and teach a lot!

[a-sadnoodle]

Hey Noodle! How's life been? I was wondering a few things...if you wouldn't mind answering a couple of questions!

What kinds of landscapes do you really enjoy painting/drawing?

Are there colours you find yourself really gravitating to?

What do you reference when drawing/painting? Your own pictures? Other peoples? Real life subjects?

Favourite watercolour method?

Do you pick out the size of your canvas/paper or just grab one on a whim?

What kind of subjects draw your attention? (e.g Happy people, colourful flowers, or maybe even still life's you create yourself?)

Favourite pencils/charcoal for drawing?

Do you have any tips for younger artists getting into traditional art? Anything you wish younger you knew?

:] No pressure to answer all of these, if any, btw! Have a good one :D

Hello there :D life has been decent and I hope you've been well too!! Let's see

-i really like to paint very green and saturated landscapes. It can be anything from flowers to trees to mountains, I just love it when there's lots of strong colours. But I mostly like to paint landscapes that are a bit messy? It helps me be a little looser with the painting and not obssess over details, if that makes sense. I try to use techniques that give the illusion of details and depth, though i don't know if i succeed but I try lol

-at the beginning, when I started out with art, I was always quite worried about it being realistic. But after a while I now feel that real life is quite desaturated, everything in nature is a tone of grey, and absolute colours are not very common to find. So I now try to make my art as colourful as possible for it to look lively and more my style, becasue when I was aiming for realism, all my art would turn out dull and muted and I couldn't figure out why. Some colours I really use a lot are greens, all kinds really. I love all colours, but I think green is the colour I enjoy using the most these days.

-i use a lot of places to find my reference photos- pinterest, tumblr, Instagram, Google, and my mom is always sending me random pictures of clouds and landscapes and mountains too. Sometimes when I'm drawing people and I need to understand anatomy I use myself as a reference, although I don't really draw full human anatomy much, only portraits. Sometimes I use my own pictures of flowers and clouds and all that as reference too. I actually have a folder in my phone gallery for references, and I put at least 5 pictures I find in it everyday, because I'm always finding weird things to use as references. I save a lot of old paintings by classical painters too so that I can study them later, learning from the masters is the best way to learn :)

-ehh I don't really know the formal names for methods, you know? But I do like the wet on wet method, I love the look of it. I also like making clouds in watercolour, also fun hack- put down a wash of your blue watercolour, take a paper towel and blot where you want clouds to be-voila pretty clouds!!

-i just grab stuff on a whim and use whatever I feel like whenever I want and make it fit to my art, I don't really plan much, although I'm trying to do that more lol

-i actually don't have a definite favorite subject, I think it really depends on my mood, but I think most of the time I really like making simple things you know, like goats, urban sketches, simple portraits. I don't try to overthink about it, and just draw whatever I feel like. Although in portraits I really love drawing people candid lately

-i use the Staedlr pencils and Faber castle Matt black hb pencils for graphite drawing, and for charcoal pencils I use a local brand. I also have charcoal pencils from General Pencil Co. And they're really good too

-well I think one thing about traditional art is it can be expensive. So what I used to do when trying out a new medium was buy a cheap one and if I like it then get a better quality one. Also when it comes to brushes, I think it's best to buy good quality brushes. I used to buy cheap brushes and use them until they were in horrid condition and then buy new ones every few months. It wasn't a very good system, so I bought better quality brushes and learned how to take care of them and now I have had some of my brushes for years and they're still in really good condition. So learn how to take care of your art supplies!! Also do research about art mediums and supplies, so that you know what you should start with when you're trying something new and don't get overwhelmed

When trying out a new medium, don't feel bad if you don't get it at first, it takes time and the first painting will probably be muddy, but don't give up without trying your best!!

I also think that when it comes to art, it's very important to practice. So draw everything! Fill lots of sketchbooks. And not everything has to be good or perfect, it's quite cruel to expect such perfection from yourself. I still struggle with practicing regularly but it really does help.

And as I mentioned earlier, learn form the masters! Whatever art style you're trying to do or learning, studying and drawing older artworks of masters will help you a lot

thats all I can think of now, thank you so much for this ask galen, you have a good one too <3333

[tender-history]

Fic Plotting 101: How I Start from an Idea.

Hullo, hi, welcome! It’s Plotting 101 with Dee: Part One!

 Before we get started, here’s why I made this post:

 1) I get a lot of CCs asking how to approach plotting, pacing and especially story flow, and I wanted to link them all to something useful,

2) I see a lot of people wanting to write plot but unsure how to approach it because it can be overwhelming,

3) Google Searching ‘how to plot’ can be EXTREMELY scary.

 Let’s take Number 3 first. If you’re going to Google ‘how to plot’, you’re going to end up with advice on everything ranging from ‘don’t plot’ to six sheet spreadsheets with fifty columns each that wants you to put down everything from your character’s eye color to what exactly they think of instant noodles. You’ll end up with diagrams, beat sheets, templates, storyboards, and find guides that range from six-step plotting techniques to fifty-steps. And I’m not saying you shouldn’t follow that method - sometimes, if you’re a person who likes character design and questionnaires a lot, you’ll love that method. But I’m not like that, and a lot of writers I know aren’t like that either. There’s nothing I hate more than some spreadsheet asking me my character’s weight and height. And if you go down that road, chances are that you’ll just go down the rabbit hole of intricately designing your characters and settings for AGES instead of actually writing anything at all.

 So - if not through spreadsheets or beat-sheets, how DO you plot?

 If you ask me, the best plotting method is to do WHAT WORKS FOR YOU.

 How do you find what works for you? You try things. I tried many different ways of plotting before I decided what worked for me. So this is going to be less a guide on how to plot and more an explanation of the ways I plot, with the hope that maybe you can find something in here to help you.

 > For me, step ONE is the IDEA.

 This is your big shiny nugget. Your driving force. This is EXTREMELY important, because no one idea is equal to another.  Some ideas are better, because they can help you do something unique, something only you can do, which makes you stand out. For the sake of demonstrating this whole thing, let’s take The Tender History of Tides. Tender History lived on my Ideas folder in my Notes app for months before I began writing it. This was my one-line quick jot-down: ‘what if I wrote non-royalty historical fantasy set in Joseon Korea?’

 Done before? Yeah. Can be done in a unique way? Heck yeah.

 Your idea is very very important because it’s the axis on which you’ll pivot your entire plot. It’ll grow and develop and change if you just give it some thought.

 So, plotting suggestion #1 right here: Keep an Ideas folder. You WILL forget your idea, however shiny it is. Keeping it all in one place helps in more than one way: 1) You know it won’t disappear from your mind, 2) Sometimes ideas can overlap, come together, and turn into a whole new story.

 For Tender History, the historical fantasy set in Joseon Korea idea very, very quickly merged with another idea I’d had: taegi dark-fic with sea-monster Tae and monster-hunter Yoongi. They were disparate thoughts, things I thought of at different times, things I then put together to create something more unique than what they would have been individually.

 I often generate ideas this way. I’ll consult my Ideas folder for thoughts I’ve had in the past, then see if they can be combined with something else to make a better shiny.

 Few examples:

 1) vhope magic shop au + but what if the whole thing is set in a game arcade?

2) taegi vampire au + but what if this was set in the fashion world?

3) vmin library au + but what if they went to a magical school?

 Combination is one way of idea generation. Other ways of idea generation that I sometimes use:

 > Use images. Go on Pinterest, check out some aesthetics, let your imagination run wild.

> Use online prompters. There are so many prompt generators floating around! For Fantasy, I use Seventh Sanctum sometimes (they have hundreds of different sort of prompt generators, and some are really good if you’re stuck on banal things like naming, or a quick character design). For fan fiction, there are prompt bots on Twitter. You can even google writing prompts, there are several websites that offer one per day, which you can then use to kick start your imagination.

 > Now you have your idea. Step TWO, for me, is developing the idea.

 This is the step where you can really stand out in the crowd when it comes to plotting. It’s great having a unique idea, but this is the part where you flesh it out.

 Here’s how I do that:

> Scribble down a skeleton of what you think the story will be: In my case, for this Taegi fic, the skeleton looked something like this:

taegi, yoongi is a detective, tae is a supernatural being of some sort, setting is joseon korea, time period is (???), wintry, monsters and murders, dark, atmospheric, there’s a romance and it’s both soft and dangerous, side: noble seokjin, scholar namjoon, doctor jimin (?). they’re in a village and there are these murders and everyone is keeping secrets. 

This, as you see, is a ramble. It’s just whatever’s in my head, being committed to paper. Now, plotting is WORK. Putting what’s up there - that ramble, that mess of ideas - into a functioning, well-paced, structured, organized plot requires you to put work into it. It’s not easy. But it’s a lot of fun. And when it starts coming together, you really feel very good about your writing and your story!

So, moving on to the actual work now:

> Write a 250 word pitch of the story. Organize your ramble into something coherent, meaningful and easy to absorb. Imagine that this is exactly like the back blurb on a book. The back blurb on a book is meant to entice you to read it. IF it’s enticing enough for you to read, then you can imagine that it might be enticing to a reader. But first - you have to make it enticing for YOU. As the writer, YOU have to feel like, ok, this is gonna be a killer story if I tackle it.

 The objective of this pitch is two-fold:

1) You have to be able to tell three things from it: the idea, the characters, and the main conflict.

2) A complete STRANGER - i.e., someone who has no idea about your story - should be able to look at this pitch and tell what exactly the story is about.

 I can’t stress the importance of this step. Often times, it’s not until you force yourself to explain your plot in 250 words that you find possible issues with it.

 Here’s how I explained Tender History in 250 words or less:

 “In late 1700s Joseon Korea, a string of strange murders sends Inspector Kim Seokjin to a frozen northern province. Accompanying him is Min Yoongi, once a scholar of the supernatural, now an indentured laborer until a debt for his crimes against the palace can be paid. Quickly taking on eccentric artist Kim Taehyung as his assistant, Yoongi sets out to find the monster that’s terrorizing the land. But there’s more to both the icy lakes and the people here. More to Taehyung and his unflinching ease at drawing scenes of death. Yoongi just needs to figure out what.”

 Note a couple of things here.

A) You as the writer knows who the important characters are, because they are named.

B) You know the setting: 1700s, Joseon Korea, icy, winter.

C) You know the characterization and how they play into this world: inspector Seokjin, indentured worker Yoongi, artist Taehyung.

D) You know the conflict: murders, monsters, secrets.

E) You ALSO, if you look deeply enough, know the inner character conflict - Yoongi has debts, he has no free will until he pays them.

 If I show this to you, a stranger, you should ALSO be able to glean these basic details from this 250 word pitch.

 It’s not easy. It just looks easy. I spent hours putting this down in a way that was completely right: precise, simple, yet very explanatory. This pitch will force you to confront what is the story, its actual plot and actual characters, and what is only set dressing. You can’t ramble about it anymore for hours. You can’t have a bunch of disconnected ideas anymore. You HAVE to fit it into something concise, something easily absorbed - not just by you, but by a reader who can’t see into your mind. 

You will also know, by putting this down, if the characters aren’t developed enough inside your head. Because why would anyone go to a wintry frozen land to catch a monster? You can’t answer that unless you know, by forcing your thoughts into coherency, that oh, Yoongi has no real free-will here.

 > Step THREE, marry external and internal conflict.

 Or this is step 1.5, actually. You cannot plot a story without both external and internal conflict. Or, you can, but then you won’t touch your readers as much as you would want to.

 What do I mean by this?

 Your external conflict is something that exists outside of your characters - your regular villain, say. This is your Darth Vader, your Voldemort, your Capitol.

 Your internal conflict is what your character feels. This is HARDER. In Hunger Games, Katniss ponders and combats her own ruthlessness. In Harry Potter, Harry’s desire to fit into the world and live a normal life continuously contrasts with his own fame and the symbol of hope he becomes.

 In Tender History, my external conflict is very fancy: murder, monsters, scary villages, etc. Internal conflict is a lot less so: Yoongi in this fic continuously has to wrestle with feelings of guilt and unfairness, with wanting to do good but feeling too burned by the system. If you’ve read Murmuration, the external conflict is the Scarab, but the internal conflict is their own ambition, their guilt over what they had to do to survive, their (terrifying) loyalty to each other.

 Internal conflict is where you find your character voice. If I’d set Tender History Yoongi in a celebrated position at his job, he’d be a much different character. His voice would be much different. He has power! He has resources! Versus this Yoongi, who has nothing, and hence has to trust the people he’s allowed to work with to tell him the truth.

 Think of it like peeling the layers:

 1) The Idea,

2) Develop the Idea,

3) Fill in the External Conflict,

4) Fill in the Internal Conflict.

 I have a few major rules I follow at this point of plotting. They’re like this:

 1) Are these the right characters for my story? - This means I do a round of thinking about whether these people are the perfect vehicle to tell this story I want to tell. Great, I want to tell a story about wintry Joseon Korea, and monster-fighting. But. Is indentured-worker Yoongi the best person to carry this? What if I make him a village leader instead? What if he’s a runaway prince? What if he’s the monster? Depending on what you want your story to be, you have to think of your character to fit the telling. In Romance of Old Clothes, I chose Tae POV for the whole thing because I wanted to illustrate his reading of people vs. other people’s reading of him. Taehyung’s internal conflict in that fic was that he lies to himself extensively. He’s got this idea of who he is, which is untrue, which is then broken down in a climactic moment. He’s my perfect character to tell that story, because of his obliviousness. Similarly, in Tender History, Yoongi’s the perfect character to tell this story, because of who he is in society, his internal troubles, and his monster-hunting experience.

 2)What are some details I would add to this world? - I have a basic idea of the conflict, the world, and the characters now. This is where I take out a chart or a notebook and get to work. I do this like a mindmap: I jot down anything I can think of - say, okay, Joseon Korea: food, art, paintings, caste system, civil examinations, scholars, winter, roads, Confucianism, shrines, religion, music, monsters, gender roles. Then I begin detailing it. ‘Food’ for example: royals eat different food from commoners eat different food from untouchable castes or peasants. Summer food is different from spring food is different from winter food. When I read about food for this fic, I read about the ‘barley gap’ or the gap between barley and rice cultivation during winter. People historically starved during this time. If my story is set in winter, this is an important detail.

 Let’s take something more contemporary. I’m writing about a vintage clothes store. Details I would need - clothes, brands, size of the shop, layout of the shop, how do they procure clothes, how do they test authenticity, what are their customers like, who do they interact with, where is their shop in the city, what does being in that locality mean, what seasons are busy for them.

 A mindmap is just a page full of words, questions, things you know, things you don’t know. Filling it up is the next major step.

 3) What is character development going to be? - This is very important. Okay, you have an external and internal conflict. Now, start of the story being point A, and end being point B, what exactly is A and B for my character? What do I want them to become? In Romance of Old Clothes, Taehyung at Point A is lying to himself about his own nature. By Point B, he’s able to identify that he needs to let people in, open up more. In Wonder Woman, Diana at the beginning of the story is rather naive, believing that if only she could destroy the God of War, the whole war will end. By the end, she understands and admits that things are not that black and white - that people sometimes fight wars because they want to, not due to some external influence.

 You have to know this to continue.

 Step 4, in how I plot, is to put down a starting scene, a few story beats, and the rough idea of an ending.

  But I’ll get into that - and more, including pacing - in Series 2 of this series of posts! Please let me know here or on twitter if these are helpful, or if I’m just rambling too much.

Since I am now struggling a lot to balance writing with work, and if you want to help me keep on writing posts like this, please consider donating to my ko-fi.

I also made a post on how I world-build, the tools and templates I use for the same: it’s over here!

 https://tender-history.tumblr.com/post/185910085044/on-research-worldbuilding-and-culture

[writeanapocalae]

Surprise it’s a tutorial!

Because @tenacious-scripturient​ and @agnodice-writes​ asked for help making characters earlier and it just so happened that I need to design a character RIGHT NOW I thought I’d do a bit of a tutorial while I do it? I’ve never done something like this so I hope it works. 

1) Inspiration - Last night I watched the original Charlie’s Angels and I remembered my absolute love for the Creepy Thin Man. Since I am always making more evil men and my story needs an evil man I’m taking some of the aspects of that character for my own. I’m going to take the sharp look and the nonverbal characteristics while dumping the hair pulling, screaming, and smoking. 

You can take your inspiration from just a look, from an art piece, from someone you know, or from other characters you have. If you have a film character that can be helpful to draw you back to the basics if you ever get away from them. You can also combine multiple inspirations and make them one.

2) Image- This part is so much fun for me and I’m hoping that it is for others too! I personally draw my characters but creating some imagery for your character can be done through picrew, pinterest (hiss), faceclaims, or video game character creations! While I draw my character I try to imagine things about them. Here’s a 3 minute sketch of my character

His face is a lot softer than the inspiration, he’s got a kinder personality and is far more patient. He has terrible posture, which lets me know how he sits and stands and gives me a hint as to how to write his idle motions. He has this loose sort of Bluth hair and he’s not wearing a full suit like the other characters in the story are, so he’s a lot more casual than they are. He’s wearing a turtleneck so there may be something that he’s hiding about his throat or he just knows he looks good in them. If your character has scars or tattoos or anything like that, this could be a good step to figure out where they came from. I definitely find this step the most useful for coming up with backstories and the like. 

(A secret step to this that I find helpful is having a friend who you know will find the character super hot. Instant validation)

Things to keep in mind

the world - there are blogs and pinterest folders and all sorts of things based off of aesthetics! If you’re writing a western, you should keep an eye on western blogs! If you’re writing fantasy, keep an eye on @armthearmour​ and blogs of that ilk! Having a character that greatly clashes with the setting can work but it has to be shown as an oddity or you’re writing about space travel or something. 

the story - If you’re writing an action/adventure story, having your character in a dress and heels doesn’t really make sense. Writing a story about the rise and fall of corporate life could be awkward if your lead always wears baggy lounge wear. Keep in mind what they’re going to be doing and the pros and cons of their outfitting for the setting. 

the character’s aesthetics - What is your character like and what sort of things do they carry with them? Do they wear clothes that they should probably get in trouble for? Are they trying to distract or bring attention to something? Do they always wear the same color? Is there something sentimental that they always have with them? 

the character’s job - My personal aesthetic does not pair well with my work uniform but I understand the importance of my work clothes (sometimes). The fact that I wear a button up, a name tag, and nice jeans makes it easier for customers to recognize me as an employee. Can I sneak some jewelry and as many skulls as possible into there? Not always. A character may not like what they have to wear, but that can tell us a lot about them and can come into play if they are working in the story. 

3) Names - There are a lot of different ways to go about naming your characters.There are a million baby names sites and there’s also generators. Usually, by this point of the character creation I have an idea as to what I want their name to be, just from learning about them, but I often make my names up instead of going with realistic ones. If you’re making up names though, you have to make up everyone’s names, or most of them, otherwise it will be jarring every time your character’s name is said and can create a “spot the protagonist” situation. Since my character is a hitman, he needs both a name and a code name. Luckily the code name was super easy since all of the other guards that he’s blending with have animal code names so he became Jackal. 

Remember that friend that thinks our character is hot? They can be super useful here. Come up with a couple names, for this guy I’m thinking.... Jack (duh), Jacopo, Raffaele, or Giorgio. And just like that he became Italian! That’s a new development! For the main character of the story Jackal is from I ran a poll on twitter and 15 out of 16 people voted for Anson, so that’s why I went with that for the main characters name!

4) Worksheets - I haven’t seen people use worksheets for their characters but when I was new to writing I filled out worksheets for my characters obsessively. I still do now, I guess, but without the actual form. They make you think of all these little details for your character, including their backstory! A worksheet can also be useful as a quick reference guide for your characters in the middle of the story if you forget the name of a spouse or of some location they’ve been. Here are a few worksheets to fill out if you find that useful! epiguide | novel software | freelance writing

5) Backstory - For this I would recommend working backwards. For Jackal here, I know that he’s a hitman, he’s nonverbal, he is terribly soft but that’s all hidden away, and he’s gay (of course). So I have to explain how he came to be these things or how he came to realize them. Most hitmen take on the job for economic reasons, so I have to figure out what the factors were for that. I’m going to go with a family member being terribly sick with no hope of recovery with the families current finances, which also explains his secret softness. He will kill, it’s business, he doesn’t see his targets as people as such since that will make it hard to complete a contract, but all of his money is going to the hospital and, if he has to deal with someone in a similar situation it may affect him differently. He’s nonverbal because (just researched this and I’m sorry if I’m wrong) he suffered some brain damage before he was born which affects his breathing. This leads to my decision that this damage occurred when his mother came down with the disease aforementioned and now I know that there are breathing problems involved with this form of nonverbalism which may come into play in the story. His being gay? Well, I don’t need to figure out how that came to be since that’s not how being gay works, but he probably realized that he was gay while on a job, falling, not for a target, but for an employer. And just like that I have a slightly cliche but still decent start to a backstory!

6) Asks - ask games, talking about your characters, and just open conversation can help you come up with minor details about your character. Yesterday I was asked what kind of candy my characters like and how they feel about Christmas in November. Will my characters celebrate Christmas in story or eat candy? Probably not but having to come up on the spot with an answer for these questions still taught me things about the characters. I learned that Anson loves nostalgia and has no interest in decorating for himself. And I learned that Jackal has very good control over his sugar intake, is more fond of bitter flavors, and is annoyed by the inequality of America’s Christian obsession. These are aspects of personality and those will effect the story more than what the actual answer to the question was will.

That’s a lot longer than intended! Hopefully me walking through my process for creating this character will be helpful for you! I know I know a lot more about this guy than I did before I started!

[riessene]

Do you have any art tips or anything? I love your art and would really appreciate an advice on stuff you found hard when you first started drawing!

I looked up my old drawings to see whats up and honestly?? Just start drawing whats in your heart (ocs, anime fanart, sexy angels - anything that brings you joy) and never never tie what you think of your art with the amount of notes it receives on the internetfor technical stuff?-use refs. people be shocked by artists drawing what they see but thats how art works! when you learn how thing works by drawing it from pictures 10 times you can imagine a new thing out of it-see what you like in other artist’s styles and try to incorporate it in your style. cool shading, the way they draw hair eyes or boots - anything.-tracing is a godsent method to learn the shapes. but dont post if you trace someones art - its for your practice only.-choose an art program and watch a tutorial how to work with it. not everything is intuitive (im looking at you ps) and you can learn some cool tricks to do there-study anatomy and how limbs work in different poses-look up rembrandt lighting it’ll help you to learn how light and shadows lay on surface in a dramatic manner-dark brown or dark purple lineart looks better with colors-work on a light gray canvas and not white (i add a drop of pink to get this one #dfdcdc)-use overlay and multiply layers and adjust colors after if they are looking bleak-make a ref folder or a pinterest board for interesting faces and clothes to draw-make art something to enjoy so you will practice often (i draw,,,,every day its my way to unwind)-choose a super popular fandom and draw for it to trick people into following and then feed them your ocs and obscure games art (sorry yall;’D)

[modesty-blaise]

Since I'm curious, what caused you to become very possessive of your gifs? Not out of rudeness but curious, since no matter what you do a lot of them show up in the gif function on Tumblr which automatically credits you at the bottom of the gif.

Hey. Tbh, at first I didn’t wanna bother with yet another anon but since I see no ill intent behind this, I decided to go and answer it. Unfortunately, half-way through I realised my reply is turning into incredibly long semi-bitter rant and expands well beyond calling out just one person in Psychonauts fandom (and yes, this is related to Psychonauts fandom – you do know that these anons are not really that anonymous, right?) so… buckle up! All that beneath “read more”.

I’ve been on this hellsite for like…7-8 years? Maybe more? Can’t really tell cause I moved blogs and my old blog now consists of only 4 posts I’ve made close to leaving so I honestly have no idea how much time I’ve spend here before moving. Anyway, during those few years I’ve spent on my first blog I’ve met a lot of creative gifmakers who enjoyed sharing their love for fandoms they were in. I’d like to point out that this was waaaaay before tumblr created that insert-gif option so, back in the day, the only way to add gifs to your post was to: 1. make them yourself 2. take them from someone else. And a lot of people were taking them from someone else which resulted in many gifmakers giving up on making gifs and leaving fandoms and/or even leaving tumblr – and I’ve had many of my friends give up on what they love and have their games/shows/movies/whatnot ruined for them cause people would not stop stealing from them. And many of my friends eventually left tumblr cause they couldn’t deal with it anymore.

Tumblr adding insert-gif option, in my opinion, honestly, just made it worse for gifmakers. Cause now people had the opportunity to use gifs for their posts, with or without creators’ permission/knowledge, but it was alright and it was perfectly fine cause creators were credited. There’s their name at the bottom. It’s alright. Like… it doesn’t matter if they’re actually okay with people using something they’ve put hours into making or if they’re not – tumblr gives them credit so they SHOULD be okay with it. Simple as that.

Well, we’re all different and some people are not okay with that. I’m not okay with that. It took me weeks to figure out how to use photoshop correctly. Took me countless hours of looking through different tutorials and basically trial-and-error-ing my way through the process. Whenever I make gifs, it takes me hours to record videos and then hours trying to achieve that 3mb limit on gifs (thank lord these days we’re beyond 1mb limit). After all that effort I put into creating gifs for games that I love and enjoy, someone is going to make 2 clicks and have that same gif added to their post, without even asking. So how is that okay?

Back to your question. Yes, “no matter what you do a lot of them show up in the gif function on Tumblr”, that is true and that is something I was aware of when I saw you-know-who announcing they would be starting 30 days Psychonauts challenge. So, hating to see my gifs used against my will, and not wanting to start any unnecessary drama and threaten people in advance with reporting them if they do use them, I’ve made my blog as private as I could. It was only accessible through the dashboard, it was not showing in ANY search engines inside and outside tumblr, and my gifs were impossible to find through insert-gif function – I’ve made sure. I did all that cause I just knew that during those 30 days, someone would use my gifs and I would get mad and I desperately wanted to avoid that (hence going extreme). And you know what happened? You know what creator of this challenge (who prevously already reposted my gifs) did? *drums* They used my shit anyway. :3 They just uploaded it from their computer, where they’ve saved it earlier.

And like… a lot of people see pretty pic and decide to save it - I mean, we all do that. Heck, even I have a folder full of shit I saw online and liked it – but i’m not uploading it online cause I haven’t made it. It’s not mine to share.

But some people are not like that.

Some people see fanart of something they like and they want to share their opinion on it – and instead of making their own post, maybe drawing the fanart themselves, they decide to use someone else’s art for their post. Do they know who made it? Do they have creator’s permission to share it? If the answer is NO, then they should be a decent human being and not do that to creators. Oh, they shared it anyway but now people in fandom are calling them out BUT this actually happened on accident? They know who the creator is but, somehow, they accidentally forgot to credit them? OK, well, it’s possible, shit happens, but they better make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Then sometime later these same people decide they want to make a post appreciating their fav character and they want to include pics cause duh, you can’t have character appreciation post without pics, right? Now they have several options: they can get their own screenshots, make their own gifs, maybe draw something… or they can just take someone else’s creation. Do they know who made it? Well there’s my fuckin name on it, and since they’ve stretched it from 245 to 500px, it’s really hard to miss, plus it’s not like there are that many people making Psychonauts gifs. Do they have permission to share it? Hmmm, nope, didn’t ask me. Is this also an accident? Could be. I mean, I’ve seen stranger things happen, so accidentally forgetting to credit content creators twice… kinda suspicious but still possible. Who am I to say?

Now if these people then decide to make a post appreciating their fav ship and they want to add a cute pic of the loving couple – yup, you guessed it! They can either create something or take something. Again: they know who did? They asked for permission? Got the permission? No?!?! But they posted it anyway?!?! :o Could it really be, that after being called out publicly, after being told that reposting is bad (something that’s very easy to understand), after even having tumblr staff intervene and remove stolen shit from their blog, after all that - could it really still be an accident?

Nah, man.

They just don’t give a shit.

Cause if they did, they’d stop with that crap first time they were called out.

(and if you think Psychonauts fandom is their only fandom and that they’re not doing this crap in other fandoms too - hoooo, boy, do I have some bad news for you! Do you know how many stolen and butchered HP fanart is on their blog? Hobbit stuff? They seem to be one of the most accident-prone users on tumblr. And honestly - it’s a real miracle their blog’s not been terminated.)

Back to what I was talking about - I’m not okay with people using my gifs and I’ve made it very clear. I literally do not give a shit if I’m credited or not, I’ve made it very clear that I don’t want my gifs used without my permission. If you like them and want them on your blog, there’s a fuckin reblog button. It’s sole purpose is to allow you to share other people’s creations. Or shitposts, cause lord knows we all love those.

So that’s why when someone spends hours going through my Psychonauts tag and goes as far as to send me “I love your gifs” anonymous message, but the very next day makes stim moodboard post including one of my gifs, now cut and resized to fit 3x3 format they’re going with, I get mad. And that’s why when someone uses one of my gifs to promote their RP blog, butchering it to fit their aesthetics, and later when confronted going as far as blaming their good friend on it cause god! they’ve had no idea it wasn’t theirs, I get mad. (makes you wonder though: if they friend has such skills, why not making them gifs themselves?)

Like…. I’ve had my gifs stolen plenty of times. I’ve had them stolen for roleplaying, for headers, for imagines, just for notes… I’ve had them stolen by people claiming to run official fan sites (that’s a real wild story but I won’t get into that now)… I’ve seen them on pinterest, weheartit, FB, all those random gif sites… and I’ve seen EVERY. POSSIBLE. EXCUSE. ranging from: “well i found it on google so why should i credit you” “lol dunno who made this but its pretty so im posting it” “ive had it on my computer for years so i don’t remember where i got it from” “i dont know how to make gifs so im using weheartit as a source” “credit to whoever made this” (that’s my fav) to “its just a gif so who gives a shit” (it’s not – it’s hours of creator’s time and lots of love that you’re now shitting on so thanks) and “i have an /illness/ and getting notes makes me feel better so dont u dare blame me for stealing” (I don’t remember exact excuse but it was something along those lines and like… how do you even respond to something that without looking like an asshole?).

And sometimes it really is just an accident. Sometimes people really do forget to credit you and/or ask you for permission. And I’ve had my fair share of those accidents. People in Psychonauts fandom have been using my gifs for various crap but, when approached, they’ve removed it and apologised. And it’s something I really appreciate. (if they actually bother reading this and they recognise themselves: i’m really grateful and thank you for not being an ass)

But you know what I don’t appreciate? People making a call out posts about me, asking about my gifs when they know very well they’re the main reasons why I’m not making those gifs anymore, at the same time failing to address any of the issues I have with them and instead rather explaining to others what happened BUT explaining only the parts that make me look like a villain cause how I even dare be mad about them stealing? How I even dare call them out on it? That is so ridiculous and criminal of me, and it’s so so sooooo bad that they need to call me out. I deserve to be called out by the very same person who’s been stealing my shit.

And their explanation is…well… it’s something.

They were sympathetic and polite? When did this happen? Did I completely missed that part? Please someone fuckin enlighten me with such post/message where they expressed their sympathy and politeness and I’ll apologise right this second.

I told them to “literally fuck off”? Yeah, that did happen, I admit that. Did they bother explaining why I told them to fuck off in the first place? Did they say they were caught stealing from me and had tumblr stuff remove my shit from their blog? Did they get into details of how they demanded the proof of my so very wild and obviously false claims but then when I showed it, they just deleted that “how dare u call me out cause I would never do such thing” post? No, they didn’t and geee, I really wonder why.

Instead, what did they choose to address? Out of all the things I’ve said. Hm? What did they choose? Me telling them to fuck off. Me dropping the F-bomb on them, rudely rejecting their obvious kindness and politeness. Nothing else.

Back to what I was talking about before I got derailed again: no, I’m not mad cause this person used my gifs without crediting me. I mean – I am, but that’s not my main issue with them (and they know it). My main issue is that this is someone who will continuously lie and steal and still deny any of it, even when there’s plenty of proof (and you can always count on me to show up with proof tbh), and then go as far as to publicly ask about my gifs and try to call me out. Like me getting mad that something I’ve put hours of work into, and something I’ve made cause I love the game and I want to share my love and appreciation for it, is now being shared against my will and my knowledge - like me getting mad over something like that is so unreasonable that they need to make an entire post about it while pretending they have absolutely no idea why I’m even mad and why we have issues.

And I have every fucking right to be mad. 3 times is not an accident. 2 times to the same person is not an accident. They know it. But yeah, playing stupid is their defense so it’s not like I expected them to actually address their actions this time either.

And you know what? Just because I swear a lot doesn’t mean I’m wrong. Doesn’t mean there’s no solid ground for my claims. People on tumblr have always been and always will be stealing shit. Sometimes they will credit you, often they will not, and that’s just how it is, doesn’t matter if you’re okay with it or not. But that doesn’t mean I’m just gonna sit quiet and accept someone’s shitty behaviour. Especially when it’s directed at me.

TLDR: giving credit =/= having permission

but my previous posts leading to this ask were not about that

you knew that already

[i-want-my-iwtv]

How has the purge affected u?

[Apologies in advance for the Wall of Text™, I feel like longposting, sorry for the dash coverage, I didn’t think I had this much to say about this… And I probably shouldn’t do this, probably should have kept this to a flippant “It sucks!” with a VC meme, but I haven’t shared much publicly lately… now feels like a singularly poignant time to do so.]

NO CUTS WE LONGPOST LIKE MEN

It’s strange. I think running and participating in the @vcsecretgifts exchange (not finished yet!), and backing up that blog and this one for preservation (not finished yet!), helped take my mind off it! I’ve been busy with @wicked-felina coordinating substitute Santas, so I haven’t had much chance to indulge in it like a participant yet, but I did see that my recipient liked my gift, and that was heartwarming! I’ll reply properly when I have the peace of mind for it (yes I could be doing it now but this is the gear I want to be on right now), and I haven’t had a chance to read the gift from my own Santa, I’m saving that as a treat!

I did the #Log/ffProt/st, that helped. The purge is/was creatively stifling, somewhat, too, bc even though I don’t produce NS/FW stuff myself (I WANT TO, THO), I do reblog it, and support it, I see other artists and writers affected by it, and I felt and still feel helpless, unable to protect them. One of our VC fandom members who draws slash art has been shadowbanned, that I know of. It’s frustrating that the morality & purity police seem to have won this battle, but they haven’t won the war. We’ll take our garbage underground if we have to. 

How crushing to wake up to one’s blog(s) just canceled w/o explanation? We were given 2 weeks’ notice? To pack up our “nasty” stuff and leave? 

[X]

There’s nothing wrong with NS/FW stuff, adult ppl should be able to talk about it, fantasize about it, make art and write fiction about it, have kinks and explore them. I never bought the “if you like it in fiction you support it in reality!” argument, just like with all dangerous things we like in fiction but wouldn’t want in reality. 

“… Fiction is how we both study and de-fang our monsters. To lock violent fiction away, or to close our eyes to it, is to give our monsters and our fears undeserved power and richer hunting grounds.” - Warren Ellis [X]

But I’ve fought those battles and there’s no point in engaging in unwinnable debate with ppl who are committed to misunderstanding me and twisting my words into a strawman they can easily knock over.  

It’s baffling that it’s an unpopular opinion that minors should be allowed to learn about sex, as much as they learn about how to (eventually) drive a car, manage alcohol consumption, defend themselves against violence, handle medication or recreational drugs, all these things that are potentially and not inherently dangerous to them, that they’ll be faced with in the Real World. I remember there were religious rituals in my youth where children could taste alcohol a little bit, it was exposure to an adult thing in a safe space, among other adults. Is this really all about Protecting the Children? Really? Or is it about mental domination? What it looks like to me is a self-proclaimed Particular Authority who wants to keep minors (and adults) submissive and reliant on that Particular Authority, it’s so much easier to keep them submissive and reliant to that same Particular Authority as adults. It’s always been about power. 

And I’m seeing that the communities most affected by the purge are AFAB ppl and LGBTQIA+. It’s misogynistic, LGBTQIA+-phobic. The fact that tungle reportedly blocked archivists from saving blogs before the NS/FW purge is just pouring salt in the wound.

I’ve started following these refugee/evicted tumblr ppl where they’ve migrated to. I’m trying to keep track of them. I’m in the @fiction-is-not-reality2 discord server, keeping my eye out for the next alternative platform.

Leading up to the purge I considered blasting a bunch of smut as a last hurrah, and I did reblog some Controversial™ stuff, just in case my blog was going to be deleted, but then, I lost steam on that. Why put in extra effort and get deleted anyway? Why poke the bear, and deliberately get deleted for it? Most of my blog is SFW, anyway.

I preserved my blog, the gifts blog, and just for archival purposes I should have been doing that all along, so it was good for my own historical safekeeping… so much good commentary and fanworks here, in the past 5+ years! Collecting the scraps just like I’d done in 1994, when there were articles about the IWTV movie and I wanted all of them, I especially wanted the illustrations and caricatures in the magazines (which was really validating of my interest in some way, fanart that was published, essentially!). And I had my folder of Deviantart I liked, of course. So I packed up my blog here to preserve it, it’s on wordpress now, iwantmyiwtv.com, with a lame layout, but I’ve got the tags showing, where fanart that’s blocked here can still be seen on WP.

I’m rambling. 

The purge reminded me that all this, as we know it, could and will be gone someday. Purges have done that before, especially to our fandom, attacked by its own canon author. We’ve survived this before. 

I’ve been on tungle since July ‘13. I’ve made and lost some wonderful friends here, some have moved on to other fandoms, or we’ve had partings of the ways. The fanart in this fandom, my memes, have been spread all over, I see them on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter. When this blog is deleted, either by content flagging or by tumblr finally keeling over, our stuff is going to outlive us all.  

Who even made this one? One of the vintage memes. Maybe their watermark was long ago cropped off, or maybe they hadn’t put it on:

^It was used in a meme here, but I don’t think that was the OP, it’s gotta be more than 4 yrs old. Pretty sure the “JUDGING YOU” in Impact font was around Twilight time, which came out in 2008. This meme is still floating around, it’s still amusing to ppl all these years later. Someone’s stroke of inspiration, and we may never know who it was, but we enjoy it, it’s part of the worn fabric of the fandom.

Will ppl remember me when/if I’m gone? I don’t need to be remembered, it’s enough that I was here at one point, and encouraged ppl to make fanworks, that I helped bring ppl together. I don’t need them to know it was me, specifically, or know much about me, this blog was never meant to be about me. Those I brought together might remember how they met. There are those who have seen behind the curtain and I hope to hang onto them as long as possible.

If/When this all disappears, I want ppl to know how much I enjoyed interacting with ppl through asks, the chat feature. I’ve missed answering asks, and I’ve missed the feeling of seeing new ask alerts without having to brace myself for Discourse. I’ve missed seeing that anon icon as a friendly, but shy, human being, rather than a living person who’s in pain, somewhere else in the world, throwing bricks through my window. Someone who’s suffering bc they’re not getting the attention they need, truly, someone who deserves to be loved, someone who needs validation for their opinions on things, and wanted mine, but I couldn’t give it. I’m only human, too. I made this blog for 15 year old me, who couldn’t find enough VC fanworks, so I set out to collect, make, and encourage them, but all in the spirit of optimism, bc that’s what I got out of canon. 15 year old me drew self esteem from those books. That’s the only person I ever wanted to please with this thing and that girl is still my priority. 

We’ll survive this purge, we’ve done it before. Hold onto the ppl who you’ve made connections with. I’ll be here as long as I can. 

Most importantly, I’m not letting the morality & purity police tell me what ’m allowed to learn about, make fanworks about, or enjoy in published or fan fiction, etc. 

[monstersandmaw]

Ghosti, I'm having trouble writing my story. I've only written a little should I power through or rewrite it? How do you deal with writing you don't like or feel stuck on?

First of all, it’s ok to get a bit stuck. It happens to everyone, and it’s not the end of the world, or of the story. Secondly, these are just my thoughts on things you can do when you get stuck - I’m sure there are a million other things you can try too, so don’t get disheartened if none of these fit with your writing style! 

What’s made you grind to a halt? 

Are you tired? Have you had a drink of water? Have you eaten recently? Been to the bathroom? Open the window and put on a jumper for a while if it’s chilly - some fresh air often helps too. Is there something on your mind that you need to deal with first? I can only really get going when I’m not distracted, so make sure you’re in your writing headspace as well as you can be before starting again. Go stretch, head outside and take a little meander round the block, or if it’s late, go shower and get some sleep. Come back fresh tomorrow. 

If you’ve done that, or you think that’s not the issue, that’s fine. Go back to the story and look at it again. 

Has it got overwhelming already? Do you know where it’s going next? If not, did you make a plan? Making a plan - even just jotting down rough ‘waypoints’ on the back of an envelope - can really help you get a sense of direction. 

Are you bored with it? It happens!! If you’re stuck on a scene, try writing something from later on in the story. You can always play ‘join the dots’ when you’re writing, by writing ‘random’ scenes (even if they’re just a paragraph), and connecting them up afterwards. 

What made you want to write this story in the first place? Was it a scene that you had clearly in your mind but haven’t got to in the timeline of the story yet? Write that scene now because that was what you wanted to explore.

Do you know your characters well enough? Have a conversation with them in your head (I wouldn’t advise doing it out loud unless you’re alone, because you will look a little unhinged… :P). Do you really know how they’d react to something that’s just happened? How do they feel about it? Really get inside their heads. You, as the writer, have to know them intimately, even if your characters don’t know each other, or don’t even really know themselves!! It’s hard work though, and it takes a lot of your brain power, so don’t panic, and take it slowly.

Are you doubting yourself and your writing? Is that what’s holding you back? If so, tell that little voice to stuff it and go sit in the naughty corner and be quiet, and keep writing. No one writes The Perfect Story™ first time. No one. You can’t edit something if you’ve got nothing to edit, so try just to push on through - tell yourself you’re going to write at least three more paragraphs before you stop for the day. You never know, it might be those three paragraphs that are causing the bottleneck in your brain…

Alternatively, just let your mind take you wherever it wants to go if you’re worrying about not knowing what happens next. If you got stuck doing a plan, and you couldn’t work out why that was - did the storyline feel stale? Did it feel predictable? Did it just feel odd? - no worries! Just see where it goes. Make stuff happen! Make them go outside to put the rubbish bins out and get soaked by a passing car! Make them look in the fridge and discover there’s no milk and have to go out for some. Make a friend turn up or message them and ask them to come over or go for a walk or whatever. Shake it up with an event, and see what happens. 

If you really don’t want to write, but are still invested in the story and its world, perhaps look at Pinterest or something to get some visual input for your story. Your brain might be tired of trying to ‘make the words go’ and might need some stimulation in another area. Create some boards - you might even get some new story ideas from it - or, if you’re arty, do some drawings: landscapes, scenes, rough storyboards, little details. If you’re not arty, just thinking about them with a cup of tea (or whatever) in a quiet place can be nice. If you want to come and talk to me about your characters or your story, feel free to drop me a line in chat, or do it in another anon message. It might get your creative juices going if you share it a bit with other creative types and have them ask about your characters/story, but that’s not for everyone, so don’t feel obliged. 

Finally, if nothing is currently working, save the story in whatever folder you save it in, close the document, and just leave it. Sometimes re-writing it can help, especially if you’re not very far into it, but still it is an awful lot of work, and can lead you to get bogged down in editing something that you haven’t finished yet, and you can still stop at the same point anyway. I’m not saying that will happen, so if you feel like it’ll work, do it. Just be wary of putting in a lot of extra effort when you could maybe have kept going. Maybe just rewind a little way and take a different path, as it were. 

I’ve got a large number of stories on my hard drive that I’ve started and not finished, so just go with your inspiration. If you’re really not feeling it after you’ve tried, park it somewhere and write another one. You might get a flash of inspiration and come back to it, or you may not, and yes, it’s disappointing and frustrating, but it’s also ok! Don’t be too hard on yourself because that will smother your creativity faster than almost anything. 

Write because you want to (not because you feel obliged (even to yourself) to finish the story), and have fun with it. It’s hard work, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. Have heart, and feel free to drop by again if you want to chat stories/characters on anon or in the chat! 

[daeyton]

Hi! How long does it take you to create fanart? I’m pretty new to it and I plan for my jonerys secret Santa to be a fanart! Not sure where to begin or anything like that. Love your work! ❤️

Aww anon, I’m a mess. Nothing I do is ever consistent so a drawing can take 20 minutes or days 😣 but you can be better than me!! Just always try and don’t be too hard on yourself!!❤❤❤ 

some advice I’ve gotten and resources that have helped me below:

References are nothing to be ashamed about and are great for getting ideas and figuring out where to start. I have a big pinterest board of movie/show stills and photography that can help with posing and anatomy and lighting. I’m too lazy to use it 90% of the time, but you can be so much smarter than me and use helpful references!! You can also make a folder and fill it with things that inspire you too. The latest game of thrones EW cover is a great reference to practice with too!! jon and dany in character being all close and protective of one another💕 

there is an artist that makes very nice guides for anatomy, @tb-sj she’s so generous for sharing and she’s helped me a lot

@lulusketches has some amazing top quality tutorial videos from how to use the pen tool, backgrounds, a walk through of her process, and her blessed line art video I refer to a lot! 

Someone is really lucky if you’re gonna make fanart for them! A labor of love from the heart, your passion and care will show through and it will be lovely❤ I think you have plenty of time to explore things and get a drawing out that will be adored:D Just try, and be kind to yourself!! 

I hope this helped somehow and good luck sweetie!!❤❤❤ Sending you all the good vibes

PS I also look at this guide from artist Olivia Margraf-Posta relatively often when I’m struggling with faces

[hellomartart-blog]

I GOT AN INTERVIEW!!!

For a project we had to reach out to a creative in the art industry and I reached out to Pascal Blanche who is character designer for Ubisoft and said I can ask him some questions and I went for it. Here is the interview:

ME - Dear Blanché

My name is Tinus Venter, I am a South African student from the The Open Window Institute for Arts and Digital Sciences. One of our projects for this term is to conduct a written interview with an artist of our choice.

I found your work earlier in the year on Instagram and absolutely love the work you publish and was hoping to ask you a few questions some time?

Kindest regards

BLANCE - Sure Tonus will try to answer the best I can. 

QUESTION 1

What kind of promotional activity do you do?

social media mostly twitter and instagram, the rest is all about CG forum palces: artstation/deviantart/Behance/linkedin.

Iget interviews or articles from time to time with magazines as well

QUESTION 2

What would be the best ways to promote one's work?

spread it wherever you can ;)

QUESTION 3

Is social media important in promoting your work?

It is important if you want exposure and if you want to get the attention of studios, but not for the work itself

QUESTION 4

Why do I need portfolio reviews if the clients can see my work online?

It is again a question of exposure ( the more the better) and also to get good tips and advises from your reviewers

QUESTION 5

Any tips on portfolio reviews?

show your best works, display what you want to do, ask for critics and things to improve. a portfolio is always in a work in progress state,

it showcases your best of that moment, and is meant to push you moving forward, it is in no case an achievement. if you understand this, your portfolio becomes your best tool to improve your work.

QUESTION 6

Any tips on portfolio reviews?

see question 5 I guess?

QUESTION 7

When and how did you land your first commission?

oh, dear.. hmm.. I was working in a video game magazine for summer job, I left a few drawings on my table for others too see that I could draw, then happened the day where the main illustrator was sick and they asked me to make a double page on photoshop for like in 3 days ( never worked on photoshop before ) and I said yes. rest is more work ;)

QUESTION 8

What do you like most about being a Concept artist?

it is the possibilities ;) anything is possible when you create concepts, and there is creativity at any stage of the process

QUESTION 9

Offer one piece of advice to a new illustrator?

learn from the masters, practice, and learn more again. try to not go for fan art ( it is good only for practice, never in your portfolio ) see what you like in other's works, try to see where they got their inspiration from, and get more art knowledge ( technic and historic ) that will make you a better artist and also will give you the best tools to know where to look for inspiration on first assignment

QUESTION 10

How do you come up with ideas for an assignment?

like in question 9 I tend to discuss first the needs, expectations, I send a few references to tackle more precisely what the direction is, then I do more research ( Wikipedia google and Pinterest are your best friends at this stage ) and I start from there.

QUESTION 11

What's your process?

long story but to sum it up: I pose and model my work in 3dsmax, add details in zbrush, render in keyshot and touch up in photoshop.

QUESTION 12

What has influenced your design and its aesthetic?

long list! here are a few: https://www.pinterest.ca/pascalblanche/

( search for the inspiration and masters folders )

QUESTION 13

How does/do social media outlets (Tumblr, Facebook, Instagram) affect what you create and do you find yourself thinking about your audience while creating the work?

I try not to. it is yet usefull to understand what is working, waht is not. but i try to go with what I like to do first.

QUESTION 14

What is your least favorite thing about art?

didnt find anything I dont like about it yet.

QUESTION 15

What is your most favorite thing about art?

all of it ;)

QUESTION 16

What is the weirdest ?thing you’ve been asked to create?

hmmm sorry nothing really stands out here

QUESTION 17

How do you decide on the colour palletes for your designs?

QUESTION 18

Do you work primarily in digital or do you also work with traditional mediums?

digital only.

QUESTION 19

What kind of Photoshop brushes do you use to do your work?

the basic ones

QUESTION 20

Your characters have beautiful postures. Do you use models or do you use references found online?  

ah thanks ;) I was animator at certain point in my  carrer so I do like to spend time on my poses.. so i guess it is a sense of aesthetic I developped in time, also something I get form masters like Frazetta

QUESTION 21

How do you keep yourself motivated to draw?

I work all day long as art director , it as its good sides, but I like to find myself at home working on things I like. I guess I just love waht I do ;)

QUESTION 22

What is your favourite animal?

cats

thanks Tinus, hope it'll help!

[anneedmonsonus]

Make Your Home Beautiful with Bambury (and WIN a $500 Gift Voucher!)

If you are after one of the quickest, most affordable and also easiest ways to freshen up a bedroom or living space, I always think new cushions are a fail-proof way to go. Nothing brightens and lifts a space quite as easily! Add in a fresh new plant and you’ve treated your room or outdoor area to a speedy, mini facelift that will lift you up as you walk into it.

I keep cushion covers in our linen closet, and rotate them through the year. I buy what I love, and although I try to declutter our things often I find I rarely get rid of cushions. Yesterday a friend visited my house for the first time and commented on how pretty a cushion in our lounge room was – I told her I’d bought it about eight years ago! Although I LOVE following interiors trends (so much so I even write a weekly interiors trends and looks column for STM in The Weekend West) I still go by the ‘buy what you love’ rule. Trends will come and go, but if you buy what you really love, you’ll never go wrong, and you can usually find new ways to rework an ‘old’ trend into a new look. (I may make a small exclusion here for chevron… however, if you still love it, that’s the important thing!)

So I have a small library of cushion covers filed Marie-Kondo style in our linen closet, and I love pulling them out and using them again and again. When I first bought a couple of cushions from Bambury recently, I was blown away by their gorgeous – and very expansive – range of cushions and textiles. I was blown away a second time when I realised they are local – I’d never actually realised they a Perth-based company, I’d thought they were in Melbourne.

In fact, Bambury is one of Perth’s oldest – and most successful – textile companies. They have beautiful wares, and they’re run by a really nice group of people too. It’s probably quite obvious by now that I’ve always loved learning the stories behind start-ups (since I was a teenager, I used to cut clippings about businesses and business people that inspired me and saved them all in a folder). Well, Bambury began in 1994 in a Fremantle garage – just like many businesses do when they are starting out. It was a small wholesale business founded by now-managing director Andrew Lodge. Andrew was working in the sales within the textile industry. He saw a gap in the market for beautiful and individual wholesale products, and decided to manufacture his own.

It wasn’t long though before his product range of sheets and towels expanded and Bambury needed to find new premises – this time a warehouse in North Fremantle. Now 25 years later, Bambury have a vast range of products stocked across Australia and New Zealand – and amazingly, they’re still local! Their design team consists of Design Director, Amy Clarke, Textile Designer, Anne Campbell, and Graphics and Marketing Stephanie Harrison. “We are very proud to be a West Australian company,” Amy tells me. “There aren’t many textile businesses based here in WA and a lot of the industry and customers are located on the East Coast, however we have overcome all geographical challenges and have kept Bambury’s head office here in Perth.

“From very early on Andrew knew that design was going to play a key role in the business, it was to become Bambury’s strength and point of difference, and it still is today. All of our designing happens in our studio in Bibra Lake, in Perth’s south, not too far away from Fremantle.”

Recently Bambury experienced a big change as the company went from a wholesale-only business to an online retailer as well, delving into the world of social media too – which is how I actually stumbled upon them online, through their Instagram.

I couldn’t take my eyes off their beautiful images and brand photography, but what I liked too was that while they have so many on-trend cushions and throws (with their newest palettes featuring the latest hottest colour trends of dusty pinks, ochres, terracottas, burnt umbers, bracken, tinged mustards and army greens) they are still the kinds of pieces you can keep and style with for ages. And they’re easy to style with too – their feed alone gives you so many ideas for colour combinations and textures that work together. Their products range from cushions and throws to bed sheets, towels, bathroom products, rugs, ottomans, beach towels and bags, wall hangings, teatowels, pieces for outdoor living, exercise and things for kids.

It’s not a complete surprise that everything Bambury creates looks as complementary as it does – the design team have been working as a tight-knit team for almost eight years now. “Anna and I develop the prints and product ranges, while Stephanie works on photography, catalogues and marketing,” says Amy. “We have quite similar tastes, so we all work really well together.”

Styling and photography by @villastyling. Assistance from @rmcbuilderswife

The whole team is West Australian-born – Steph was born in Perth, Anna is from Fremantle and Amy grew up in Carnarvon and Bunbury. “We have all travelled a little over the years and lived in other places, but our families are here in WA – Perth (and Fremantle) is home,” says Amy. Each of the girls has a new home that they are all busy decorating and styling.

They design two main ranges a year. “When we first come together to discuss the next range, we usually have a few ideas that we have bookmarked to bring to the table,” says Amy. “These ideas might be as simple as a colour, a fabric we have collected from a trade show or a motif that we think will work; quite often it is an extension of the previous range. Like most creative people, your work never stops, you are always taking things in and on the constant lookout for exciting new ideas, trends and products. We sometimes attend overseas trade shows, and we make sure we keep on top of the latest design and interior trends.” After collating and editing ideas, they play with colour and drawings until they are happy that they have a good range.

“It’s hard to explain, but I do think gut instinct pays a big role too – if we all start noticing or loving something, there’s a good chance our customers will pick up on that soon too,” says Amy.

So what colours and textures are they predicting will be big in 2020? “Trends have been moving to warmer tones for a while now, beautiful terracotta and nude tones – this will continue for a while longer,” says Amy.

“It’s less about the grey and white Scandi look, and moving towards a colour palette with warm greys and natural earthy tones – think soft taupe rather than silvery grey. There’s also a really fun play with unexpected colour combinations such as terracotta and lilac, or ochre and blush pink.

Andy and Deb from The Block styled this gorgeous living room with a Miimi and Jinda painting and cushions from Bambury.

“There’s definitely a move to being more nature inspired, which is where olive greens come into play, as well as products that are more textural and artisan looking, a more hand-made look, like our macramé products.

“The 70s vibe is well and truly here for 2020, so lots of floral patterns with mustards and straw yellow tones – look out for our next range in March, it will feature some 70s-inspired brown velvet and corduroy!”

If you love interior design but have ever felt nervous about styling your own home, I completely understand – sometimes I take a while to choose things for my own home and like to play around with mini moodboards or Pinterest boards (like below!) other times I can make a decision in a snap (it gets easier the more you do it!)

And a common piece of feedback I get from House Nerd readers is that it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when it comes to choosing things for our own homes. So how can you confidently choose pieces that you’ll really love in your own place?

“I think a room definitely needs to show the owner’s personality,” advises Amy. “Go with a colour palette that feels natural to you, don’t overwhelm yourself with colours you aren’t comfortable with. You don’t have to follow the latest trend, just keep it simple. If navy is what feels natural to you, go with it and pair it with a neutral tone like white or taupe or keep it really tonal, and create interest with different textures and fabrics.

“The other way to do it would be to start with something you already have, something that you love whether that’s a vase, or a cushion or a painting, use it as a starting point and add pieces that match it, but also items that just make you happy.” Maya x

  The perils of styling with children about….

WIN! A $500 BAMBURY GIFT VOUCHER

The team at Bambury are really kindly giving me an epic competition prize for one lucky House Nerd, who’ll score a $500 Bambury gift card!

Think of all the gorgeous goodies you could get with this! Would you give your bedroomor guest room a stunning new look? Replace all your old bathroom towels? Refresh your living room with some beautiful new cushions or throws? Get kitted out with colourful new beach towels and beach bags for this scorching summer? Or maybe your kids rooms could do with some fun new cushions and bedsheets? The choice is totally up to you.

There are four ways you can gain entries into the draw:

Visit the Bambury website and leave a comment below telling me which piece you love from their range (1 entry).

Visit the Bambury website and sign up for their email newsletter (worth 5 entries).

If you’re on Facebook, follow both Bambury @BamburyPtyLtd and House Nerd @Housenerd (1 entry). Tag a friend on the Facebook competition post for an additional draw entry. One friend, one additional entry, five friends, five entries and so on.

If you’re on Instagram, follow both Bambury @bambury and House Nerd @housenerd (1 entry). Tag a friend on the Instagam competition post for an additional draw entry. One friend, one additional entry, five friends, five entries and so on.

COMPETITION RULES:

Winner will be drawn Jan 10th, 2019. There is a complete release of Instagram and Facebook by each entrant. Promotion in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by or associated with Instagram or Facebook. Competition open only to people living in Australia or New Zealand.

Good luck!

The post Make Your Home Beautiful with Bambury (and WIN a $500 Gift Voucher!) appeared first on House Nerd.

from Home Improvement https://house-nerd.com/2019/12/15/bambury-win-a-500-gift-voucher/

[thedailychangejar-blog]

24 Little Known Ways to Earn Money on Fiverr!

This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase from one of the product links, I’ll receive a commission or other benefit at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting The Daily Change Jar.

Fiverr is a great place to earn some extra cash if you have some wicked tech skills? But what if you don't?

If you are looking to make some extra income freelancing without the hassle of looking for clients and promoting your services all over the place? Then you should check out Fiverr. If you haven’t already heard of it Fiverr is a platform for freelancers to sell their services starting at $5. Let me say that again, starting at $5. You can make A LOT more, even a full-time income, by offering upsells and add on services. If you have shied away from Fiverr because you think you are going to make much cuz all the services are only $5, then think again! There are people that have made hundreds and thousands of dollars on Fiverr.

But what kinds of things can you do on Fiverr? Do you have to be a techie person?

The short answer is just about anything you can come up with, and no, you don't have to be a tech guru! People use Fiverr to outsource work they either don’t know how to do, don’t want to do, or don’t have the time to do. There are tons of techie type things that you can do on there, like website development, programming, SEO, graphic design, etc. So first let’s take a look at some of the categories and see what we come up with. The categories displayed at the top of the Fiverr homepage are: Graphics and Design Digital Marketing Writing and Translation Video and Animation Music and Audio Programming and Tech Business Fun and Lifestyle Upon first glance, it might look like you need a business or developer degree to make anything off of Fiverr. But let’s take a closer look and dive into some gigs that you as a non-techie (or novice techie) can do to make some extra side cash. You don't need a business or developer degree to earn money on Fiverr! Click To Tweet

Voice over artist

Do you have a nice voice or just like to talk? A sexy accent? Perhaps you should try your hand...I mean voice...at voice-overs. Tons of people are making instructional videos online and are not comfortable with using their own voice or are looking for a specific type of voice to put into their videos. Simply upload a voice clip to your Fiverr profile and let people know you are a voice-over artist. Bonus, it helps to have a pretty good microphone so you don’t have to worry about static and feedback. Check out the Yeti microphone this is recommended by many podcasters as an inexpensive and good quality microphone.

Website tester

Companies pay big money for this type of thing.  Being able to see a website, landing page, or whatever platform from the customers' perspective can vastly help to improve the customer experience. Plus if you already know how to browse around online-which if you are here, I am assuming you do -this is a super easy way to get started.  You are simply checking to make sure the website is easy to navigate from a user perspective, it doesn't take too long to load, links work, the design is aesthetically pleasing, etc.   To do this effectively you will need a screen recording software. You can download Jing for free, which lets you record up to 5 minute videos. Or if you are looking for a something that you can make longer recordings and throw editing in the mix, Screencast-O-Matic is what I personally use. There is a free version where you can record 15-minute videos and save as a video file. Or a very reasonable pro version for $15/yr. Which allows you to make longer videos and edit the videos. Once you are done making the recording simply upload it to an email, Google drive or Dropbox folder for your client to access.

Human billboard

I promise this is not as sketchy as it sounds! This can be a fun one to try, especially if you have a certain "look." When companies are working on branding campaigns, they want their logo, slogan, or message in as many places as possible. Can you draw the companies logo on yourself? Or wear their t-shirt and take a photo of yourself? This might not be for everyone. Some companies also might look for a specific “image” that they want to portray to their customers. So if you are loaded with tattoos and the company is looking to promote their products to that demographic, you just might be a perfect fit.

Article spinning

This is one for the writers out there. Article spinning is basically taking an original article and re-writing it so it can be redistributed on the web for SEO purposes without being dinged as duplicate content. So why would someone want an article spun? Maybe they have multiple websites that overlap topics but don’t always want to consistently come up with new content. Or they want to redistribute the same content on their website without duplicating it. This is a particularly popular strategy in small niche sites mostly used for affiliate marketing.  This is another pretty easy job if you are a halfway decent writer. If you can paraphrase other people’s work-remember English class-without plagiarizing it, then this might be an option for you. You can also use Copyscape’s free comparison tool to check your writing against the original piece of content to make sure it’s not too similar. Or you can get CopyScape premium and do checks for other people to make sure no one is stealing their content or it is not already copied.

Social media promoter

This is not as technical as it sounds.  If you have a large following on any of your social media accounts you can use that as a promotion tool. This is great if your followers are in a certain niche-like raw food, breastfeeding, or gourmet coffee. You can write a short post, or be seen using a product and link back to their page. If you don’t have a super large following, starting at $5 is good. However, if you have a pretty large following and super active and engaged users you can command higher prices. Try to put together a little media packet that shows how many followers you have, when you normally post, the type of engagement you get, if and what you have previously promoted and how it did. For example, each tweet gets an average of X# of retweets within the first 4 hours, etc… The more specific you can be with how the client will benefit from your following, the higher the prices you can command. Also, there might be the option to develop a recurring relationship with that customer to promote their products. Then you could charge a commission percentage of what your followers buy. 

Meal plans

Are you great at meal planning?  Offer your services on Fiverr to those that might not have the time to do meal planning themselves. You can offer plans for specific dietary restrictions-vegetarian, vegan, paleo, gluten free, etc. There is also the option to offer upsells for those wanting personalized meal plans or add ons like a grocery list.

Microsoft office services

There are many people that are not great at doing things in Microsoft office-excel formulas, word formatting, just gives them a headache and makes them want to cry. If this is something that comes as second nature to you, then put it to use! Excel formulas are really not that complicated-whenever I can’t figure one out, I turn to my trusty friend Google. And it’s not just Microsoft office, this includes Google sheets, docs, etc, and Mac apps like keynote and pages. They are all very similar, and if you have a PC you can access Mac apps in iCloud. But if what I just said is making your head spin, stay away from this one ;-)

Social media cards/images

Another one that sounds more complicated than it is. Remember that image you clicked on in Pinterest that brought you to this post? Yeah, super easy and FREE to make. Simply go to Canva and make one. You can add company specific colors, logos, or create your own thing. Play around with it. This can be used for Pinterest images, Facebook headers, Instagram quotes, Twitter images. You can even branch out and create greeting cards, infographics, posters, and tons of other stuff on the free app. There is also a paid version that gives you access to more stock images, the ability to upload fonts, create templates, and save brand color and a couple other things for $12.95 a month. You can also take a look at PicMonkey, which is another free app with a paid upgrade where you can do similar things. Although if you do ease into it, you can create some super awesome stuff that people are willing to pay bookoo bucks for!

Creative writing

Another one for my writers out there! Do you love to write stories about fictional characters and their quests? Is Wattpad your favorite app? Then creative writing on Fiverr may be just the thing for you! But you don’t want to write a whole short story for $5, well maybe if you are just starting, beggars can’t be choosers, right? Maybe you could develop a character profile, or perhaps the writer is having difficulty coming up with a beginning or ending to the story. You could write just that one section. It is common that $5 pays for about 100 words, which is really not a lot-hello upsells!

Transcription

This is a pretty easy gig and in high demand considering everyone and their brother is podcasting. (I don’t have anything against podcasters, I just prefer to write rather than talk, thank you for reading ;-) ). Podcasting has blown up in the past few years and although it is great to listen, some people still prefer to read. You can transcribe a podcast or any type of audio. I have seen anywhere from $5 for 5 minutes of audio to $5 for 60 minutes of audio. It is really up to you how much you want to make on an hourly basis, and how fast and accurate you can type. If you are doing 60 minutes for $5 and the typing is horrible and it needs to be proofread and edited before anyone can read it when you hand it over to your client, then that might be worth it. But if you are doing $5 for 5 minutes and the grammar is impeccable, and it is perfect, then people will pay more. Just make sure you are putting in the description that is it manual transcription and what kind of quality the customer can expect (edited, proofread, formatted, etc). Just make sure you are putting in the description that is it manual transcription and what kind of quality the customer can expect (edited, proofread, formatted, etc). You want to make sure your clients are happy and you are getting good reviews.  You can even offer an upsell to load the transcription into a template the client already has for all their show notes or something similar. Check out an example of how Pat Flynn from SmartPassiveIncome has his transcriptions formatted-beautiful! Or upsell to put time stamps on the transcript-which can be especially useful for podcasters.

Profile writing

Have you ever set up a new social profile and go to write your “about you” section and draw a blank on what to say about yourself, well then you need a profile writer! Maybe you are a new business owner and you are struggling to write a profile description of yourself or your company that really stands out and describes who you are and what you can offer. Not everyone is great at writing and people can be afraid of sounding too braggy or arrogant when they are writing about themselves. So why not help them out? If you are pretty good with words and can make someone sound amazing, then try your hand at profile writing.   

Translation

Do you speak another language? If you can translate already, why not make some money from it?! Obviously not for everyone, but if you do have this skill monetize it! You could translate peoples, videos, audio, written word or even offer your services over skype. If you can translate already, why not make some money from it?! Obviously not for everyone, but if you do have this skill monetize it! You could translate peoples, videos, audio, written word or even offer your services over skype. You could translate peoples', videos, audio, written word or even offer your services over skype.

Gaming

Are you an expert gamer? Do you pick on the noobs while playing Call of Duty cuz they can’t level up? Can you beat the boss level with ease every time? People will pay you to get them to the next level or help them earn that platinum trophy.  People will pay you to get them to that next level in their game! Click To Tweet Yes, you heard that right, so if you happen to have a teenager (or husband) who spends hours gaming, rather than yelling at them to go get a job (or do the laundry), have them read this!

PLR article writer

If you are unfamiliar with PLR, it stands for private label rights. Selling PLR content can be big bucks. Essentially what you have to do is write short articles about pretty much any niche topic and you can resell it. People often sell hundreds or thousands of articles for very low prices. They might even buy them from other PLR sources (with resale rights) and resell them. People use PLR content to populate blogs and websites with content quickly rather than sitting down and writing it all themselves. I have personally done this for small niche sites I own. Although I do not use the PLR content “right out of the box” so to speak, I rewrite it, mostly because I’m kind of anal when it comes to writing and I think a lot of PLR stuff sucks as far as the writing style. BUT, this is a good way to write and do the work upfront and have a bit of more residual income.  

Pet modeling

Remember the walking billboard idea before? Well, apply that to your pet. Again, brands that are looking to cater to a certain demographic or look for specific people, or in this case animals, to help with their marketing message. This is not just limited to dogs and cats, oh no, get your goldfish, horse or monkey involved. They gotta learn some financial responsibility too, don’t they?

Blog images

This goes right along with the social media cards/images I mentioned earlier. So head back over to Canva and check out their blog images. Blogs with images are more fun to look at and easier to share. If you have a pretty good eye for design, you can help struggling blog owners up their game with amazing images that draw readers in.

Singing

Do you have a good singing voice? Can you rap or beatbox? Then offer to sing songs that people write or do a beatbox like you would a voice over recording. Just make sure you have a halfway decent microphone to record it on. I had seen this done for someone (not from Fiverr) where the client wrote about their perfect day and had someone make it into a song. It was pretty cool, kind of like a singing vision board.

Editor

Editing can be a pretty easy gig for someone who has an eye for detail and good grammar. Or maybe someone just needs a second pair of eyes to look at their work before they publish or submit it. You can edit just about anything, blog posts, academic articles, school papers, e-books. If it has words, it can be edited. Gigs can start at $5 for proofreading and editing of 5000 words. If you are a little more tech savvy, editing also covers photo and video editing.

E-books and other info products

In an experiment to sell on Fiverr, Nick Loper from Side Hustle Nation sold an e-book for $5, and had 4 different $5 up-sells for this offer! When it comes to info products and e-books, either people are looking for the information to solve their problem, or they are looking for shortcuts to content creation. So you could either write a specific e-book on a subject and sell it, OR you would write e-books and create info products for people-the latter you can charge a lot more for!

Tutor

If you have looked on any online job boards for virtual positions lately, you may have noticed a need for online tutors. Specifically tutors for Chinese students looking to learn English. This is different than translation in the fact that you don’t need to speak the other language. You do, however, need to have a good understanding of the English language and grammar. I have seen people on Fiverr charge $25/hour for a Skype session to teach English-not to bad. Although as a brand new seller you can not start out at $25/hour, read about the different Fiverr levels and what you can offer as a brand new seller here. Also, if that is a little outside of your comfort zone and you would rather stick with native English speakers. Try tutoring in a different subject to English speaking students. Know a thing or two about advanced calculus? You can charge $30/hour for that. People are looking for tutors in Microsoft office, microeconomics, finance, different languages, research papers, and just about any subject you can think of. This would be an especially good gig for those already in college looking to earn a little to pay their tuition.

Market research

Market research is something that a lot of people either don’t understand or they just find it too tedious. I personally enjoy it-I know, I’m weird, isn’t the first time I’ve heard that. If you know how to conduct market research for online or offline businesses this is definitely a skill you can market. I have seen Fiverr gigs on market research for researching 2 specific competitors for $25, up to $100 for a comprehensive market research and suggestions and improvements on a business. You can also charge by the hour for market research. This works well if someone is looking for research for a book or article. Just make sure you are providing detailed information, citations, and links back to what you find. You don’t want to have to worry about accidental plagiarism on the author’s end.  

Virtual assistant

So if you’re not sure of a specific service or talent you can offer, or if you want to do a little bit of everything, you can offer your services as a virtual assistant. This is good for people looking for a bit of extra help and to get their lives organized. Not just entrepreneurs, even busy moms and dads need a little bit of virtual help here and there. Got a bunch of photos of the kids online you want organized but don’t have the time to sit down and do it, hire a VA! A virtual assistant can handle just about anything. The main plus side to this gig, there is a very high possibility of recurring clients, especially if you are good at what you do.   

Product review video

Do you love talking in front of a camera? Well then maybe you should try out this gig. Companies that are just starting out and need reviews for their products can hire individuals from Fiverr to create a short, normally 30-60 second video to talk about how great their products are. I have seen this done for both digital and physical products. Also, a fun little side project for couples. Just make sure you are being realistic in the video and not overly excited and fakey. Nobody likes that and it totally looks staged. Plus, you might be able to get some free products out of it :-)

Creating a stock photo

Do you have adorable kids? Cute pets? Can you take nice nature photos or can set up snazzy flat-lay photos? Try creating stock photography images to sell on Fiverr. Or perhaps create custom photos for people that are looking for specific types of images that may be more difficult to find. Like a goat wearing a bowler hat. Stock photography can be big business, seeing the same old images online every day can get old. *Bonus-do you already have a software that you use and pay for monthly or yearly that you could use to get gigs on Fiverr? Have a premium subscription to CopyScape-charge people $5 to check their site for plagiarism. Find out how to make money off of the things you already pay for.   Don’t be afraid to get creative when it comes to offering gigs on Fiverr. Try making a list of things you have done, in school, at work, on a volunteer basis that you could turn into a Fiverr gig. Ask your friends or family members what you have done for them that they found helpful that they would have had to pay someone else for. Obviously, it has to be deliverable online though. Although I have seen gigs where someone creates something and ships it to the client. You might want to wait on something like that until you “level up” and can charge more to cover shipping charges. Related post: 9 Little Known Ways to Start Working from Home

Have you done some Fiverr gigs? What has worked for you? Are there any other non-techie gigs you can think of?

*Keep an eye out for a future post on random and crazy gigs I have found on Fiverr* Read the full article