#Dark days

[lovefoolchic]

My voice reveal video got taken down without Tumblr even telling me it had been flagged 💔

[antikate]

I think I’m still, somehow, after so many years on earth? Just so terribly naive about what people want.

I know what I want, and I think it seems very reasonable and achievable? I want is a safe future for my kids (stable climate, reproductive rights, health care, access to education, safety from violence)

I want to walk my dog and tend to my garden and do my crafts and write my silly little stories. I want friends and book clubs and bicycle paths and movies and a just this small life of connection and joy

And I want this for everyone else too like I want the weird old guy who lives on my street and who apparently hates me to also have access to healthcare when he needs it. I want the immigrant families at my kids’ school to have access to that school and for it to be good!I want libraries and pride parades and community gardens

… and instead what other people really seem to want is to punish other people. They want violence and the bootheel and to rid life of variance and colour. They want repression and domination

Is it because eggs cost more or they saw a trans person once? Is it because there are black people on tv now? I don’t know. I don’t know anything

I want schools and healthcare clinics and busses and parks. I want everyone in the world to go to sleep at night without worrying their children will die in the dark from falling bombs

And more and more I realise that its a fantasy that very few other people actually share

[sadiegurl]

LANA X SKIMS

[yesloulou]

Daniel trains in the sim with McLaren | July 13, 2022

[enii]

I know you are hurting as much as I do but I can't let you stay.

[nezuscribe]

I’m so depressed I haven’t flicked my bean in two days 😔

[nicstylus]

Skulduggery Pleasant Book Cover Redesign ✩ Master Post ✩

Here are all my covers in one place, all the thoughts and notes about each one and a link to the original post :] I had so much fun making these. Out of every project I've done, this is the one that wins 'most time spent' for sure. I'm so stoked with how they turned out!

Please read, I spent so long on this post... It's interesting I swear :]

Book One - Sceptre of the Ancients

Completed: ~ May 27th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post (Ver 1.0) - Tumblr (Ver 1.0) (Ver 2.0) Changes made (besides character design/expressions):

Added the Book of Names to fill the empty space in the background

Repositioned Skulduggery and Serpine

Redesigned the Sceptre and changed it's lighting from white to black/purple

Changed the outfits of China and Serpine

Enlarged background flames

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Grey suit, white shirt, black tie

Skulduggery is snapping with his right hand- summoning fire instead of already holding it

"Ghastly Black???" Yes, I draw Ghastly as a POC with asymmetrical scars. Yes, I'm aware he is not described as such

This is actually Version 2 of SOTA. I had to redo Serpine and Skul because I hated how they turned out the first time the more I looked at them.

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Book Two - Playing with Fire

Completed: April 20th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Redesigned the Grotesquery and repositioned it's... arm? Tentacles? whatever.

Swapped Tanith's Katana for a straight sword*

Changed outfits of Vengeous and Tanith (and Skulduggery's tie)

Added orangey light and sparks to fill the background

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Black suit, blue shirt and black tie

This is the first time I've drawn the Grotesquery, and I still have to google the spelling every time I try to type it...

*I know that Tanith uses a katana, but 1) I think thats stupid purely out of spite (and reasons that make sense) and 2) I absolutely despise trying to draw curved blades

Worth noting again that I don't actually see Tanith like this in my head- but this version of her is more fun to draw imo. Here is how I see her.

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Book Three - The Faceless Ones

Completed: April 26th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Repositioned Skulduggery and fixed his anatomy

Swapped Valkyrie's black jacket for the jacket with red sleeves

Fixed Fletcher*

Added water reflections on the undersides of the Sea Hag and the Cleaver

Added more water splashes near the title

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Navy suit, white shirt, ??? tie

I dont know that I ever want to draw the Sea Hag again- Tom definitely captured 'ugly creature' better than I did

*Fletcher done with Zero (!!) tracing :D (I mean all of it was but... It's a bad joke ok)

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Book Four - Dark Days

Completed: April 28th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Added the Faceless Ones portal to fill the background

Added Scapegrace and Thrasher to the zombie hoard

Brightened and added more detail to the zombies

Changed outfits of Sanguine and China

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Black suit, white shirt, red tie

China <3 Billy Ray :] ...Jack :/

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Book Five - Mortal Coil

Completed: May 5th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Repositioned Skulduggery and fixed his anatomy

Added the Remnants flying/swirling around to fill the background

Replaced The Torment (?) with Kenspeckle Grouse*

Repositioned the headless horses

Redesigned Tesseract's mask

Swapped Valkyrie's black jacket for the jacket with red sleeves

Swapped the strange light in Valkyrie's hand for Necromancy and Fire

Fixed the lighting (esp on Tesseract) to favour the Dullahan's lantern

Changed the outfits of Tesseract, Dr Nye, and the Dullahan

Added hands reaching out of the Dullahan's carriage

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Black suit, seafoam shirt, blue tie

*I'm aware its 'officially' the Torment on the Percival cover, but Kenspeckle won the 'who would you put here?' vote by a landslide on both reddit and tumblr so here he is in all his glory

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Book Six - Death Bringer

Completed: May 6th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Increased the purple lighting to fill empty space*

Redesigned Lord Vile

Redesigned Wreath's cane**

Changed Skulduggery's outfit

Made Valkyrie throw shadows instead of.. point at nothing?

Added the carved scars onto Melancholia

Increased shadows

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Black suit, purple shirt, purple tie

*The official DB cover has suuuuper pretty flames on it, with the pink and purple lighting- I tried to replicate that as best I could, and actually liked how it turned out more purpley

**Solomon's cane turned into more of a staff/sceptre because I forgot was a cane oops- it would hurt to lean on :D

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Book Seven - Kingdom of the Wicked

Completed: May 12th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Enlarged the Universe background to fill empty space

Repositioned Skulduggery

Redesigned Mevolent's armour and exposed his face

Redesigned the Godkiller Sword

Redesigned Argeddion (added hair!)*

Put Kitana in Valkyrie's jacket as she takes it in the book

Swapped Mevolent's empty hand in favour of him holding Darquesse's head by her hair

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Brown suit, cream shirt, ??? tie

This is my least favourite Phase 1 cover (and P1 book if I'm being honest) so I wasnt excited to work on this one- But! I think it turned out really well.

*I can't actually remember if Argeddion had hair or not in the story, but he looks bald on the cover and it looked strange to me

I really like how the stars and such turned out here :]

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Book Eight - Last Stand of Dead Men

Completed: May 26th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Added the Pyramid of the Brides of Blood Tears to fill empty space

Repositioned Ravel to face away*

Changed outfits of Ghastly, Saracen and Ravel

Added golden skull cufflinks to Skulduggery

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Blue pinstripe suit, white shirt, ??? tie (and the golden skull cufflinks!)

*I decided to have Ravel facing away for two reasons: 1) To hide his eyes and 2) Because he's a BACKSTABBING BIT- yeah

Is the Yellow mist: Sand from the Brides? The Golden Eyes effect? You decide!

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Book Nine - The Dying of the Light

Completed: July 20th 2024 Links: Tom's Cover - Reddit Post - Tumblr Post Changes made:

Darkened and enlarged clouds to fill empty space

Added Devastation Day imagery behind Darquesse

Repositioned China and Valkyrie to show the red daggers and Meryyn Sigil tattoo respectively

Repositioned Sanguine raise his sunglasses to expose lack of eyes

Enlarged Tanith to fill space

Changed the outfits of Skulduggery, Tanith, and Valkyrie

Swapped Tanith's Katana for a straight sword

Turned the plain/random blue light near China into glowing sigils

Notes:

Skulduggery's outfit: Black suit, dark grey shirt shirt, black tie

You can see the bones in Valkyrie's right hand because her lightning is so bright.

The sigil tattoos under China's eyes and on her left wrist are glowing, because she is actively wielding her magic red daggers.

This is my favourite one. Part of that is probably because it turned out the best (I had 8 9 other ones to practice on haha)

I love how the Title looks like smoldering embers. Really gives that apocalyptic feel that most of the book gives imo

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Overall notes and thoughts:

I struggle with drawing kids/ young teenagers, but I think I did a good job of making Val look like shes growing up

Her eyebags get bigger/darker with each new cover lol

Skulduggery is wearing a different outfit in each cover! It starts with just the shirt, then the tie, then by Mortal Coil he's wearing a completely different suit each time (I really like this detail)

The Dying of the Light was definitely the cover that changed the most as I worked on it, and it also turned out to be my favourite

The Dark Days changed the least (although Playing with Fire and Last Stand of Dead Men both stayed relatively the same as well) On to Phase Two (after a break but they'll happen at some point) :D

All 9 Lines

All 9 Covers (SoonTM)

Reddit Master Post

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[huariqueje]

The gate to the forest of silence -   Lars Elling , 2023.

Norwegian, b.1966 -

Egg , oil , tempera on canvas , 170 x 150 cm.

[makethiscanon]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, OJIRO!

Warning: Swearing in song lyrics.

Song: Dark Days - Point North

I've never seen a full length Ojiro AMV so for his birthday I had to change that.

WE LOVE OUR TOUGH, RESILIENT L'IL TAILBEAN.

[adventuresofalgy]

The experts had told Algy that the days were now getting discernibly longer, for when one lives close to the 57th Parallel North the changes in day length are usually perceived very quickly. But although it was now several weeks after the solstice, the mornings seemed to be getting darker rather than lighter, and every creature in the area, including Algy, was experiencing a pronounced lack of energy as a consequence of a lack of light…

And it didn't help that when the sun was, in principle, above the horizon, the day still remained dark, owing to the almost constant cloud cover, which the Atlantic Ocean nearby ensured would continue in a never-ending supply.

But at times the sun seemed to make an extra special effort, and managed to force its way through the clouds, providing transient bursts of light and illumination, and resulting in temporary boosts in the energy levels of fluffy birds and other folk.

Admittedly, these phenomena rarely lasted for any length of time in January, and energy levels which temporarily surged soon dropped back down again, but Algy knew that before very long the light really would be stronger, and the days would be a great deal longer, for despite the gloomy conditions spring was inevitably on the way. And so, as he rested his weary feathers on a scrubby patch of vegetation, he began to recite to the other birds, in order to provide them with some much-needed encouragement and hope:

Life, believe, is not a dream So dark as sages say; Oft a little morning rain Foretells a pleasant day. Sometimes there are clouds of gloom, But these are transient all; If the shower will make the roses bloom, O why lament its fall? Rapidly, merrily, Life’s sunny hours flit by, Gratefully, cheerily Enjoy them as they fly! What though Death at times steps in, And calls our Best away? What though sorrow seems to win, O’er hope, a heavy sway? Yet Hope again elastic springs, Unconquered, though she fell; Still buoyant are her golden wings, Still strong to bear us well. Manfully, fearlessly, The day of trial bear, For gloriously, victoriously, Can courage quell despair!

[Algy is quoting the poem Life by the early 19th century English writer Charlotte Brontë.]

[tobiasforms]

[eeriss121]

the incredibly beautiful china sorrows and skulduggery in their dark days

[sadiegurl]

my Girl

[enii]

Life is just as easy as riding a bike....

[whimsylueur]

Sneak peak/Val sketch