#I might have to get them printed at an office store but I'm at least going to try

[absentlyabbie]

seriously, though. i work in higher education, and part of my job is students sending me transcripts. you'd think the ones who have the least idea how to actually do that would be the older ones, and while sure, they definitely struggle with it, i see it most with the younger students. the teens to early 20s crowd.

very, astonishingly often, they don't know how to work with .pdf documents. i get garbage phone screenshots, sometimes inserted into an excel or word file for who knows what reason, but most often it's just a raw .jpg or other image file.

they definitely either don't know how to use a scanner, don't have access to one, or don't even know where they might go for that (staples and other office supply stores sometimes still have these services, but public libraries always have your back, kids.) so when they have a paper transcript and need to send me a copy electronically, it's just terrible photos at bad angles full of thumbs and text-obscuring shadows.

mind bogglingly frequently, i get cell phone photos of computer screens. they don't know how to take a screenshot on a computer. they don't know the function of the Print Screen button on the keyboard. they don't know how to right click a web page, hit "print", and choose "save as PDF" to produce a full and unbroken capture of the entirety of a webpage.

sometimes they'll just copy the text of a transcript and paste it right into the message of an email. that's if they figure out the difference between the body text portion of the email and the subject line, because quite frankly they often don't.

these are people who in most cases have done at least some college work already, but they have absolutely no clue how to utilize the attachment function in an email, and for some reason they don't consider they could google very quickly for instructions or even videos.

i am not taking a shit on gen z/gen alpha here, i'm really not.

what i am is aghast that they've been so massively failed on so many levels. the education system assumed they were "native" to technology and needed to be taught nothing. their parents assumed the same, or assumed the schools would teach them, or don't know how themselves and are too intimidated to figure it out and teach their kids these skills at home.

they spend hours a day on instagram and tiktok and youtube and etc, so they surely know (this is ridiculous to assume!!!) how to draft a formal email and format the text and what part goes where and what all those damn little symbols means, right? SURELY they're already familiar with every file type under the sun and know how to make use of whatever's salient in a pinch, right???

THEY MUST CERTAINLY know, innately, as one knows how to inhale, how to type in business formatting and formal communication style, how to present themselves in a way that gets them taken seriously by formal institutions, how to appear and be competent in basic/standard digital skills. SURELY. Of course. RIGHT!!!!

it's MADDENING, it's insane, and it's frustrating from the receiving end, but even more frustrating knowing they're stumbling blind out there in the digital spaces of grown-up matters, being dismissed, being considered less intelligent, being talked down to, because every adult and system responsible for them just

ASSUMED they should "just know" or "just figure out" these important things no one ever bothered to teach them, or half the time even introduce the concepts of before asking them to do it, on the spot, with high educational or professional stakes.

kids shouldn't have to supplement their own education like this and get sneered and scoffed at if they don't.

[paullovescomics]

First, an aside. I still did not get Absolute Superman #1. I got to the comic shop around 17:30, and the second printing was sold out again. There was a just a blank spot with at card that said "one per customer". I'd thought about emailing the store that morning, but then work got busy and i forgot. So i made sure to put in an order for the 3rd printing, but that doesn't come out for like a month. Oh well.

***SPOILERS***

Absolute Batman #2 -- The significance of the thing with the bats that opens this issue escaped me until we see a bit more of it later in the issue. They are covering him, protecting him. They're his armor, and he makes his literal armor in their image. That's cool. Also, those first two panels where young Bruce is calling for his dad, and his dad's body is slumped against the other side of (what i'm assuming is) the door, having put himself between his son and the shooter; and there are bullet holes in the door -- that is some heartbreaking stuff. If this is ever adapted to film, the director would be stupid not to steal that.

The narration by Alfred works well. This idea of Batman continually charging forward, never relenting, is compelling. It's true to the character. It's an effect of his trauma and it's enabled by his drive and abilities. It's a strength and a weakness. Of course we know it's going to eventually go wrong. He'll meet some foe that he can't bowl over, an opposing force that makes him stop; or, his body will inevitably falter and a canny villain will be there to take advantage of it. Either way, he'll be caught off his game, and then we'll see how clever he can get when things are desperate. That might be more exciting with this iteration of the character, since we haven't seen it with him before.

This version of Alfred is growing on me. Normally, I don't like the super spy version of Alfred. I just think that a superhero's world gets more shallow when everyone in it is some type of badass. You need different kinds of people to add more life and variety, and to let normal people contribute in relatable ways. But I guess because this is a fresh start, and we're not learning that he was secretly a badass all along, even though he didn't act that way for decades, etc., but he's just still a super spy, it's working for me. It definitely helps that he's tired and suspicious of his controllers, and that he sees in Bruce someone he can put some hope in.

We get a little time with Gordon, Barbara, and Bullock. Barbara being a cop is interesting. The Batman Beyond show had an older Barbara as chief of police, but I don't remember seeing her as a regular officer before. She's sympathetic to Batman here, so I assume she's become some version of Batgirl, but who knows. Bullock certainly looks different, but I can imagine the familiar Bullock becoming this guy if he were born later, or at least going through this phase before he becomes the deeply disillusioned guy that he is in his classic version. I also like the interaction between Gordon and Martha. If Jim becomes Batman's ally here, and Martha learns what Bruce is doing, there could be some very interesting conversations between them in the future.

The poker game is fun. I hope that the journey to villainhood for these guys takes a while. If we really get to know them, and their turns to the dark side are well told, we could be in for some very emotional tragedy.

I've said before that I wasn't all that hyped for the Absolute series, because there was a chance that they'd just be gritty and no fun. I'm glad that's not the case. There is a tone here that is different from the regular universe, though I'm not sure what to call it yet. But the inclusion of things like the Bat-axe, and this issue's "Batman AF" and the fact that Bruce not only somehow stole and hid a massive, multi-million-dollar construction vehicle (the owners of which are definitely searching for in manic fashion) but also tricked it out with bat-themed armor enhancements reassures me that we are far from po-faced grimness.

And that last page! I can't wait to see young Bruce and Selina getting into trouble. That Bruce is good friends with criminals is so interesting. Where will that go in the long run? Is he sympathetic to "petty" criminals because he knows first hand that some of them come from places where there aren't many options? So only the murderers and the capital V villains need to have their heads bashed in? It would make sense if this version of Bruce was very conflicted about that stuff, and constantly found it difficult to draw that line. So much to mine in this set-up!

[powerbrokerreadalong]

Tumblr Should Read the Power Broker

So 99 Percent Invisible is a podcast by Roman Mars.  It talks about the design of everyday things, like postage stamps and walking trails and gas ranges. It's the sort of stories that tumblr likes. You can check out the podcast here. Roman Mars also has a thing about flags, as you can see here:

But I'm not really here to talk about why you should listen to 99 Percent Invisible in general (though hey, I like it).  I'm here because I've failed after a decade to leave this website. Also, 99 Percent Invisible is reading The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York and you, tumblr, should join the readalong.

Okay. What is The Power Broker? It's a 1,336 page biography of Robert Moses by Robert A. Caro.

Why am I suggesting that Tumblr read The Power Broker?

You all would love to hate the subject.

I'm sure some of you already do! Robert Moses stands for bureaucratic power and the midcentury city planning that prioritized cars over people. He was never elected to any office but was able to shape one of the largest cities in the world. And Robert Caro, the author, carefully notes how he was able to amass power. Also, he hated Robert Moses. You can think of it as an extremely long and detailed call out post. On that note.

It's extremely well researched.

Look. I think, after James Somerton and the scourge of AI printed materials, there's a lot of people that are feeling lied to. We want to see people do the work.The research.The footnotes. We want someone to be willing to turn over every rock, and spend years on a single project. Robert Caro is the author we need right now. He is thorough. He is willing to work diligently, reading every memo, talking to everyone involved who would talk to him. And by God, there will be footnotes.

Tumblr is the land of hyperfixation

The main stopping point for The Power Broker is that it's long. So? That's like 705,000 words. I know at least some of you monsterfuckers have written that many words in a year and read them in a weekend. And you'd be reading it along with other people, so there'd be some sort of accountability. If there was ever a social media website where I think people would be willing to go down a very deep and detailed rabbit hole on civil engineering, it would be Tumblr. Also maybe Metafilter. They've probably already read The Power Broker, though. 

It'd be funny

Being really into The Power Broker is a very dad thing to do. Getting all of the (gender neutral) Tumblr girlies into The Power Broker and giving it a very Tumblr treatment would be very entertaining. Transmascs, you can think of being into the Power Broker as a non-toxic way to affirm your masculinity. Haven't you ever wanted to commit to the bit so hard that you end up reading a seminal piece of midcentury American nonfiction? Now's your chance.

Okay, you've convinced me.  What do I do?

Acquire the Power Broker. Honestly, I'd probably just check your local used book store. I don't think it ever came out in ebook.

Read the Power Broker at your own pace. I'm not your real dad.

Listen along to whatever 99 Percent Invisible has cooked up.  I have no idea what they're planning. I'm not affiliated with them in any way. But they do have an episode up already.

Profit?  IDK.  If you feel like posting, tag it correctly and I might reblog.

[shinesurge]

your custom cassettes are really really cool! ive been thinking about making custom cassettes for a bit, would you be willing to share what kind of paper you used for the label stickers and j-cards? also where do you get blank cassettes from? ive been looking at cassettecomeback but i was wondering if there was a better option.

Thanks a lot! They're really fun to make hehe

So full disclosure: I run a merch shop for my webcomic and I make most of my stuff myself in my studio. I've been doing this for the better part of ten years and over that time I've accumulated quite a bit of specialized, expensive equipment like the photo printer and cutting machine I use to make my cassette ephemera. THAT SAID mixtapes don't necessarily need all that!! Unless you're running a bootleg business on etsy or somethin I don't think you and your friends gotta run out and spend a ton of money to make these (beyond tracking down a deck and a player, obviously).

Unfortunately most of these items are found on Amazon because I'm a professional artist trying to Live, but if that's something you'd rather avoid buying through I'm listing the brick and mortar places I can find them when I need to for whatever reason!

My j-cards are just the 8x10 glossy photo paper from Pen & Gear, it's usually less than ten bucks a pack at walmart lmao. I use it with an inkjet photo printer! There are plenty of laser printer options out there though, which is probably the type non-artists have access to. Honestly I think the look of black ink on colored copy paper is super cool for handmade tapes, especially between friends.

My sticker paper was a bitch to find and I'm not sure if it would be useful without my specific equipment, but it's this glossy adhesive photo paper from some rando company called LDProducts. Literally just called "Sticker Photo Paper" pf. It's more expensive but I get it in stacks of a hundred because I print tons of stickers for my shop. Again, glossy adhesive paper might not be useful without a big boy printer but MATTE sticker paper is everywhere, that's also pretty common to find at walmart or at the very least at an office supply store; you can print on it or even get out some markers (not sure i'd suggest anything besides ink tho, I'd be worried it could come off and damage the player). I design the labels in clip studio and then load them into cricut so it's super easy to get the right shape every time, but if you're Determined you could get out a measuring tape and an xacto knife and get similar results.

I've only found my tapes on amazon unfortunately, and it's been a while since I bought any because I sort of inherited a bunch of sealed ones when my dad died and i'm still going through them lol. Almost all my custom ones are 90 minute Sony High Fidelity, last I checked you could order them in packs of five or ten but I'm not sure what the prices are like rn. If you REALLY want to get fancy with colored shells/custom lengths i did find this cool site you can order from, Duplication.ca, but the shipping is kinda rough. One of these days I wanna make some cassettes for my webcomic and I'll drop some money on some pretty ones then, but for now the Sonys are treating me fine so I haven't dug too deep.

I hope something in here is useful! I'm always happy to share what I know but again, I'm very fortunate to have access to quite a bit of stuff most people don't and I try to be up front about it alskdjf. Cassettes are best when they're sorta janky and handmade tho, it's kind of the whole point, and if they're just for you or someone you care about then marking them with a sharpie and masking tape is just as cool in my opinion. probably cooler. everybody should put music on physical media and trade it i think.

[sanchoyo]

ok, disclaimers:

1. I am Poor and have always thrifted even before it was 'cool' (used to get made fun of for wearing secondhand in middle school, in fact!)

2. I am plus sized.

3. the only time I sell things I am selling things I've worn and owned for years, I'm not someone who goes into stores with the intention of finding things to resell (which I think is way way less common than people think…a lot of people who do that are doing it as a full time job, which is hard to make a living at.)

so most of the arguments I see are like, 'ppl hang out at thrift stores JUST to grab cool and or plus sized clothes to resell for outrageous prices to make a quick buck!!' let me explain why I Just Simply Disagree. to me it feels like most ppl saying that or being mad about it have never sold things online and don't understand how it works. theyre just ppl who are going on depop and seeing 20$ shirts and being Mad About It. So.

Heres the Thing about selling things online: every online store, or at least the Big Ones (depop, ebay, poshmark, mercari, etc) charge seller fees and take taxes (sometimes, not always depending on a few factors) these fees range from 10-20% of the sell price usually.

and you have to consider the person selling usually covers shipping (there is /always/ a shipping cost. consider they ALSO have buy whatever they're shipping in, usually a mailing bag or box!)

shipping for me is usually $6-$12 at the post office, and thats using the lightest possible weight small mailing bags. and I WANT to support the USPS, its one of the Good Cherished services! fedex and other shipping companies would probably cost MORE than this!

Plus whatever the person is paying in gas presumably if they don't live in walking distance or have public transport to the post office..it starts to add up, right?

I just sold a skirt. I charged $5 for the skirt, and $10 for the shipping. (if it goes over, which it does sometimes, I'll cover the extra) thats $15! But I paid 10.92 for shipping, and depop took a fee of about $3…I made a $2 profit. Which is about what the gas there and back probably cost. people who print their own shipping labels might have it a slight bit cheaper, maybe, but they also have to pay for printer ink every now and then if they do this a lot.

…Do you understand what I mean? that person is charging $25 for a shirt because they're paying a chunk of that to ship AND for the fee depop takes. (and, if you're using paypal instead of direct depositing into your bank account, guess what? PAYPAL TAKES A FEE TOO!)

Having a purely 'depop business' isn't going to give you THAT much spending money unless you're doing it on a very large scale. taking pictures (several pictures, front, back, close ups of patterns, tags, etc) EDITING pictures if that's something they do (I do, and it takes a minute, but makes the listings look Nicer) tagging everything, taking and listing measurements, sorting into correct categories…all of that takes time and energy! If people are working on top of that a lot of the time its just a Lot of Hassle! (which, again, doing this for a living would NOT be sustainable unless you're doing it on a massive, massive scale. you can do the math for how many things you'd have to sell to make a livable profit and its So Much. a lot of depop stores with a lot of listings are people who own thrift stores irl and the depop page is their online store so they don't have to buy a domain! I see that SO often!)

And you know what? I think that in some cases selling clothes directly is BETTER than sending them to thrift stores. Hear me out. I know they tend to be cheaper in person, but not everyone can go in person. (people who have no stores around them, ppl who are disabled and might not be able to make the trip, immunocompromised ppl who are still reasonably, understandably worried about covid! etc!) and some sellers offer hand picked surprise packages and will go shop FOR you and find stuff in your size which is just! very cool!

depop has size filters and using a lot of ~aesthetic buzzwords~ I, as a plus sized person, can be GUARANTEED to find a lot more than I could in person that suits my very specific, eccentric tastes!

Local thrift stores near me are NO LONGER ACCEPTING DONATIONS FOR A WHILE BECAUSE THEIR STORAGE IS SO, SO FULL because a lot more people are tuning into the fact that donating is Good and wanna be more environmentally conscious (which, is good!) but the lady at a local thrift store told me they end up throwing OUT a LOT of clothes because No One Will Buy them and they just dont have room with the sheer volume of donations. They have a $5 fill a bag day every week because of the ungodly amount of shit they have.

Did yall know textiles make up a HUGE percentage of landfills? Yeah. the thing about selling them online is, if youre willing to pay for them and find a statement piece you really Love on there, I feel like…idk, putting it directly in the hands of someone via selling it online feels better than sending it to a thrift store and Hoping it Doesnt End Up In A Landfill. Like, at least I KNOW where it's going? to someone who really wanted it!

Also it just kind of gets on my nerves when ppl call it price gouging. that's not what price gouging is!!! price gouging is: "Price gouging is a term that refers to the practice of charging a price that is higher than normal or fair, often during a state of emergency or crisis, for goods, services, or commodities that are in high demand and short supply" PPL RESELLING CLOTHES FOR PRICES YOU DONT LIKE IS NOT PRICE GOUGING. ITS JUST PRICES YOU DON'T LIKE!!!

+++saying these ppl are taking all the good pieces? no. theyre not. thrift stores get new shipments/stock p regularly of weird things. you just need to learn to dig/thrift better ngl. hit several stores in one go. ask the ppl working there what day they get restock. make a list of the specific type of stuff/vibes youre after and go in with an open mind. U Can Find Things. thrifting/shopping well IS a skill and you too can learn it I Promise. thrifting has good and bad days, sometimes you'll find very cool things and some days you'll strike out. it Happens. It's Fine!

depop is not evil, it's just an app. ppl selling on there are likely only making fucking pocket change, and for ppl like me who aren't able to have full time jobs, its just enough to maybe get my dogs food covered instead of putting it on my credit card and further push me into debt! it's not an outrageous profit! it's! pocket change in most ppls cases they just wanna get rid of clothes they don't wear! I'm not saying it has NO problems, but christ the way some ppl talk abt it on here you'd think depop killed their mother and kicked their dog, lmfao

I think. Most ppl on here and Wrong abt depop ‘price gougers’ but I feel like my full opinion on that subject would get me crucified on here 😶

[lostandfoundpress]

I do feel like a bit of a one trick pony posting these days... but guess who finally has the print-ready pdfs of both signatures and illustrations...

[tlbodine]

Lessons Learned at My First Book Signing

I attended an in-person author event today for the first time ever. It was not an especially high-profile deal -- just a local author fair hosted by the library. But it was still the first time I'd ever set up a table for the purpose of selling and signing books and interacting with would-be readers, and I want to talk about that experience a little bit and give some take-aways and advice for other writers who might be curious about doing something like this.

Step One: Find an Event

My dear friend and co-conspirator @comicreliefmorlock tipped me off about this. She saw a flier for it at the library and I applied on a whim, not even sure if I'd get accepted for the event. But I did! And that's the first lesson I want to give you: Everything good I have in my life I got by saying, "Fuck it, let's give it a shot."

Don't get too deep in your own head about things. Don't self-reject from opportunities. Kick imposter syndrome in the teeth and just do the thing.

Step Two: Set Up a Table

I was operating on a major shoestring budget for this, and I didn't have time to put together real signage or anything fancy. But I could go to the dollar store for some Halloween flair and a tablecloth and honestly? Even that was eye-catching enough that it definitely lured some people over. Next time I'll be better prepared to do something a bit more cohesive. But even these little touches put me miles beyond most of the other authors there, who just had a small stack of books on a bare table.

A few tips:

Don't put out all your books at once. Leave most of them in the box and tuck it under the table or somewhere. Fewer books, artfully arranged = implied scarcity. And it just looks nicer.

Scatter your business card/swag around the table. Consider leaving out a dish of candy. Freebies lure people into stopping.

Put up a sign with pricing. I used a small whiteboard from the dollar store and doodled on it when I got bored.

Try to have a little flair. Keep it on-brand with the type of stuff you're writing. The goal here is to be eye-catching enough that people want to come see what you've got going on.

Step Three: What You'll Need

If you're going to attend any kind of author fair or signing event, I recommend the following:

Some way to take payment not in cash. If I'd had a Square reader today, I would have probably sold at least a couple more books. Nobody carries cash anymore (but plan to have a bit of change anyway). The sales I made today came through PayPal, and having that QR code sign (free with my business account!) came in clutch.

An assistant. If you can, try to bring someone along to be your helper. It makes a huge difference having somebody who can watch your table while you go network with other sellers, as well as somebody who can help make change and restock the books if you get busy talking to people. And on the flipside, if nobody shows up, your helper can keep you from feeling super lonely and awkward.

Some kind of swag or, at least, a business card. Bookmarks or stickers/bookplates would be baller, too. But you for sure need something with your name and some kind of identifier -- your website, your social media, your Wattpad, something. This is what my business card looks like:

They're double-sided (the black is on the back). I had these printed up for Wattcon 2018 (and then forgot them in my car at the airport) and didn't have a website yet at that point. But I'm still quite fond of them. I designed them, had them printed, and picked them up at Office Depot.

I cannot express enough the importance of the business card. You may think you're there to sell books. But you are actually there so that people will remember your name. Folks who stop by might not be ready to buy your book, but they might check you out later. At the very least, they'll now have a thing with your name on it in their possession, which will help stick in their mind so the next time they see your name, it will have a ring of familiarity to it, which will make them much more likely to be interested in what you're doing.

Step Four: Talk to People!

Make eye contact and smile with passers-by. Engage with people who look interested in what you have to offer. Don't try to hard-sell or anything, but be available to answer questions. Have a quick, one-sentence pitch for explaining your book at the ready. Encourage people to take your swag.

And then get up and go talk to other people! If you're at an event where there are multiple authors, go introduce yourself (bring a business card!) and ask them questions about their work. Be friendly. I traded one of my books for a book from my neighbor's table today:

Eirik, it turns out, is a Twitter mutual of mine. We share like 20 online acquaintances and would have never known we lived in the same place if not for this event. I tagged him in my tweet about the event, and he tagged me back for his followers. That's networking, baby! (also this book looks sweet as hell. The Great Gatsby with werewolves? yes please. I'll let you know how it is after Angel gets done with it because she yoinked it from me as soon as it came back to the table).

Even if there aren't any other authors to meet-and-greet and network with, ingratiate yourself with the staff of the library/bookstore/wherever. Be friendly and thank them for the work they're putting in. Being kind and gracious is how you get invited back to more events. And you really want to make friends of librarians and bookstore employees because they're in a position every day to recommend books to dozens of people. Word of mouth is literally priceless in this business.

Something I saw others doing that was really smart is capturing email addresses to add to their newsletter. One had a giveaway raffle - sign up, then a name gets drawn at the end. One just encouraged people to sign up so they could learn more about his work. This was really clever and a good use of the space -- I'm going to do something similar next time I do this!

Step Five: Don't Get Discouraged

I sold two books at this event. That was twice as many as anybody else I talked to. Like I said earlier -- this is a marketing thing, not a chance to profit directly off book sales. Don't feel disappointed if you go to something like this and don't sell out. If people are scoping you out and engaging with you at all, if they're taking your card or signing up for your newsletter, that's a win.

R.L. Stine pretty famously had one person come to his first book signing. He writes about it in his autobiography. I figure, if his career could start out like that, it's good enough for anybody.

You can learn a lot from going to an event even if you're not selling books. From watching the way people interacted with my table, I came away with a few observations:

Most people who use libraries are, in order: old people, parents with young kids, teenagers. Of that, I captured the most attention of teenagers. They were drawn like catnip over to my table, maybe because of the Halloween decor, maybe because of the covers. Old people don't read horror, by and large -- they prefer mysteries. But a lot of them know someone else in their life who does like scary stuff, and a lot of them took my card to presumably tell their loved ones about it. (I had a few teenagers who absolutely would have been sales if they'd had any money. I told them I was also on Wattpad and encouraged them to take a card to look me up there. The response to that was an even mixture of bafflement, suspicion, and excitement. Yes, graying middle-aged farts like me are on Wattpad.)

The Darkness of Dreamland was far and away the book that captured people's attention. I think the cover really drew people in.

Purple is an unusual color in the genre, and that hand-painted unicorn with its malevolent, unusual design is a real eye-catcher. A lot of people wanted to stop and read the back cover to see what was up with this book. Which leads me to....

Your back cover copy is your most effective sales pitch. The front cover has to get them through the door, and the back cover seals the deal. It's really easy when you're working on them to forget about that. It's easy to get too deep in your head about making both of them accurate or literal interpretations of the story or symbolic or whatever. That's not the purpose. Your book cover is a marketing tool, it is ad copy, and you have to approach it with that mindset.

So those were my takeaways from my first-ever author fair. I hope some of this was at least a little interesting or helpful for you! I got a lot out of this experience, even if I did spend a whole lot more money ordering copies than I earned selling them -- now I just have to challenge myself to sell the rest of the books in my trunk!

Happy to answer any questions or give clarification on things.

[jellolegos]

I really wanna start doing commissions and selling prints of my work, but I have no clue where to start 😭😭😭 any tips?

Oh this is a bit of a toughie, but I'll do my best. I haven't taken commissions in a year so I might not be the best source on that one, but I do know quite a bit about prints!

With comms: I would really recommend getting a firm pricing sheet with examples of your work (lots of artists do this so I'm sure there's plenty of examples you can look to), marketing yourself (announcing it in a post, putting it in your name [I've seen a mixed consensus on that one]), and really trying your best to take it in stride regardless of result (it's ok to start slow! if you don't get requests right away that is part of the process, its ok to take your time and use anything that inspires you to work on your craft).

With prints:

There are really two options and I'll list them out below (and some of the pros and cons) and tell you what I've done

using a 3rd party system: you've probably seen this in the form of Redbubble/InPrint/any other outside printing source- pros: upload your designs and they do all the legwork for you, super easy and you can be super hands-off cons: you cannot control the end product, what comes off of their press is what your buyers end up getting, and you also cannot control how much you are compensated for your work (at least that I know of?)

using your own site infrastructure: you can either make a site yourself or use a more hands off seller like Etsy that takes a smaller percentage of your sale/cost to list your item, pros: you have full control of the process, and can see your art before it goes off to those who buy it, you can control your own prices and sometimes see into analytics (they're limited on other sites), cons: controlling the process means you control all of the process (from the promotion to getting the prints themselves to buying the shipping material)

For me: There were a few reasons why I ended up choosing an independent store rather than 3rd party. I've been on a fairly flexible schedule and I've also been in the same place in America for the last four years (your country and audience might limit your options). I also was involved in a collegiate sport so I had to come back early from breaks to train and was pretty tied to my campus. I was very fortunate to have a local printing store close by where I could order prints once or twice a week, pack the orders in the evening and send them off in a post office around the corner. I had a few personal reasons that made me more inclined toward the latter option, and had the means to do it, so that was what I ended up with.

All of those factors made that option make sense for me, but every artist is different! I would recommend really thinking about what might make sense for you, and for you in the future. I know lots of artists who take both approaches for different reasons, and who change their minds at different points in their career (I am personally having to re-evaluate my own approach right now!).

I recognize that was quite a long winded answer, I apologize if that's not what you came for XD

[yurissweettooth]

I know it's been three days, but for the character ask: agnes and yuri cause I hope you'll enjoy talking about yuri and I'm curious about agnes!

WAAAH! You know me too well, I do love to talk about Yuri always 💖🥺 -----

YURI

Rate them from 0-10 (0 being least favorite, 10 being all time favorite): 1000000000000000000 (I love him I love him I love him I-) Sexuality HC: Demisexual, demiromantic, pansexual

Gender HC: Genderfluid nb (all pronouns/descriptors accepted but gets gender euphoria from certain pronouns/labels depending)

Fav Moment: UHHHHH... is "all of them" an answer? 😅I guess I like when he saves Kotetsu, I like the time in the manga where he has a nice chat with Pao-lin, I like in the manga when he's smiling while he has guns pointed at his face, I like in the drama CD where he's monologuing, I like the entirety of his hero schedule, I like his interview where he's having a sugar rant to a group of kids... just to name a few lol

Random HC: I always headcanon Yuri as a technophobe. Like, he knows how to use his computer to do work related tasks and research and stuff but if he was trying to do anything on his phone or use social media he wouldn't get it at all and someone would have to help him. I think a lot about how he owns a typewriter (it's in the back of his office at work) and in the schedule it states that no one has his phone number so he probably never uses his phone at all. He also seems like the type who likes to write a lot of things down on paper or print things out to file them away instead of storing them digitally.

Opinion: Well, I think it's no surprise to anyone that I love Yuri more than anything! I will probably be screaming about him forever or at least for a very long time. Everything is perfect from the (Japanese) voice to the look to the backstory and everything in between! I don't think a lot of villain backstories have hit me quite the same way did. I also love how flawed he is as a person, even in his own ideologies which seem to change depending on his situation or what he personally decides is right or wrong in that very moment. It's definitely interesting to see someone so tied to their own beliefs and giving themselves the moral high ground when they don't even seem to actually know where they stand half the time. I also love (and am caused pain by) seeing how outside of his crazed, intimidating Lunatic persona he is actually just this very sweet, gentle, depressed little sweet tooth dork who loves drinking mineral water, doing puzzles, talking to his plants, and taking care of his mother and who gets sad when he runs out of syrup for his coffee (as per the schedule and his wiki). I just love basically everything about him and would do anything for him, I can't wait to see more of him in season too, I might actually cry lol.

Agnes

Rate them from 0-10 (0 being least favorite, 10 being all time favorite): 6! I would probably rate her higher if we got to know more about her (seasons 2 pls...)

Sexuality HC: Lesbian or bisexual depending on the AU (and by that I mean whether or not I wanna revert back to my Agnes/Yuri shipping days for a minute skfdjslk)

Gender HC: Cis woman or trans woman, really just depends on the mood for the day for me Fav Moment: I thought it was really cool when she faked memory loss to help everyone, that was very badass of her. I also like the fact that she's apparently canon close friends with Nathan according to that one little hero info thing. I would like it more if we actually got to see them hanging out though. Random HC: Idk why but I feel like she's a bit of a party girl during the rare moments when she's not working. I think it would almost be difficult to recognize her outside of work because she'd be more fun and relaxed instead of her usual stern and intense demeanor. I feel like she's also the fearless type, not just in her job (like when she wanted to stay in a building that could have exploded just to get the shot) but also just in general, like the thrill seeking type. Perhaps that's even why she chose her job, she always gets to be right where the action is and be a part of it, even if only from a distance. Opinion: I really like what bits of her personality we get to see! Like every other character in the show she defied my expectations. What looked like the standard hotheaded sex appeal character turned into a competent and dedicated person who truly cared about the other heroes and the city despite her abrasive personality. I really hope we get to learn more about her next season!

[enabledarmy]

Kpop merch: a UK buying guide 🇬🇧💜

Top 5 places to get kpop merch and albums in the UK

Hi! I live in the UK (as you may have guessed) and support many different groups, but since I first became a kpop fan it's been really hard to find affordable and responsible sources for merchandise. It seemed like everything came from America or South Korea, which can be pretty expensive when you add shipping and import and also isn't super eco conscious (I know most things are shipped in bulk but I still like to buy locally if I can). Plus sometimes it's hard to tell if the site is really legit.

You see new merch releasing online, look it up and it's only available from Singapore for the small price of your life savings and first born child...I'm sure I'm not the only UK fan who's been pretty confused by it all 😅

But recently I've found some great places, mostly based in the UK and slowly but surely my collection is growing and my room is getting happier 😊 It took a while to find these because they're not big/popular places but I've found them great so if you're a UK based fan I'd recommend giving them a try. Here goes!

(Note- none of this is sponsored or anything, just trying to help fellow kstans out)

1) Oxfam online shop (Charity Shops)

Huh, charity shops? Do they even know what kpop is? Well, no, but that doesn't mean they don't stock it 😂 Charity shops are everywhere over here, you probably have a few at least in your nearest town and they stock a pretty random selection of stuff, so you never know what will be there.

I recommend Oxfam in particular. If you check out their online shop and scroll through the music section (there's no kpop section and it won't turn up any search results but sometimes 'korean' works) you'll find a pretty good selection of albums including Jay Park, BigBang, 2ne1, Orange Caramel, Block B, AOA, ZE:A, KARA and more.

The best part is that, apart from of course being a sustainable and ethical way to shop, the person listing doesn't always seem to know how much these albums are worth so you can get a bargain. You might even find some rare albums that you'd be hard pressed to find elsewhere. For example, this signed and sealed B.A.P album is still for sale on their site

I bought these ASTRO albums from the Oxfam site for a LOT less than it would have cost me elsewhere, especially because they're both signed and unopened!

2) Depop

Another perhaps more sustainable choice because it's second hand, Depop has some gems if you dig around a bit. Be sure to check the seller reviews so you know they're trustworthy, but so far I've only had good experiences. You can message sellers directly, get bundles to save on shipping and it's just a nice personal experience. My last order was packaged so nicely I thought it was from a friend, and it came with freebies too!

You can also get fan merch too, I got some lovely art prints for only a few pounds! (Felt like robbery to be honest 😅)

3) Oseyo

Oseyo is a 'Korean food and culture hub', with shops and shops/cafes at multiple locations. If you stop by the Waterloo hub you can get hot Korean food to eat in while watching kpop on the TV, buy snacks and ingredients to take home and they have a few albums and cosmetics in store too.

The location is Soho has no hot food but is a supermarket so there's a much wider choice of snacks, ingredients, general home supplies and merchandise. I haven't been to any others but apparently there's one in Manchester with a lot more kpop merch.

I got this calendar from the Soho location, and from the Waterloo one I've bought albums and face masks.

They don't have their own website, but direct online shoppers to 'hmart'. Currently the kpop section seems empty but you can get food there

4) Sokkolab

Sokkolab is an independent shop in London run by kpop fans. It's only been open for a year, but has a good selection of merchandise from different groups, new releases and cosmetics. The shop itself is quite small but still had good stuff, and they're moving to a bigger location soon with seating.

The staff are really nice, the playlists are good and they run events during concert season (SuperM one soon I think) so definitely check them out.

You can order online, including preorders for new releases. I've ordered online as gifts for friends before, and it got here fast although there was a little too much packaging (I'm sure they'll work on that though, they hadn't been open that long).

I also went to the store itself in London, which was really sweet and I got some good stuff even though a lot of it had sold out recently and they were awaiting new stock. I had some birthday money from family and managed to get more than I thought I would for my money, including TXT's The dream chapter: Magic which I'd been trying to get for ages. It had technically sold out but the cool person working there gave me a copy that they had under the counter.

5) Redbubble (for fanmade merch)

I love this site because you can find merchandise for pretty much anything, with art designed by fan artists and printed on the items that you choose. You won't struggle to find your favourite group here! Of course it's not offical merch, but I find them particularly good for stickers, which make good gifts in the post to friends or easy decoration for walls (the vinyl peels off with no marks), device cases etc. They often have deals on so keep an eye on the website.

Honourable mentions:

-HMV

-Etsy (for fanmade merch)

-emp.co.uk (for BT21)

-Argos (for BTS mattel dolls and albums)

-WHSmith (for the occasional stray kpop guide book or magazine)

[gentlespaceman-blog]

Patience Pays - Hannah & Dylan - Bowling Green Kentucky Wedding Videography by Creek Films

Patience Pays - Hannah & Dylan - Bowling Green Kentucky Wedding Videography by Creek Films

the side straps like this opportunity and I have just run all the way that close your store and she's like help us to always know that without you we can you can get through anything with you can do anything and everything we just ask them once again here discipline so Cindy with this throughout it was and help us to always reflect your glory and grace is in your son Jesus name we pray never been so sure cross the school hey gonna live my life to keep the promises in the early mistakes I knew somehow that was just like love ya found a heart that was just like mine out a little bit it's the kind of love I'm a Cuban under winn-dixie oh nothing so sure me go to keep promises mistakes I know I'm and everything look like that is the cow changed I distinctly remember the first time I heard about this mysterious von boy it would captured Hannah's attention it was during 8th grade Hannah walked into home run one homeroom one morning and you could tell she was eager to tell me something before I even had a chance to ask how she was doing she blurted out Sonia I just saw the cutest guy in soccer practice last night he was running shirtless what she failed to mention was that he had highlights that resemble Justin Timberlake circa nineteen ninety nine it's funny looking back but I feel so lucky to have witnessed still in Hannah's relationship unfold you could tell from the very beginning they were perfect for each other their relationship was and continues to be effortless exactly how it should be you I found the heart that was just like mom yeah he makes me laugh and he lets me cry it was about 8 years 9 months three days ago when this amazing relationship started so after school one day these two were online and instant messaging each other which some of you might know what that is and the lovely Hannah texted him and said or instant message and said are we dating or what and Dylan's response was no do you want to be and of course as you can tell she said yes thankfully just stand by your side treasure of my life just disbanded by side I know and Wow can you believe that the day we've dreamed up for over five years is finally here it seems like just yesterday we were standing my dad's office parking lot well we were both still in high school longing for this day to get here but realizing it was still so far away for the past eight years and eight months we've literally walked through together as best friends we've laughed we've cried we've argued but above everything else we vote it's crazy to think that we literally started dating when you were just barely a teenager at the age of 13 while I was only 14 just look at the two of us now at 21 and 22 years of age we were just kids back then struck with a helpless case of puppy love me with my long shaggy hair and highlights and you with your skinny jeans and turtlenecks when a long way we've come from those days we walked through so many stages of life together it's hard for me to remember what life was even like before we started dating...

See more here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puGuOKh2g9I

What exactly are the Merits of Hiring a Specialist Wedding Photographer?

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