#I'll continue to try and become better in digital art

[kimeoshi]

HEY YOU

Um...

Hi hope you're having a a wonderful day

I just wanted to ask since you're a digital artist... how do you color your art?? Because I'm a traditional artist trying to become a digital artist but I have no clue how to color my work (I made the mistake of using 'fill' on ibis paint before realizing oh wait that's not how digital artists color their work dummy) like I know base color and all that but the layers... how... How color? Line art no fun...

*cries*

I have no idea what I'm doing 😭

Don't feel pressured to answer this or anything, just thought to ask you since your art is so CRUNCHY I LOVE IT

Hello there!! I hope you're having a nice day as well

Sure! I'm very happy you like my art and as I also started as a traditional artist, I'm glad to entail some tips! :]

Base colors:

After finishing the lineart (can be sketch too), I use the Magic Wand tool and click it on outside of the lineart. This will give you a silhouette, but in the wrong space. Therefore, we have to go to 'Selection -> Inverse selection', after, you can proceed to use the fill tool on a separate new layer, beneath the lineart.

(Advanced tip: if you use Clip Studio Paint (CSP), there's an asset called 'Erase Along Edge'. Set your lineart layer to a reference layer (light house icon) and you can continue to erase and adjust the silhouette more easily with this eraser!)

Next, make a folder, clip it down to the silhouette, within this folder, add separate layers for each base color. This will help you manage your colors more effectively.

Shading:

This is extremely tricky and I cannot give a standardized process for this, but I'll attempt to do so. There are much better ways to do this I'm sure, the one I entail on forward is a bit time consuming (but it might only be a personal thing as I tend to over-render)

My method:

For a simplified method, skip all the purple colored parts of text.

We are going to continue working here:

I fill a separate layer with all black, and set the layer to color mode. This is to help us see the values better. Should we play around with contrast, brightness, focus points etc.

Then, with a layer, set to multiply mode, I begin shading shadows. Can be grey for now.

After I'm done, I use a layer to block out bright parts, with white. It makes it very dramatic, bless. (You can use different colors for this of course, I just keep this specifically very bright.)

Additionally, make a separate layer, use it for reflection lights with a lightish gray.

Adjust, add, tweak layers to ensure your overall image meets your expectations, including background. Most of the times, I even additionally paint a complete image by blocking out bigger shapes (messy and undefined) to see how the values should match in this stage.

Simplified demonstration:

We'll come back to these layers later.

Hide the previous black color layer. We now have colors again, but it's all so muddy.

Therefore, we alpha lock our previous layers of shading, and fill it over with colors. Unsatisfied by any colors? Use the Hue/Saturation/Brightness sliders or add a new correction layer. Important thing to note that you can use other colors than this purple/blue one in the image below for the multiply layer.

I use correction layers unapologetically. My favourite is Tone Curve + Gradient Map.

Naturally, I have a lot more layers than this in the demonstrated picture, such as Overlay layers to emphasize focus points or further darkening parts with multiply layers, etc. I do most of the hard work during rendering stage! Excuse me for the low effort rubber duck also hahah. Here's a closer example for what I usually do:

All we got left to do is Rendering (painting over mistakes) and Effects. I cannot give much advice on Rendering, it's pretty much the same as in traditional art.

Effects:

I sometimes leave little speckles/sparkles over my art to make it more detailed.

After, there can be correction layers, simply to adjust the final look.

I usually save the image as png or jpg (or in CSP case, merge all visible layers to a new layer) and add noise.

Sometimes, when I just want to post a sketch I add a 3d effect but in Photoshop. It helps a bit in faking extra details.

That's the end of my process! I hope this proved of help, and I wish you a smooth journey :D In the future, I can post timeline speed paints, if there is interest.

My other related threads are this (on my process) and this (on mindset and learning).

You can see me working in action through gifs here. (The gifs include extra planning stages (mentioned in the previous 'on my process' thread, but they follow the same principles I mentioned.)

----

Another note: it is possible to get a cracked version of CSP, which I won't entail because of account safety reasons, but if you research it, a pointer I can give is that the distributor's name starts with 'o'.

[despairforme]

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

[ Oh man this post got long (and surprisingly serious) fjfjfjffjjf I wrote this 2 days ahead of time because I was so excited about it ahahaha --- I'm wishing you all a wonderful 2024!!!!!

2023 was a year of surprising development for me. I don't know if it's because I'm getting older, or if I'm simply moving into a different mindset. I loved this year! It was awesome, and I'm so happy to see that I've written MORE for Nnoitra this year than I did in 2022 ( even though my overall word-count went down from 290 000 to 280 000 ). I can't say I completed many of my goals ( or any of them LOL ). I had lots of goals for 2023, but I was unable to complete them. The past few months, especially, have brought forth big changes in my creative flow and focus.

I've realized that I need to change my priorities, to better fit my new mindset.

Roleplaying is no longer going to be my main focus. In the past, whenever I've wanted to write, I've always focused on finishing drafts, asks ect. I've mostly written on here, since that's what I prefer. Or, rather - what I used to prefer. This is not to say I don't have muse for Nnoitra, because I always feel inspired for him. What's changed are my priorities. I've come to the conclusion that what's important to me is creating stories. Since Nnoitra's story ( main verse ) has become so stagnant, it feels less important to me. I know I can drive the story on, push it forward and thus find it important once more, but - I don't want to do that. I want to create my own, original stories instead. Becoming a professional writer has always been my dream, and that's simply not possible to do when I'm prioritizing rping. Roleplaying is going to have to take the backseat.

--- That being said, I'm absolutely not quitting! I can't imagine myself not writing for Nnoitra, so I'll be writing on here like before, and I'll even try to be more consistent. An enemy of mine in 2023 has been procrastination. One of my goals for 2024 is to conquer this, so that I can be more efficient with my time. I think that by dedicating less time to roleplay, I'll be more efficient when I do sit down and write for my muses. My activity the past few months have been spotty, so I'd love to get into a better flow.

2024 GOALS:

FOCUS ON PERSONAL PROJECTS. I have a lot of them. Two (three?) book projects, two long OC-centered fanfictions.

WRITE FANDOM PROJECTS. I have a lot of ideas for fanfictions, and I want to make the time to write them. Some are long, some are short. Getting feedback on my stories has always been a great feeling, and fanfiction is the best way to get that serotonin.

CHANGE MY WRITING HABITS. My habits are bad. They lead to a ton of procrastination and wasted time. I want to be more structured when it comes to my writing time (and my time in general, but especially my writing time). I want to stick to schedules, word-count goals, page goals ect. Conquering procrastination is going to be key.

CONSISTENT RP POSTING. Even though I won't be focusing on roleplaying, I still intend to do it regularly and get replies and asks out in a more timely manner. I'll probably set off some time in the evening to get replies done, and have some fun on the dash when others are online. I'll try to be consistent across my blogs, not just on Nnoitra.

CREATE THINGS THAT ARE PHYSICAL. I've come to realize that I love things that translate to the real world. Not just words on a screen, or a digital artwork, but things that you can touch. It's why I've absolutely fallen in love with watercolor painting. I'm going to try to print some of my writing work so that I have physical copies. I'm also going to print my art so that I can hold it in real life.

FIND A SHIP FOR NNOITRA. It's been so long since I wrote a ship for him, and I need it back in my life. I've been looking for a ship for him the whole time, but I need to put more effort in, and let him interact with more characters, as well as continue to develop the relationships he does have ( in case one of them turns romantic? ). I'd love for 2024 to be the year Nnoitra falls in love again.

I am SUPER excited for 2024! I love new years and fresh starts, and I feel so incredibly inspired by the changes in my mindset. I feel like I've been stuck for a good while with rping. Don't get me wrong, I've loved every second of it, and I've learnt so much about writing - and met the most amazing people. It's just that it's time for a change. Time for me to create other kinds of stories. I thought that things were aligned for me to write books last year, but I really didn't have the right mindset - but now I do! I'm hyped!! Hope you're ALL going to have the most amazing 2024 guys!! ]

[the-blind-geisha]

Onward to 2024

I know I have a few days till the year ends but meh. I'll write it now!

This year was far more productive for me after the prior year tried to take me out several times. While my new found health issue which may or may not persist left me in a state to constantly produce stuff in worry I'd never get the chance, it was still nice to look at the WIPs I got done.

Having finished The Demon King of the Desert was my main goal. I was so happy to have it finished, and be it on AO3 or Wattpad, I am glad it was loved as it was. ♥ While I would love to go back, revise, and pimp it out to be something far more explored in some areas, I plan to wait a moment before doing so. The original ending was something a bit different and the beginning was so rushed because I only hoped it would be 10 chapters. But, well, things run away from me.

The characters are still very much alive in my heart, and who knows—maybe I'll do the in-between idea of what Demiurge and Gerdu were up to during their absences (as well as do a ref sheet of Gerdu).

I do want to work more on my Patreon. I wanted to work on one for years, and now I have reasons to work there behind the scenes.

While all my mature things will remain there, the rest will gradually become public. I do have some comics I want to work on, that'll begin there and slowly drift to public spaces in due time. ♥

The King of Boos as well as a few other scenes I'd love to turn into comics from my King Boo / Reader story will be there. Sadly, as it stands, the first one won't be released till I am done with You're the Inspiration. Just because of how the two coincide with one another a bit. But it will eventually!

Because of my desire to dive into my childhood once more, I will be working on a few things with Violetta, my new Mario OC, and maybe make a self-insert OC in general since I want to do something with Rosalina too. She's my queen, sorry. ;^;

In general, I want to get some comic-ing done. I love comics, even if they take me forever to do at times. I figure Patreon will be my go to!

I also have some monster stories (and ref sheets for some of my boys, gals, and in betweens) in the works. I just have a massive to-do list that's bigger than my backside, so stuff will come out as needed!

I will do my best to try and work on using my artist tablet more over my mouse. While I want to continue using my mouse just so a broken tablet can't stop me from ever doing digital art, I do want to try and feel comfortable using an artist tablet all the same. ♥

2023 really opened up a lot of ideas for me. I redid my reference sheets too, which I am glad I didn't get far in those, or I would have screamed at the many I'd have to redo. But I plan on redoing the old ones and moving to a better future with them.

Oreana and Ignatius' story will continue at some point as will another story I may put into comic format if I can draw creatures better again. ♥ It's an old idea inspired by a fanfic of epic craziness that I still have a fondness for that was done in my pre-net days when I was a kid.

Anywho! Hoping for a brighter, just as productive, new year! Stay safe, everyone, and thank you all for your support!

[minevn]

(I'm sorry for the mistakes) Hi! I would like to say that I miss you and I hope you are taking good care of your mental and physical health, eating/hydrating and sleeping well!(´ ∀ ` ) About the updated sprites. Your drawing style has become more cool, I love the updated Minato and Haruto! Minato looks so gentle and sweet(─‿‿─) and Haruto is soft and maturely cool(≧ω≦*)! As much as I would like to see the updated sprites of the remaining LI's as soon as possible, first of all, I hope that you are not overworked. ⸜( *ˊᵕˋ* )⸝ Thank you very much for your work, you are amazing! (๑>◡<๑) (with your permission) *tight hug* (��� ◕‿◕ )づ

HI IM GONNA SOB THIS IS SO SWEET! THANK YOU! I MISSED BEING ACTIVE ON THE MINE BLOG AND SEEING EVERYONES ASKS AND ANSWERING THEM!! Thank you so much for your sweet words!! I've been trying, but I think I'm doing okay for now :3 I hope you're also taking care of yourself!!

AAAA thank you! I'm glad people are liking it, I was worried other's wouldn't like the change. Not saying I would've kept the old style which I was unhappy with as this is my project and I know I should do what I like with my own projects, I was just worried the designs and styles might've not been peoples tastes and stuff, I personally like more detailed designs and more colors though so I've been way more happy with these designs! I'm so happy that the designs come across that way, I really wanted Minato to look more friendly and approachable and I did want to add more maturity to Haruto out in public due to his reputation! Thank you so much! I'm trying to have at least one character in front on the previous character in my concept sketches, for example I've finished Jun's concept, but I don't want to digitalize it yet as I don't have Hoshi's done, I'm actually working on Hoshi's concepts right now lol. Much like the first time, he's giving me the most issues, but I think I'm getting there with something I like :3 thank you, one again! I would love to get these out as well since I've been really happy with the designs and art so far and want to get back into writing. I'll probably continue working on rewriting my old ask answers to fit Minato and Haruto(maybe even Jun and Hoshi) better later tonight or something! WAAAAA THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR KIND WORDS AGAIN!! YOU'RE ALSO AMAZING!!

I'm always down for hugs so *Hugs back* :3

[jerirose]

oh my god i would LOVE a tutorial on the amazing way you draw eyelashes! it's such a small detail but it makes such a difference i think. also I Get It, jisung is your muse just like felix is my muse. neither of us can be normal about how much we need to draw them i understand completely, i'm just blown away but how quickly you can make such amazing looking art when it takes me a calender year to finish anything lmao

anyway this is me looking at your art

I will try to make a traditional tutorial whilst I'm away <3 I'll also make a digital one when I'm back too! Mmmhm, Hannie and Lino - I dunno what it is about painting the two of them, but it's just really calming? Like, I'm sure you get it 100% and any other artist that has a favourite (or a few) to draw will understand what I'm talking about. 100% I'd call them my muses, I think it kinda flips back and forth between the two because I've a lot of Lee Know's I've painted too hahaha And ofc the more I paint the both of them the easier it gets, which makes them more enjoyable to paint! Ahhh thank youu! I still think I'm pretty slow :') I think it depends on the portrait and the detail involved and whether I decide to be lazy on some features - ie. how much sanity I'm willing to sacrifice on a shirt or necklace :') [I really hate painting chains LOL] Some paintings [like my latest HAN] take 5ish hours? (or at least that's what I'm guessing from how long the time-lapse is - CSP doesn't record paint time *sigh*) and then some take anywhere from 10 to 18 hours? [I think my THE SOUND HAN took roughtly 14 hours, because of all the detail]. I'd like to get faster - but I'd also rather focus on my technique for now to continue getting better at that and understanding "my style" better and working on making my work my own, rather than a "copy" as my dad likes to call them :') I posted a resources' thing on (some of) the brushes I use! Here. They are all brushes I've paid for, but I also know there's a tone of resources out that that are free and maybe it may help knowing what to look for if it's something you (or anyone reading this) is potentially interested in looking in to! I'll make a post when I'm back about them more in-depth, how I use them and also which standard brushes I use and how I use them too! Since I never watched tutorials or looked at them, everything I've learnt to date is all through trail and error, so I'm not sure if I'm the best to make things, but maybe people will find them helpful :D I'd like to add, and this REALLY goes for everyone - please never be ashamed or embarrassed of how long your art takes to create, or where you are in your personal progress, or of your "failures" or something that didn't quite turn out how you wanted it too - art is made with love and that's the only thing that should matter. If you love and enjoy what you are doing - who cares how long it takes or if it's not perfect?! (I actually love the imperfections in my art because it shows that they were made by a person). Take the last piece you did and learn from it, note what worked and what didn't and take it with you to the next piece! Creating, painting, drawing, ect - digital or traditional is muscle memory - the more you do it the easier it'll become <3

[artfoold00k]

Your workspace in CSP is neat. I liked. And what is your artwork workflow? Like, how do you lead your art process from 0 to 100? Is there anything else important to know besides software stuff?

This question is very good, however, I don't know how to answer it shortly because I'm in the process of developing this work environment system yet.

As software evolves, technique changes, and habits shift, so does this whole whale changes direction softly. I will share here my own scheme. Treat it as a suggestion on what to consider.

I know how frustrating can feel to start drawing digitally. Feeling lost, guessing what is there beyond the visible horizon.

I have to try sharing my accumulated knowledge in the hope of, perhaps, helping someone.

But if you're a hobbyist, forget to continue reading.

Hobby is the freedom to decide at your own discretion.

Digital artist work setup

I'll post pdf version of this map in better quality soon.

If you need something from these to be clarified, ask away.

As I mentioned, this system is WIP and not exactly a workflow. I made these lists for blank-mind days to remember what to consider including and to analyze + register what has been good practice for me regarding work. The more I learn, the more I add.

This would be different for a person who animates, or for an environment artist.

I built mine around Clip Studio Paint because I adore it.

For some extra knowledge. And this I tell myself as well.

If you take art seriously, analyze your preferences and passion, choose whom you want to become as an artist accordingly, and surround yourself with professionals who already became your objective, learn from them. Evolve in your niche.

For example, say, you like post-apocalyptic video games but what makes you feel like home is a floral pattern. Combining these two would make quite an interesting mix. Then find artists who design gorgeous post-apocalyptic stuff and learn from them

- what makes it gorgeous for you

- software, tricks, specifics

- business model and how they sell

- branding and social presence

Floral patterns I don't need to explain, right?

Thank you for asking.

I'm glad I had something semi-ready to show.

[mocknerd]

Updates and Responses to Feedback:

Hi all. Due to talking to some of you we thought it would be best to inform you of some changes we've made to the game since the demo was released. Most of these we had done so earlier, however after recieving feedback, we thought that this might be important

First change:

MC's new character design.

Many of you stated that in the demo, MC looked too short and young, and that it made a lot of you uncomfortable. We heard this and made the appropriate changes and the results are what you see in the above sketch. We made her chest more prominent and she should be taller--around the same height as Arabella and Anri. When we get a digital artist for the sprites, we'll make sure that she translates better to digital form. Previously, we had in story reason for her youthful appearance, but in the end both madhousefruitcake and I agreed it was too extreme, and so did some updates accordingly.

Related to this, we heard feedback stating that some of you have felt discomfort playing this game due to the MC's feminine appearance and pronouns, and that it has caused you dysphoria. We are dreadfully sorry about this, however due to technical reasons, we can't provide the players with a gender selection. The game is incredibly long, with over 30 character sprites. That's not taking into account the expressions each of those characters would have within the game. So we hope that you can understand the need to restrict ourselves to one gender. The reason we chose female and not gender neutral is both due to plot and game genre. Traditionally, otome games are made for girls, so we thought it would be wise to stick to the demographic we were aiming for. If this effects you and you still want to play the game, we consider viewing the MC as separate from you (I know I know, that kind of defeats the purpose doesn't it). If not, we completely understand not wanting to, and thank you for playing anyway.

The other change:

Since the demo was released last year, we have gone back and edited a lot of the scenes and dialogue. The specific example we're talking about today are the "I'm straight lines". When we looked back, myself and madhousefruitcake agreed and thought that multiple characters commenting on how straight they were was really stupid, clunky and unnatural, so we have since changed it. However, as of recently we have been made aware of just how glaring the lines were to some of you and we felt the need to update everyone on these changes. The mistake was made thanks to a slip in the editing and more than one script writer. We will try to avoid something like this happening again. With the exceptions of a few, most of the characters sexualities would be more ambiguous or unmentioned for now on. For the most part, our aim is to get the most accurate depiction of the series we can get through lots of reading and research, in order for the player to feel like they're actually taking part in the world of durarara. Any mentions of sexuality for now on would be either for plot reasons, or because the dialogue naturally fell a certain way.

We hope that these issues didn't turn any of you off Ikebukuro Records, but if they have, hopefully this new information will spark your interest in it again. Please let us know of more feedback you have, and feel free to ask questions.

Please consider donating to our ko-fi so that we may someday afford all the required digital artists. I'll leave the link at the bottom of this post. We will give you more art and script updates as development and donations continue. Thank you for your time.

-Ms.

[the-walk-of-weary-souls]

MCYT Nightmares AU

-A little Nightmares AU for the mcyt more centred around Tommy, Tubbo and the other sleepy bois, but not exclusive to them.

-In this AU the horrifying bosses you face in LN are actually the same species as the little children. The little children are actually their young and if they survive long enough for their nature to take hold they become the horrifying 'Boss' monsters that roam the little Nightmares world. However very few survive long enough to unlock their adult 'corruption' form, they also dont know that they are the same species as the monsters that roam the world until they start corrupting(growing up). I've came up with the name blanklings for the children as they have yet to be corrupted and thus could be considered 'blank' from any corruption.

-The bosses or as I will call them in this AU; Corruptions also have a rough class system even though they mainly work on a territory and strongest one system there is also another system in play. As you may have noticed some of the bosses in LN have these incredible superpowers while others actually have none or really dull ones in comparison to others. The class system is litreally just sort of lower being those without any abilities or really underpowered abilities like the twin chefs, Middle class would be the average boss in little Nightmares like the teacher and high class would be incredibly powerful entities like the lady and the thin man.

-Tommy and Tubbo are two of these little children or blanklings, who just like all the other blanklings don't know they are the same species as the horrifying boss monsters that terrorise them. (Yeah the Corruptions in general aren't very good parents)

-They've been together for years now and are some of the longest surviving children from what they know as most others don't make it into double digits while they were almost 15 (They're still Tiny though). This does mean however that theyre starting to reach the age bracket where the very slow corrupting (turning into a corruption) process begins and that they now have to try and figure out what the hell is going on with them all the while continuing to run for their lives. It really doesn't help that they stumble into the domain of 3 incredibly powerful high class corruptions, one that looks eerily similar to the teen that took care of Tommy all those years ago before they were tragically sperated. Also why the hell do these corruptions seem to grow more interest in them as time goes on, gaining the attention of any corruption much less such powerful ones isn't looking good for their continued survival.

In order to keep this somewhat Brief I'll leave the explanation here but I'll definitely be posting more hyperfixating on certain aspects of this AU

Here's some Art I made for this AU last night I couldn't decide which one I liked better so I'll put both up also ignore the fact that their hoods are just blobs lol.

Though be warned it does contain some minor bruises:

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[hazelenergy]

Inktober reflection, last days 25-31.

Here we go!

Inktober day 25: Auspex

I remembered that I like my portrait art and loose ink style. I let myself get that unfinished look and it felt good to do that. The brush strokes for her hair and the lighting on her nose are very well done. Need to watch the freckles...they are all a bit one toned and the same size. Spatter works better for this effect.

Inktober 26: Toreador

Composition of this is well done. The call back to the v20 character sheet was a nice touch. I did it earlier with the ghoul piece, but the personal touch of Eli's character with the thorns and lighting instruments is nice. My favorite detail is the slim white line that pops their head forward and keeps them from blending with the shadows.

Inktober 27: golconda

I think this one is a bit weak on composition and execution. I was going for the loneliness kindred may feel when they achieve this enlightenment. I think instead it reads more like a pious woman near prayer. Eh. Can't get em all.

Inktober Day 28: Prince

Okay this one was so fun. I adore a lot of the characters on vampblr. Moineau is one of them. And I love your guys reactions when I draw them. It brings me so much seratonin y'all don't even know. Composition is fantastic, but I got bogged down trying to find the right reference image for her. In reality, I should've just went for it. I am very happy with how this turned out, not happy with how long it took.

I'm also really proud of the details of her hair and dress. I love doing detail work, but it's critical for an artist to know when to say enough on a piece. I'm glad I kept working this, it's exceptional.

Inktober Day 29: Animalism

This one I got into some trouble with. It is fine to use reference images to assist your work. I got lazy and made this too similar to what I based this off of. It's important to make the piece your own. Granted, this is my style, and my techniques. But it is not my composition. And I'm very self critical about that.

Inktober Day 30: Final Death

This one was one of the ones I nailed. It's so cool and a wonderful showcase of different techniques. The story of this one is easy to read, but beautifully open to interpretation as to what happened.

Inktober Day 31: Yourself as A Vampire

First off, I wanna say that I really hope I don't become a vampire, I have enough issues that should probably be resolved with therapy. But. This was fun to work on. I always try to make the final piece something I spend a lot of time on and really finish strong. This self portrait is very accurate to my reference image and it's been a very long time since I've done a self portrait. I think it showcases the proper amount of smug that I try to keep in check...but fail frequently 😂

Since I spent more time on it, I was able to give more attention to details and layers. And it was worth it. The hair. Those tiny tiny highlights were a bitch to get right. The shadows on the brush are really well done. I think where I could have provided more details were the hands. They are a bit cartoony for the rest of the piece. And that came down to the lighting in the shot. I should've reprinted the reference after a level correction, to see the shadows and highlights a bit clearer.

Reflection:

When I first started this journey I wanted to learn how to replicate tim Bradstreet's work. Did I do that? Kinda. I mean this in a nice way but it's a brag. I can replicate any style given enough time and the right tools. I think I once got a grasp on how the man broke down his process, I began incorporating my own style and techniques. Which honestly, is way cooler. Rather than fully copying his work, I learned how to make it my own. And that's more important. I'll give a breakdown of how I do that in another post.

I thought the feeling would be way more joyous when I finished the 31st drawing. Instead I kinda felt myself dreading... Now what? I learned a lot of new techniques, reforged a love of loose ink styles and crosshatched shading, and learned how to utilize multiple references to create my own work. Now what?

Well, I have several projects that I think could benefit from this style. I intend to keep using these techniques both digitally and physically as I continue this journey as an artist. I aim to get a store running, where people can purchase my best pieces. And with a little luck...I'll get my work published. For now though, I'm resting. I'll keep you guys posted as I continue to create new art.

But lastly. Thank you all! Thank you for your continued support. Thank you for reblogging and commenting on it! Thank you for for your entertaining tags! It's been one of my favorite self motivated projects to work on. And it's been made even better because I got to share it with all of you. Here's to more of what we love and continued awesomeness. 🌹🦇🖤 ~Steph

[the-blind-assassin-12]

Lonely Stranger

Word Count: 1,340 (+ lyrics- in bold italics)  Character: Ryan Brenner  A/N: This was a real damn treat for me to write, as well as an agonizing experience. I’ll explain a little more. Title of this drabble and lyrics used belong to Eric Clapton, not Ryan Brenner or I... and if you haven’t heard the song, please listen before, during or after you read this.  

(ARTIST APPRECIATION SUBMISSION)

Happy Sunday everyone! I am so pumped to share this next submission for the fanart appreciation event, for many reasons. First of all, the art itself is literally breathtaking. The incredible attention to the smallest of details in this not only show how badass this artist is, but perfectly mirror Ryan’s attention to the little things. The moment that I got this submission from @something-tofightfor to write for the piece that  @gollyderek did that was inspired by Neon Lights, I just about exploded with excitement. First of all, Neon Lights is my favorite piece of fanfiction on this or any plane of existence. If you haven’t read it you absolutely have to. Secondly, Laura’s artwork for it was and still is my happy place because it so perfectly depicts the magic of the moment that reader first sees Ryan. In fact, it makes lots of people’s days better, Laura. When she submitted this request, Rachael told me that this artwork makes her happy even on bad days. 

So the chance to write about not only a beautiful work of art, but one inspired by a beautiful work of fiction was sort of fricking amazing! I decided (with @something-tofightfor​ ‘s blessing, of course- Thanks for trusting me, Rachael!) to write this from Ryan’s POV. 

Anyway! I could continue to gush about how talented both of these ladies are and how much both of their works mean to me, but let’s get on with it. Laura, from Rachael (and I) to you: THANK YOU FOR GIFTING US ALL WITH THIS BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF ART. YOU ARE TALENTED. YOU ARE APPRECIATED. YOU ARE A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH. Keep fuckin shit up in the best way. 

(Can you hear him singing? I can. Good Lord, I can.) 

Lonely Stranger

Once his fingers began to work at the strings, the guitar in Ryan’s lap stopped being separate from him. Hunched over the body and curved around the neck, he let the faces in the small crowd that had gathered disappear and gave all of his focus to the song he was playing. While he enjoyed playing for people, even taking requests to ensure that he played things that they actually knew and wanted to hear, what he enjoyed the most about music was the way that it didn’t begin and end with just his voice or his guitar. It required more than that. Soul and memory. Joy and mistakes. Got plenty’a both. 

Making music was about feeling all of these things and using them to say something through song, regardless of whether or not it was one he’d written. It was his chance to talk to people he might otherwise not get the opportunity to. Just as they slipped beneath the notes he played and the lyrics he sang, he felt himself become invisible to them. His dusty boots, stained jeans, roughly inked digits and all of the preconceived notions that they carried became muted details that mattered less and less with every pluck and pass of his fingers and thumbs, every line he belted out. Ryan became invisible enough to connect with these strangers, just enough to make them smile and keep him believing that people were better on the whole than the worst of their parts. 

They didn’t mind that they’d never see him again, and the older he got and the more he traveled, he realized that he didn't either. Ryan had a few people in his life that he knew would always be a part of it- Georgie and a couple of the friends that they played with together, Virginia, even if every day it got closer to too long since he’d seen her. Cowboy, even though he was gone. Ryan’s closed eyelids wrinkled as he connected that loss to the story he was telling with his song. 

I must be invisible No one knows me. I have crawled down dead-end streets On my hands and knees.

The people who knew him weren’t the ones standing in front of him as he sat perched on a milk crate suspended over the Strip. Those people were scattered elsewhere, acting as anchors for him to return to when needed, as he was to them- people who understood him, accepted him beyond what they could see and without trying to change him. Those people were few and far between, both figuratively and in miles, and Ryan had recently decided that that was for the best. He hadn’t left his home looking for someplace to settle into a new one, he’d done it to live on his own terms. It had been years since he’d met someone who had seen him beneath what they guessed about him, those guesses more often than not being wrong, so he’d stopped hoping for it. 

'cause I'm a lonely stranger here, Well beyond my day. And I don't know what's goin' on, So I'll be on my way.

It was easier to just make these little connections through music, to focus on the details of the city he was in. The skyline, the way clouds gathered and the colors that they cast over the landscape, cobbled streets and gravel roads, highways and bright lights and everything that made each place he visited different from the one before. That’s why he’d chosen the life he had, regardless of what people thought, and it was easier to enjoy those things than it was to try to find another person who saw them the way that he did, saw his lifestyle as a series of intentional choices and not one of circumstantial consequence. 

The desert heat hadn’t left with the sunlight, and though sweat ran in beads between his shoulder blades and left salty trails from his forehead and temples that dried on his skin before reaching his beard, he hardly noticed. He opened his eyes briefly as he played between lyrics, a few more people stepping up to join the audience, their featureless faces reflecting the colors of the neon lights that brought the city to life. Just people on vacation, checking “watch a street performer” off of their Vegas to-do list. Crinkled dollar bills and a small cache of coins littered the lining of the guitar case at his feet, and he was grateful for every cent of it because it allowed him to continue to live the life he wanted, even if it meant becoming a small detail in the scrapbooks of other people’s lives. 

He blinked as a drop of sweat rolled into his eye, and shook his head to clear it without missing a beat. Opening both eyes again, Ryan expected to be met with the same cluster of strangers that he’d just seen, but where before when his eyes had been able to skim across the crowd with ease, this time they found a sticking point- a young woman standing off to the side in a simple black dress, a soft pink glow illuminating her from behind. What? Ryan’s brow wrinkled, and he gave another small shake of his head as though trying to clear a mirage from his mind. 

But you were still there, your eyes wide and your mouth slightly open, body entirely still. But she’s… listening. Ryan closed his eyes, tight, and sunk himself back into the song. Doesn’t matter.   

Some will say that I'm no good; Maybe I agree. Take a look then walk away. That's alright with me.

But you hadn’t heeded the warning in the song. You’d stuck around as most of the crowd dispersed, continuing on to the destinations that his presence on the bridge had delayed them from. Why? He looked down as you tossed a bill into the case, the green paper landing on the small pile of other bills but standing out starkly due to the number in the corner being much higher than any that it sat atop. Oh. That’s… 

“That’s too much, you don’t have to-” he said aloud, assuming that you’d meant to slip something smaller into the case. Bringing his eyes up to yours, they locked onto something there that surprised him. Lips suddenly dry, his tongue darted out to wet them. “Please, that’s not-” 

But you wouldn’t let it go, insisting that he take the tip and the praise that came along with it. You didn’t run off, having checked a box and eager to check another, but stepped aside as he briefly thanked those that did have somewhere else to be. You stayed through another song- one he’d written- watching and listening with the same look on your face, closer now, the curve of your cheek and the tip of your nose highlighted by the yellow orange glow of a different set of lights. She’s… he thanked the couple in front of him, giving them a genuine smile and telling them to have a nice evening, but he was still stuck on your eyes. She’s stunning but I...it... When you’d overheard him answer someone else’s question of what his name was, you hadn’t waited for him to introduce himself to you before using it yourself, and when you did he could feel the way that his own eyes lightened, smiling from the unexpected way you’d maintained the connection that others so easily dropped the second the last note faded. 

Close enough now to see even more than he’d been able to before, Ryan realized what had made you different, even if he couldn’t fathom how he knew it. She’s been lonely, too. Knows it's not all bad, bein’ alone. It wasn’t sadness in your eyes that gave that away, it was clarity. Damn. But instead of looking for a way to cut it off, Ryan held onto the connection that the two of you shared, offering to play a song of your choosing. 

To him, your choice had only confirmed what he didn’t know how he knew about you. The odd comfort and jarring change of being seen, even if just for the length of a few songs adding to the list of things he’d add to the guitar, to his voice: Soul and memory. Joy and mistakes. 

And this… no matter what category tonight falls into.  

.

.

.

And now I am going to go cry about how much I love Ryan Brenner and this perfectly frozen moment in time that @gollyderek​ captured from @something-tofightfor​ ‘s beautiful words. SWOON and SIGH. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it even if it made me nervous AF and choosing a song for Ryan to be singing was more difficult than it should have been. Thank you a million times to all of you fabulous artists! If you are an artist in the Ben Barnes fandom, or you want to surprise an artist with a quick drabble based on their art, send me a message and link me to the posted artwork. Let’s show these talented folks how much we appreciate them and the things that they create! 

[petra-creat0r]

Alrighty! Welcome to the new year everyone! I know 2020 was absolute crap but it is now a new year and even if this year ends up not being much better than the last, I'm determined to make it at least a little bit better for everyone. In anyways I feasibly can. Be that just spreading joy with my ask blogs, continuing to wear a mask and stay inside until this pandemic can finally be considered over, generally spreading kindness, striving to be a better person, or the like. Anyways, with all that said! I've got an update for y'all! With the New Year here I of course had to update my signatures. Again I could've just gotten rid of the year but I like the year there. Here are my new signatures that you will see on any ask blog update made in 2021 or digital art piece. I know I didn't make any digital art for y'all last year but at the moment I've got a laptop and a drawing tablet! I will strive to make more art. I might start with some references.

I don't have a first panel of the year to show y'all because I already started the next AtDFF update and revamp last year. So the first update to be drawn this year won't be until after next week. I also didn't draw any new year's stuff last night, though maybe later today I can digitalize the Christmas drawing I never got around to finishing and draw a new years photo too.

Some resolutions I have for this year is one, to make the most out of this year, no matter how hard or scary or painful it may be. But for a resolution regarding my ask blogs... I feel I've stopped enjoying making the comic since its become more about popular and fame then about just having fun. I started it out for fun but with the thought that maybe it could get popular. That made me work harder to get to that, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think I realized I pushed myself too hard when with the last AtDFF update, I had to rush the update at pretty much the last minute. Yeah, we got the update out on time but having to crunch like that wasn't pleasant. I still plan to release updates every other week... But if I ever feel I can't finish an update on time, I'm never going to crunch again. I'll just delay the update another week. I'm also just, not going to care how much attention I get. Likes and reblogs and asks do not make me or the things I create any less valid. I don't need the validation of others to feel successful.

Another thing is, I think I plan to much. Not that it's bad to plan but, there's things in life you can't account for. Ya know. You can try and try to account for every situation but, life tends to surprise you. This can also be applied to an ask blog. Like in life, I can't account for everything someone will do. I don't know when someone might just swerve the car off the beaten path and into the cornfield. All I can do is try and be prepared. And maybe... It's just better to have a looser map. Maybe it's OK to let the askers controlling the car drive around in the cornfield until it becomes the path. I don't need to plan the entire comic out. Sure I can have plot points I know are gonna happen eventually but when those happen is up to the askers. It's up to the asks I receive and how I chose to use them. Does that make a lick of sense? I, I guess probably not. Unless you're aware of my roadtrip ask blog analogy. The point is, I'm going to stop trying to plan every little thing in my life out and just start trying to prepare for anything life throws at me. And any asks you guys throw at me.

Well, I... I guess that's all I've got for now. Until next time everyone, I hope y'all enjoyed and see you later Creative creators.

-Petra

[finsterhund]

I'm feeling slightly better than I was yesterday.

I bought stuff for Spot with the last of my money to cheer myself up, as I'm getting paid in two days.

One of the Spots I ordered arrived and I gave them a bath.

Got chicken strips and potato wedges.

I'm still extremely upset about the news from yesterday. I'm trying not to take it personally but saying "I hated doing commissions" and me being his primary commissioner, getting one almost every month, has made that hard.

I guess this means I shouldn't obsess over one friend and their art and should try being closer to multiple people and being a supporter of multiple artists.

Every time I get too attached I always end up getting hurt because I'm too clingy.

But as I said, finding that sweet spot when it comes to artists is very very difficult. All the good artists who aren't creeps are so popular that getting a commission slot is impossible.

This year has just been "the year of distance" and it sucks. Everyone being distant in real life due to the virus I think is normalizing reclusion even online.

I tried to shower like a non disabled person today and guess what? I bruised my horrible little nasty sternum by falling. It feels kinda weird now and hurts. It makes me think more about whether I have wires around it or not. The bone would have grown around the wires right? Hopefully it's just bruising and it's not like, extra delicate because it was at one point in two halves, so it broke. Baby bones are basically cartilage so it would have grown properly right?

I know nothing of medicine.

So I'm sticking to baths unless I want to get a shower chair. Only issue is there's no space for one.

Our slumlord house owner was going to raise our rent but can't because of the virus. That's some good news. Hope it stays that way. We're already paying way too much for what we get here.

I had a pretty bad breakdown last night but tonight I'm not feeling that. Still really sad about recent events though.

Actually befriending artists is really hard and a big issue I have with finding artists online to commission is I prefer them being my friends as there's a level of comradery and understanding so ehhhhhh. I had several people do art fight attacks for me this year out of the blue so maybe I'd be able to network and become friends with other artists but that's so hard for me. My friendships pretty much are lightning in a bottle rare events that brought us together. I don't actually know how to intentionally make friends.

I wish Fishy had more free time and Shynox and Lili and Arti came back. Oh well.

I found out that the camera I wanted to get for when I finally get my service dog doesn't save photos digitally. It sucks because I really wanted to have a modern instant camera that also had an SD card for the photos as backup but nope. The new Polaroid doesn't do that. It's just a regular old style instant camera. No digital features. I'd dig that if the saga of the Spot photos and the ongoing search for a place that still develops negatives didn't force me to get with the times and acknowledge for once in my life that "digital is the answer"

So instead I'm helping my friend buy his camera and he'll be taking photos for me. I'm sad because after my first digital camera broke I wanted to get a new one but finding out that the one I wanted didn't do what I needed it to do sorta just made me give up.

The pet store where I got stuff for Spot had things on clearance. Everything I got was clearance. I also saw a glow in the dark collar but I just thought that Spot wouldn't like the material and that it would be something my future service dog would like and that made me feel sad so I left.

The quest for a very large stuffed dog that looks like Spot continues. I found a pattern that someone could make one, but do you know how to sew things? I thought not. Neither do I.

I'm excited for the OC release of Paper Beast even though I won't be able to play it. Gotta build my new PC but that means dealing with modern PC parts which is something I've been fearing. I know how to assemble modern PCs, but I'm so behind with the technical aspect it's hard. I don't want to just buy a prebuilt, that's a waste of money, but due to the virus, going to a local shop is out of the question too.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I'm getting by, but that I'm not happy. I'm just sorta riding the waves wherever they move and hoping for the best.

I'm hoping my friend's new camera will be good for photos of cuddle clone Spot and also my HoD collection.

I've got some ideas for commissions though. Just don't know who to commission lol

I've got one in the works now though. First one from an artist I thought was cool and is nice to follow. Seemed excited to work on my idea.

My friend made me this and it makes me feel happy.

Hopefully I'll have an easier time sleeping tonight than I did last night.

Maybe I'll try writing instead. But since my mood is awful we know it's going to take a dark turn.

I might try searching around for artists some more, especially once I get paid.

It's not the end of the world. I'm just hurt lol

Anyways, update done. Talk to you guys later.

[seatosomert]

What kit should you buy?

Ok, so you're probably expecting me to recommend cameras, tripods, lenses etc. I'm not gonna do that.

There is tonnes of content on YouTube etc to tell you all about that stuff.

So I'm going to keep it simple.

First, just scroll back up and spend a minute going through the images above. What do you notice?

I'm hoping what you'll notice are a few things.

I'm shooting different things within the images for different reasons or clients.

I have a fair few cameras (about 15 I think at my last count).

The cameras are all different. Why is that?

I'm carrying some kit on my person.

So, here is the thing.

You get to ask yourself the following questions.

What do I want to shoot?

How much kit do I want to carry?

Do I really need to carry all that kit?

So how much kit do I REALLY want to carry?

Do I want to generate an income from shooting?

Do I actually generate an income from shooting?

I have been a photographer for around 30 years now. Starting out as everyone does as a novice, then amateur, then enthusiast and progressed to a semi-pro (semi because I have another job I do I don't shoot full time but I do run my own photography and video business as well).

So my needs right now reflect the kit I buy. I've read loads of magazines with lovely flashy looking kit that I worked hard for to buy from my own day job wages. I spent a fortune. Then a year later, a new camera came out and my head was turned. Then I was lusting after that kit!

It's a never ending cycle where you can be bombarded with videos, reviews of kit and as you've probably learned,targeted adverts on Social Media.

Now my film cameras are purely a purist thing and I learned on film cameras from being a very young kid. So I am attracted to the nostalgia of it. Yes there is something about film that is so super difficult to replicate on digital, but do clients demand shoots on film? Nope!

Only one client ever asked for a shoot on medium format film on my Mamiya 645 pro camera. They had a specific look they were going for. It's expensive and it takes longer to turn the images around.

Clients want high quality media that can be manipulated by graphic designers for ad campaigns etc. And they want it quickly. So digital has to be the most efficient way to go.

I've bought kit that I've used once then stored it away for years! I've learned since then.

For several years now I only buy what I need to get the job done to the high standards that I set myself and that clients demand. If I need kit I may only use once, I'll borrow from a fellow pro shooter or I'll hire it.

So if you're not making money from your photography and unless you have more money than sense, don't waste your money on buying the best money can buy.

On saying that if you buy cheap 'tat' you'll be disappointed and buy twice.

Buy the kit you know you'll use often if you're a hobbyist, or if you want to take photos better than a smart phone can.

Remember also. You have to carry it.

I only buy stuff for my business now that I know I'm happy carrying and gets the job done. I'm fit and healthy but I'm also in my late 40s now and I've put my body through a lot of stuff over the years such as a motorbike accident, bashed about in full contact martial arts and other daft stuff, so wear and tear starts to kick in. Don't buy shit loads of kit that you'll have to carry and either injure yourself or just leave at home because it becomes a chore to carry it.

The best camera in the world is the one that is with you at the time. A £10k Leica with a Summicron lens sat at home in the drawer is useless at that point because it's not with you when you find that photographic opportunity.

So I have been switching out from DSLR to Mirrorless cameras for the last 2 years now. I'm not gonna harp on about what brands. It doesn't matter. Find what works for you.

Finally I'd like to share with you the two most important things that I've invested into my photography that supercede any fancy kit:-

Time and mentorship/lifelong learning.

Time and Mentorship.

By time I mean putting time into practising. No amount of YouTube tutorials or books will improve your photography if you're not putting the practice in. Shoot as often as you can. Practice with light, play with it.

Learn the limits of your kit and learn your own limitations and then fill the gaps by committing to learning for the long haul.

Not one successful photographer worth their salt believes they know it all. The world's best photographers have committed to life long learning.

Leads me onto the last thing.

I currently learn from many sources. Yes I'll admit, the odd YouTube video on editing techniques as software continues to develop. I'm a Pro member of the Photographer's Guild so I have access to all sorts of workshops and learning there.

I am a member of Karl Taylor Education and I've studied with Karl's many products for about 7 years now and I pay a subscription to access his classes.

I have paid to work with some leading industry photographers such as Gary Wallis from the London Photography Institute, Steve Howdle (Elinchrom Ambassador) and the Late Andrew Appleton (Former Photographers guild panel judge and very well respected photography coach and teacher).

I have developed connections with other professionals in my area and I will work with them on projects in and out of the studio.

We'll share tips and go out to other cities to shoot together or shoot together in the studio.

I'll take myself off to London for the day to shoot and I'll get into the less touristy areas of London to do this. It's a 200+ mile trip each way for me but I'll go to the effort of hopping down for the day several times a year.

The point I am trying to make here is there are always opportunities to learn. I have had to invest time and money into them all.

However, I've learned so much that when I look back it amazes me just how far I've come and what I have learned.

Just as with anything. Improving your skills requires time and commitment.

So to summarise:

Decide what you want to shoot and where and buy the camera and kit that suits that.

Travel as light as possible. Develop your knowledge before spending lots of money on more kit.

Find a mentor and ask them to help you. It might cost you money, it might not, but it's a worthwhile investment. It's massively accelerates your learning curve, cutting down your learning duration by years. If someone told you to learn your current job from YouTube videos and books how long would it take you to become proficient at it? Compared to on the job learning/training, learning from people around who are already experts at that job? It's the same principal when you work with a good mentor. Once you have the knowledge in it weighs nothing and the more you use what you've learned the stronger you become in you're art.

As usual, if this post has been of use to you, please hit the like button, subscribe for more content and fire any questions you have in the comments below.

Speak soon.

Regards.

Neil.

[mr-nobodys-stuff]

Meeting Deku

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Description: you just moved from America to Japan for work. Moving was a bit tougher than you expected. A shy green haired boy offers to help. You meet his mom and spend a little time with them. Becoming friends with them is a must have now.

----------

The long flight from America to Japan is definitely a tiresome trek. Not so much physical, but more mental. The stress and nervousness of your new permanent home setting in.

You've been to Japan a few times in the past. So it's not anything to be too worried about, but still.

Musutafu, Japan. That's where you chose to live. The nicest place you could find without going too expensive.

Once the plane landed you did the usual. Walking off the plane with your carry on, fetching the rest of your luggage, finding a taxi, and finally reaching the apartments.

There is where you met the landlords, a nice little old couple.

"Now dearie, if there's anything you need, don't be afraid to ask. You have our numbers right?" The woman encloses your hand in both of hers.

"Yes, I do. I'll be fine and thank you for the place," you give her a soft smile, nodding your head.

"Perfect! Well, we better be on our way now. Got some grocery shopping to do," she says, leaving after giving her own grin.

You turned to the apartments and huffed, hyping yourself up. Time to carry your bags up to the room on the second floor. Highs weren't your favorite thing, but the second wasn't too high, thankfully.

You draped your bag around your back as you dragged the large luggage up the steps.

"Excuse me, miss!" A voice says from behind. Quickening footsteps accompanying it.

You turn to see a green haired man hurrying over to you.

"Would you like a hand?" Without giving you time to respond he pulls up the heavy bag, effortlessly.

"What floor?" He asks.

"The second," you say, leading the way. He follows you all the way to the designated floor and sets down the bag on its wheels.

"I'm Y/N by the way," you say, putting a hand on your chest.

"Izuku Midoriya, but you can just call me Deku though," he waves a hand, dismissively.

"Ok, cool!" you nod. "Do you happen to live here in the apartments?"

"Y-yeah I do! Just on the other side actually. I live with my mom, haha," he rubs the back of his neck.

"Oh, I'm just moving in and I live by myself."

"Really? Do you need any help?" He asks, grinning a little.

"Not presently. I have to wait on my things to get here first. They should get here in a few days and you don't have to help if you really don't-," you shake your head and wave your hands, partially in defense.

"Nonsense! I'd love to help! M-maybe you'd like to stop by my place to meet my mom? She'd be happy to meet our new neighbor, haha," he blushes slightly.

"Yeah, but maybe tomorrow? I'm pretty tired from the flight over. I haven't eaten all day," your stomach suddenly feeling extremely empty at the thought of food.

"Oh right! Sorry, I forgot!" He laughs nervously. "W-well if you really wanted to, you could stop by for, uh, dinner? My mom usually makes more than we can eat."

"That would be nice," you grin, feeling all warm inside. "Which apartment?"

"34"

"Ok, I'll go put this away and I'll head over," you nod, still smiling.

"O-ok!" He stutters.

"See you in a few!" You wave over your shoulder as you make you way to your apartment.

Midoriya runs to his apartment, red faced, heart racing, nerves through the roof.

"Mom!" He falls as he makes it to the kitchen.

"Izuku! What's wrong!?" Inko asks, eyes wide as her son peels his face from the floor.

"I asked a girl to come over for dinner! She's just moving in on the other side of the building!" He starts sputtering out different sentences.

Inko smiles and laughs.

"Izuku, please calm down. What's her name?" She pats his shoulder.

"Y/N," he says, trying to calm himself.

"Good thing I made enough food and hopefully she likes Udon," Inko sighs.

Izuku paces and talks the walls off. He's never brought a girl back to his house before. But something about you made him ask.

Inko cleaned a bit more and got out another bowl and chopsticks.

A knock on the door almost scared Izuku out of his boxers. He did trip and fall to his butt though.

"I'll get it!" Izuku jumps up and hurries to the door. He swings it open to see you.

You had changed from your over comfortable clothing to a bit of a nicer outfit, but nothing too over the top.

"O-oh, Y/N," he says, a blush sprawling across his features.

You smile and nod.

"Hi Deku! Sorry it took me a bit longer, I thought I'd change real quick," your own cheeks dust with a pale pink.

"Haha, yeah, you look good. Er, I-it looks good! Y-your outfit looks good I mean!" He stutters.

"Izuku! Let her in!" Inko calls from the kitchen. Her tone sounding playful.

"O-oh right! Come in," he moves so she could enter.

"Take my shoes off?" You ask, glancing down.

"Y-yeah," he nods, watching you take your shoes off.

"Sorry, I'm from America. I've never been in a Japanese home before so I wasn't sure," you follow him to the living room.

"Oh don't worry about that."

"Ah hello! You must Y/N. I'm Inko Midoriya," she bows.

"It's nice to meet you," you nod to her.

"Likewise," she smiles with her big, beautiful, green eyes. "Izuku tells me you're the new neighbor. On the other side of the building of course."

"Yeah, I am. Just got here earlier today," you say.

"Well, let's eat! We can chat during or after and I hope you like Udon. There wasn't much of a heads up," Inko chuckles.

"Oh whatever is fine with me. I've never had it before though," you sit at the dining table with Deku. He sets a bowl down in front of you and himself. The food definitely smelled delicious. It looked straight out of one of those food magazines at the doctor's office.

"Um, one question," you pick up the chopsticks. "How does one...," you look the pair up and down, trying to copy Izuku in holding them.

"You don't know how to use chopsticks?" Izuku asks.

"Not really. I just usually use a fork," you say, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Hold it like this," he molds your hand and fits the sticks perfectly. "I'm sure it'll take a few times to get it down."

"Thank you," you smile, trying to lift the noodles with the sticks. They slip right off. Now it was your ultimate mission to get those damned things in your mouth.

With a slightly hunched back, concentration keyed on the noodles, and tongue sticking out slightly of course.

Inko smiles at her son, making him burst into a blushing mess. He puts a hand on his face and turns downwards.

"So Y/N, where are you from?" Inko asks, swirling noodles around in her own bowl.

"America, I've been to Japan a few times. Mostly for work purposes," you say, finally getting a singular noodle. "Ah-ha!" You stuff it in your mouth.

"And what do you do for work?"

"I'm an artist," you swallow the noodle. "This is really good."

"I'm glad you like it!" She smiles and nods.

"W-what kind of, uh, artist?" Izuku asks nervously.

"It's mostly digital art, but I do draw and paint pretty often though."

"That sounds like fun. Maybe you could teach me a few things here and there. I always thought painting would be nice to try sometime," Inko smiles giddily.

"Yeah, I would love to. Any time is fine with me. Just hit me up and we can have some fun with it," you grin and chuckle lightly. "So what do the two of you do around here?"

"Izuku here is a hero actually," Inko kicks him lightly.

"Oh, yeah! So if anything ever happens, you can count on me to help!" He says with a big smile.

"Cool! I bet that's stressful," you stuff your face with more noodles.

"I-it can be at some points. I aim to be the number one hero! Just like All Might!"

You look at his determined face. A smile creeps it's way to your features at the scene. You turn your attention back to the half empty bowl now.

An hour or two later, you finally called it quits. The comfort of alone time and sleep was calling you. Even though your things weren't going to be there for a few days, there are still a few things to do first.

You bid goodnight to Inko. She thanks you for your time and lets you go.

Izuku insists on walking your back to your place. Not like you don't mind either so you let him.

"Thanks again for having me over," you say as you open your door.

"U-uh yeah! Sure thing! It was nice having you over," he blushes and smiles.

"Did I ever give you my number?" You ask, recalling whether you did or not.

"You want my number?!" He jumps back slightly, bursting into red.

"Of course I do," you grab a piece of paper and write your number on it. Something tells you he's just gonna continue being a blushing mess for a while, meaning you're not gonna get it out of him.

"Here's mine. Now I'm gonna go get some sleep. Text me whenever you feel like it, okay?" You pat him on the shoulder and smile. "Goodnight Deku.

"Uh! Yeah! Goodnight Y/N!" He smiles from ear to ear and nods.

You shut the door and look through the peephole. On the other side you can see him looking at the piece of paper, still smiling. He huffs, making that determined face again. Finally he runs back in the direction of his apartment.

You take a deep breath and slide down the door. A blush and a smile softens your features at the thought of his smile.

Let's just say it plagued your thoughts until you fell asleep.