#i have an idea but i've been trying my hand at different styles of drawings to see what feels natural to me

[wastelandbabyblue]

i'm very excited to try tattooing and i haven't been this excited for something in so long i hope it goes well

[sparklykat-hideoutenthusiast]

I've seen people doing an intro post so I suppose I should do the same right? I have no idea how to do this, I'm just winging it :3

INTRO POST TIME WOOO!!

[last updated: sat dec 7th at 7:18 PM 2024]

(I update this often, a reread of it every now and then would be greatly appreciated!)

Maybe every week/month depending on your time scale? ↑

Follow my other blog where I reblog a bunch of stuff and things for the full experience of my personality and interests! @eckos-reblogs :3

@everytime-i-reach-the-postlimit ←Exactly as the name entails

@nature-is-mystical ←is my other random blog that you can follow as well if you want.

that blog is just for reblogging nature stuff and posting nature stuff. (Occasionally rhymes come with it ig)

side blog for fanart!: @sonar-fanart-hall

I'm always working on making reference sheets for OCs ^^

Chill dude side blog: @cool-dudes-official

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I will continue to edit this, probably for the rest of time to get it right since I'm a slight perfectionist lol

Hello! I've been an artist for around 5 to 6 years, and I still kinda suck at it! I do traditional art normally but I've been branching out to digital art as well. I mostly draw animals, anthropomorphic creatures, creatures in general, whatever beautifully ugly faces I can come up with, and sometimes human faces!

I classify as a furry but do not reblog a ton of furry stuff nor do I have a fursuit. I just like drawing and seeing anthropomorphic animals :3

Furries, Therians, anyone of lgbtq+ community (including ace people cuz apparently there's a debate about that), weirdos (but NOT in the gross way), and more are welcome on my blog! :3 ❤️ (you're kinda automatically welcome if you're kind anyway lol but whatevs :3)

Tags and stuff! To help you find stuff in my blog better through search :)

#Ecko draws -exactly as is obvious, it will be for when I make art, digital or traditional.

#Echo Rambles -For posts of mine that include mainly me talking about random stuff

#Echo rants - for when I rant. Similar to #Echo rambles but different..

#Echo answers - For when I answer asks!! :D

#The Clowder seeks - For when you guys ask me stuff!

#Mama Change - For when I mention my mom. (Her name is change..or it's more of a nickname but no one calls her by her actual name except for professional/job people like a dentist or something)

#Echo asks - For when I ask questions :3 lol

#Eckos moots <3 - for interactions with moots, obviously 🙄 (I love y'all sm)

#Ecko irl - me irl

My main Media for traditional art is, pens, pencil, gel pens, paint markers (posca) and normal markers! I hope to soon branch out to ink! (Maybe one day you'll get to see some watercolor stuff from me. It's not that good of watercolor art and I don't enjoy painting too much tbh)

Anatomy You say? Don't know her 😔

If you are interested, I do art requests! It's not guaranteed to be good or to be done quickly but I will try my very best every time. You can even request multiple times if you'd like! Like a ton of times! I really don't mind!

You can also request art of fandoms I'm not in but make sure to give me a good reference or the drawing will look off :3

Art requests open until further notice.

If there's something I don't mention here that you're wondering if I can draw or not, give me an ask in my inbox and I'll let you know! (Pls, I'm friendly I swear)

You can also dm me if you'd like but I'd prefer the askbox instead (⁠´⁠-⁠﹏⁠-⁠`⁠；⁠)

I can't draw/don't want to draw: items, anatomy, bodies (unless you want the equivalent of a boxy stick figure), rendering, lighting, dragons (without a reference), romance/NSFW (no, just no.), hands, human legs (for the life of me 😭), +more

I can draw/like to draw: faces, animals (mostly cat related ones but you can request any animal and I'll at least try to draw it.), different hair styles (only with a reference), eye bags (I think they're pretty lol), dragons (only with a good reference), gore (not the best at it but I'll will try my best to make something nice and bloody for ya!), +more!

My name is Ecko and it's my preferred name but you can refer to me as Melleona (my OC) or by a nickname as well if you'd like! (just please ask me first if you want to use a nickname as I'm bad with setting boundaries.)

My pronouns are She/Her but feel free to refer to me as it/it's! :3

Speaking of which! This is my OC, Melleona:

She is 14 years old, she is introverted and blunt but also shy and insecure. She has anxiety, dealt with a bit of depression, and she's very casual as well as lazy (like me lol)

She's half Cat, she has greyish blue eyes (not visible in the drawing), slightly blueish black hair that's long enough to reach her ankles, she has a mushroom themed party hat, and some wicked whiskers!

If there's anything you'd like to ask me about her or ask her, go ahead and ask away! I love anons and normal asks! ❤️❤️❤️ (There is a slight filter on the drawing. I'll edit this later and put her color palette below ❤️)

I'm a minor! Mind your words, don't send me gross/weird asks or messages. (I've already had a few people message me asking for my age, a picture of me, and my sexuality. No, I will not be sharing my real appearance on here. my age? Minor, that's all you need to know. My sexuality? I don't know and you don't need to know either, respectfully ^^❤️)

IDC if I post something slightly suggestive or that says I know about 18+ themes. I posted it, not someone saying something to me of those themes. Sure, I understand the stuff but It really doesn't matter now does it? It just means I understand enough to know you shouldn't be saying that stuff to me. (Boundaries ✨)

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I do half-curse in posts from time to time. I do censor it a bit tho, like "f7ck" for example. Hope ya don't mind (⁠；⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠）

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I'd appreciate it if people reblogged my art!

I don't appreciate reposting it however.

Just in case you don't know what the difference between reposting rather than reblogging: it's when you (typically) take a screenshot of the art, and then repost it on either Tumblr or a different app rather than hitting the reblog button!

While this has never happened to me personally, I do feel like it's worth mentioning.

Oh, and, don't under a circumstance feed my art to AI. I can forgive reposting my art. I put out there for people to see not to get fame from it but under no circumstances EVER will I allow feeding my art to AI. It is not human. It does not make art.

AI artists don't exist unless it's used ONLY to assist with a process that is still mostly YOUR OWN SKILLS THAT YOU'VE CULTIVATED OVER TIME. AI is NOT art but it can HELP with art.

ミ⁠●⁠﹏⁠☉⁠ミ-ミ⁠●⁠﹏⁠☉⁠ミ-ミ⁠●⁠﹏⁠☉⁠ミ-ミ⁠●⁠﹏⁠☉⁠ミ-ミ⁠●⁠﹏⁠☉⁠ミ

don't dm asking me to commission from you. like said before, I don't have money bc I'm a minor + I don't like being pestered for me commission you. talk to me like a person, not an ATM.

If I want to commission someone, I will dm them and even then, I'm most likely to commission art from a friend to support them.

I support the lgbtq+ community! And I don't discriminate against race. I really shouldn't have to say this. (˘⁠･⁠_⁠･⁠˘)

I will respond to money asks with "!!" And that's it. I don't have money and even if I did I don't got any money to spare. I'm broke and struggling too. Not to mention, I'm a minor and can't just go out and get the stuff. I hope you understand and I wish you all the best!❤️❤️❤️

Some games and shows and stuff I like:

Shows and stuff: Rick and Morty, adventure time, lost in space, bsd (never watched it but I've seen enough of it on the Internet to know a bit about it. Very interesting :3), Some of the Life Minecraft series, httyd, doctor who, and more!

Games/fandoms: Yonder(Yonder Cloud Catcher Chronicles.), Minecraft, the Stanley parable, tiny bit of South Park, cotl, MLP(childish I know but I don't care. I love them), creepypasta, SCPs, Trevor Henderson's creatures (mostly cartoon cat), plants vs zombies, fran bow, little misfortune, and more!

Stuff and things (hobbies?): Art, apparently I make rhymes now too??, rollerblading, climbing, Hiking (iffy), sleeping, being annoying+lazy, doom scrolling, interacting with people, and more!

(I'm not really in any fandoms really..kinda like on the edge of being in each and every fandom I come across..)

General facts about me! Yippee!

I think eye bags and wrinkles are pretty (odd, I know lol), I live in a bus (not decked out like you see on social media though. We just live in a bus lol), I live with my ma (my dad is my step dad and he and my mom just broke up psooo ye), I blank out a lot and just stare at people for no reason (which freaks them out), I have greyish blue eyes (a long with some, I'm pretty sure permanent eye bags lol), I get energy right before nighttime mostly (and then it disappears as soon as it reaches around 11 pm to 12 am), My favorite color is maroon (and any type of blue along with orange and yellow and forest green..mostly just comfy vibe colors tbh but maroon is a fixed piece), my favorite animal is a cat (although I have a dog. Muffin doesn't count as a dog, she's practically human. Apart of the family.), and more!

(I'll update this as I go)

[I will block as I see fit]

Do not interact with my blog if: You're racist, you only or mostly have sexual themes on your own blog (I apologize but it makes me uncomfortable. Have some other interests and it might make me less uncomfortable ^^), if you in general just enjoy hating on people for no reason (I like to make my area a safe space for people) if you're a Zoophile (No explanation really needed but animals can't consent.) (more will be added later when I think of what to add)

Don't dm me unless you're a moot or you say your intentions within the first 1-3 messages. (moots that I've interacted with can send me a dm unprompted with stated intentions anytime they'd like. Special privileges ✨)

(Added a specific part of that bc a moot felt they were making me uncomfortable by having such themes on their blog. I didn't really realize at first but yes that does make slightly uncomfortable but I don't really care as long as you have other interests. If s3x is your only interest, it weirds me out to have those types of people interact with me. Just know you're all good moot, you're not the type of person I was aiming it at. There are other people that just don't think about anything else but $ex and relationships that creep me out and you are not one of them. ^^❤️)

Things about me, (random stuff): I am cringe from time to time, my fav colors are maroon and any kind of blue, orange is nice too though,

I appreciate any and all constructive criticism. IDC if it sounds rude and might hurt my feelings, TELL ME so I can help better myself and my blog! I'm dum and will most likely not notice I'm doing something weird or anything :P <3

•Send me asks! Wanna to hug one of my OCs, Want to slap the sh1t out of one of em, Want to introduce me to a new (or old) fandom I don't know of but you think I might be interested in, Want to say hi, Want to give a music suggestion, send an ask!

I LOVE interaction and if possible, I want to be busy with asks at all times so send a ton!

•Moots:

@theachskid @voidsweirdthoughts @burningbutter @rafrfr @rateater2000

@footlongdingledong @ender-the-insomniac @thistlebriar @rspoetry @virtualcroissantflapcolor

@jawdoesstuff @storythesilly @yourfavoritecuntist @chamber-of-voices @i-draw-things

@2oo7xddd @catsreblogging @silli-billy15 @totally-not-a-commie @khloethecatsworld

@1nd13gh0st @cur1os1tyk1lledme @nonbinaryriverclan @ilove-fanart-and-lore405 @hermitchild

@my-mom-named-me-duck @hermitchild

@williamsart12345 @lilytheaxoltollover @twobraincellsremaining @nn-the-doodle @emmajasonartz

@bugba-bugbee @railway323 @xho-the-scribble @asqadia-banthen @nasthesilly @ceaselessbackflips

@the-anxious-acrobat @justuravghazbin @callmekiyo24 @maybeyoullfindthissomeday

@sensehumor ♥️

+any future moots/one's I might have forgotten (I hope I wouldn't forget anyone 🥲)

If you don't like being tagged in tag games, let me know and I'll move your name over here cuz I copy paste the ones above for tagging in stuff: (nothing here yet!)

Moot side blogs: @thistlebriar-tags @my-dad-named-me-goose @mysterious-other-being @

Btw, moot/friend privileges: tagging me in whatever the heck you want, sending nonstop and possibly annoying asks, dming me and having a convo at random, +more! I love all y'all and am more than happy to interact ❤️

My art ↑

Yippee!! That's all for now folks! ❤️

I'll update this whole thing as I go, any questions, just send an ask and I'll update this with the answer as well as you know- replying in general lol :3

I seem incredibly childish in this intro post and my general posts but do know, I am over 12 years of age lmao 🤣

I'mma keep some notes here as well... mostly for tone stuffs cuz I can't remember these 😭

/lh = lighthearted

/j = joking

/hj = half joking

[eybefioro]

HAPPY HOLIDAYS @ghostsparrow 💛💛💛

The TNAN server hosted a secret santa, and Sparrow said he love pirates AUs and space AUs. I immediately thought about treasure planet, so here it is <3 thank you @captainblou for organising it!!!

Wacky races - fairly odd parents - powerpuff girls - scooby doo - adventure time - Cowardly dog - JJBA

(Time-lapse and ramblings under the cut)

Extra long Time-lapse this time as a THREAT.

I remember NOTHING about Treasure Planet's plot, but the ✨️Aesthetics✨️ are seared in my brain forever. I mean-

HOW COOL IS THAT. I love this retrofuturistic(?) Style, the mix between robots and cyborgs and SPACE with uniforms and SHIPS. It's just soooooo good.

I didn't really followed 100% this Disney style, more the idea of it. I've been trying to find my footing and draw stuff without replicating each stylistic choice. Idk if I succeed or not but it was fun!

One thing about this is that even if it's not perceptible here, the perspective is a bit huh... different. I had to figure it out by trial and error, and this end up having 4 focal points.

(Sorry this prob doesn't make that much sense but it was the only way for me to show it lol)

DO YOU SEE THOSE NICE RED AND GREY LINES?? I learned how to use rulers on ibispaint and NOW I AM UNSTOPPABLE. I know how to draw perspective by hand, on paper, but on my phone it was impossible. The screen is too small, and the precision too crappy since I don't have a proper pen. But now with this thing I can assure the line is straight and that direction is right, and now I can do nice perspectives hell yes!

This drawing I did of muriel and Eric is were I was testing stuff out. The rulers, the perspective, the not copying any style thing.

I'm not super satisfied with the end result of this perspective here, bc I wanted to make something more warped, more dynamic/stretched but I really don't know how to do that yet so simple perspective it is lol

This drawing was also supposed to accompany a fic, but it took me too long to do this, so I didn't had the time to write it. Maybe one day...

Now with details that I liked:

STAR FRECKLES THAT FLOAT OVER CROWLEY'S FACE! Also he needs sunscreen. Have tou seen his thighs? LMAO

The rendering g on Aziraphale’s clothes! Especially the trousers. I think this might be my best clothes that I painted so far. I'm getting better at this :D I was inspired by Aziraphale’s bastille and Edinburgh looks, + Mr Fell magician cape (and also the uniforms from treasure planet). I hope it looks OK in the end, I had too much fun mixing all this together lol

Earth colonised by two opposing forces. I spent too long playing with this concept and how to draw it lol I hope it looks nice!

[kedreeva]

Any bird artists/graphic designers/photo-editors out there that might be willing to make a logo and/or a merch design for our local small game bird association, after the new year?

Story below the cut if you want more info

I'm currently in the process of taking over my state game bird association's website stuff, to help them recover after incredibly bad leadership did their level best to wreck it entirely. It's a "State" association, in that it's for people in this state but isn't run by the state, it's just like. a few people who like game birds who have made nonprofit (like an actual 501(c)) club for other people that like game birds. There's less than 100 members in it according to the registry I saw, to give you an idea what it's like. I'm dealing with one 70+ year old lady, one Older Mom (who isn't even in the association anymore) that helped transfer stuff out of her name, and one Other Lady (who is apparently the sister of one of the hospital board members, but who lacks her sister's desire to watch the world burn I guess) that I've only had phone conversations with so far. I've so far been able to get their website under control and I'm working on getting their facebook back into their hands (it's still being held hostage by a hostile board member they're trying to get rid of), and to try to help them all limp into being a functional association again, like it was when I first started interacting with it 20 years ago.

That being said, in the transfer of the site, the previous site is 100% lost, including all old graphics. No one still in the association has any of the old graphics saved. That's fine, they were.... terrible. Like, this is an old preview pic of the site banner

Truly terrible. So, not gonna lie, kinda glad it's gone forever.

There is an OLDER banner, from before dickhead mcfuckface took over the association, and it's "better" but it's very clearly got an 80s vibe like you would not believe

But, the old lady that is running the association now asked me about having a header on the front page, so here I am. I told her that there were a TON of talented artists that would be happy to be paid (all of the following would be PAID work, if the association can afford it and if not they will just do without, I was VERY clear about needing to pay artists for work) to design a logo and/or some kind of graphic designer that could help with a little banner for the website. She also asked me about selling t-shirts and hats, since some people at the swaps have asked for them. I told her that a nice looking logo would be a good start for that kind of thing, but that I could ask around and see if anyone wanted to draw a game bird design to sell at their bake sale table or maybe redbubble or something similar so people can just get what they want.

I'm sorry that this is vague, but beyond the logo/site header, I'm not sure exactly what they are going to want, just that they are going to want An Artist Or Three. You'd be dealing with me once I've wrangled them into telling me what they exactly want for anything outside the website.

As for the website, I actually don't mind the basic design of the second banner (the 80's one, a rectangle, circle badge logo in the middle, game animals to either side), and I think it would be good to bring back that general feel, but cleaner and brighter on colors, and different animals. The club does not really deal with deer or raccoons regularly, and pheasants are not the only game birds. I was thinking maybe just doing birds on both sides. Peacocks, pheasant, chicken, turkey, ducks, quail, and dove(s) are the most common at swap meets, so some combo of those would be nice (doesn't need to have all of them), as that's what members will mostly be raising.

If that's something you feel you might be interested in, and can provide your pricing & an example of your style so I can bring it to them and tell them I want them to pay you to give me things for the site and/or association at large.

For the laughs, here is what I "mocked up" for them as an idea

But they also liked the idea of a plain badge logo like this one (because they don't live and breathe peafowl I assume, it's the only explanation)

anyway. if you have the art skills and wanna help a bird nerd group out, please let me know!

[creation-help]

Hii! I've been on ur blog for a bit and all the writing advice is super duper helpful

I'm sort of having trouble with starting basically anything w writing right now. I'm a beginner, I feel like i really want to make something but at this point I'm sort of stumped 😭 I'm not sure how to come up with real ideas or how I should even start.

I want to get good at writing. I can draw but most of the time I don't really know what I want to cmake if that makes sense

Do you have advice for this? My apologies if you've already answered an ask like this before lol I don't mean to bother, I hope your having an amazing day <333

Hi! I understand this is a difficult situation but from the looks of It, I think your trouble is the mind jail you're in currently. We see it repeated on Tumblr often "Do it bad, do it imperfect, just do it", and I'd like to fully stand by that advice here when talking to you!

Struggles with starting

Really there's no easier way to say this, but you have to Just Start. However there are multiple ways to help you Just start!

- Have something to write with easily on hand at all times, you never know when the idea strikes! This can be phone or even a notepad!

- When the idea strikes GET IT. Pounce on it like a jaguar. Get itttt. If you don't feel like expanding on it, then leave it, but you need to start treating all possible ideas that you vibe with, as potential sprouts to grow! If you spend too much time second guessing or debating over if the idea is good enough or not, you Won't Write More. If the idea sucks, you don't have to commit! But don't let the ideas pass you by! If you get an idea catch it, write it down, find expansive questions to grow it with, get music, brainstorm, vibe, rest, repeat! You are always allowed to start and stop. You are the god of your writing.

- It is okay to suck. You don't have to be good to share, but you also don't even have to share if you don't want! You don't have to share anything to anyone!

Struggles with ideas

- Find inspiration. Where? Anywhere! Start new shows, new movies, read other people's writing, look at flowers on the sidewalk, ask your parents dumb Fandom questions, get into a new music genre. You don't have to follow through with everything but so long as you surround yourself with variety, you will be nurturing your creativity! Just get a steady flow of new stuff to enrich your brain. This is part of the soil your sprouts will need.

- Make mind maps, Google every little detail you can think of relating to your new idea when you have it (not so much you'd exhaust yourself tho!), interrogate yourself, ask people to ask you questions about your idea, go down pointless meanders and rabbitholes about the idea. Give it time to soak. Indulge it. Be a little pretentious over it even.

- Nothing is original anymore, and every different interpretation is valuable enough to exist. What you make is unique to yourself. These ideas all coexist

Struggles with skills

- I am going to say this very gently but firmly. You will get better by doing more. You will hone your skills by using them.

- There's loads of resources both online and irl to search from if you want to improve your writing! You can even try to imitate styles that you like and start moving from there. Kinda like how artists do Studies. You can also expand your vocabulary by searching up different words for things you already know, or words relating to the things you wanna write. It'll help lots! My personal recommendation for improving writing even a little bit is to be conscious of your word choices and make sure you don't overuse the same word too much, at least not in the same sentence. Unless that's the intended effect you're going for

As a closing statement I also wanna add that you should just take care of yourself in general. Sometimes your brain needs more enrichment to work better, or sometimes it just doesn't really give you much just because. Try not to get torn up over it and try again later.

Hope any of this helps! Be brave!

[unabashegirl]

Vicious 14 — mafia hs

After his father's death, Harry Styles must take control of the family mafia while dealing with his unpredictable brother, Silas. He meets Y/N Castellano, the daughter of an Italian mafia boss, and learns about their arranged marriage.

Author's note: Hello everyone! I only have one more story to update and everything will be up to date! Let me know what you think and if you would like to be tagged!

I'm trying to come up with new ideas for one shots. Pls vote! Especially if you are subscribed to Patreon! Help Decide the Next One-Shot!

I'm still trying to gather the money to continue my journey to medical school in January. I've only gotten 1% of my goal. I'll leave the link here in case you would like or are able to help me. Please I am desperate! 🥺 https://ko-fi.com/mariabernal8706

Collections on Patreon!: These are ⭐️one-time purchases⭐️ that give you access to specific stories or series, even if they’re not fully finished. 👉🏻 You’ll get all the chapters available so far and automatically receive any new chapters as they’re posted. 👈🏻No membership needed! It’s perfect for those who want to enjoy a specific story without a monthly subscription. Plus, it’s a great way to support my work while getting exactly what you’re excited to read. Head over to my Patreon, find the Collections section, and grab the one that speaks to you. Once purchased, the content is yours to enjoy as it’s updated.

check out my patreon (starting at $2) and get full access to the rest of the chapters, various one shots and much more :)

--> vicious masterlist <--

He slammed his hands against the table, causing dishes and glasses to rattle and drawing the attention of everyone in the restaurant. At first, Y/N flinched at the sudden outburst, but she quickly composed herself, unruffled by her father's display. She had grown accustomed to his volatile temper over the years. Federico had a tendency to throw tantrums like a petulant child whenever things didn't go his way.

"You will not disrespect me, Y/N! I am your father. Just because you are now living with him doesn't make you superior or any better," he hissed at her, his anger palpable as the food was served. Though she had no appetite, she forced herself to eat, following Harry's instructions to wait at least twenty more minutes before leaving.

"I deserve respect too," Y/N muttered under her breath as she cut into her chicken, her tone subdued but firm. "And I don't feel superior to you."

Federico was taken aback by her response, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Y/N had always been compliant, never daring to challenge him or speak out of turn. This new assertiveness was unexpected, and it left him feeling unsettled.

"It's only been three months since you moved out of the house and look at you! Speaking out of turn, sharing your opinion like you have any say, and feeling superior," Federico chuckled darkly. "You need to be disciplined." His voice was low and stern, sending a shiver down Y/N's spine.

Y/N couldn't help but feel intimidated and scared by his tone. It reminded her of the darkest times, when her father forced her to do things she didn't want to do. All the humiliation, insults, and mental abuse had finally gotten to her. She wasn’t sure if Harry had anything to do with it, but the fact that she didn’t live at home helped her feel somewhat more confident.

“This conversation isn’t going anywhere,” she rolled her eyes. “I just wanted to tell you that I will be starting to prepare for the wedding.” Y/N knew that her father wasn’t happy with the agreement between them. He hated having to surrender Y/N. Not because he felt some sort of affection for her like any devoted parent, but because she was an asset. Ever since her father realized that men watched her in a different way, she became valuable in his eyes.

When Federico made the deal with Arthur, the Italian mafia found themselves in a very delicate situation. They were on the brink of extinction. Arthur had spent the majority of his time in power tearing them down. Once he had them by the neck and Federico on his knees pleading, he finally allowed him to talk.

“It’s funny that you still think you're going to marry that stronzo,” Federico remarked. He had plans, a few tricks up his sleeve, and he was sure that Harry was too inexperienced and too young to anticipate any moves from him.

“I am, because at the end of the day, you threw me out of the house without ever telling me, "She retorted, wiping her mouth and taking one last sip of her glass of wine.

As Y/N finished her conversation, she briskly ended it with a, “I’ll be sending the invitations. Please confirm your assistance,” before swiftly retrieving her purse and coat from the back of her chair. She didn’t bother to glance back as she prepared to leave.

However, Federico was quick to react. His hand shot out and gripped her arm tightly, yanking her back with force. His voice was laced with venom as he hissed, “If you're choosing their side, I would start watching my back,” his fingers digging into her arm.

Y/N winced and pulled her arm away from his grasp. Rather than dignifying his threat with a response, she wordlessly made her way out of the restaurant. The car was already waiting at the entrance, a clear sign that Harry hadn’t sent her without any security.

The drive home was unusually quiet, especially since Y/N didn’t recognize the men accompanying her in the car. She knew only Lex and Charlie were allowed around her by Harry. She hoped that everything had gone smoothly with their mission.

"Has Harry returned?" Y/N voiced her query aloud, hoping for a response from any of the men present.

"Yes, ma'am. They returned ten minutes ago," the driver promptly replied as they drove out of the city and back home. Y/N refrained from asking further questions; all she cared about was their safe return.

Y/N found herself grappling with conflicting emotions regarding her relationship with Harry. She couldn’t discern if she was developing genuine feelings for him or if she simply cared for him as a person.

Upon arriving home, she immediately went upstairs in search of Harry, but was surprised to find his usual spot empty. Y/N wandered through the house, searching for any sign of Harry. She checked the living room, the study, and even ventured into the kitchen, but he was nowhere to be found. Feeling a twinge of concern, she headed towards his bedroom.

As she approached the door, she could hear faint voices coming from inside. Y/N hesitated for a moment, unsure if she should intrude on whatever conversation Harry was having. But curiosity got the better of her, and she gently pushed the door open.

Y/N's heart raced as she approached Harry's bedside, her eyes widening at the sight of his wounded side. Blood stained his hands and pooled around him, his complexion unnaturally pale and sweat beading on his brow.

"What happened?" she exclaimed, her voice drawing the attention of the men gathered around. "Has anyone called a doctor?"

"Yeah, he's on his way," Charlie replied, allowing her to come closer to Harry's bed. With trembling hands, Harry reached for a glass of whiskey on his nightstand and took a sip, his expression strained with pain.

As Y/N drew closer, she could see the tension etched into Harry's features. His usual air of command was overshadowed by discomfort, and it unsettled her to see him in such a vulnerable state.

"What happened?" she repeated, her voice softer this time, laced with concern.

Harry glanced up at her, his gaze momentarily meeting hers before flickering away. "It's nothing," he muttered, though the strain in his voice betrayed his attempt at reassurance.

Y/N's brow furrowed with worry. She knew better than to press further when Harry was in one of his moods, but seeing him like this stirred a protective instinct within her. She wished she could do something to ease his pain, to make him feel better, but she knew her presence alone wouldn't suffice.

As they waited for the doctor to arrive, an uneasy silence settled over the room, broken only by the occasional murmured conversation among Harry's men. Y/N hovered nearby, feeling helpless and out of place amidst their tense vigil.

After what felt like an eternity, the sound of footsteps in the hallway signaled the arrival of the doctor. Y/N watched as he hurried into the room, his expression grave as he assessed Harry's condition. Without a word, he set to work, his movements swift and efficient as he tended to Harry's injuries.

As the doctor worked, Y/N found herself drawn to Harry's side, her heart aching at the sight of him in pain. She longed to reach out, to offer some form of comfort, but she hesitated, unsure of how he would respond to her touch.

Eventually, the doctor finished his examination, offering a few words of reassurance before departing. Left alone with Harry and his men, Y/N felt a sense of unease settle over her. She knew there were questions lingering in the air, unspoken but palpable, waiting to be addressed.

"Clear the room!" Harry barked, irked by the lingering presence of others. He sensed an improvement in his condition but craved solitude to fully recuperate. Y/N obediently turned to exit along with the other men, but Harry's voice halted her in her tracks.

"Not you," he called out specifically to her. She paused, waiting until the others had left the room. Y/N then removed her coat, placing it alongside her purse on the futon beside the bed before approaching him. "How was Federico?" Harry inquired, his tone betraying a mix of curiosity and wariness.

Uncertain of how her response might affect him, Y/N hesitated. She knew that anything she said about Federico could potentially anger him.

"Fine," she replied with a casual shrug, observing his discomfort as he attempted to adjust the pillows behind his head. Without a word, she reached out and assisted him, arranging the pillows to provide better support.

Once Harry was settled, Y/N took a step back, her gaze lingering on his wounded form. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of concern, despite their complicated relationship.

"Thanks," Harry muttered, acknowledging her assistance with a faint nod.

Y/N nodded in return, her expression unreadable as she debated whether to stay or leave. Harry's piercing gaze met hers, silently urging her to stay a little longer. His gaze shifted to her bare arm, and he noticed the bruising that had begun to form.

"Who did this to you?" Harry's voice was firm as he reached out and grabbed her wrist.

Y/N winced slightly as Harry's grip tightened on her wrist. She hesitated, unsure whether to tell him the truth. But seeing the concern in his eyes, she knew she couldn't keep it from him.

"It's nothing, just a little accident," she replied, trying to downplay the severity of the situation.

Harry's brows furrowed in disbelief. "That doesn't look like 'nothing' to me," he said, his tone softening slightly as he examined the bruise. "Did someone hurt you?"

Y/N hesitated, unsure how much to reveal. She knew Harry could be protective, even possessive, and she didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble. But she also trusted him, and she knew keeping secrets would only strain their relationship further.

"It was Federico," she admitted quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. "He grabbed me at the restaurant earlier."

Harry's expression hardened at the mention of her father's name. "He laid a hand on you?" His voice was low and dangerous, his grip on her wrist tightening unconsciously.

Y/N nodded, her eyes downcast. "It's nothing, Harry, really," she said, trying to reassure him. "I can handle it."

But Harry's jaw clenched in anger, his protective instincts kicking in. "I’ll handle it”.

Harry's eyes bore into hers, a mixture of concern and fury swirling within them. Y/N could feel the tension crackling in the air, the weight of his determination pressing down on her.

But she reached out, gently laying her hand on his, willing him to understand. "Harry, please," she implored softly, her voice tinged with apprehension. "I don't want you to do anything rash. It'll only make things worse."

For a moment, Harry seemed torn between his desire to protect her and his instinct to retaliate against those who harmed her. But then, with a heavy sigh, he relented, releasing her wrist and running a hand through his hair in frustration.

"I'll handle him," Harry declared with a steely resolve, his mind already racing with plans for their next encounter.

Harry leaned back against the pillows, his mind abuzz with thoughts of retaliation against Federico. Despite his injuries, he was determined to make his move, to assert his dominance and strike fear into the heart of his adversary. Y/N watched him quietly, her concern evident in her eyes as she observed his unwavering determination.

As the tension of the day began to fade, Harry and Y/N found themselves alone in the quiet of his bedroom. The soft glow of candlelight danced across the walls, casting a warm and intimate atmosphere around them. Y/N sat on the end of the bed with a gentle smile, his eyes filled with a tenderness that melted away the hardness of his exterior.

Without a word, he reached out to take her hand, his touch sending a shiver down her spine. Y/N felt a rush of warmth blood through her as she met his gaze, the unspoken connection between them palpable in the air. Slowly, Harry brushed a strand of hair away from her face, his touch feather-light against her skin.

In that moment, everything else faded away, leaving only the two of them in their own private world. Harry drew her close, enveloping her in his embrace as he pressed a soft kiss against her forehead. Y/N closed her eyes, savoring the warmth of his lips against her skin, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat echoing in her ears.

With a gentle hand, Harry tilted her chin upwards, capturing her lips in a tender kiss that spoke volumes of the emotions swirling between them. In that kiss, they found solace, comfort, and an unspoken promise of something more.

As they finally pulled away, breathless and filled with a newfound sense of closeness.

"You need to rest and heal properly.” she murmured, her voice filled with genuine concern.

"I can't, not when there's still so much to do," he replied, his voice low and gravelly. “Ask Charlie and Lex to come up here" Harry instructed after planting a brief kiss on her lips. "There's something I need to discuss with them."

Y/N nodded in acknowledgment and rose to her feet.

"Oh, and there's a surprise for you downstairs," he added before she exited the room. With a smile, Y/N left to discover her surprise and locate Charlie and Lex.

As Y/N descended the stairs, her mind raced with curiosity about the surprise Harry had mentioned. She reached the bottom step and scanned the room, her eyes eagerly seeking out any sign of the unexpected treat.

Just then, she spotted Charlie and Lex chatting in a corner. She made her way over to them, her heart still fluttering with excitement from the surprise awaiting her.

With a smile, she informed them, "Harry wants to see you."

As they ascended the stairs, Charlie added, "Your surprise is in the garden."

Confused yet intrigued, Y/N made her way outside to the gardens. She hadn't explored much of the outdoor space, but she'd always found it a welcome reprieve from the darkness within. The sight that greeted her was breathtaking – meticulously arranged flowers adorned the lush greenery, casting vibrant splashes of color against the backdrop of shadows.

She stepped into the garden, a symphony of colors greeted her eyes. The air was thick with the sweet scent of blooming flowers, their delicate petals swaying gently in the breeze. Roses of various hues, from crimson red to soft pink, adorned the edges of the garden beds, their fragrance filling the air with an intoxicating perfume.

Clusters of lavender bushes added a touch of purple to the scene, their slender stems swaying gracefully with each passing gust of wind. Among them, vibrant daisies stretched their petals towards the sun, their cheerful faces turned upwards as if basking in its warmth.

In the center of the garden, a stone fountain bubbled merrily, its crystal-clear waters reflecting the sunlight in a dazzling display. In front of it stood a woman with her back turned, her short, brown hair falling in loose waves. She wore a simple t-shirt paired with sweatpants.

“You know, not everything is as ugly as you described,” the woman said before turning around. Y/N couldn't believe her eyes as she stared at her best friend.

"What?" Her voice broke as she gazed at Giana standing before her, a big smile on her face.

"They aren't as bad as you thought," Giana said, quickly pulling her into a tight hug.

Giana held onto Y/N for a moment before pulling back slightly to look at her face. "I've missed you," she said softly, her eyes reflecting a mix of emotions.

Y/N felt tears welling up in her eyes as she hugged Giana tightly once more. "I've missed you too," she admitted, her voice choked with emotion.

They stood there in the garden, holding onto each other, the weight of their separation lifting with each passing moment. Y/N couldn't help but feel a sense of relief and happiness wash over her as she realized that her best friend was finally back in her life.

“What are you doing here?! How did you get here?!” Y/N asked, she had loads of questions as she looked at her and studied her. Y/N's voice quivered with a mixture of astonishment and curiosity as she bombarded Giana with questions. Her hair had changed. She used to have long and beautiful hair and now it was up to her shoulder. It was different, but Giana was pretty enough to pull off any hairstyle. “What happened to you hand?” She blurted another question noticing the bandaging around her hand.

Giana wiped away the tears from Y/N's cheeks with a gentle touch. Giana offered a tentative smile in response to Y/N's inquiries, understanding the flood of confusion that must be rushing through her friend's mind. "I know, it's a lot," she began, her voice betraying a hint of nervousness. "Let's catch up," she suggested with a warm smile, her eyes filled with genuine affection.

Y/N nodded eagerly, feeling a sense of excitement at the prospect of spending time with her long-lost friend. With Giana by her side, she knew that things were finally starting to look up.

--> Chapter 15

[goldenshrikecomic]

Hello, this is gonna be a long one and I hope I don't bother you too much with it but you have something great going and and I think maybe some advice for someone like me who wants to do a longer comic and I took heart in that one ask you recently answered were you said you are plenty of pages ahead of the readers to not get paralysed by a deadline which seems like a no-brainer now that I read that with my own two eyes black on white but I had not thought to maybe go about it that way and I needed to have someone spell it out for me apparently. So to my question.. see, I have a skeleton of a story I have key scenes that need to happen and that I want to happen and I am sure in between things will shift and change and grow and a part of me can't wait for it to happen but- How do you start. How do you get going. It is in my head I have some written notes but most is in my head and I do not want it to remain there and rot I want to draw and tell the story I had in mind but I feel.. paralysed on the starting line of this journey and I am unsure how to go from there because my mind gets caught up in estimates of if I post one page a week that is "only" 52 pages. That seems so little. How many years would it take. Can I do this. And then my mind fires up in passion because I am willing to commit I want to do this I need to do this and I have a good idea of how to pace myself and how to go about it. I have the beginning of it on the back of my tongue and the tip of my fingers I can imagine it so vividly I wish I could animate it (if that wouldn't take up even more time and be insane I would) But somehow I still feel stumped on how to start. How to get over this first hurdle. It might be the executional dysfunction playing a huge part in it, maybe I am overthinking to much and stand in my way because of it, but like... How did you start your comic. How did your journey on GS begin? I know this was a bit of word vomit I am sorry but you are an inspiration and you seem to go about things (from what I could gleam from the asks) in a way that feels like it could work for me too and the way my brain functions but I do not know how to start? I dunno if it makes sense I am no english native and my thoughts are hard to put into words.

This ask has been sitting in my inbox for a while because it's such a loaded question. I have plenty of asks in this tag about my comicing process, so check them out maybe. This reply got lengthy! The more I wrote the more I noticed I feel very inadequate trying to give people tips on making comics. It's such a trial and error process.

I've seen plenty of advice for people wanting to start out comics to just start small, come up with a smaller story to get a feel of it before you go big. And I absolutely understand it in hindsight because I would've done many things differently if I had just tried it out first, but it's not what I did. I wanted to make a big comic, and a big comic I made, as my first project.

I don't think about the years these things take, but it'd absolutely ease your worries if you could come up with a simple style and be able to make pages faster. I've stripped my comic of shading and gotten more lenient with myself when it comes to backgrounds. You absolutely need to cut some corners if you want to make more than one story during your lifetime. It's a limited time afterall! Being able to turn your sketch into a lineart without having to redo everything with a careful hand would help a lot already. And colors, they take a lot of time.

This is not how I went about it in the beginning, but I'd love to tell you to write those things in your head down before you start. Leave holes, just write in what you know because you will forget some cool details if you keep them in. Write the starting point, middle and the end, even with just couple of words. Add things that interest you in the middle of those points. Do you want a sad arc for your character at some point? Write it in. Come up with what makes it happen. Weave it into the other scenes. If you know what's to come, you can add foreshadowing to the earlier scenes. Even if you didn't know what would come, you can take something from earlier scenes and make it foreshadowing. Writing is a fluid process. You can jump around and add things, you don't have to approach it by putting one block next to the other. Once you have the elements you want, you just have to tie those things together. It's the hard part. And you will change your mind about many things when you get to draw your characters and see them doing the things you've written.

The start! I always say it's the worst part, but I've started to think it might be the second worst. I think the worst part comes after you've started and worked for several ten pages on fumes and you finally run out of juice. Picking up after that is hard, for me at least. But if you can manage, it should get easier. You know your characters better by now, and they carry some of their own weight.

Make a canvas. Think about the scene you want to start your comic with. Night or day? Calm or busy? Just doodle, BIG and loose. Add some frames by just drawing lines, move things around, resize. What do you want to portray with the first page of your comic? I like to establish some of the world or atmosphere, and only then move on to the characters.

Don't try to be perfect, in fact leave that first canvas completely unpolished and move on to the next one. What should this page tell? Will you show the character? I'd leave the establishing shot of them as the last big panel. The rest of the page should build up to it. The last panel is important, it's a hook to turn the page.

Come back to polish those pages more only after you have a few of them done. The most important thing is to get yourself away from that first page, because the first page is scary. After five pages you can move things around and start adding ears to your spheres. You've started a comic now. You can go back to the first page and make it nice, because you already have opened the path to continue.

IT'S HARD. But it's rewarding. It's not for everyone but it's awesome if you can make it yours.

[blackbackedjackal]

Soul Eater has always been a bizarre case. on one end of the spectrum there's characters like Kilik Rung, Mira Nygus, and even major manga antagonist Noah. on the other end there's the infamous bg jazz band that are straight up minstrels (they look identical in the manga. this was not studio bones' artistic liberty) and the death scythe repping Africa named Dengu Dinga who wears a mashup of "african flavoured" clothing. and then there's Sid, obviously i can't pass judgement on what's good or bad design rep but there certainly was a scene where Maka literally calls him a "mean blue gorilla"..

sorry for rambling, but Ohkubo absolutely takes inspiration from graffiti art and hip hop aesthetics in his work which makes the antiblackness even more disrespectful

Feel free to ignore that ask if the topic is bogging you down btw, I didn't see your last post if you're done engaging with the topic for now feel free to delete it. Looking forward to what you do with strawberry moon <3

Oh dude you're good. I just needed a nap before I answered more lol. I'll try and answer as many of these as I can because I'm honestly enjoying the discussion even though I have to step away from it for a bit. It's triggering to me but not in a way that I can't talk about it, just bogs down my mind ya know?

Anyway, I've never watched Soul Eater so I had no idea of the Black characters in the show! I had to look them up and I see what you're saying. Mira is a stereotype because I'd consider her a sexualized Black woman in this context. Kilik is like 100% fine to me at a glance, like he just looks like a Black guy though there may be some writing I'm missing that still makes him a stereotype.

I had no idea that he was influenced by graffiti art but I TOTALLY see it now in his shape language. Sid is by far the worst since he still has the big white teeth and a more 'gangster' aesthetic. Especially considering the time period Soul Eater was released, it's in poor taste at best and still perpetuating Black stereotypes at worse.

Anime is it's own sub-genre of racism in animation. White people LOOOOOVE to say "oh it's a different culture and they don't know" LMAO YES THEY DO DON'T PLAY stop infantilizing Asians you fucking sickos.

Colorism alone is such an issue in Asian countries. I've lived with people from China, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and the Philippines. I've heard first hand accounts of people from the Philippines being treated like lesser human beings just for having a slightly darker skin-tone and don't get me started on how Chinese imperialism has impacted Taiwanese people. I'm not going to speak for disenfranchised Asian people but it's easy to find if you look it up. But my point is if colorism is that prevalent, imagine how much worse it is when your entire culture has a history of being exploited to the point that blackface is a worldwide issue.

Also the Boondocks exists and though not a perfect example, it still has some of the best depictions of Black people in an anime style. There's no excuse to draw racist stereotypes when there's literally 5 seasons worth of overall solid Black character designs that can be referenced for other series.

[crimsonhydrangeavn]

Hey there! I'm here to simp for Garret, as usual, but I have another reason to gush today—I absolutely adore your drawing style! Whether it's the colors, the character designs, or the scenes, I just love it all. One of my favorite things, though, has to be the characters' facial expressions—they are all just beautiful!

Marcelo's surprised face? Perfect. Rita's blushing cheeks? Adorable. Camilla's entire design? Has a special place in my heart. And don't even get me started on Teagan's smile—it's so cute, it's almost unfair. But, of course, my ultimate favorite is Garret. I can't handle it when he furrows his eyebrows, whether he's pissed off or has that smug look like he's just hit the jackpot. It's all just so perfect!

Anyway, I do have a question for you—do you have any tips for creating character designs? I feel like the way your characters look perfectly matches the vibe they give off, and I'm starting to work on my own visual novel, but I'm having a hard time nailing down the character designs and I felt I could find good advice from you.

Additionally, I apologize in advance for all the fangirling and for my poor English. I hope nothing I said came across as rude or inconvenient, truly 🙏.

Thanks so much, and I hope you have a fantastic day! ❤🌻

Thank you so much for your incredibly sweet ask! Please, please, please NEVER apologize for gushing about characters for fangirling over them! It always brings a massive smile to my face and I really appreciate hearing how much you enjoy them! <3 I'm incredibly flattered that you reached out to me for advice on character creation and I'll do my best to share my process with you! Granted there are a million different ways to do things so these are just a few things that I've found that helps me in the creation process.

I'll give you a little background about me and my character/story creation journey so you can get a better understanding of my background in writing/character development.

You see I've been a huge fan of text roleplay for the majority of my life. I actually started roleplaying on gaiaonline when I was 12 and I've been doing it ever since. ( Almost 20 years at this point! damn am I old lol) As a result I've had a lot of practice creating and interacting with different kinds of characters in different settings. I've also been playing DnD on and off since high school. That being said, I've had time to refine my craft and create characters that I personally really enjoy and align with to some degree. ( And hopefully you do too!)

That being said, I'll list a few tips and tricks I've picked up over the years below!

Anatomy is key! Yes, my characters are stylized, however I spent a long time studying anatomy and getting a solid sense of proportions, ratios, and musculature. Am I perfect? Absolutely not, but I'm at the point that I can usually notice if there's a glaring error/ something looks really off.

Make sure to put all of the characters in a line up once they're designed! Are their heads the same size? What about their hands and feet? Some slight variations are natural, but if one character's head is noticeably larger than the others, then I'd take the time to adjust. The same could be said for colors. Is one character SUPER saturated while the others are more muted? Unless they're supposed to stand out, consider reworking the colors to make them feel a bit more cohesive.

A basic understanding of color theory is always a bonus in my book! I'd also consider making a general color palette for your game. That way it'll help you make sure everything looks and feels as though it's in the same world.

When I first create a character, I try to think of a general concept of what I want them to be. What's their general vibe? What do they look like? What's their personality like? Ect. Once I have a general vibe down, I try and do a bit of visual research on tiktok, pinterest, tumblr, google, ect. For example, I might have a general idea of what a typical frat bro or sorority girl looks like, but until I actually do the research and look into the kinds of things they wear, how they speak, and their general lifestyle, and real life examples of these kinds of people they'll feel like a flat caricatures of what they actually are.

Then, once I have the general vibe nailed down I start doodling them and playing around with different hairstyles, outfits, body types, ect. I actually have a few different different versions of all of the characters for Crimson Hydrangea! I rarely end up going with my first sketch/ concept when it comes to most of my characters. I also like exploring with different skin tones, colors, and textures/designs.

It takes a lot of thought and trail and error, but once I finally create a character that I'm visually happy with, I really start delving into their personality, backstories, and general psyche. What are their likes, dislikes, positive traits, and flaws? What are their motivations, fears, and traumas? How self aware are they? Then I start asking myself slightly more introspective questions to help me relate to the characters a bit more. What about this character resonates with me? How can I make this character feel more real? What are some traits that we share? For example, Garret inherited my unhealthy perfectionism, Marcelo inherited my love of food and desire to make sure those around me are happy and comfortable, Camilla inherited my sarcastic sense of humor, Rita inherited my unyielding sense of responsibility and unhealthy work-a-holic tendencies, and Teagan inherited my deep rooted insecurities. Granted most of these characters take it to a completely new level than I do in my real life, but at least on a basic level I can relate to them and understand their motivations. That being said, I don't think all of your characters need to inherit a specific trait of yours, it's just something I recently realized I tend to do on a subconscious level to help me write them with a bit more depth.

Let your characters develop a life of their own within your story. It's okay if they end up changing from your initial concept. People in real life are complex and don't always fit into a specific mold no matter how hard they try. They grow and change over time, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst. Do what feels right for the story you're trying to tell. For example, Garret was originally supposed to be more calculated and methodical. Marcelo was originally supposed to be a lot more laid back and go with the flow. However when I actually started writing them in specific scenarios I realized that they're far more complex than a simplified list of traits. Flaws and weaknesses make them feel so much more real than a "perfect" gary/mary stu.

When it comes to facial expressions, I usually have a small mirror on my desk to observe and reference specific expressions I'm trying to convey. In addition to using the mirror as a reference point, I also tend to make whatever face I'm drawing as I'm drawing it. It's a little silly, but I find it really helpful feeling my facial muscles recreate the same expression. It helps me figure out what the brows, eyes, and mouth are doing at the same time. It's gotten to the point of doing it subconsciously whenever I work/animate/draw. (Fortunately I usually work from home so no one has to see my weird expressions lol)

I think the final and most important tip you should take to heart is to create characters you genuinely enjoy. It'll also help you stay motivated to keep writing them and developing the story, especially early on in the creation process.

Hopefully you found my rambling helpful! It ended up being a bit more of a brain dump than I originally intended haha. That being said, I'd love to see what kind of characters and game you end up creating in the future! <3

[grxmreaperx]

I've been thinking about Peter Strahm's s/o being desperate for him, palming at his pants and telling him how much they love and need him. Maybe they suck him off or ride him like there's no tomorrow? x3

this request has been living rent free in my head for the last few days!! the Strahm babes are getting some content!!

Show Me How Much You Missed Me

Pairing: Peter Strahm x reader

Word count: 1.7k

Warnings: 18+!!! Smut!! MDNI. Dirty talk, daddy kink, oral (m! receiving), p in v penetration, creampie, praise kink

Summary: On your day off, all you can do is think about your boyfriend, Peter. When he gets home, you really try and pay attention when he’s telling you about his day, but you have something much different on your mind.

You perked up as soon as you heard the key in the lock. He was home.

You rushed over to Peter as soon as he opened the front door, wrapping your arms around his neck. He chuckled into your hair as he wrapped an arm around your waist.

“Hi, my angel.” Your heart skipped a beat at the nickname.

You had missed him so much. You had the day off from work and sat around watching your favorite TV show and doing some chores around your shared apartment. You had tried to convince Peter to not go into work this morning, to stay in bed with you and take a day off, he deserved it after all. But you knew his job didn’t work that way.

He held you close, shutting the door with his free hand, before guiding you over to the couch. He sat you both down, letting out a groan as he took his shoes off and undid his tie. You sat beside him, one leg resting across his own and your head lying on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around you as he got comfortable, placing a kiss on your forehead.

You excitedly asked him about his day, wanted to hear all about his work.

He sighed. “Boring. Perez and I spent all day sifting through paperwork, trying to find any pattern in the case we’ve been working on. My eyes are fuckin’ killing me.”

You listened intently as he continued, telling you all about how Erikson was on their asses all day, they hardly even had time for coffee breaks.

“You will be happy about this, though,” he said, raising an eyebrow at you.

“And what is that?”

“Perez really likes your friend that you set her up with. Spent all day talking about her. Said they’re going to dinner tomorrow night.”

You sat up excitedly, a smile glued to your face. “See! I told you!”

He laughed. “Yeah, yeah. I didn’t think red heads were her type, but I guess you were right.”

You lightly slapped his shoulder before settling back in, a proud smile still on your face. You listened as he went on, complaining about the mountains of paperwork waiting for him tomorrow.

You tried to pay attention, you really did, but you found yourself a bit distracted. You couldn’t help but notice the way his hair stood up slightly, the neat style he had when he left this morning undone by his hand running through it. You couldn’t help but notice his shirt sleeves rolled up above his elbows, showing off the veins in his forearms. You couldn’t help but notice the top buttons undone, revealing a little bit of his chest.

“You okay, angel?” he asked, drawing you out of your thoughts.

“Hm? Oh, yeah, I’m okay.”

“You look a little distracted. Something on your mind?” You smirked at the look on his face, completely oblivious to why you were really distracted. His eyebrows furrowed, taking in every part of your expression, making sure you were really okay.

“I mean, maybe I’m a little distracted,” you said softly, resting a hand on his thigh.

“What’s on your mind, baby?” he asked, starting to get an idea when your hand began to move higher.

“Just missed you a lot today,” you whined, slowly beginning to palm him through his pants.

He sucked in a breath through his teeth, running a hand through your hair. “Is that right, baby?”

You nodded against his chest, placing soft kisses along his collar. “Hate when you have to go to work. Want you to stay here with me all day.”

“I know, love,” he said, leaning his back against the couch, savoring your touch and the feeling of your lips grazing his throat. “Wish I could just stay here with you, too. Tell me what you want baby.”

You whined, feeling your face heat up. You began to palm him harder, hoping that would be enough to get what you want.

He gently grabbed your chin, forcing you to meet his gaze. “Be good and use your words, angel.”

“Want you,” you said softly.

“C’mon, sweetheart, you can do better than that. Use that pretty voice and tell me what you want.”

“Wanna suck you off,” you said, forcing yourself to hold his gaze.

He grinned, running his thumb over your lip. “Then what are you waiting for, baby?”

You quickly sunk to the floor in front of him as he worked on his belt, pulling his pants down just enough to free himself. He pushed your hair from your face as you placed your tongue flat against him, licking a long stripe up his dick.

He closed his eyes for a moment as he let out a deep groan. He watched as you took him down your throat, hand wrapping around the base of his cock.

“God, you look so good like this, angel,” he groaned, gently guiding your head as you gagged on him. “Should’ve stayed home with you today.”

You felt your eyes water slightly as he hit the back of your throat, working what you couldn’t fit with your hand. You moaned around his dick, looking up at him through wet eyelashes. He savored the feeling of your mouth around him, watching your spit coat his cock, your wide eyes staring up at him.

“So good for me, sweetheart. Is this what you’ve been thinking about all day while I’ve been gone?”

“Maybe,” you said with a smile, pulling off him for a moment to catch your breath. You wiped the drool from your bottom lip, a strand of it still connecting you to his dick. You placed small kisses along his stomach as he rubbed your head, your hand still stroking him.

“Get up here, baby. Show me how much you missed me.”

You quickly climbed back on the couch, pulling off your sweats and underwear before straddling his lap. He grabbed his dick, lining it up at your entrance, his other hand wrapped around your waist. You began to sink down onto him when he gripped you tighter, halting your movements.

“I wanna hear you tell me what you want first, baby. Tell me what you’ve been thinking about all day. I love hearing your pretty voice tell me what you want.”

You whined, leaning forward to bury your face in the crook of his neck, trying to grind your hips. “Want you inside me…”

“What was that baby? I couldn’t quite hear you.”

You pulled away, sitting back up on his lap and taking in the smug smile on his face.

“Wanna ride you,” you sighed, the ache between your legs growing unbearable. “Want you inside me.”

“That’s much better, angel,” he said, slowly sinking you down onto his cock. “Show me how much you want it, sweetheart.”

Your mouth fell open as he filled you, stretching you out perfectly. You gripped his shoulders tightly, keeping yourself steady. His hands ran over your body, stopping to squeeze your thighs as you began to bounce. He let out a small moan as you started to move, his eyes locked on where your bodies connected.

You ran your hands under his shirt, needing to feel him, touch him. “Missed you so much, daddy. Thought about you all day.”

He sucked in a breath at the name, gripping your hips. “Fuck, baby, I missed you too. I love when you get so needy for me. So good for me.”

You began to pick up the pace, his praise going straight between your legs. You needed more. More of him, more of the way he made you feel. The sounds of your moans filled the room as he pulled you against him, kissing his way up your neck. You began to grind your hips each time you sunk back down, desperate for more.

“Need some help, angel?” he asked, a smile on his face as he took in the expression on yours.

You nodded frantically, needing to feel him thrust into you. He wrapped an arm around your waist, repositioning you so were on your back, legs spread wide for him. He placed a hand on each of your thighs, pressing them back until your knees were against your chest.

“So good for me, baby,” he groaned as he began to pump into you. “Look so fuckin’ pretty like this.”

You threw your head back, hands gripping the cushions, crying out at how deep he was. He leaned down, caging you between his arms, and caught your lips in a searing kiss. Your arms wrapped around his shoulders, nails scratching at his back as he groaned into your mouth.

You whined against his lips as you felt the pressure building in your stomach. Your legs began to shake, and he pulled away, just enough to see your face.

“You gonna cum for me, angel? Be good and cum around daddy’s dick, baby.”

He took your face in one of his hands, gripping it just tight enough to force you to look at him as the tension snapped and you reached your high. He smiled, praising you through your orgasm as you shook underneath him.

You felt his thrusts falter a bit and knew he wasn’t far behind you.

“You want me to cum inside you sweetheart?” he asked. You nodded, a moan escaping your throat at the thought. “Yeah, want me to fill you up baby?”

You cried out, begging for him to fill you. His hips pressed against yours as he finished, letting out a deep groan as he reached his high.

He leaned down, resting his forehead against your as you both caught your breath. After a moment, he pulled out of you, sitting back up on the couch and pulling you gently up onto his lap. He pushed your hair out of your face, planting a soft kiss on your lips.

He smiled at you, holding you close to him. “God, I really should’ve stayed home you today, hm?”

tag list: @bee-who-isnt-french, @enigmatic-blues, @kujofam, @aliengutzstuff, @mysunfishpeedinmyroom, @schrodingersjigsaw, @librababe99

[feyspeaker]

Hi! I made an account just so I could follow your work. Your art is brilliant and honestly and inspiration to where I want to be. I’m an older artist who has all the anxiety when it comes to improving my process. I’m trying to get into digital portraits and I have so many ideas in my head, but it’s frustrating because I’m not where I want to be to make this happen. What are some tricks that help you/software do you use? Of course, you don’t have to share anything that makes you uncomfortable. I currently have procreate and an iPad, but I feel a little lost. Wondering if I need a different writing tablet and photoshop. Not sure. I just eventually want to find that 3D, but also artistic look you are able to achieve.

hey there! thank you so much!!

ultimately, I will sound like a broken record but I always recommend you sign up for local figure drawing or painting classes. have people pose for you at home and sketch with charcoal and paper. go to the zoo and sit down in front on an exhibit for an hour and try to draw the animals in front of you as fast as you can and fill a couple of pages, move on to a new exhibit and do it again!

nothing is more powerful of a tool to learn than whatever writing utensil you have in your purse and the back of a napkin when you see something you'd like to capture. I've spent quite frankly my entire rememberable life doing this. I used to spend every single day in middle school/high school/my brief failed stint in community college with a pack of cheap sharpies and a beat up binder full of old worksheets and homework to draw on the backs of.

drawing/painting from life will teach you better than anything.

I use a very outdated version of Photoshop, and only got a "nice" tablet in the past 7 months.

Also, a huge tip to you and anyone else reading this: do NOT get too focused on a "style" that you want. Obsessing over that just ruined me for years and years. I wanted so, so, so badly to be the next Matsuri Hino when I was a kid. I copied her work religiously and it NEVER looked right. Frustrated me to no end. And you know why my stuff never looked like hers? Because I'm not her! You can't force your art to come out any way that isn't natural, and the sooner you can accept the art your hand wants to create, the happier you'll be and the easier art will get for you.

The past couple of years before I started diving into this more realism based work, I was just shoving myself through trying to make what art I envied of others. Very stylized/textured watercolor comic book style stuff. And I just was NOT getting any better at it. I have always been more inclined toward realism work, but I've hated it and yearned for stylized work. Yoshitaka Amano? God, I just drooled over that artstyle and beat myself up for never being able to capture it in studies or otherwise.

I finally essentially restructured my entire career around making the art that makes me happy instead of what I "wanted" it to look like. I was extremely depressed, my life was falling apart, and I still needed to make art to survive but I couldn't "art" if I was depressed and hated doing it, so I just had to step back and stop worrying so much about what I thought I wanted to make, and started making what felt most natural.

there's no easy way, and art can be a soul destroying path at times, truly. your software and hardware should come very last place compared to practicing from life (it doesn't matter if you want to paint cartoony stuff of realistic stuff, always start from life). naturally you will find what makes your heart sing the most.

I get a lot of messages from people telling me similar stuff "oh your art is EXACTLY what I want to do!" but I promise you that kind of thought process is chasing a dragon that is likely to harm or drag your creative process down. art style is such a deeply personal thing, so of COURSE it's important to find inspiration, but the second looking at someone else's artwork stops inspiring you and starts frustrating you, put it away.

There are some artists who I love, that I do not check up on often because their artwork ignites, like, serious bitter jealousy in me. It's the truth. I get so mad at myself for not being more like them, and it's such a poison. I think more artists should be transparent about this feeling because I KNOW the art community has a lot of jealousy and ugliness in it.

A fact of being an artist is that you will never be completely happy with a piece you make. You are always going to see the flaws, and that doesn't change whether you'd been drawing for 2 months or 20 years. Occasionally, you will get one piece that you are like "how did I make that???" and then get frustrated that you can't recreate it lol! It's a tough beast.

It's just really important to step back and work on yourself and where you are at, because at the end of the day, the way your soul wants to express artwork might be WILDLY different from what your brain wants, and it can be really detrimental to let those two go to war.

I hope this helps. I'm very passionate about this, and when I started out I ALWAYS ignored the artists who gave the same exact tips as above. I thought they were so annoying and unhelpful, but now I /get it/.

[random-dragon-exe]

Alright, but can everyone just imagine the antics we could've got if there was more time for the Covenheads to interact?

Dana said they backstab each other all the time, which means they don't generally get along well.

Like we could've gotten some really entertaining antics between them.

I'd imagine it'd be like a twisted version of The Offfice, but with queer witches and one puritanical leader.

So now have a few ideas I've come up with.

-----

Belos: Can you all just conduct yourselves accordingly for one meeting?!

The covenheads in question:

Raine is trying to keep whatever is left of their sanity while trying to separate Adrian from Darius while they're fighting with each other. (They're fighting over who has better fashion sense)

Cue Eberwolf biting Adrian’s tail as he screams in pain from the bite.

Terra and Hettie are watching, amused.

Hettie has enough of it and summons one of her scalpels and throws it, nearly missing Adrian as a warning.

Vitimir throws a sleeping mist potion at Adrian (minecraft style) only for him to teleport away and it hits Darius instead, instantly knocking him out.

Mason and Raine hover over Darius, making sure he's okay and not hurt.

Osran's recording everything on his Penstagram only to save it for himself to watch later for shits and giggles. (Along with rest of the antics he's saved)

Belos: (internally face-palming) "We'll continue the meeting, someone just get Headwitch Deamonne and prop him up."

Wait I got some more ideas! This time a few without Belos.

(All the Covenheads are walking to the main room early for a meeting)

Hettie: (whispering to Vitimir) "Is it just me or is Adrian a little less annoying right now?"

Vitimir: "I bet you 20 snails it's an illusion of him."

Hettie: "I bet 20 it's not."

Vitimir: "Fine then, prove it."

(Cue Hettie throwing one of her scalpels at Adrian only for it to go through and the illusion of Adrian dissappears)

Hettie: "What no, Titan dangit!"

Vitimir: "Pay up Cutburn."

Hettie: (annoyed) "Fine." (Hands him the snails)

("Vitimir" poofs away only for Adrian to be revealed to have been masquerading as Vitimir via illusion)

Adrian: "Thanks, I wanted a few extra snails!"

Hettie: (seething mad) "You'll pay for that Graye!" (About to attack him)

Adrian (draws a spell circle to make multiple illusions of himself which all run off in different directions so it was impossible to tell who the real one was which confuses and further enrages Hettie)

(Vitimir finally speedwalks in the main hallway)

Vitimir:" Sorry, I was busy experimenting with my latest potion, what'd I miss?"

---

(Hettie stares daggers at Adrian throughout the meeting then when Belos isn't looking throws a scalpel at him)

"Adrian": "Ow!" (Poofs away to reveal Mason hidden under an Illusion of Adrian) "What was that for?"

Okay, last one:

(Vitimir gets bored so he starts testing out a new deadly potion on himself)

(Hettie notices)

Hettie: Do you mind sharing that?

Vitimir: "No I'm not sharing, besides what do you need it for?"

Hettie: "I have my reasons." (Sadisticly smiles)

Vitimir: (slightly creeped out and sighs) "Alright fine, meet me at my door after the meeting."

Some more ideas/HCs but they're in a general sense;

Osran uses the videos he recorded over time as blackmail for each Covenhead.

Vitimir stays up late mixing potions and tests them on himself.

Vitimir acts like a shady drug dealer when the Covenheads want a potion from him.

When Raine is fed up with Adrian, they'll play their music to make him fall asleep right then and there.

Terra threatens the Covenheads when she's in a bad mood that she'll feed them to her large carnivorous plants. (Everyone is terrified of it, but never admit it to her)

If anyone of the Covenheads gets hurt, they'll never go to Hettie to get healed (she has terrible bedside manner)

This is just the tip of the iceberg, hope you enjoy my ideas.

[drunkenskunk]

So I'm working on more character and background details for the Karrakin!Tuera I'm gonna use in Theta's upcoming Lancer game. And I got to thinking: what awards and medals would she have? Because this whole Shadow of the Wolf game is gonna take place in the Baronies, so there's going to be lots of parties and reasons for dressing up. Which means: a soldier wearing a parade/dress uniform will be expected to adhere to certain... standards.

And it's really kinda frustrating on several levels, because... alright, here's the thing. Tuera? She does not care. She genuinely doesn't give a shit about any of these "bits of tin and colored ribbon." She was one of 100 facsimile clones of Venthrax who were, almost immediately, thrown into the proverbial meat grinder to "weed out the weak." Of that clutch, she was the only one who even lived to see her 15th birthday. She has no illusions about concepts like "heroism," and knows exactly what the true nature of war is like, so... for her, all of these decorations for "valor" and "bravery" and "honor" are exactly as much of a joke as those words are.

However: she also needs to maintain the illusion. Soldier or not, existing as a noble heir in a society of weirdo monarchists like the Karrakin Trade Baronies requires her to act a certain way, so as to avoid drawing suspicion. And despite being a tremendous show off and routinely using herself as a distraction for others, drawing suspicion - specifically, the wrong kind of suspicion - is completely antithetical to her goals. What she says and does, and what she actually thinks, will almost always be vastly different things in this game. It's going to be a lot of spinning plates for me to balance, both in and out of character.

So, as part of this nonsense, I started workshopping some ideas. Scratching out potential notes, looking things up on wikipedia, that kind of thing...

I'm gonna be honest: I have a sneaking suspicion that when your wikipedia deep dive to help you figure out details for a character you're playing in the celebrated mud-and-lasers mech-based tabletop RPG Lancer has led you to pages like "Aiguillette," "Order of chivalry" "Military Merit Cross (Prussia)," and "August von Mackensen," among others...

I feel like that... is perhaps when you know it's too much. Please take a step back. You're going too far. You need to stop.

On the plus side, I did manage to sketch out what I hope is a decent design for her Raven Guard officers uniform. No medals or awards or anything (except the sash), but this was more for me to try and get a better handle on the outfit than the loose headshot from earlier, anyway.

Probably would have been more thematically appropriate for her to wear a uniform more reminiscent of the actual mounted cavalry Lancer units from European militaries of the 1800's, but... I dunno, I've always thought the Hussar jacket had more style.

That being said, I'm not going to include the busby with the death's head emblem on it that was often part of Hussar uniforms. That would be... like... c'mon. This is Lancer, not Warhammer 40k, a death's head emblem would be wildly inappropriate.

The cavalry sabers are all wrong, though. But hey, let's just chalk that up to me knocking out a quick and dirty sketch and being hopelessly out of practice.

My hand still hurts.

[thedragonagebigbang]

Bang Creator Interview: Tumblr: @vaamiel  |  AO3: vaamiel

The Collaboration period has begun! In these quiet months before works are due, we want to foster a sense of excitement, camaraderie, and celebration among our participants. To that end, all participants were given the option of a formal interview by our mod, Dema, or an informal “ask-game” survey. We hope you enjoy getting to know our phenomenal creators as much as we have!

Interview with Vaamiel

Vaamiel and Dema talk artistic development, childhood anime obsessions (-cough-Naruto-cough), and hoping to see Dorian in DA4

Dema: So, I know you take commissions, but have you done many exchanges before? Any Big Bangs?

Vaamiel: I've done a handful of exchanges over the years, but nothing really substantial. No big bangs either - though I've certainly read enough fics and seen enough art that others have done, haha. I'm sort of just... dipping my toes into the world of fanart for the first time since I was a teenager, so even though I've been drawing for ages, a lot of this is completely new territory for me.

Dema: Oh that is awesome! Welcome to the bang! What led you to return to fanart?

Vaamiel: I think a combination of a couple things: confidence in my own ability plays a big part of it – it's really intimidating to draw characters that I love so much and translating them into my style has always been difficult – but this past year is also the first time I've been really passionate about a game in... well, about a decade, and I think that's led to more experimentation and willingness to stick to learning subject matter that I otherwise struggle with. Mostly, Dragon Age coming back and Baldur's Gate 3 being out at the same time really pushed me back into the world of wanting to participate in fandom from more than the sidelines.

Dema: I really love your work. Artist to artist, how did you develop that confidence and style expression? What has that journey looked like for you?

Vaamiel: Thank you so much! It's funny actually, because the way I draw now has kind of... always been my style? It's just my technique and understanding of fundamentals that has improved. I can look back through my childhood sketchbooks and go, this was for SURE made by the same person, haha. As a kid I was all about anime and comics and games – particularly early gamecube and xbox stuff that relied on very stylized graphics to compensate for the technology. All of those things really saturated my brain and effectively became super tied to my own understanding of art and artistry and how I wanted to make art.

I've tried to emulate other styles or artists' techniques over the years, but (and I think this ties back to why I struggle with fanart) my own voice is so strong in my work that it really took all the joy out of creating. I've learnt over time that my personal art evolution is all about small changes and improvements, rather than trying to force ideas or ability through radical stylistic changes. Basically, I draw what I like and add things here or there as I come across something that I think would fit organically into my own style. That's been things like brushes or expressions or even the way I structure my sketches - all things that are small but can make a big difference in the overall picture. Add to that how my confidence has improved as my actual ability has improved, I think I've really organically grown into being better able to wrangle my style and apply that to fanart, original art, et cetera.

Dema: So now I do have to ask what fanart you were making as a kid and high-schooler? (I was a Sailor Moon kid. Sailor Scouts for ALL the most obscure celestial bodies one can imagine 😂)

Vaamiel: Hah! oh no 😂I was CRAZY about Naruto as a kid - actually, the first fanfiction I ever read was Naruto fanfiction. Then after that it was Homestuck, Inuyasha, Steven Universe, Pokemon, Dragon Age/Mass Effect... not necessarily in that order! I wish I was a Sailor Moon kid to be honest – would be WAY cooler than admitting I was a Naruto kid!

Dema: Inuyasha!!!!

Vaamiel: YES!

Dema: To be fair I am older than you by a pretty big margin LOL, I probably would have been a Naruto kid as well.

Vaamiel: LOL fair enough! It was in just the right time slot on cable when I was about...9 that the 4kids dub formed the foundation of my entire personality from that point onward.

Dema: So cute! Was there a particular moment that got you into Dragon Age fanwork?

Vaamiel: So, for my own work, I think it was the trailer last Dragon Age day and then in… January of this year or so, replaying Origins that had the cup finally spill over and I sat down and started making fanart. It was like my love for the series hit critical mass and with Veilguard coming up, it felt like the perfect time to actually try to make it work, you know? When it comes to appreciating Dragon Age fanart as a fan, it was two creators from tumblr that did it. Crystalvfae did a series of fanart that fundamentally altered my brain chemistry (I still look back on their painting of Morrigan and sigh sometimes - it is SO good). Then I found Spicyshimmy and was never the same. Their Anders/Hawke work is so special and got me into reading fanfiction voraciously in general. It totally reignited my love for reading and was the thing that got me into AO3!

Dema: Is there any specific bit of Veilguard that has you most excited? Or are you mostly avoiding spoilers?

Vaamiel: I am SO all in on all the Veilguard content honestly. I love trying to pick little bits out of the trailers and stills we've gotten so far and make connections to the lore/put together potential plot theories. I think I'm so excited for all of it? Like, I'm just ready to get back into the world of Thedas itself and experience a cool new story. Of course, I do love the graphical upgrade and all the locations we've seen so far and the costuming!! It's really all been exactly what I've been wanting. Also seeing Dorian again. That's probably pretty up there too.

Dema: Yes! Man. I cannot believe how cool Minrathous is. Dorian tried to tell us, but I am still flabbergasted.

Vaamiel: He was right!! All along!!! We really were in a different century.

Dema: As far as the current collaboration process goes, how are you feeling? Are the ideas percolating? Are the sketches sketching?

Vaamiel: Yes! I feel amazing about the partnership I've got!! I've got some scenes that I've got some sketches going for already – as soon as I read my fic I could see exactly where I wanted to take the art. The atmosphere is so good and the writing lends itself perfectly to the kind of pieces that I love to make. I'm really, really excited to be creating for this fic and collaboration!

Dema: I am delighted to hear that, we cannot wait to see what everyone creates!

Vaamiel: That was Very Difficult to be appropriately vague for haha - it really is an absolute delight to be working with my partners and I can't wait to talk about this fic and the art I'm making for it.

Dema: It is soooo hard to ask questions that are not POINTED hahahahaha, as someone on the inside who knows everyone's matches. You get an A+

Vaamiel: Yay!!!! I’m glad I was able to keep things appropriately mysterious 😌

Dema: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me today, it has been super fun!

Vaamiel: Absolutely! Thank you so much for hosting this interview and all the work you've put in for this event!! This has been a blast!

[catprinx]

I know art is all about practice and trying out new things and not being afraid of using references, but do you have any advice for newer artists about areas to focus time on? Especially for learning digital art/colouring? I've always loved your art style so any advice you have would be valuable.

hi anon!!! Thank you for the kind words :)

There's no one good answer to this because art is about a lot of things. So rather than give you clear-cut actionable items to do, like a checklist, I'll just write down my own philosophies about art exploration. I've also been thinking a lot about this in terms of my own improvement.

(Also for everyone reading this I am by NO MEANS a teacher so take everything I say with a grain of salt. I'm simply someone that just enjoys thinking about art)

I think art is a lot about the combination of technical skill + visual language + concept.

Practicing technical skill, as you said, involves using reference and doing studies. I think an important thing to remember is you need to know what you're trying to learn. Here's a good example the former is a traditional still life of grapes, the artist probably intended to make a piece with a good composition and an impressive rendering technique. While the latter is definitely more of a value/color study. I'm certain this artist could have gone into detail rendering those grapes but being realistic isn't their intention/style. So when you're doing your studies I think simply asking "what do I want to work on?/what am I trying to communicate" can be helpful.

If your goal is working on color specifically I think it would be important to practice values, hues, and temperature control. Those things are the basis of color and after that you can play with more stylistic color. In the end my advice is to do a lot of studies, and look at a lot of art! Doing these studies digitally is just a matter or practicing and familiarizing yourself with the art programs (it takes time). If you have an artist you like you can probably look at their work and breakdown what you like about it. For example the narumitsu art I was working on here is kind of a study of @/rei_17's art (from twitter). I love her use of non-local colors and colors that are very close in value but the depth comes from the hue/temperature shifts in color. It's so masterful to me!!! So, now that I know what I'm looking at it becomes easier to break down and put it into practice for my own art.

Visual language usually refers to "style". To me, it can mean a lot of different things but for the sake of this long ass text post let's say it's just about "art style". My tip is to...copy! Copy what you like and figure out what it is you like about it. I feel like your hand will guide you towards your own art style in the end. I don't view myself as someone with a particularly interesting or unique art style but I can breakdown my influences a little. I'm someone who grew up with anime/shoujo influence but also copied a lot of popular tumblr styles back in the day lmao. I want my anatomy to "feel" correct even though it's rarely realistic and I don't really exaggerate form too much because I don't have a preference for it. I'm someone who values drawing speed and clarity of form over details. And all those things added up are the reasons I draw like I do. You can totally make a style by more intentionally riffing off others, and you can also develop a style just by doing your own thing. Your art will always have an identity of its own even if you don't know it at the time!!!

Concept is just your idea/intentions/narrative etc. I really think concept can be anything you want. Some people can go really in-depth with their concept with studying and research and etc, and other people can make something visually interesting simply by going "I want to draw a cute girl". Everyone is different! I wouldn't take concept advice from me personally because I don't make original illustrations. Fanart is easier to work with because usually you're interpreting someone's existing narrative and you can churn out something cool from that. Maybe my advice is draw more fanart???

[just-a-carrot]

Carrot, I love your art. It is so unique and expressive and the way you portray emotion is so raw. You somehow pack so much character into such simplistic designs and I commend you for that!

I was wondering what your art journey was/is like, if you're okay with telling? When did you start drawing, how did you develop, and how did you get to where you are now?

Thank you!

ahhhh that's really kind ;-; 💕

I feel like I've been drawing even longer than I've been writing. I used to cart my sketchbook around everywhere as a kid and just be sitting in a corner drawing while everyone else was talking or doing stuff

I drew tons of anime growing up, mostly fanart of sailor moon and ranma and fushigi yuugi and stuff like that. I'd also come up with ideas for manga I wanted to draw (my mom had to convince me in junior high that moving to Japan and becoming a manga artist was not a realistic career goal lol) and I would order those physical screentones you had to cut out and place on the paper and use a G-pen with a bottle of ink to ink

most of my life I've drawn on paper and would line by hand, scan it, then color it. I was convinced I couldn't use tablets because I'd only ever tried on a glossy Samsung tablet and I hated it (it wasn't until working on OW that I bought a non-screen tablet and that changed my world)

I ended up getting a degree in studio art drawing because I didn't know what else to do (I started as a music major but didn't like it, wanted to switch to Japanese but my school didn't offer it, so chose art lol). I will not say my time in school radically helped my art... but I did get to do some figure drawing and did do a lot of art. but I felt quite out of place as many of my professors would try to talk me out of my cartoony style (I still remember when we had to share our sketchbooks with the class and mine was full of fanart done in my own style for things like gijinka Mario and Star Fox, but all my classmates told me it felt fake and copied since it was cartoons and not real art... 💦)

anyway......... I tried to go into animation storyboarding after school but couldn't get any ins or leads so I went back to school for Japanese LOL art became just a hobby again. But I continued drawing all the time. When I was in Japan and didn't have a scanner, I started doing mouse drawings in MS Paint. I think this is where my affinity for pixel drawings started. I'd continue to draw, draw, draw for all the fandoms I've been in since. my style evolved and changed a lot, sometimes a bit more cartoony, sometimes a bit more realistic (but still mostly anime-esque style)

I don't think it started turning away from anime entirely until I got into some cartoon fandoms. I think that's when the big ears and noses started to develop. And then a short while later I made Easter, which you can see has a slightly different style than early OW but it was like the precursor. I also returned to the mouse drawn MS paint style for the Easter CGs because I didn't have a scanner. this style continued into my early OW drawings but I guess kinda kept evolving as I kept drawing the chars for years and years. It's become a lot more fluid and organic now and I've gotten more consistent with the style and how I draw the chars

I guess that's it, really!! I feel like I've left out a ton but it already feels so long and I can't really think of anything else specific to add or focus on, so I'll just leave it with that kinda summary I guess 🤣 but ofc if there's anything more specific you want to ask I will do my best to answer!!