#i hope that helped anon

[theoldmixer]

i understand that kudos isn't supposed to determine if a fic is better than the others, but I can't help comparing myself to praised writers who have higher kudos than me. Don't get me wrong, they obviously deserve a lot, but to say kudos shouldn't matter is kind of downplaying it? Think of it, 1,500 hits with 185 kudos. That is clearly a far superior story than say mine which only got 1,350 hits with 15 kudos. it's obvious that i'm not fit as a writer, i was told every 10 hits 1 kudo is placed, or multiple at once if you're good. It's very discouraging whenever i see that happen, and I've deleted all my stories two days ago. Unless you can prove me wrong, saying none of the hits or kudos matters is downright downplaying it. Most of the elite writers say this which i find pretty funny since they get a lot of praise for their fics, they obviously enjoy the huge kudos, and who can blame them? I would too. i hope this doesn't seem negative, but this is just to show what my thought process is whenever I get low kudos. I really want to know how to stop comparing myself so heavily to those with 7+ years of writing, and I'm just a beginner with 5 months

Hi anon. I'm sorry to hear that you deleted your fics, I know it's easy to get discouraged.

I'm not sure I'm going to say anything that a million people haven't said before but I will try to give some advice.

I am far from an elite writer, writing is not something that comes naturally to me. I have a friend that is a writer by trade and has always been very gifted in writing. I could never understand how it came so easy to her. But she has always told me to just keep writing and it will get better. So that's what I've been doing. I have noticed that it has gotten better and easier. Do I wish that I could write better? Yes. But it is something I enjoy so I just keep writing and it just takes time to get better.

Yes it is easy to compare yourself to those "Elite writers." It takes time to realize that your style might not be like their style. That's where I'm at with that lol.

I really do not pay attention to hits it always just seems random and honestly sometimes I just randomly click on fic and don't read them. So I just think it's not something to worry about. In terms of Kudos, yes I am obviously aware of the number because I can them up. But I just don't necessarily correlate how many I have with what I think about that fic. Some of my favorite fic I wrote have the least amount of Kudos but I still like that fic and I'm going to continue writing. I like to think of it as wow at least one person liked my fic and what I wrote and that's how I like to frame it in my mind.

So here's me your fandom Auntie saying that it just takes time and I know that that's hard to hear because you want to be better now! I remember feeling that way for a while. But just keep writing and it will get easier. Keep reading too. Everything you read helps even if you don't post anything and just keep writing.

And I will leave you with my favorite saying that always helps me. All fanfiction is like cake, your flavor of cake might not be everyone's favorite but at least someone will like that cake and all cake is good cake.

[deep-space-lines]

okay but like. I just had the weirdest thought about that ‘don’t look I’m naked’ comic. Which is that that’s essentially the same thing Adam and Eve did after they ate the fruit of knowledge of good&evil. So I feel like the theological implications of that could kneecap Gabe if he doesn’t think V1 is a being with free will.

yeah ok. i dunno man. is this anything

((side note. this isn’t necessarily meant to be in-character or story-accurate or take place at any particular point in time, just a way to explore some Thoughts. i was also imagining more that V1’s words aren't actually spoken, more like Gabriel’s more articulate interpretation of whatever garbled mechanical noise V1 is using to communicate. I think an angel could do that.))

and then they fucked nasty the end

[hansoeii]

Hullo! I’ve been watching a bunch of your Timelapses and I was wondering how do you always come up with the colours for your pieces? They’re always so cohesive and pleasing to look at (I almost exclusively work in greyscale so if I’m using colour it’s always a lucky guess and it never looks quite right)

Hey there!

I have to be honest that most of the time I don't actually know what I'm doing and that I have no idea how most of my pieces are gonna turn out. My work process is usually based on "Fuck around and find out", haha. I'm happy to know that it apparently doesn't come across that way, though.

A lot of it comes very naturally to me simply because I've been drawing non-stop for so long, but I can give you some small tips that really help me:

1. Have as many references as possible!

Here's what my reference sheet looked like for the Jayvik piece:

It helped me a lot to understand the overall color scheme I wanted to convey. Lots of very cold tones, pinks and very light blues and greens. These colours sorround Jayce and Viktor throughout all of season 2 and I wanted to keep them, especially since in my piece they are lying in the glowing hexcore.

Don't shy away from using references, get as many as you possibly can! Look at other poeple's art too and try to understand how they work with colours.

2. Work with complementary colours!

Since I paint a lot of romantic illustrations I want them to look pleasing and comforting, which I can accomplish by using complementary colours! You see this a lot with couples that are blue and red coded, for example. And I wanted to do the same thing in the Jayvik piece! For that I used the highlights in their hair!

Viktor's highlights are a soft pink hue.

While Jayce's are a soft blue hue.

The colour wheel works perfect for figuring out if two colors compliment each other because they are literally right across from one another!

3. It doesn't have to be true to life.

Pretty self-explanatory, but I thought I'd add it in here anyways. It's important to understand how colour and light works, but you don't always have to follow the rules. Does the rim light look cool but it makes zero sense? Who cares! Keep the cool rim light! Just have fun and fuck around.

4. A little trick to make your life easier!

I'm not excatly the best at colour theory, I still struggle with it quite a bit, but here's a little trick I like to use from time to time:

If you want all your colours to look coherent, take one specific color as your flat colour. Choose a hue that you would like your piece to have. Like this:

Now you choose whatever colours your characters have and paint them in. For example, here are the skin colours I chose for Jayce and Viktor:

Looks off, right? These colours don't fit the overall piece at all. So what do we do?

Turn down the opacity! It's that easy, wahoo!

I went from 100 Opacity to 72 for this specific illustration. And look at that!

It's so much nicer already! Now you know what colours to use as your actual flats! Just repeat this with every other part of your illustration and you'll have a great starting point. :)

I really hope this was helpful! I'm not an actual teacher and I don't have a proper illustration degree, so some things might not be completely accurate, but I thought I'd try my hand at this anyways!

[mecachrome]

DUTCH GP 2024 | How well Lando and Oscar know each other

L: Sooo we don't really know each other that well. O: *giggles*

[bidamonalbarn]

PLEASE infodump about drake

okok this is specific to the drake/kendrick drama but i can also do a drake one too - im assuming you know basically nothing. & i barely know this shit so correct me if im wrong. also this will be routinely updated so! check in :D

2011 - Take Care (album) by Drake features Kendrick Lamar on the track Buried Alive Interlude

2012 - Drake has Kendrick open for his Club Paradise Tour. The same year they both feature on A$AP Rocky's song Fuckin Problems (also with 2 Chainz)

2013 - Kendrick called out a few rappers (J. Cole, Pusha T, Big Sean, etc.) including Drake. Drake responds saying he had no response, basically. They do this again the same year (Kendrick says shit, Drake doesnt respond)

2016 (ish) - They continue subtle beef (Kendrick saying Drake has ghost writers, Drake saying Kendrick "sold out")

2023 - First Person Shooter by Drake and J. Cole drops (their first collab since 2013). In the song Drake mentions "the big three" in reference to himself, J. Cole, and Kendrick

2024, Mar. - Like That by Metro Boomin' and Kendrick Lamar drops. In it Kendrick responds to Drake, saying "the big three ... it's just big me", implying that Kendrick is above Drake and J. Cole. Drake attempts to ban Like That from the radio.

2024, Apr. - Push Ups by Drake is released. The song is about how Drake believes Kendrick is being extorted - the track referencing the phrase "drop and give me 50".

2024, Apr. - Taylor Made Freestyle by Drake is released, his second diss track at Kendrick. Here Drake disses Kendrick for "selling out" specifically in reference to Bad Blood by Taylor Swift ft. Kendrick Lamar. Drake also used AI vocals of Snoop Dogg and Tupac - this resulted in him almost being sued by Tupac's Estate. Drake wiped the song from his sites

2024, Apr. - Euphoria by Kendrick Lamar is released. The track is 6 minutes long, cut down from its original 19 minutes. The title is in reference to the TV series Euphoria which Drake is an executive producer of - it's also referencing the sexualisation of underage people, something done by the show and (allegedly) Drake himself. Within the track Kendrick makes fun of Drakes accent, how Drake says the n-word, how Drake dresses... and a fuck load more

2024, May. - 6:16 in LA by Kendrick Lamar releases, less than 72 hours after Euphoria dropped. This track specifically disses Drake for having ghost writers/lots of co-writers. He also implies that Drakes friends are stabbing him in the back and selling his info. This track is co-produced by Jack Antonoff, who co-writes and co-produces for Taylor Swift.

2024, May. - Family Matters by Drake is released. I want to be honest with you, i didn't listen to this until i got this ask. This track implies Kendrick beats his wife. Drake also disses other rappers such as A$AP Rocky, Future, etc.

2024, May. - Drake releases a Buried Alive Interlude Parody on his Instagram

2024, May. - Meet the Grahams by Kendrick Lamar is released. In this track (which is by far my favourite of all the tracks) Kendrick calls Drake a deadbeat dad and accuses Drake of having another secret child (apart from Adonis). Kendrick has a verse dedicated to this supposed child in which he basically parents her - teaching her all the things Drake wont. He also implies Drake struggles with alcohol and gambling

2024, May. - Not Like Us by Kendrick Lamar is released. The fourth diss track from Kendrick. In this track Kendrick alleges that there's pedophiles and trafficking within OVO (an indie record label founded by Drake). Kendrick also says that every rapper who's complimented Drake is lying and now hates him for using Tupac's vocals through AI. This track includes my favourite line "Tryna stike a chord and it's probably A-Minor"

[kuni-kuun]

still [unhealthily] obsessed with that one bsd mayoi halloween thing (Reaper!Dazai and Vampire!Kunikida) like cmon, Death and the deathless

Kiss(es) of Death

[bulldog-butch]

do you have any tips for eating pussy !!!!

BOY DO I

i feel like i have to put a corporate disclaimer so i don’t get sued, but obviously not everyone likes getting their pussy ate the same way and it’s good to talk to a partner about what they like and dislike. that being said i often get stellar feedback on my pussy eating (i literally changed my girlfriend’s mind about getting their pussy ate 😈)

first off, forget probably everything you’ve seen in porn. if someone could watch you eating pussy and see your tongue then you’re doing it wrong (unless you’re in the first few minutes and warming up or like taking a tiny breather) otherwise if you’re getting down to business then your face should be drowning in the pussy.

second, forget all the kitschy shit you hear. no one is actually getting off to someone spelling out the alphabet on their clit. finding a consistent rhythm is key and it’s usually something incredibly simple. i opt for up and down because i can go longer with that motion and it tends to get a better reaction than side to side (but i do throw a little of that in there). also when i say up and down i don’t mean like a flicking motion. do not flick the clit with your tongue. you’re rubbing it not flicking it, so keep your tongue flat and just rub it up and down (or side to side whatever you’re going with). the other most important thing i can say is SUCK THEIR CLIT. start soft if you don’t know how sensitive their clit is and then ramp it up if you’re getting positive feedback. save this for a little flare, i wouldn’t usually stay sucking it for more than a few seconds.

okay now that i’ve gone over technique, let’s put it all together. start of slow, really show that you’re giving the pussy all your attention and not just doing it because you feel obligated. lick the whole length, stick your tongue in their vagina, suck on the labia, have fun with it! get to know the pussy you’re about to go to town on! then when you’re ready to get down to business start focusing more on the clit and setting a steady rhythm. maybe start getting a little faster but as soon as you hear “right there” or they start pulling your hair DONT ALTER YOUR PACE. i think a common mistake is people hear that and get excited and start going faster but the whole point is you just had the right tempo and now you’ve changed it. also if your jaw starts hurting (as mine often does) but you don’t want to stop, i would suggest try moving your whole head up and down to give your jaw a break.

last but certainly not least, my personal favorite move is to give the g-spot some attention while you’re down there. use a finger or two (or three if you’re feeling spicy) and do the come hither motion while you’re working on their clit, and i can almost guarantee that you’ll have that person seeing the light

[jkvjimin]

PARK JIMIN ↳ 5th muster - japan making film

[cr. namuspromised]

[mangostarjam]

OKAY HEAR ME OUT I sent this to one other person and I feel like maybe you’d also vibe with this but PLEASE DONT FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO RESPOND OR WRITE ABOUT THIS I JUST LIKE SHARING THOUGHTS

So like Hoshina is lowkey possessive(not like scary kind but the kind where it’s like “hey that’s my gf wtf”) and lets say his s/o is a platoon leader and people have noticed that she has a bite scar where her neck and shoulder meet(maybe one of the rookies likes her oooooh 👀) and there’s rumors and NO ONE KNOWS HOSHINA HAS A MATCHING BITE SCAR ON HIS NAPE BECAUSE ITS ALWAYS COVERED BY HIS COMPRESSION SHIRT(and then Kafka notices in the bath ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE VICE CAPTAIN IS MARRIED) AND JOKES ON EVERYBODY BECAUSE HIS WIFE IS ALSO POSSESSIVE(or maybe she got fed up with his shit once and bit him back lol)

OKAY ANYWAYS I LOVE YOUR WRITING AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME PLEASE MAKE SURE TO REST AND DRINK WATER BYE

-🐌

bless you snail anon i was ignoring some hardcore writer's block and this jump started something in my brain

bathtime revelations — hoshina soshiro x f!reader, established (secret) relationship, reader is a platoon leader, some minor narumi slander (sorry buddy. love that loser but it had to be done), biting, marking, possessiveness, uhhhh hickeys, edging?? nothing descriptive though sorry not today, 1.7k words

"Did you get attacked by a kaiju there, platoon leader? That's a strange looking scar."

The remark is innocent enough. You've been a member of the Defense Force for ages, and it's only natural to have numerous scars and aching bones from all the missions and kaiju neutralizing. Especially since you're a platoon leader of the Third Division, and you've leapt into the thick of things time and again to help Captain Ashiro get the best possible angle for her killing shots.

It would be fine, except the scar in question is a neat ring of teeth marks at the juncture between your shoulder and neck, where you're sensitive.

"Oh... no, that's not. Um." Shit. You've taken some of the Vice Captain's newest officers for an afternoon training session, and they're all looking at you now as you fumble for an explanation that doesn't expose your relationship. "I didn't get attacked by a kaiju, don't worry."

"Eh?? But that looks like a bite mark, platoon leader!" Iharu's voice is loud. You frown at him.

"It wasn't a kaiju," you say firmly. That much, at least, is the truth. "Anyway, if you guys wanna stay alive with just as many battle scars as me, go run some laps!"

Whew. There's a murmuring grumble, but everyone obeys orders. The summer heat and humidity wears you out quickly, and in an effort to combat the drain, you've stripped down to a tank top and your uniform pants. The bite mark in question feels like a brand on your skin, a ring of slightly raised flesh that should blend in with your other scars except for the clear circle it makes. You watch the rookies run, but your mind drifts, thinking back to when you got that set of teeth marks on your skin. Your body warms at the memory. Stupid boyfriend with his stupidly sharp canines.

You snap back to attention as Kikoru and Reno jog past, their words floating towards you on the breeze —

"—looks like maybe human?"

"Definitely not kaiju. You think the platoon leader's still with the person who marked her?"

"Oh, we can't ask that. Hibino senpai will be devastated."

Oh, jeez. There's no way you can let your boyfriend hear anything about this —

"How's it goin', platoon leader?"

Shit. You turn to the Vice Captain of the Third Division and frown. "What're you doing here?"

Hoshina Soshiro smirks at you, taking the tiniest step closer into what most people would consider to be personal space. "Just checkin' on my lil' fledglings! They've still got breath to gossip, eh? Are ya lettin' 'em off easy today, platoon leader?"

"I was letting them run off some energy so they'd forget about this bite mark on my neck, you vampire," you mumble. Soshiro laughs, leaning just a bit towards you. The afternoon sun glints off his purple hair in sparkles that dazzle your eyes, though it's easy to get pulled into his orbit when he's so magnetizing. You catch yourself and bring your outstretched hand up to your face, rubbing at your nose instead of sinking your fingers into the fluffy strands like you intended.

"Sounds like someone's got a lil' crush on our fearsome platoon leader," Soshiro says quietly, shooting you a lopsided grin. "Not that I blame 'em since it's you we're talkin' about. Still, it'd be good to send a message, y'know? Should I refresh your marks tonight?"

Your face feels hot. "'Marks?' But only one of them is visible when I'm in uniform!"

"What about the bath? We should give Shinomiya somethin' to report, don'tcha think?" His low voice sends a shiver down your spine and you frown to hide how much it's affecting you. Your boyfriend tilts his head. "Fresh marks'll show 'em all you belong to me."

Something hot and sharp lances through you and you bite at your lip to hold in a whine at the words. "That won't work," your voice is breathier than you'd like, but Soshiro is watching you like he wants to eat you alive and it's thrilling and terrifying and not enough. "They won't know it's you unless we match."

He raises an eyebrow at that, but the corner of his lips twitch as he fights down a grin. "Good point, platoon leader. We should discuss this in my office later."

"You're a menace."

Soshiro's smile softens into something fond and he takes another tiny step closer, until the fabric of his jacket brushes against your bare shoulder. You inhale his scent — bright, woodsy, something intrinsically Hoshina Soshiro — and all of your muscles relax. "And you're too dang cute for your own good, my love. See ya later?"

You nod and salute as he walks away, biting down a silly grin as you watch him call out encouragements and teases to his rookies. They all respond with good cheer and an edge of fierce determination, and once Soshiro fully exits the training area you allow yourself to return to the task at hand. You know, possibly more than anyone else on base, how hard Soshiro works to take care of his officers. You aren't going to let him down.

... but maybe you'll die of embarrassment first.

"Platoon leader! Did you spar after our training session? I would've liked to join!" Kikoru says, coming closer eagerly as you begin washing up in the communal bath. Your hand slips along your leg as you jerk up in surprise and Kikoru visibly falters as she takes in your bruises.

"This was a... private session, Shinomiya. I'd be happy to spar with you another time, though." Your entire body is warm, and not from the steam wafting through the echoing room.

"Aah, yes, of course! Sorry to disturb you, platoon leader!"

You resume your scrubbing with a quiet snort, listening as her footsteps return to the corner where Akari and Hakua are clearly ready to pounce. The girls probably don't realize how much sound travels in the bath, but you can hear their hushed whispers and giggling as Kikoru reports back that you're covered in hickeys.

You press down on a few of the blossoming bruises between your thighs and snort again. There's no way these could pass as training bruises — they're too intentional, too close to your aching center where Soshiro paid special attention earlier in his office — without letting you reach your peak. Bastard.

He made sure to leave marks along your chest and neck and shoulders again, taking advantage of your tank top for its easy access to your skin. Only after begging and pleading did he finally remove his stupidly tight compression shirt for you to drag your nails down his back and shoulders, fingers fisting into his hair as he licked and sucked at your core. After he ripped away your orgasm, you made good on your promise and left your own marks on his skin, kissing and sucking along the strong column of his throat and shoulders and pumping him with your hand until he nearly came on your thighs. Two could play at that game, after all.

Your ears perk as you catch your boyfriend's name. "Vice Captain Hoshina says I'm improving rapidly," Kikoru says cheerfully, tossing her head back. She certainly has the right to boast — her combat power levels just keep rising. She's going to make both of you proud. "Someday I will beat him in a practice match!"

"I'd like him to spar with me," another officer giggles. "Have you seen his back? Defense Force men are really no joke."

You bristle automatically. You're used to it by now — Soshiro's hot — but it doesn't make it any easier to hear confirmation of the fact out loud. "What about Captain Narumi? He's got really nice arms!" another officer says.

"You mean Captain Ego?" The communal bath fills with laughter as the girls gossip. "He's good looking, too, but Vice Captain Hoshina in that shirt..."

You're done bathing and changing into your nighttime clothes when a loud commotion from the other communal bath erupts. You share a look with a few of the girls, but you take your time pulling on your clothes (Soshiro's shirt, your shorts, your panties mysteriously missing — though you're sure you'll find them safely tucked into Soshiro's own sleeping pants pocket later).

You come out of the changing room and blink. "Vice Captain, how could you?!" Kafka is wailing dramatically. "You've already beat me by taking my spot by Mina's side, but you're beating me in having a girlfriend, too?!"

"Hang on a sec, old timer! You've already got the 'childhood friend promise' with the Captain!" Iharu shouts. "Leave something for the rest of us!"

"My, my, what a fuss," Soshiro says, waving his fingers. You blink, but the vision before you doesn't change. Most of the men are shirtless, towels wrapped around their waists as they spill out into the hallway in their chaos, and Soshiro is no exception. You can clearly see the raised pink lines your nails left behind on his densely muscled back, even with the small clump of officers between you. "We're all gonna catch a cold standin' out here like this."

"Those bruises on his neck... they look... fresh..." Reno says, his bright gaze darting between his Vice Captain and your exposed neck. Belatedly, you swing a towel around your shoulders, but Reno's eyes widen and you groan inwardly. "The platoon leader has fresh bruises, too."

Soshiro turns and your eyes snag on the blossoming pink and purple along his neck and shoulders. A quiet satisfaction settles in your gut at the sight, and you can't help but grin. "Keep that up, Officer Ichikawa, and you'll end up getting snagged for the Investigations Unit."

"They look good on her, don't they?" Soshiro hums, raising an eyebrow as the officers put two and two together. He meets your eye from across the small group and smirks. "Ain't it nice, platoon leader? Matchin' with the Vice Captain?"

Your answering smile makes his face light up with a deep fondness. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

[the-kirbe-anon]

Are christians against lgbt stuff just homophobes and transphobes by default?

Being against LGBT ideology and lifestyles, yes.

Being against LGBT *PEOPLE*, no.

The Bible makes it clear that homosexual relationships are a sin because it's outside of God's design for us, and that we are either male or female, and whatever gender we are born as, we are forever. (That doesn't equal personality btw, females are free to be tomboyish without rejecting their femininity and males are free to be more *stereotypically* feminine without rejecting their masculinity)

I'm not *phobic* of anyone in the sense that I'll discriminate against them for not believing what I believe.

Are there Christians (or people who say they are) that act in an unChristlike manner towards LGBT people? Yes.

Is that all Christians? No, and it shouldn't be any Christians.

Christians are called to love all people while still calling sin bad.

We are to speak against sin with gentleness and respect to LGBT people, not be rude or hateful towards them.

Also LGBT lifestyles are NOT bigger than any other sin btw. ANY sexual behavior outside of marriage is sin, including heterosexual. People don't get a pass because they're straight.

[frownyalfred]

since I’m in my reporting and shaming era when it comes to ao3 hate now…

(PurpleSnow, I know you’re sad I blocked you and locked comments on that fic. Maybe that was a sign to stop leaving comments like this. It seems, from your other bookmarks, that you enjoy reading many fics — so maybe give mine a break if they keep making you so upset, yeah?)

[dancedance-resolution]

chapter 1/2 of the pants allergy has been posted!

Summary:

She’s stammering again. The sole surviving daughter of Krypton, and she’s stammering because her platonic bestie is apparently incapable of wearing proper leg-concealing garments. “Um, I, uh,” she’s driveling. Time is dragging on second by agonizing second. It’s only through the power of Rao’s great mercy that she finally blurts out, “It’sjustthatyouneverwearpants.” It takes Lena a minute to process the jumble of syllables, takes a whole harrowing minute of excruciating silence before she echoes, “Pants?” Kara’s afraid she might be hyperventilating now—no, not hyperventilating. More like panting? Which… Okay, that’s okay, that’s totally okay and normal and Kara just needs to calm down and stop letting her gaze travel back to Lena’s bare thighs! She pries her eyes away long enough to muster the words to say, “It’s—It’s just that you, um. It’s like you’re allergic to pants!” --- Post-Phantom Zone, Kara moves in with Lena. And it’s perfect! It’s great! It’s fine! Except for one tiny issue: Lena Luthor never wears pants at home. Egregious pining and fruity antics ensue.

chapter 1 is 4,041 words, chapter 2 will probably be a little shorter

read here on ao3!

[hansoeii]

Hello! Hope you're having a great day/night! I absolutely adore your art, you are one of my favourite artists. I love the way you shade and do backrounds. Also everytime I get into a new show I immediately see your art for it??

I was wondering if you had any advice on drawing more realistically (backrounds, anatomy etc) but still keeping a style?

Hey hey!

Thank you so much!

I have a pretty good understanding of facial structures, because before I got into drawing more semi-realisticly, I heavily focused on realistic portraits. Here are some example, these are from around 2019!

(yes, I was really into danmei and kpop back then, haha)

I just always loved drawing/painting faces and it was all I did. But at some point I realized that I wanted to do more than that because just portraits felt super restricting. So it took me around 2-3 years to somewhat find my style. Thought it would be fun to show a little timeline! Advice will follow afterwards :)

2020

I began working on my OCs in 2020 and since I didn't have an exact reference to work off of, I struggled a lot. My art from this year is super wonky.

2021

Still wonky, but the Lokius obsession was the jumpstart into finding my style! My work from this year is all over the place haha, I was experimenting a lot.

2022

This first ofmd piece is pretty much the first drawing where you can see where my style is gonna go, which I think is pretty cool! This is the year I made the biggest progress cos I was drawing SO much. These two pieces are only six months apart. The one on the right was the first time I gave drawing a background a proper go, too! It was a good year.

2023

And this is where I am now! I'm still constantly learning and improving, but I'd say I have a style you can recognize now!

Now here comes some actual advice, haha:

What I highly recommend you to do is to study your favorite artists as much as you can! I have like 5 A4 sketchbooks all from 2020 that I filled with sooooo many studies, where basically all I did was look at artists I like and copy how they draw stuff, to try and figure out how to stylize certain things. Some of my favorite artists are Ami Thompson, Velinxi and TB Choi. But I also liked to just scroll through pinterest and study all the art I came across that I liked! For example, if I saw a really great drawing of a pair of pants I would copy it many times in my sketchbook and try to learn how they stylized the folds. Doing this for a prolongued period of time will naturally improve your own work! It'll be difficult at first, but you gotta push through, it's gonna be worth it!

I also highly recommend studying unique faces to try and avoid the same-face syndrome. Find some cool looking people and try to draw them as simple as you can! Maybe even draw a little timeline where you first draw them as cartoon-y as you can, and keep going until you end up with a more detailed, realistic drawing. Maybe in the middle of it you find a step that feels the most fun to you, so you can try to build on that! It's a great way to figure out what kind of style might be the best for you.

Here are some cool faces I found on pinterest!

I have a pinterest board with many more!

One REALLY important part of learning how to draw all kinds of things is to understand forms and shapes and how to manipulate them. I have so many pages in my sketchbook filled with just shapes that I drew from all kinds of angles without any references.

This is a great video on it:

6 Ways to Draw Anything by Proko

Learning how to do this is so crucial! Young artists often think they first have to learn all kinds of detailed anatomy before doing anything else, but all that's gonna do is make you tired and hate drawing. Shapes are where it's at! Once you understand how shapes work and which ones to use for certain parts of bodies or objects, drawing is gonna get so much easier! Once you understand them, you can get into details such as muscles and bones!

And honestly the most important point is to just absolutely love what you're doing! I wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for the fact that I get extreme hyperfixations on certain media that turn me into some kind of beast where I can suddenly draw 10 detailed illustrations a week, haha. Just be passionate about what you do, find something you REALLY love and go crazy!

I really hope this was somewhat helpful! My inbox is always open if there's any more questions :)

[beguilingcorpse]

ok heres a q: why colum asht

what does he have that compels you so much

(truly v curious bc he is just some guy to me agakfks)

anon you are CORRECT. he IS just some guy and that is what compels me!!! every other person at canaan house is:

an extremely Down Bad military captain and the girl she’s been pining for since childhood, trying to take de facto control of an awful situation and failing miserably

the world’s worst nastiest evillest most fucked up pair of twins and the petboy twink they keep around to make fun of

two teenagers who want to crawl in a hole and die (by nature of being a teenager) but who were also raised since birth to be cannon fodder in a war they cannot understand

an anthropologist who specializes in talking to ghosts and her absolutely darling pun-making malewife trophy husband (their marriage makes everyone uncomfortable)

whatever the fuck the sixth have going on

an undead dying disabled immortal cougar and her large corpse meat puppet

the pope, who is sixteen and the most insufferable person anyone here has ever met

goth bone cultists shadow freaks who wear grease paint skull masks and Do Not Speak

and then there’s COLUM ASHT. who is thirtysomething. and looks very ragged and scarred and jaundiced and fucked up. and was bred specifically just to have his soul sucked up by the aforementioned awful pope. and while everybody else is running around trying to solve murders or avenge loved ones or achieve immortality or kiss women or whatever, he chooses to do nothing. he sits in his room and does chores. eventually he gets involved with some interpersonal drama and things get really weird between him and his pope-uncle. and then he dies. but he did not do anything wrong. he didn’t do anything right either. he is simply nothingburger.

in a world of, like, barbie monsters and evil threesomes and Soup Of Make You Explode, the absolute craziest thing you can be is normal. and yet, against all odds, colum asht exists.

[lilbittymonster]

how would a complete complete beginner get into gpose? like how to make npcs appear and pose my oc with them?

love your blorbos and the triad and your gposes and writing btw. thank you and pls keep creating <333

Hi, anon! Thank you so much, that's so sweet 💜

So, I may have gotten a little carried away, but I wanted to be thorough responding and I thank you for your patience. This is going under a readmore out of courtesy to the dashboard.

To start out you'll need to download some stuff.

Programs

Anamnesis:

Install: download

This is an entirely self-contained program, and you could technically stop here and do all your posing from Anamnesis, I know several people who prefer it. It’s perfect for posing with humanoid models, minions, and mob creatures.

The biggest downside is that if you don’t have a second monitor (or have a really small screen like I do), it’s going to get in the way of a lot of your posing. It gets pretty fiddly having to readjust the camera around the doll and move the screen aside so you can see what you’re doing. So if that’s going to be an issue for you, I would also recommend using….

Ktisis:

Install: download

You will also need to install the FFXIVQuicklauncher, which is linked in the Ktisis instructions. It’s a bit more work to set up, but if you think you’ll want to try out using mods, Penumbra works on the same framework and this will save you a bit of hassle later on.

Ktisis operates within gpose from a little dropdown bar on the side of your screen, and the biggest difference is that it puts the skeleton directly over the models in 3D instead of a flat view. It does still have a flat view option, but I am much more 3D oriented so having the skeleton visible right under my cursor works better for me. It’s also helpful for showing all the special bones on monsters and bosses that Anam doesn’t!

I am also currently using the testing build version of Ktisis as it offers the ability to select multiple bones at a time, which I don’t believe the current public release has. This can be turned on by right clicking on the plugin and selecting “receive plugin testing versions”.

There is a third posing program called Brio, and it requires the same level of install as Ktisis, but I personally don’t like using it. I find the posing interface unwieldy and at a beginner level, it really cannot offer you anything that Anamnesis and Ktisis already don’t. The only thing it would be absolutely necessary for is to spawn in actors through Anamnesis.

So now that we’ve got the programs installed, time to get some actors in here.

Importing Characters

You can get characters into gpose one of two ways. You can rock it old school and load a character file onto a pre-existing model, or you can spawn a new one digitally within gpose.

Old School Method:

Use an overworld model! I’m just going to borrow this Temple Knight real quick-

-and now I have successfully freed Aymeric from his office. Time for a lunch date!

If you don’t have any overworld models to use, like in instanced areas such as dungeons, you can use a carbuncle instead.

Using the powers of arcanima-

-I have now brought Estinien into the realm of the Fuath. And he thought the moogles were bad...

New School Method:

In the Ktisis testing workspace, there’s a little plus icon at the bottom left hand corner.

“Create new actor” will make a clone of your model with all the same gear and physical appearances. You can then load a character file onto that of your choice, or you can customise it from there. “Import actor from file” will skip right ahead to loading in a premade character file you’ve saved as it spawns a new model.

Importing/Exporting Character Files

Character files are how your appearance, gear, and weapons are all stored to be loaded in onto an actor. These will appear in your program save files as a .chara file. Anamnesis and Ktisis should create their own save files and will automatically save character and pose information to those locations. You can also check to see that they saved correctly by opening up your files directory and tracing the file paths.

In the “Character” tab in Anamnesis, select the actor of your choice, hit “Import”, and select your file. The dropdown menu gives you some options for what specific parts of a character file you want to import. There’s also the option to import game NPCs.

In Ktisis, right click the actor and select “Import…” then “Character”.

This will bring up the import screen, where you have the same choice between files saved to your computer or NPCs from the game.

Changing Gear

Changing gear can be done through Anamnesis simply by clicking on the item slot in the appearance tab, and you’ll get a list of everything that can be equipped into that slot. Ktisis will require you to right click on an actor and select “Edit appearance” before giving you a similar menu.

This is one of Anamnesis’ biggest selling points because it has the most robust gear filtering and search system of the three posing programs. You can filter by class, job, race/genderlocked gear, items that are Mogstation purchases, and save favourites to the top of each list.

Ktisis and Brio do not have this feature, so I really recommend doing all of your gear searching through Anamnesis unless you know exactly what the gear piece is called.

If you change your mind mid-pose that you want a different piece of gear, changing the equipment in Ktisis will not break the pose, but trying through Anamnesis will.

Posing

Now that you’ve got your dolls in place, it’s time to actually start posing! Like I said above, Anamnesis is mostly a flat view of the skeleton, and Ktisis has the skeleton visible in 3D on the model, so choose which format works with your brain easiest. (And they both can swap formats as well.)

The red/blue/green gizmo is the same across all three posing programs, and comes in three modes; rotate, position, and scale. Body bones will all be manipulated through rotation. Scaling can be done if you want to change how a body part looks and is especially helpful for fixing elbows. Facial bones, however, will need to be moved in position mode due to the new graphical update. And this is really why I recommend you use Ktisis testing build as this gives you the ability to select multiple bones at once to move in tandem.

The easiest way to start learning to pose is by modifying the existing emotes and actions. Cycle through the various emotes and job actions to find something that gets you close to what you want, and then make minor tweaks from there. It’s not impossible to pose from a base standing idle, but it is a pain and takes a lot longer.

Before you can start repositioning bones, you’ll need to toggle “Posing Mode” on. In Anamnesis, this is in the “Pose” tab, and in Ktisis it’s the red/green toggle at the top. You’ll also need to pause character movement in gpose (freeze character).

If you plan on moving models around in the XYZ coordinates instead of leaving them where they are in gpose (especially since the digital actors will spawn directly on top of you), you will need to freeze positions as well. This is found in the top right corner of the “Action” tab in Anamnesis.

In Ktisis, the "Freeze Positions" button is under the character editor. Right click on your character, choose "Edit appearance", then under the animation tab (third from the left), check "Freeze Positions".

Importing/Exporting Poses

Another place where Ananmesis shines is having all of the vanilla pose variations for all of the races and genders available as pose files to be uploaded. This is in the second file button, underneath the list of your original files.

Note: All default expressions currently in Anamnesis are out of date. Take the time to go through the expressions in gpose and save each face individually to be loaded on separately as expressions.

This is the same process as importing/exporting characters. Poses will be saved as a .pose file to the program of your choice. If you’ve downloaded pre-made poses from someone else, make sure they’re in the program files and not your downloads folder just to keep everything in one place.

Note: Pose files from before Dawntrail will break expressions. These should only be imported on body bones.

Loading Select Bones

You can piece together new poses using bits of old ones, too! In Ananmesis, click and drag to highlight the parts you want to transfer (it can be a little finnicky around the hands/hips.)

And in Ktisis, right click select down the list of bones you want to use.

Expressions will always need to be loaded onto a model as selected bones. Anamnesis has the “Expression” option, which will automatically select all the bones on the head parent.

Ktisis will need to have the “Face” option ticked on the “Import Pose” if you’re importing from the actor’s name. If you’ve clicked the parent you want to apply it to, it will automatically tick “Apply selected bones”.

The ideal order of operations is Load Actors > Load Gear > Posing Mode.

Miscellaneous Tips and Tricks

-Ktisis lets you import reference images now! In the same place as importing a new character, you can import a reference image to be on the screen with you instead of tabbing between the game and browser.

-If you like the pose you get while riding a particular mount and think “wow I wish I could have that as a normal sit pose” you can just fire up your program of choice, freeze motion, and save the bones! My personal fave is the sit from the hippo cart mount.

-Don’t rotate your model from the root bone (the one that’s named after the actor), rotate from the abdomen. This will still move your whole actor without compromising the XYZ alignment. Think of the root bone as the little plastic support stand for an action figure you’d put on a shelf. You can pose the action figure however you want, but the plastic stand still has to stay touching the table.

~

That’s it for what I would consider getting started with. A lot of this is stuff I’ve had to learn myself or piecemeal together from various people, so I hope it’s not too overwhelming, but if I can save someone else the hassle I went through then I will!

My final piece of advice is to remember that this is supposed to be fun. If it’s starting to become not fun, take a break and do something else that isn’t gposing for a bit and come back to it.

Wishing you the best of luck in your gposing journey!

[poppywrigts]

we all know that giffing can be a pain in the ass sometimes. it is time-consuming, tiring, and annoying. but highly addictive, too. there's no cake recipe for making gifs, but everyone has some tips and shortcuts developed through time and hard work, the same way as our nanas have their special chocolate cake recipe.

that being said, welcome to my crazy attempt to make a comprehensive tutorial. this is how to make gifs for dummies, my name is nare and i'll be your host during this extensive ramble dressed as a tutorial.

my giffing process (and this tutorial) is divided into 5 phases:

downloading the footage;

cropping the scenes;

extracting the frames from said videos;

organizing the frames into the folders;

and making the actual gifs.

at google docs i'll provide every link you might need, and will try to explain everything you need to start making your own gifs. thank you!