#my advice is good but i cant follow it myself

[pickled-flowers]

Every time I go to a party I'm reminded that it's not that I can't interact with people, it's just not a desire I have :(

[naes-dairy]

I guess the root of my problem is that I feel really out of place everywhere.

[qumiiiquinnquin]

my art will never be good enough !

[porcelain-winter-doll]

WEDDING VOWS WITH MATT STURNIOLO

in this ff you are saying your wedding vows with matt sturniolo

Wedding vows with matt sturniolo ❤

ᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔ THIRD PERSONᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔᰔ

It was a special day for both matt and y/n. After 15 years of being friends and being lovers they were stepping on a new page on their life.

✿✼:*ﾟ:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･*Y/N'S POV｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

"Matt Bernard sturniolo" i giggled when matt rolled his eyes when i mentioned his middle name which also made the crowd laugh

" i have loved you for 15 years, 18 days, 19 hours and 7 minutes of my life. I love you with my whole heart with a passion that can't be expressed in words, only in kisses, glances, and years of adventure by your side." Matt teared up while listening to my vows and smiling at me

Some tears were spilling out of my eyes as i hold the piece of paper " i had a paper that had all of what was supposed to be my wedding vows. And we were 16 when you asked me to be your girlfriend. You told me i was the one who would you marry and have a family with, i didn't believe you since we were just lousy teenagers that year. But i quickly ran home to write a wedding vow. " matt chuckled and said " i never told you to write one" and i looked at him mad playfully

" as i was saying. I sat there for an hour trying to write a wedding vow, and so i finally wrote one and i taped it to my journal" the crowd was quiet but in a comforting way " i remember clearly i was scared to cry in our wedding due to a podcast you made w your brothers " matt nick and chris laughed at that " but look at you now crying on our wedding " matt playfully pushed me on my shoulder "Today I say, "I do" but to me that means, "I will." I will take your hand and stand by your side in the good and the bad. I dedicate myself to your happiness, success, and smile. I will love you forever. I promise to be your honest, faithful, and loving wife for the rest of my days." Matt looked at me as if he was looking at a goddess And smiled at me

I took a breath and said the following vows "I y/n l/n take you matt sturniolo to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy law. In the presence of God I make this vow"

✿✼:*ﾟ:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･*MATT'S POV｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

Y/n my wife finished with her vows so it was my turn " y/n m/n l/n" y/n looked at me when i mentioned her last name " oh! My bad sweetheart its Y/n STURNIOLO now. " i quickly looked at the crowd which was my family and friends " ITS Y/N STURNIOLO NOW!" I told them and they laughed i saw chris dying out of laughter.

I looked at my wife again she has red lips and rosy cheeks which suited her " y/n, i used to despise you when we were 10 if you remember that" y/n looked at me and laughed " i do remember " she chuckled " only nick, chris, Nate and Justin knew about that, my mom kept shipping me with her actually which made me hate her the more " i confessed and nick shouted " NOW YOU'RE MARRYING HER" which made everyone laugh

" i never thought of marrying you until we were 16. I remember you ran into the rain to your house and you never told me why until the next month." I laughed at y/n "you told me you wrote a wedding vow for our wedding which made me think of marrying you even more. " i teared up a little bit while holding her hand

" "There is no remedy for love," says Thoreau, "but to love more". Today and forever, I will follow his advice and seek my remedy in your arms. I loved you since we were 15. I dated alot of girls back in my day but non of them became my girlfriend except for one" i looked at her with love in my eyes " and it was you, sweetheart" i saw her teared up and i wiped her tears with my thumb

"You are my every dream come true, and I can't wait for the reality we get to build together. I cant live in world without you y/n. actually unlike you i memorized my vow since i was 21 which was kind of weird considering i told my fans that i didn't want a big ass wedding" she playfully hit my shoulder " language! "

" i hope i never lose you, i hope it never ends.and I actually used to believe love was black and white. Until you came into my life. You made me believe in love and i really love you my love."

" i always write your name with my last name seeing how it looks together. It always had a ring for me" i looked at the crowd " it didn't suit " and i looked at her again while the crowd looked at us " as of today we will start a new together not as friends not as bestfriends not as lovers not as finances but as husband and wife. As mr and mrs sturniolo " i looked at her again i admired her beautiful features

I took a breath and said my vows "I matt sturniolo take you y/n l/n to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy law. In the presence of God I make this vow" i smiled at her and i teared up

✿✼:*ﾟ:.｡..｡.:*･ﾟﾟ･*Y/N'S POV｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

I heard the priest say kiss the bride. Matt was about to kiss me when the priest said something again " you both have to hold your kiss for 5 second " i looked at him and he looks at me and kissed my lips

I felt like it was just me and matt in the place. No one else. It felt fantastic i didn't know why but this kiss was something else for us. We always kissed before but this. This felt something. I knew for a fact that he was always the love of my life and my soulmate.

" okay enough!!" We heard chris say with a sassy tone and we both laugh.

We just know this new chapter wont always be rainbows and unicorns and i would always love him until my death.

4000+ FUCKING WORDSS... ANYWAYS DOES ANYONE WANNA SEE A PART 2 OF THEIR HONEYMOON??? 😭😭😭 I MIGHT RECONSIDER 😏😏😏😏

masterlist

[fipindustries]

To any fellow illustrator that may follow me, here is a key advice that took me too long to learn.

I always found that the drawings i do as im idly doodling while bored, trying to distract myself from a boring lesson or a meeting, are always so much better and stronger than most things i draw when i sit down with the intention of creating something.

For years i chased the way to trigger that state of flow, to snap myself into the zone. I think i finally know the secret, and its so incredibly ovbious on hindsight: Dont Rush.

When im drawing while bored to distract myself im not rushing. Im letting each line and shape take as much time as they need. I dont have anything else to do, i cant leave to do something else. Im stuck with this lesson or speech or videocall so im in no hurry to finish the drawing.

When i sit down with the sole intention of drawing all i want is for the drawing to be done so i can move on to something else. I dont let myself get lost in the process. I put lines on the paper so they represent the thing i have in my mind and thats it.

So with that in mind, ill say it once again: dont rush. The trick is not to draw slowly but to draw carefully. Be tentative, let your hand find its way through the shape, to feel it out. Dont jump at the final line, test it out with gentle sketching until you feel confident the line snapped into place and your hand can trace it.

Be deliberate, be aware, be mindful of what youre doing. You dont have to overthink it but you do have to consider it. Your hand will find itself, its muscle memory will kick in, but you have to give it time, you cant force it

this all sounds like woo and its probably not very useful if you dont already know how to draw well, i know. Is just a good mindset to have to avoid being sloppy.

[itzsana-kiddingmenow]

I CANT BELIEVE REQUESTS ARE BACK:33 anywaysss!! i had an idea for a lee!han and ler!chan. its a bit silly but it sounds super funny.. so yk how chan chose han first as his first child??? well imagine like there were multiple people waiting to get chosen by chan and he tickled them all the find out which was the most ticklish so they could join. (ofc the most ticklish was han) SO YEAHHH

𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙮:

𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨: 1.4k

𝙖/𝙣: omg i know there is a 0% chance this would ever happen irl but JUST IMAGINE OKAY also anon i changed it a bit if you don’t mind 😭💔

𝙩/𝙬: mentions of anxiety, temporary anxiety, rough tickling, strangers AU

𝒍𝒆𝒆: jisung

𝙡𝙚𝙧: chan

𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕: @someone-who-loves-kpop-saranghae @jeonginsdiary @leeknowstan33 @v--143 @wereallgonnadieonedaybutnottoday @inkytornpagess @lajanaa @a-wild-seungberry @channieissocute125 @soap143 @seungsluvv @skznccmlee @moony-9

𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠! 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞? 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐛s 🐾

“Okay, bring in the next trainee.” Chan sighs, watching a smaller boy timidly enter the room, bowing once he caught sight of the older trainee. 

“What��s your name?” Chan asked rather quickly, not realizing his tone sounded harsh. 

“I-um…my name is Han Jisung, and I’ve been a trainee for three years.” The boy introduced himself quickly, biting his lip probably out of nervousness. 

Chan noticed how quick Jisung was breathing, clearly scared out of his wits but trying to hide it. 

After Jisung had finished his showcase, he bowed again and waited for the older trainee’s comments. 

Chan was surprised to find that Han Jisung was a talented singer and dancer, and he seemed to be interested in producing as well. “You’re quite good.” Chan followed by providing his advice and criticism. 

He watched as Jisung took in all of his comments thoughtfully. “Okay, thank you.” 

“You seem talented. I’ll keep you in mind. Now, come and sit down, you look really scared.” Channie giggled; he was glad to finish the showcase so he could perhaps make friends with the quiet trainee. 

Han timidly walked over and sat next to Chan, crossing his arms and gulping. 

Chan decided to test a small theory out; perhaps he found the perfect idol in the quiet, composed Han Jisung.

“Why are you so tense, huh? Come and sit next to me.” The older trainee patted the area beside him with a warm smile, and Jisung obliged. 

“You know who I am?” Chan asked, Jisung nodding his head quickly. “I’ll introduce myself properly.” He took Han’s hands in his own to soothe the younger trainee.

“My name is Bang Chan, or Christopher in English, and I’ve been training for about seven years.” He explained. “I’m trying to form a group of idols, named Stray Kids.”

Jisung nodded tensely. Chan frowned but continued. “Let’s get a little personal. My friends, they like to call me the tickle monster. Wonder why?”

He watched Jisung flush a little before replying. “Do you like to t-tickle people?” 

Channie giggled. “Yeah, I enjoy it. I love getting people who have cute laughs, you know?” 

He watched Jisung turn a deep red in real time, the boy seemed to get increasingly flustered the more the older trainee talked about tickling. “Y-Yeah.” 

“I like to tickle people when they’re nervous or upset, because then they’re the cutest thing.” Chan continued to speak, grinning when Jisung squeaked while nodding. 

Jisung tried to pull his wrists back, but suddenly realized the older’s grip of his wrists had become tighter the more they had talked. 

“You’re so tense, Hannie.” Chan whispered. “Is it okay if I call you that?”

Jisung nodded meekly.

“Hmmm, you’re still being quiet. Guess I have to loosen you up a bit.” Chan smirked before yanking Jisung’s arms up, the frail boy was so easy to pin, weak to surprise and pure strength.

Han squealed in surprise, eyes widening. Clearly, he didn’t expect the older to do that. Chan pushed his arms back so he was lying on his back on the soft couch. 

“What a cute sound~” Chan cooed, “You’ll have to make some more for me, yeah?” 

Hanji turned beet-red, flustered. “H-Hyung! Why…what are you doing?!”  

Chan’s finger was tapping his side. “Oh…? Now you can talk?~” 

“Move your finger!” Jisung pleaded, biting his lip desperately when the digit dug softly into his side. 

“Are you ticklish, perhaps?” Chan whispered quietly in a teasing tone, his hand tracing around Jisung’s left side. 

“N-No! I’m not ticklish, hyung—DON’T!!” Jisung yelled suddenly, Chan’s finger stopping at the hem of his shirt. 

“That’s the loudest I’ve heard you.” Chan laughed. 

“Do you want this, Hannie? Do you want me to make you laugh? I bet you’re so cute underneath all that nervousness, aren’t you?” The older cooed in a baby voice, Jisung giggled breathlessly in anticipation. 

Han was sure his face could be compared to a tomato, but he nodded anyway, freeing his hands to cover his face shyly.

“Aweee~” Chan smiled sweetly at the boy beneath them. “You’re so cute…maybe I should tickle you, hm?” 

Jisung squeaked and smiled softly underneath his hands in anticipation. He only then realized how badly he really wanted Chan to attack him, to make his hands flutter all over his body to make him laugh freely. 

“Please?” He whispered. “Hyung?” He looked up at Chan, and the older hummed in response. 

“What are you doing?” Jisung was still laying on his back, and he looked around to try and catch what Chan was whipping his head around for. 

“Nothing. Let’s start, shall we?” Chan asked. “Can you be a good trainee and keep your hands up?” 

Jisung flushed again. “H-How will I do that?” 

“Try for me?” Chan asked sweetly, and how could Hannie say no?

“Okay, I’ll try.” It took a few tries, but Jisung managed to fully outstretch his arms after giggling and pulling his arms to his sides when Chan wiggled his fingers in front of his face. 

“Hyuhung!!” Jisung whimpered when Chan massaged his sides gently. His arms shook with the effort of keeping away. 

Hannie bit his lip and twisted to the left, the tingly sensations shooting up his nerves and leaving him snickering through his teeth. 

“I thought you weren’t ticklish?” Chan asked with a happy grin, moving to the quokka’s lower belly. 

Jisung laughed gently, the soft sensations making him happier than he had ever imagined. “Hyuhuhung plehease!”

“You’re so cute, Hannie! You’re perfect.” Chan decided, continuing to gently tickle the boy beneath him before moving his hands up his shirt gently. “Is this okay?”

He continued when Hannie nodded softly,  massaging the quokka’s soft tummy before moving to his ribs, digging in harshly. 

Jisung let out a loud shriek, cackles pouring from his lips as his hands shot down immediately, gripping the older’s hands and kicking out behind him. 

“OKAHAHAY OKAY OKAY!! AAAHAHAHA!!” Jisung squeezed his eyes shut, smile wide and cute, making Chan practically melt above him. 

Channie gently pulled Han’s hands back above his head to gently remind him to keep them there, tickling around the soft sides of his chest.

“NOHOHOHOHOHO!! AGH IHIT TIHIHICKLES!!” Jisung screeched, keeping his arms up and resorting to gripping his hair tightly on top of his head. 

“Does it really? I’m not even doing much.” Channie gaped with delight. “You’re so ticklish!” 

“AHAHAGH SHUHUHUSH!!” Hannie demanded, cheeks turning red in embarrassment. 

“Okay, okay. Flustered baby.” Chan scratched around the quokka’s armpits gently with his longish nails, watching the boy beneath him scream and fall apart, arms trembling.

“NAAAHAHAHA!! STAHP!! STOHOP IHIHIT!!” 

“Little break for quokka~” Chan sang, letting up and slipping his hands out of Hannie’s shirt.

Jisung panted and rubbed at his torso, out of breath from his constant torment.

Meanwhile, Chan turned and adjusted to sit facing the younger’s legs, which kicked out lightly under his attention. 

The older trainee used his knees to separate Jisung’s legs, thighs trembling in anticipation. 

“Hyung…” Jisung warned, gasping when Chan slid a finger up his thigh. “I really can’t handle it there!” 

“But I really want to!” Chan whined, pouting. “Please?” 

“No!! Hyung!! Please, don’t!” Jisung pleaded desperately, squealing loudly when Chan scribbled up both inner thighs at the same time. 

Channie thought for a second. Hannie’s thighs were like a blank canvas for him to scribble and scratch on, probably sensitive enough to send him ballistic. How could he miss this chance? 

“Eh. I’m doing it anyway.” Chan shrugged.

Jisung opened his mouth to protest, the sound leaving his throat in a strangled scream as Chan grabbed his left knee with one hand and raked up and down his left thigh with the other. 

“AGHHHAHANOHOHO STAHAHAP STAHP STOP!!” Jisung squealed with laughter, Chan’s fingers tickled so torturously along his left thigh, causing him to let out boisterous bouts of hysterical cackles.

“Nah. You’re too cute to.” Chan deadpanned, switching sides and relishing in the quokka’s drawn out screech to let up. 

“PLEHEHEASE HAHAVE MEHEHERCY!! I CAHAHANT AHHAHA!!” 

“Oh? But you can…” Chan switched to scribbling over both thighs, watching them tremble under his touch while Jisung tossed his body around behind him, pounding the couch with his fists and screaming his head off. 

Jisung panted, breath suddenly taken from him as he felt tired and exhausted. He pounded three times on Chan’s shoulder to signify defeat; the older letting up immediately and smiling down at him. 

“You are the most ticklish person I’ve ever met. And the perfect idol.” 

Jisung nodded while gasping for breath, eyebrows furrowed in a confused manner. 

“Welcome to Stray Kids.”

for @sungsbunny

[ebi-noodle-doodles]

Do you have any advice/tutorials on how to make healthily round characters? You do them so well!

Hi I really want to answer this with like my doodles and stuff but I’m out (might reblog the stuff later) but so want to say just use a LOT of references. I got used to not using references most of the time because Ive build a somewhat small mental library in my head but certainly its not absolute or perfect, but If I want to focus on a certain piece I really look for references! OR use the mirror.

My main advice

Build a mental library full or references; Even if the reference you compiled are not the same body type/shape, you soon learn to incorporate them in actually drawing round characters.

You can try building this mental library not just by searching online but ACTUALLY STUDYING ONESELF, by that I mean your body. Try taking videos of yourself and pause on frames that could potentially make a good dynamic reference!

Build a habit of drawing different character bodies. I cant say I’m an expert nor really follow this rule since I lack understanding, really but one of my discovered inspirations before I drew characters like these is the Dungeon Meshi Artist. They draw different shaped characters so well, take inspiration from them!

Pay attention to distribution of fat and muscle. (again I’m not an expert!!!) Pay attention to HEIGHT and WEIGHT of the character. What I usually do is that sometimes I estimate how much torso is going to on or legs so it looks proportionate

I learned that chibi is similar to what Im doing. I guess I learned chibi with round shapes aka bunch of circles and ovals, but irl those are more of chunky sausages(?)

BE CONFIDENT on your SKETCHES. I usually start small in sketching like big canvas/paper small lil “chibi” characters. Practice a pose u like then choose what you want to focus and render on

I feel like I’m saying this more for myself hut fundamentals! fundamentals, fundamentals fun d a ment a l s ! In anatomy, lighting & generally in art is key component to everything really!

Welp might reblog this with some visuals hopefully when I get home! I do think I still need more practice despite all the drawings I made, I feel like it still lacks dynamism that would be appealing at first glance.

if it contributes to anything, I think my coloring also makes the piece “look” soft.

[toshio]

Hello! What kind of workouts do you do, and what youtube channels do you rec???? I know youve answered this before, but i cant find the ask (^///^ )

hey! i don't really follow any youtube channels closely anymore, i just do my own thing. and also i don't mind this question being asked like 50 times because i like getting people active LOL. if my mediocre body inspires people, then i don't mind at all! read carefully anon :)

again to be completely honest, i am not an expert, never claimed to be, so whatever advice you're going to read right now is just my own experience/research. i am just a casual person who likes to move.

i started doing pushups during the pandemic in 2020 after a breakup basically, i was looking at shirtless guys on tiktok and i got inspired LOL so i just googled how to get a chest and it said pushups do the trick. and it does in fact work.

right now i'm trying to walk everyday, for example today i walked like 12-13k steps (your phone tracks this automatically, you can download an app for it too) because i read that walking is extremely good for weight loss, and just VERY good for you in general.

aside from that i have a pull up bar in my room, so basically i just lift myself up with both arms, as much as i can. i do this everyday pretty much, just randomly. i don't track anything, i just do it to maintain my body i guess? like i said idk what the fk i'm doing LOL i just workout for fun. genuinely.

in general, diet is key, make sure you're eating like an insane amount of protein per day. like 100g per day average, depends on your weight. i think the recommended amount is like 0.7-0.8g of protein times your weight. do not stop eating protein. every single day eat stuff like greek yogurt, protein shakes, protein bars (i get these from gas stations and amazon tbh) like you have to be consistent lmao.

i know protein is DISGUSTING most of the time. especially those chalky protein chips and bars. but, beauty is pain. just do it.

[callistosposts]

this is technically not solarballs related but do you have any tips for drawing hair?

I wish I had a clear answer for this, but hair is actually one of the things im least confident in!!

If i had any advice: dont be afraid of big shapes and exaggeration !!

exaggeration helps build character !!! ask yourself what kind of hair a chatacter your drawing would have, and then exaggerate it to the highest degree you can - hair tells storys!!

for example my Neptune has super messy hair to represent how he forgets to take care of himself after losing his mind

Earth has curly hair to represent waves/water!

thinking of characterization definitely helps even before you actually start drawing the hair, for me at least :)

for actually drawing, i tend to break down the hair into 3 pieces

treat each section like its its own drawing! each piece will fall in its own unique way , some pieces will be shorter and others will be longer

hair never directly follows a consistent pattern, to look natural it visits different lengths and textures

imperfections are what make things look good! I mean, one of the ways I taught myself to draw hair was to do the OPPOSITE of what i first imagined was natural (please dont listen to that advice forever, you cant really rely on it)

thats basically all I got XD for colors i just throw things around until it looks okay - sorry if this was messily explained ! i dont truly have a super set way in drawing hair as i said its not my most confident area

[fictionfixations]

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR 2.5 (i talk about a readable item that pertains to post-2.5)

i cant believe i missed this what the fuck

this is why i should read readables. and like actually go out of my way to try to find them if i can gfjdoigsif

this is. holy fuck. like okay i know it was bad because of the scene depicting him after the poison started affecting hoolay but hdfsiufhuds

theres just like a degree of description in writing that makes it feel so much more horrifying in comparison to art? like. like dont get me wrong both mediums have things they're better at depicting and both are good at depicting gore or horror. but like

for me, as a person who when i read i apply it to myself like oh im in this character's shoes and so i get a lot more emotional when reading so it especially feels worse reading this and imagining it like ohh fuck man

and also like. i know it said we found him while he was at death's door but with the description of the state he was in really makes you realize oh shit he really was at deaths door

like holy fuck jiaoqiu D:

(noticed ppl were reblogging so im gonna put this for future viewers. this wont show on the reblog but still. just want yall to know that thats not the only thing in the report, as it includes the treatment plan and current state + post-discharge advice, i just only showed the injury part in the screenshot so id recommend going to the link or finding it yourself, it can apparently be "Found in the Alchemy Commission, on the bench right where Lingsha is located.")

[rontra]

My hand never seems to actually translate the ideas that are spinning up in my brain. how do you get it all out? any advice? just draw more? do i need to use more references? your art is just so beatiful you are one of my top inspos.

ah first of all thank you very much! i'm honored! 😳

(long post incoming lol)

to answer the question though, i don't think i sufficiently translate what's in my mind and i frequently let myself down! but it's important not to let that Stop you. i think overall it's sort of multifaceted and different for everyone--theres no single answer i can give you that will guaranteed work for you--but for me personally i think it mainly comes down to Derangement, DISCRETION!!, Discipline, & Diet

before i say anything more though it's important also to remember that making visual art (in our case drawings/comics) is training like 2 or 3 separate skills (depending on how you divide them). the HAND represents your current drawing ability & technique; what your drawing hand is physically able to produce when you set pen to paper. the BRAIN is the creative engine that cooks up your ideas and thinks of ways to assemble them. and the EYE represents your ability to recognize what art looks like and how it "should" look. when your brain is thinking of ideas and your hand can't capture them, that is not because you're "bad" at it: it means your eye skill is currently outpacing your hand skill. your ability to discern art, to see things like proportions and anatomy and composition and whatever else is going on, is currently stronger than your ability to draw them yourself. this is not a flaw. this is not a flaw. this is not a flaw!!!! but it does mean your hands' ability to capture what your brain has imagined will let your eyes down until your hands catch up. once they do--by studying, practicing your technique, using references, and gaining confidence--your eye skill will then begin to outpace it again. this cycle, the dance between the two skills, is why you might sometimes feel yourself suddenly "getting good" at art, then just as suddenly plateauing or "getting worse"; you are training different parts of what makes art happen. there is nothing wrong with this. you are improving even when it doesnt feel like it--even when it feels like THE LITERAL OPPOSITE is happening. because you're improving different skills!

(and of course as your eye skill develops you will look back at previous stages of development and go "HOW COULD I NOT SEE HOW BAD THIS LOOKS!"--and yeah. that's the thing; you probably, rather literally, couldn't see it! you only think it looks bad now because you've improved your "eye" skill. you should try to be proud of that feeling, even though it also likely sucks and is embarrassing to you at the same time. there's posts, even recent ones, that i go "i cant believe i thought that looked OK enough to post PUBLICLY" and it is embarrassing for me! but all it means is that i'm better at what i do now...so it doesn't get me down too badly. you gotta shrug that stuff off.)

with that out of the way, my four evil councilmen are as follows:

DERANGEMENT: find something you are not normal about. this can be anything (whether it's a topic that interests you, The Character, a medium, a damn color palette...anything!), as long as it captures your mind and motivates you to create. your brain should be spinning up ideas like crazy and your only choice is to draw them. because once you have Derangement the only thing that feels worse than Making Something Subpar is sitting around Not Making Anything At All. you should be interested in what you draw. you should ideally love it, even if you don't love your own art yet. once you know what motivates you, let that simmer until you have no choice but to draw even if you're scared it'll turn out bad. and hey--there will probably (unless you become some kind of Art God) always be parts you think should've turned out better in some way, however:

DISCRETION!!: realistically nobody NEEDS to know what parts of a piece you're unhappy with. it's valuable to have friends/art partners/mentors/whatever that you can comfortably check in with and go "i dont like [part], what do you think" and get feedback, but that's for YOU. for the audience at large, maybe people will notice, maybe they won't, but as an artist you are constantly growing and you will very likely be constantly looking back at past pieces (even just days or hours old sometimes) and going "what the hell was i thinking? how did i not see [error/s], or why didn't i go for [different idea/finish/color palette/etc]?". getting hung up on this will probably either light a fire under you or demotivate you completely depending on your particular brain soup. for me it can go either way depending on where i'm at in my current hand/eye development phase. but i try not to fixate on it. it's enough to observe it and take notes for next time. every drawing is part of your growth and you have to make wonky art in order to occasionally make something that satisfies your eyes. in the meantime, don't beat yourself up or put yourself down. you are gaining experience and technical know-how, and spotting things you'd like to work on for next time; especially if you're sharing this work and other people are telling you they like what you made, there's no need to undercut this by dwelling on the rough parts so much that you can't enjoy it. the important thing is that you made it.

DISCIPLINE: you made it, it's done, now make something new. do it again from the top! you're right: Drawing A Lot is absolutely the key to Drawing Better. it is also usually an evil curse that reveals How Bad You Drew 3 Months Ago. but you have no choice, if you want to hone your skills and improve the Brain Image -> Art Image translation. you have to do it even when it sucks. do it bored, do it scared, but you have to do it or you'll never get anywhere. when improving yourself, you have to draw a lot to see change, and this is the part that sucks, right? feeling like you're not really getting anywhere or like you'll never capture what's in your mind. you can do studies where you collect references and focus in on ironing out something that's bothering you (such as, like, specific objects, perspectives, clothing details, anatomy pieces, light and shadow, etc etc); this can help crack the malaise for sure... learning how to use references is good, as well as whatever tools are available to you (in your medium/software). How To Do This is sort of a different post, but it does help (and sometimes annoyingly so; there's been rare but very annoying moments in my career where i will be simply looking at a picture and idly make an observation that cracks a style/anatomy problem i've had for Years and im always like COME ON!!! hahaha--but yes looking at references and studying them "like an artist" definitely helps, even when it's not as miraculous as that). overall work smarter and nail down the stuff you're unsure about, then incorporate what you've learned into your art style until it looks a way you like. you will likely have to just grind it out sometimes, and often this grind will not feel particularly fun. but you can Dog Medication Salami Pocket yourself into it if you're drawing something you're sufficiently Deranged about. <- this is what diesel is always doing with those women (LOL)

also, Output. you do have to Be Making Stuff in order to finish stuff. for example for comic projects like adastra or failteacher au, if i can draw ~1 page a day, the update will be complete in no time. but i have to draw that 1 page every day to make it happen, even if i feel off or lack confidence about what i'm making. of course i'm not saying you shouldn't take breaks; you NEED to take breaks, set your goals to your own level, and listen to yourself (and don't get some kind of wrist problem like me please). but the point im trying to make is that if you can make yourself sit down and do it even though you're scared it'll turn out bad, (or, hell, even if this part of your project is Simply Boring), then you can do it anytime. this is important too. but you will probably still sometimes feel stuck if you try to work and grind all the time.

DIET: regularly, but especially when you're stuck in a rut, step away from your craft and enrich your diet. you have to play just as much as you have to work. for example, i am always ALWAYS reading comics. at any given time i probably have 1-4 (sometimes more) tabs open of different comics i am simultaneously reading!!!! i read webcomics, webtoons, manga, DC--any demographic or genre, i take random recs from people and just go read them. whatever medium you're in, you have to take in what other people are doing with it, you have to let them teach and inspire you. you have to branch out and look at genres and styles you usually don't. unwind and look at comics, at illustrations, at design, at animation, at video games. enjoy them as an audience, but look at them like an artist too. when you like something, pause and examine (as both an artist and audience) why you like it. (vice versa: if you don't like something, you can try to figure out why that is!) let other people's ideas and habits flow over you. you have to relax and enrich your mind, to refresh your creativity and motivation. this is crucial. when you come back, you'll feel refreshed and ready to go, and your big brain cauldron of tools + ideas + techniques will be all shiny and bubbling. it's just as important to experience art as it is to make it. i really can't stress that enough!!!!

i talk about comics specifically here because right now obviously i am making a lot of comics (adastra, failteachers). i often feel like i get stuck in boring page layouts and can't think of how to panel something. and honestly sometimes a basic layout that just Gets Through The Scene is simply sufficient (after all, not everything has to be a Groundbreaking New Masterpiece; we would all get fatigued by that!)--or otherwise a "boring layout" is just what i have to put down in order to put down anything at all. but in both cases, reading comics and taking in what people are doing with their layouts makes me feel refreshed and i can return to my own work all rested and bright-eyed. everything we read and watch and take in is added to our "mental library" for the brain to reference when it's time to create something. it is just as enriching and important to experience someone else's art and perspective, and to enjoy a diverse range of impressions. you are always learning and observing, so try to pay attention--it's feeding your brain... :j

(and now, hopefully, your enriched Diet has added fertilizer for your Derangement, and the entire council can take their turn again from the top of the order. HDFHBJFS)

hmm...

well, overall, like i said at the top, there's no One Solution or really Single Piece Of Advice i can offer you. but i hope maybe you got something out of it anyway. everyone's a bit different and everyone's ideal workflow and journey is different too. but don't give up, keep at it, and...GOOD LUCK!!! 🫡🫡🫡

& always remember: in the end, making something YOU like, that looks good to YOU and fulfills YOUR goals, is more important than making something "perfect" (if such a thing even exists). as long as YOU'RE enjoying making your art (yes, even when making the art is hell and sucks!), that's all that matters. 🤝

[minas-linkverse]

Do you have any tips or tricks on how to start a comic like this? Or even just how you got started?? I've had my own au for years that I so badly wanna put out into the world but I've been struggling with finding a good way to start it!!!!

Hm!! Ok!! This is a tough question with many different answers even just from me. I'll do my best to answer tho!! 😮

The main bit of advice I want to give, and which I think is vital to anyone creating anything:

☆ Know yourself.

When looking up advice for creating, people love to tell you that by doing things a specific way is the best and only way to go. Often advice of this sort has solid points, you should plan ahead, you should have easy character designs, buut... You don't have to.

I do not work well with outlines or scripts. I dislike sketching. You'd think that'd make being a long form comic artist impossible for me, but nope.

I know theres things I cannot do, so I've put all my practise to what I can do. My lineart style allows me to almost skip sketching completely, my scripts are more of an A to B structure than law. I improv 90% of the time when making pages. It's kinda like dnd with myself.

I would absolutely not reccomend what I'm doing to others, but I know it works for me. People can tell me I'm doing it wrong but its either wrong or no comic at all, SO. Suck it. 👍

Er. Rambling now.

My point is, figure out what you can and cant do, and do your best to give yourself the ideal work enviorment and process.

☆ Deal with being overwhelmed

Making just a few panels and suddenly realising its gonna take years to get anywhere is SO demoralising. It's gonna happen and its gonna happen again, and again, and—

But continuing with the earlier advice, you gotta ask yourself what would help you. Are you willing to sacrifice quality? Do you just need a break? Maybe you're like me and like to include smth you love in every update so you'll have something to get excited about making.

That feeling of overwhelm is trying to tell you something, so figure out what that is so it wont end the project for you.

☆ Start it

You wont like what you make when starting. I've never heard of an artist who has.

I'm not saying start this instant, not everyone is as into improv and flailing around as me. But I will say you'll never feel ready. Figure out the minimun of what you need to start and do it. Show friends first if youre afraid to post.

Also where to start? Well sure there's lots of good advice online about that, but you can also just doodle random stuff until you feel like diving deeper. That's what LV started with, just Twi and Wild hanging out with animals and some headcanons. It may not be the most tightly written work but theres beauty in the humanity of a mess.

☆ Extras

A "failed project" or "forgotten WIP" is only a failure if you let yourself feel that way. Yea it can be a hauntingly strong feeling thats hard to deal with... But it can be beaten. WIPS are proof you tried and not everyone can say they have.

Lv is far from done and I have no intention of dropping it, but because the journey has been so nice I'd satisfied even if I had to call it here. Its smth that helps me with the overwhelm... What I've made is beautiful even now.

Comparing yourself to others is gonna rip your heart out. I love that theres other links meet aus out there and hope the best for those artists but I caNNot follow any of them or I'll crumble to dust.

So Uhm.

Basically. Have fun and be yourself. 👍

Ps. Readability is basically the most important thing for a comic artist to pay attention to, that and not destroying yourself with details and rendering. 🙌 Good luck out there!

[ceasarslegion]

I know i have a lot of teenagers who follow me because i dont baby talk to them regarding things like drugs and alcohol and sex. So i wanted to throw out some advice that still saves my ass every day as an adult that i learned to instill in myself as a teenager:

-Learn how to keep house. I know that every adult is beating job skills into you right now and its overwhelming to say to least, but no matter what you end up doing with your life, you will need to know how to cook and clean and budget and go grocery shopping and do laundry and the dishes and x y z. You will need to know how to work with cleaning products like bleach safely and without creating mustard gas by accident. If you figure that out now, you will be able to take care of yourself for the rest of your life. Those are skills that you WILL need every day in the real world no matter what.

-i want to asterix the budgeting part. I know way too many grown adults who could be doing very well for themselves who are broke as shit and actively getting worse because they cant budget to save their lives. Managing your finances is what will often be the difference between living relatively comfortably and struggling to get by.

-dont get roommates if you can help it. I know you will want to, and it will seem like a fun idea to live with your friends and like nothing would go wrong, but roommates ruin friendships. If you can afford to live on your own when you first head out, do it. Trust me, paying the full rent is worth not having to deal with other peoples bullshit taking up your living space. I learned this the hard way, dont be like me. The only people you should be actively looking to live with at the young adult stage of your life are any permanent partner(s) that might come along the way, and you should rush that either. And taking some proper time to be on your own will do you so much good in the long run in realizing what kind of person you are and what you need in things like work, relationships, life in general, etc.

-you don't need a brand new car, and your first apartment doesnt need to be high end and fancy. All your firsts for those things need to be are functional, safe, and reliable. And you will love them regardless if theyre your first car/apartment. And you dont really NEED a car if youre an urbanite with a reliable enough transit system, either. Thats more of an individual thing if thats your situation. I live in an older apartment building with a stove from a brand that doesnt even exist anymore, but its real spacious for one person, in a nice part of downtown where everythings still right outside my door, and all my utilities are included. I pay 500 dollars less in rent a month for this than my coworker who lives 2 blocks away from me and has half the space i do with none of the utilities included because its all smart tech and luxury suites in that building. You don't need all that, you will not notice the difference when you actually live there.

-no one cares about high school tier drama when you hit your college years, especially if you go to an academically-based school. In my experience at least, the schools the nerds end up at think the d&d club is the coolest one on campus. This will pass, you will be fine. The nerds really do inherit the earth after you graduate, and all those bullies really do peak in high school. The guy who was the worst offender towards me in high school now literally pumps gas for his dads gas station because nobody else would hire him. Which is fine, its honest work, but it IS a tad ironic how things worked out there after so many years of telling me he'd be my boss one day. Yeah sure, howd that work out bud

-please dont get into drugs and alcohol just to be cool. I know every adult has treated you like some porcelain doll to be handled with baby gloves regarding any sort of substance, but if you choose to partake in them, all i ask is that you be informed about the risks, you do it safely, and dont do it for social clout. Its not the substances im most concerned about there, its that when you do them for social approval, you dont know when to stop or how to listen to your body telling you thats enough, which is a straight shot to a potential addiction. Its your choice whether or not to consume drugs and/or alcohol, but its irresponsible to act like theres no real risk involved in them, especially if you have the kind of personality more susceptible to addiction. Do them for yourself, in safe environments, as cleanly as you can get them if possible, and only after you educate yourself about what the risks are and what resources there are in your area for healthcare and counseling if you do develop an addiction.

-be selfish, but dont be a dick. Your young adulthood is when you should be selfish in the sense of prioritizing your own mental health, work ascension/schooling, etc, but you can do all those things without being standoffish or disregarding other people in the process. You should be there for your loved ones if you can, but if you cant, give them the common courtesy of telling them. A simple "hey, id love to help you if i could, but i have too much going on right now to spare anything. But im always here to talk about it if you need it, ily and im wishing you all the best <3" is way better than "i cant help you right now, i have my own problems to deal with."

[sgojoenthusiast]

hi guys!! i need some help. if you read all this yap i love you.

i haven’t posted anything in a while bc i’ve been really struggling w my sexuality. this is going to come as an absolute shock if you follow me, but for the past year or so i’ve identified as a lesbian. however i am one of those lesbians who would kill for any of my pretty little princesses (my big, buff, 6’0 fictional men) and i absolutely LOVE to write fan fiction for them - which is somewhat apart of the problem.

i cant actually picture myself doing any of these things with a real life man but i also can't picture myself doing anything with a woman either. it's not that i don't like the idea i just can't physically see myself doing any of it and atp i can't really see myself in a relationship at all.

this whole thing started about a month ago, where i was introduced to another girl. the first night we met, we did stuff together (not rllt much) but i did feel a little pressured into it. the entire time i was just thinking 'when is this going to end' but not because it didn't feel good. we've been talking a lot (long distance) and she likes the same things i like (which is difficult for me to find) and she's kind and funny but i just can't seem to like her in that way. i've never liked any woman to the point where i can call it love so i feel like i can't call myself a lesbian even though i've never felt that way for a man either, but then again i don't really speak to many men outside of my family/gay friends.

i can see myself married to a woman more than i can see myself married to a man. i find men attractive and i find women attractive but i can't tell if i'm attracted to them, and seeing my lesbian friends with their girlfriends makes me so jealous because i want that i just don't know if i'm capable of feeling such strong feelings.

i've already decided that i'll talk to the girl from earlier about this once i've gathered the courage because i know it's unfair for me to string her along when i'm so unsure at the minute because clearly i'm unready for a relationship. like at one point my friend thought she was talking to another girl and if anything i just felt relieved.

on the topic of fan fiction, i know and understand that it is completely different from real life s3x & that it sets an unrealistic standard for these kinds of things which is why i love to write it. i love writing about that kind of connection and visioning a world with a love like that even if i do write it about men a lot. but when i take into account the real world and real men i'm completely uninterested and can only see that world with a woman but then i don't really ever write about women.

i love the idea of love and falling in love and i don't know what i'd do without it but then there's a part of me that thinks that i could be aroace because i can't seem to feel any of these feelings.

anyway, all this has stemmed from one girl and i can't tell if its just another failed attempt at a relationship or whether i'm not really a lesbian.

thank you for anyone taking the time to read this i appreciate it and would love for some advice. i know labels aren't important but in a community so divided as this one i feel like i need a space where i can feel more comfortable and with people like me.

[actualbird]

Hello! a bit nervous going into college moving out and all but what are your tips/advices/pet peeves…although its comforting to think that in this day and age Luke and Rosa had to deal the same stuff im dealing right now?! 🥹 -2006 bby

hi anon!! unfortunately i am NOT the best person to ask this question at all because i never moved out for college. in fact, ive never moved out in my life 😭 im filipino, we tend to not move out unless we get married or whatever sklbfksjfbdjsf

but i can give general tips for college i think!! it's been a while since i was a college student myself, so these tips are gonna be vague as hell though OTL

do your readings, do your papers, do your homework, dont use chatgpt or get someone else to write your stuff etc etc etc. if you made it to college that is a privilege and you shouldnt waste it!! take all the oppurtunities you can to learn and better yourself, college is the best time to do a lot of development in the brainzone and the skills you built in doing these will definitely be useful later on when youre looking for a job.

get into organizations or clubs or extracurriculars and whatnot, if you can handle it! you can develop in a whole lot of ways, not just academically. plus, it's a great way to meet new people too.

jumping off from that last bullet, definitely make time and reserve effort for meeting new people!!! which can be scary, but i met a lot of friends who are dear to me in college. i also met my girlfriend there! so take a chance and get to know the people you see every day, you may end up meeting some really cool people you'll cherish for a long time.

try to be honest with your professors if mental health stuff or other issues are getting in the way of your performance at school. i know there are Terrible professors out there, but in my experience, they are outnumbered by the professors who just genuinely want to see you do your best and graduate. if you cant handle something for good reason, send em an email. try to work with your professors and not against them.

dont be scared to change your mind. if you chose a major but halfway through you realize you want to shift studies? go for it, if your circumstances permit. you might as well follow your gut instead of regretting the decision you didnt make

i hope this helps!!! also, good god, you were born in 2006???? and youre 18 now????????? thats bonkers. that doesnt sound allowed. holy shit.

[orchidyoonkook]

I adore your stories. I literally keep going back to them, they're that good! You're easily one of my favorite fic writers on Tumblr.

I was wondering if I could ask for some writing advice?

I used to write fics, and I have a ton of ideas that I'm wanting to write out. I'm even wanting to pick up and re-write an old fic. My issue is I have no clue where to start again.

How do you get motivated to write?

And do you ever look at your work and feel blah about it, like it doesn't seem to be good to you?

I am so happy this ask caught me on a catch up day. I've literally spent all day catching up on missed asks I can asnwer and reviews and messages. It's honestly like a little reward and for that I wanna say such a big thank you.

Onto!:

(note from future yoon: omg this is so long im so sorry)

I adore your stories. I literally keep going back to them, they're that good! You're easily one of my favorite fic writers on Tumblr.

Well I guess I'm starting this off in tears?? This is the sweetest thing literally ever and I cannot thank you enough for giving my stories a chance. I'm sure you know as a writer yourself but this is the most any writer could ask for in terms of feedback and I literally just wanna hug you.

Thank you so much for reading.

And the fact that I'm one of literally anyone's favourite fic writers is actually insane. Take that highschool english teacher! But in all seriousness I will actually cry this is so kind thank you thank you thank you. 😭😭😭♥♥♥♥♥

I was wondering if I could ask for some writing advice?

Absolutely, always. But idk how good it'll be XD

I used to write fics, and I have a ton of ideas that I'm wanting to write out. I'm even wanting to pick up and re-write an old fic. My issue is I have no clue where to start again.

literal story of my life my god how i relate to this.

How do you get motivated to write?

I don't. That's the thing. When I'm motivated it's like a fluke. (jsyk this is gunna be long because I cant shut up)

TWWWBAATTA was a complete and total fluke. I'd had a dream, it was the first act of the story. I loved the idea so much that when I woke up I wrote the spark notes of it in my notes app. And then I sat on it for two weeks. I hadn't written anything in maybe 4 years, let alone fic, let alone a BTS fic. I'd only ever written one thing prior that wasn't for my education so I had no idea what the hell I was going to do.

The idea kept pounding at the door of my brain, begging to be let in and explore every freaking nook and crany it could. So i let it. and after two weeks, I had a very VERY rough plot. I kept the ideas in either my notes app or a google doc, and i just let them flow. Anything and everything. And soon enough TWWWBAATTA was born.

UTWT came from a writing prompts list. I saw a prompt for "First kiss" and then thought "wouldn't it be cool if it was under a willow tree like the one in my hometown?" and literally 2 days later UTWT was written. -> Rainfall Brings Tomorrow came from an ask, it hit me out of freaking nowhere. I just wanted something short and sweet and ask fulfilling and RBT worked perfectly for that.

TDWV was the first thing I actively sat down and told myself to write. Halloween is my favourite holiday, and I wanted to do something for it last year. I'd had the title written down in my idea's note, and built it up from there. I went to pinterest, I looked at old and new "story ideas" on there and on tumblr lists. I essentially just pick and chose pieces of prompts and stuff from my own ideas and built it up from there. I had a general goal: spooky, yoongi, first attempt at writing smut -> because I always put a challenge in the stories for myself, whether that be writing something I never have or exploring a new topic or following specific tropes <- and then I chose a setting. And literally just built up the story as I went.

Most recently with PG, I'd been in such a writing rut, still am. But I wanted to write SOMETHING. and PG -> Pretty Girl was another thing I'd had in my ideas note. So I took that and then decided in order to just write, I'd write something easy and took a lot of my favourite tropes and decided to write off those. In this case it was older brothers best friend, age gap, forbidden love, yearning, possessive male lead, overprotective older brother and head strong female lead. And went wild with it. I didn't know the member I was writing at first, but then when I went to go write the vibe of the male lead, I realised it was Tae.

Once I have a general idea of the overall story I can usually just channel the rest. As in I can just write the story as it plays out. But sometimes it doesnt work like that and I get stuck, like with a Joon fic I've half started. I have the overall vibe, and I can feel what I want to happen, but I'm missing some key points or I can't see them yet so it's still vibing in my drafts.

So you can see I don't really get motivation so more of a it finds me and then I work on it. Sometimes I have to just make it from thin air. The thing that helps me most tho is I have to remember that I enjoy writing. I like doing it. I like telling stories even if no one else will like them. I like experiencing them with the characters, as the characters, as the settings and their props, i enjoy character creation and giving them their quirks and hobbies and backstories. It's not a chore to write their stories, it's a priviledge they chose me to tell it.

It's so hard to explain, but if you're having a tough time with the stories you're wanting to tell, it probably means they need just a touch more shelf time, or at least so is the case for me.

My advice would be to weave a fic into something you love. My female characters are often in the arts because I love art and creating it. I wove PG from tropes I'm a sucker for. I wove UTWT from a single idea and a tree from my hometown I've always adored. Little itty bitty things like this can drive story ideas and motivation because you can always go back and realise why you were writing it in the first place.

One of the most important things for me is to remember that somebody else has already done your idea. But you haven't. It's never been done your way. And idk about you, but I can absolutely say I've never said "Oh no! not ANOTHER forbidden romance fic! there's just too many of them" because there's not. I will happily read the same exact fic with slight variations a hundred times over. And so will other people, so don't worry about it being like others.

Motivation is something people think they need in order to to the big overall arcing task. But you dont. All you have to do is set aside an hour or three (I use 9pm-midnight) for the thing you want to do. If i write or plot or idea come up with for three hours a night, seven days a week, thats 21 hours of writing time. I could get out 2 sentences or 20k words in that time. But all that matters is that I did SOMETHING.

You don't have to do it all in one go. You don't even have to do it over the course of a set period of time. I started TWWWBAATTA in August of 2022 and I only have 8(?) chapters out. I work on it when I can, but I don't push it because writing is meant to be a hobby I enjoy.

As for where to start. Start somewhere new or somewhere familiar. Pick an idea or a previously written scene and write it or update it to match your current writing style. I cannot begin to tell you the amount of times I've picked up and put down a chapter of TWWWBAATTA because it wasn't what I wanted or I hated the direction it was going. But I always came back and either added or edited, and sooner or later an idea would strike or I'd figure it out through the repitition. Having multiple stories to bounce between has also helped me when I'm stuck. I try to keep three on hand, but two works just as well. Just to get a variation. Like I had PG going at the same time as the previously mentioned Joon fic another Yoongi fic on the go. All differernt genres, all wildly different plots and directions, and just being able to go between the three when one wasn't working to give my brain a breather helped a lot.

is that sufficient? I feel like I've just been ranting about my process versus answering the question, but it's through my process that I answer the question, does that make sense? If not, feel free to ask again or more specifically in exactly what you'd like to know, I'm literally always happy to talk anyones ear off.

And do you ever look at your work and feel blah about it, like it doesn't seem to be good to you?

A L W A Y S. alwayssss. All of the goddamn time. But I see it as a good thing because that means I'm improving.

Writing is one of those things that you will never reach the top skill level off because it doesn't exist. You can always get better, be better, write more, write better, write differently. It's a constantly evolving internal staircase that you will never reach the top of. Which is both extremely relieving because that means you can always improve, and yet incredibly frustrating because you will constantly be looking back on previous works like "what the hell was I thinking' because your style has evolved with the progress you've made.

I used to be so goddamn proud of the first chapter of TWWWBAATTA. I loved it. I thought it was the perfect opening chapter to this huge story in my head. It set up everything, I was just really pleased with it and excited to post it. But I reread it a while ago and my literal thoughts were "This, THIS, is what I was so proud of?? It needs literally so much work oh my god"

And then I remember that I wrote that two years ago, I have two years more of experience than I did before I wrote it. So of course it's not going to be as good as I could do now. But it was as good as I could do then. And that's okay. I'm still proud of 2 years ago me, and I'm happy she was really pleased with her work. She was excited and eager and happy to write. That's the feeling I try to chase with writing, not how good the writing is, but the feeling I get when I do it.

okay rant over, thank you for sending this ask in it was so much fun to talk shop!! I barely do it nowadays with new folks and all my friends are probably sick to death of me talking process XD.

I hope your writing goals are met and your ideas flow. But even if they dont, try writing something completely different. Try to describe a colour without using it's name, or a season without using it's key descriptive points. My favourite is taking cliche lines and reworking them into something different and more creative (ex: "My heart was racing" into something like "My heart threatened to break free from it's prison with nothing more than it's quick thundering beats" you get the gist). Or set a goal for yourself. Write four sentences everyday. They could all be one word. They could all be filled with commas and semi colons and take up half the page when your done.

My point, I guess, is to just write. Whether it's good or bad, doesnt matter, you can always fix it later. Editing is the easy part, you just gotta get the ideas down first, and then refine from there.