#sometimes you accidentally make a better drawing by deleting your art

[martletsable]

Big Bev climbs up from the deep.

[farmerstarter]

hello ! i don't know if you take requests and if you do, i don't know if they're open but i'd love to read some of your leah headcanons. (feel free to delete this if i'm accidentally breaking the rules, etc etc, i completely understand !)

ʚ🌲ɞ ˚ · . Random Leah HCs :

Tags: Leah from SDV x gn! reader

Thank you so much for the request anon! I hope you enjoy these. I've been planning on romancing Leah in one (of many) saves of mine but I would always end up not doing it ^^; This was a delight to write! Have a great day/night 🤍🌷

🌲 You met Leah while you were foraging in Cindersnap Forest. She said she was trying to find some food by seeing what nature has to offer. And she enthusiastically showed you all the best areas for things such as spring onions and quality leeks. She also gave you a short lesson on what you can and cannot eat, not wanting her new neighbor to get a real bad stomach ache from a mushroom you found and decided to eat. You two made it a habit to forage together. Sometimes, she would put the better foragables in your backpack without you looking.

🌲 Leah likes to cook. The both of you would have picnics by the lake every other Sunday, showcasing whatever you two whipped up. Along with that, you and Leah would paint until the day ends. You would always draw her. And Leah would always keep your drawings in a little book. They may not be the best but she cherishes each one of them.

🌲 You're her personal source of hardwood. She appreciates all the things you give her that would help her in sculpting. You'd show her the weirdly shaped driftwood you would find while fishing and she would ask to keep it for her to use in one of her projects.

🌲 Sometimes (almost always, actually) Leah would accidentally make too much wild mushroom stir fry or fruit salad, and she'll go to your farm to give the extra to you.

🌲 Leah invites you over to her cabin for most of winter. The two of you would drink cider and you would be snuggled in her many quilts, watching her make a collage of dried leaves the two of you collected in fall.

🌲 Leah and Robin often hang out to discuss carpentry. When Robin mentions that she's building a chicken coop for your farm, Leah would pipe in with little ideas to make the coop look better. You especially love the drawing of a chicken that's engraved on the coop door. It was Leah's idea, even engraved it herself. She does that sometimes. Just get a chisel and chip on little designs on your fences and shipping bin. You enjoy finding them.

🌲 She's very adamant that you let her help you with farm work. She doesn't like to stay indoors when she has art block so she insists that she help you with anything you need. The two of you make a pretty good team. You'd hoe the dirt and Leah would plant the seeds. Afterwards, the two of you work together to water each crop, often starting at opposite ends of the field before meeting in the middle.

🌲 Leah helps Marnie take care of her animals sometimes. She is especially fond of rabbits and she was more than thrilled when you bought your first one from Marnie.

🌲 You definitely give Leah some of your harvested crops. You pile them in a little basket and place it in front of her door the first thing in the morning. She found out it was you after Elliott accidentally revealed it to her while they were hanging out in the Saloon. Elliott wouldn't stop apologizing to you for a solid week.

🌲 She makes you little bracelets out of flowers 🥺

[dunetevenn]

SELFSHIP COLLAB ARE OPEN!! (2 slots aviable)

Proship DNI

Hi everyone!! Now that I have less WiPs, I can start working on more stuff :D So, I decided to share some more infos about this collab!!

You can read the concept in the screenshot ^^

I'm opening 3 slots for now, but if I get good experiences I might open them again ^-^

Here's a little QnA that nobody asked for, but can be useful:

-Can platonic/familial F/Os participate?

Of course!! I mostly have romantic F/Os, but I have a few sons and friends I can use :3 (the adopted children are listed, but not the friends, you can ask me directly if you wish to know). The settings doesn't have to be romantic, it can be anything as long as it's not innapropriate!! Even fanmade family members of my F/Os are accepted (like if you created a sibling for Donny for example and would like to use it) ^^

-Can I participate if I'm under 18?

Even though the collabs will be SFW, I would be more comfortable working with people over 18, so no.

-Can we do a collab with a F/O we're sharing?

That's a bit complicated: I am not super comfortable sharing, but also I'm not against the idea of a collab about a poly dynamic (as long as it doesn't contain any rivality, I don't want to draw my S/I fighting with someone else's over a shared F/O), so I'd say it depends (I'm quite jealous and protective over my f/os but I'm trying to be better). Can be fine if my romantic F/O is your platonic F/O tho :3

-Do we have a deadline?

I'd say 3 monthes? I can be really slow depending on the style I'm using, so I really don't want to force others to rush their part!! Plus technical difficulties (that I'm sure will happen, knowing my luck lol) can happen, so really the 3 monthes "deadline" can be extented ^^ We just can't share our parts publicly as long as the final piece isn't finished.

-Are non-human couples okay?

Of course :3 I mostly have human F/Os but that doesn't stop anything !!

-My F/O comes from a controversial media, can I still participate?

If it's controversial just because of the creator, then I don't care, you can participate!! As long as your ship isn't problematic, it's fine for me.

-What about evil or slasher F/Os?

Those are perfectly fine. I do not count them as problematic as long as it's not a fetishized abusive relationship. Please read the rules about this.

Rules:

•Be nice and patient !! This is my first time opening collabs, and I sometimes have troubles with communications, but I'll do my best

•No NSFW/suggestive content!! I'd accept that in art trades and commissions but not here. No gore or violence too.

•Communication is needed. We're probably gonna have to talk a good while to be sure of what we want to do, so don't let me without answers for a week!! And same for me, I'll do my best to contact you whenever it's needed as quickly as I can!! Also WiP sharing's important too

•No proship content. I won't work with a zoo/abusive/incestuous/pedo ship (even if it's with an aged-up character). Note that if I don't know a character you want to use, I will make researches about it to make sure it's not an aged-up kid or anything else from the list.

If you are proship, I won't accept your participation and I am kindly asking you to please not interact with my content. I'm very uncomfortable about this. Same if you're shipping yourself with a real person. Don't do that.

And if I accidentally accept a collab like that (mistakes can happen if I fail my researches), I will delete the art and block the person I collaborated with.

HOWEVER, as stated before, evil F/Os (slasher characters, characters like Sephiroth or characters like Arktos) are not counted on this list and therefore are accepted

•It's not "first arrived first served", I have a right to refuse a collab. You too btw: I'd recommend checking my f/o list beforehand so you can tell me in advance if there's a f/o you're not comfortable seeing in a collab, I'll just pick an other one ^^

Okay, that's all I can think about for the infos, if you have any other question that I didn't included in the list, you can ask it in the comments or directly in private ^^ !! Hope some people will be interrested !!

[charseraph]

You’ve probably answered this before, but do you have any advice for anyone wanting to make their own spec bio species? I tried making my own but I feel like they’re too humanoid of designs but that’s also what I’m most comfortable with😔

Don’t worry, I’m happy to answer!

I found that finding a shape, even the most ‘unusable,’ ‘un-animal-able’ shape around you, and then replicating that shape as accurately as you can in a sinch (no streamlining! Shaky messed up lines are ENCOURAGED, living things are all imperfect squiggles, so minimize your erases and undos!) can help with silhouette ideas.

(The reason for that is that instead of deleting a ‘bad’ drawing outright, you can start anew or copy only the parts you liked, and then boom! You’ve got one drawing you’re happy with and another you’ll more likely than not return to in the future, however far.)

(A dozen fast, improvised designs can beat out a single painstakingly planned one. It seems counterintuitive that quantity can be better than quality, but that’s only if you know the quality ahead of time! When it comes to concept art, more is better at the very beginning.)

Once you’ve replicated a handful of shapes, don’t add eyes and ears. In fact, don’t draw anything you’d think of as something an animal would have. The frequent fallbacks are tails, claws, paws, toes, ears, horns, fur, wings, joints, teeth, snouts, and hexapedal, quadrupedal, and bipedal bodies with heads in the front. These things are not universal, they are just our earthly scope of our closest relatives.

Modeling an alien species after insects, birds, reptiles, or sea life will make your alien nonhuman, but still earthling. These categories won’t necessarily arise in an alien world. Evolution doesn’t produce birds as we know them, evolution takes the most convenient source material and produces something to fill the niches birds occupy, and birds happened to be that source material.

I like to think about building a species like building a robot. How does a robot know where it’s going? Light sensors, maybe. Those don’t need to be orbs, or even at the front. How do some robots move? They don’t necessarily need spines or toes or claws or tails. How is fuel acquired? Lots of earth animals happen to have a hole in the front that sucks it in and breaks it up for refinement. Does it only have to be this way?

The more you separate life from Earth and relate it more to processes, means to the goal of continuing one’s design’s existence, creating more and more alien but still feasibly alive creatures becomes easier.

Above all, it should be fun. Researching biological precedent and basis from actual animals isn’t absolutely required, because those processes are based on logic—through which you can invent (or accidentally independently replicate) your own symbioses, organs, life cycles, and body chemistries.

Earth nature is like a template: working too closely from it can make you something that’s feasible, but could be recognizably earthly. Imagination is like raw resources: difficult to refine into something that makes total sense at first (from a lack of reference and guidance), but, with the right balance of templates and shots in the dark—you can make something positively, confidently alien!

You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to of course! It’s not a rule set, and you aren’t doing anything wrong if you don’t do them. The ultimate goal is to enjoy creating, not just the end result. Your aliens should be fun for you to draw. The amount of worldbuilding you want to do is your choice alone and no one else’s. Stopping at a single species, culture, planet is perfectly OK. Don’t let guides or other worlds pressure you into making more than you’re craving to.

If you ever make any drafts, however small, I’d love to see them. I’m always down to hear about people’s alien ideas, I sometimes throw in some fan art to help out. I wish you the best of luck, fun, and ease.

[thejadecount]

Reverse! Wirt Headcanons:

So I’ve seen like one post about Reverse! Wirt and reverse Pinescone and how he’s a tall, messy crackhead theatre kid

And I would like to add my own

(I may have done this before and accidentally deleted the post idk I thought I did this once but I couldn’t find the post so if I did do this before someone tell me)

I’m also gonna do one for Fight! Wirt

Because if there’s a Rev! Wirt, there’s one for Fight Falls

His poetry is good, but not the slow, romantic gentle kind normal Wirt likes. His is more sensual, visual the kind to start a hook up. Like you better watch out for poetry man or before you know it you’ll be in his bed

He regularly reads and quotes Shakespeare and no Romeo and Juliet isn’t his favorite (it’s his second favorite)

His favorite is A Midsummer Night’s Dream because crazy witch and fairy shit just happens in it and he loves it.

He has a habit of running his fingers through his hair when he’s nervous and usually doesn’t do this in front of people which is why his hair is constantly messy

He constantly flirts with Mason but it either fails to land everytime or he just flats out ignores it

He likes to dramatically spread himself on those long velvet chairs when he’s upset

He definitely spoils himself during Mason’s parties and uses the “I-know-the-rich-guy” advantages to their full extent

He (this is going with a Will Cipher Headcanon I mentioned sometime ago) definitely knows Will is a masochist and Mason has no clue and just finds it really fucking funny and regularly congratulates Will

He likes gossiping with Rev! Mabel a lot.

Abstract art. Museums, making his own, he likes it. It’s chaotic, colorful, and random. Perfect.

Whereas Wirt is naturally more romantic and sexually awkward, it’s the total opposite. He can get laid whenever he wants with whoever he wants, but the moment he gets romantically close to someone he panics.

He’s an expert on tropes and cliches, and can quote any vine from memory. Anyone who has had a good 10 minute conversation with him where he’s not flirting with you can vouch, he is a fucking meme dispenser.

Mason and Will always fret over his messiness and he knows he’s messy and half of it is just because he knows it ticks them all off and he enjoys every second of it

He and Bill would be best friends though—gay wingmen. They would regularly complain and whine about their Dippers if they met.

Never give him those long stripes of streamers. Don’t even think about duct tape. You don’t want to know the damage he can do with glue involved.

He and Regular Mabel would also be best friends.

He enjoys the sweetest and coldest tea ever! He will physically cringe at the smell of coffee get that shit away from him.

He’s very flexible. Very flexible. And yeah, good for in bed but what he does to stretch is the TRUE HORROR.

Y’know silk dancing? Where people wrap themselves on a long strand of silk really high in the air? It’s like pole dancing but with silk. I don’t know if it’s supposed to be erotic like pole dancing, but I just think it’s pretty cool and elegant, so yeah. He can do that.

You also know acrobats and all those stunts Zendaya pulls of during that song Rewirte the Stars from the Greatest Showman (which I think is a great movie, great music) with all the ropes and the hoop and stuff? He also can do that.

Someone do an animatic of him and Reverse Dipper with that song. I would, but as I mentioned several times before, I can’t draw worth shit.

You know those white silk shirts with low v-necks and very loose and float long sleeves? He’s almost never seen without one. His addiction had become an urban myth. No one can figure out if he has several of the same shirt or constantly washes that one, not even Will the demon. No one knows and no will ever know.

One that ominous note, y’all reblog this with your own headcanons

SPREAD THE CHAOS THAT IS REVERSE WIRT!!!

[frappe-art]

(And 18 im v interested in frappe art)

I accidentally deleted the first answer I'm a clown

anyway at first I hesitated before reblogging, like "am I enabling Lucy to ask for all of them? is it wise to give her all this power?"

8) uuuh this is already hard but I think lineart and sketching! like, in general. I just feel like my drawings are more expressive when only in rough form, more dynamic. If I have to choose tho I'd say hair and sometimes hands (I'm weird that way)

9) since I'm quite content with my lineart, the most of problems come with coloring, especially color painting. thats the part I'd loved having someone teaching me the most. 90% of my art is self taught and I managed to learn anatomy and proportions through experiments, books and other artists speedpaints but man. color theory, shading, lights are hard. also my pc works against me bc its screen makes everything a bit lighter and bluer than ANY other device known to man

another thing I'd love to understand better are backgrounds. architecture school taught me (half assedly) perspective and composition, but often when I draw i try to use complex scenery to get used to doing it digitally and not with 3d softwares. those are also the drawings I end up not posting because I'm not satisfied with ;-;

14) uuh I'm not sure how to answer this one. up until I was 14/15 I really liked making realistic portraits and drawing animals, but then I went through a loooong art block where I hated everyone of my drawings, so to improve i started copying other people's art, screenshots and fanarts. after a while I was so unsure about what to draw that I thought I forgot how to draw original things.

just recently, like 2 years ago, I started watching jojo, and its artstyle and colors were so weird, and the fanarts so beautiful, I started trying things on my own, bought a thick sketchbook and started filling it with drawings that progressively were more personal and I decided than at the end of the sketchbook i would have bought a graphic tablet. and since then, I've been fighting with colors lmao

I don't always feel inspired, sometimes it's really frustrating and it feels pointless, but I think right now it's one of my happier periods, artistically speaking (and you and the things you write and your reactions have a huuuuge part in it, you have no idea)

16) if the most fun is composition, sketching and lineart, the most daunting is color painting. I love finding shades that go well together, but sometimes it is stressing, because I feel like I'm ruining the vibes of the sketch and the painting is completely different from how I imagined it :/ and also for all the reasons above, like, yk, my asshole of a pc.

18) a big big dream (not really a project) is to use illustration experience for architecture, or architecture knowledge to work in illustrated books, animated series or fantasy/sci fi movies backgrounds, but it's something that's still very abstract in my mind.

the more concrete project you already know about obv, and it's one of the things I'm more excited about, is collabing with you for your next big project!

basically, for everyone not aware, I'm going to illustrate Lucy's next long wip, a jujutsu kaisen gang au, satoru's prequel story of her oneshot rabid dreams, and I'm so excited about it that as soon as it's out I'm never going to shut up about it >:3

thank you for the ask lucy! (and you know u don't have to wait for an ask game for listening me ramble about art lmao)

[r6s-imagines]

IVE MADE A MISTAKE.

I ACCIDENTALLY POSTED A DRAFT FROM AN ANON REQUEST.

I DELETED IT FROM PANIC.

IF YOU SEE THIS, AND YOU’RE THE ANON, I’M SO SORRY AND I HOPE THIS GETS TO YOU.

PLEASE DM ME OR LEAVE A MESSAGE IN MY INBOX THAT YOU SAW THIS!

•••

spetsnaz preference >> kinks

•••

MASTERLIST

warnings: SMUT, cursing, gore

•••

summary: what are the members of spetsnaz’s nastiest kinks?

•••

kapkan

knives.

maxim swears he will never make the situation dangerous, always making sure you’re properly fed and hydrated before and after.

you’d be blindfolded, arms tied behind your back and on your knees, entirely nude.

he’d shark around you, occasionally tracing his weapon across your skin

almost never draws blood, unless he’s super into it and you’re entirely consenting.

he’d draw the blood at your shoulder, sometimes tracing his tongue up to your ear and teasing your collarbone

rough kisses with some blood on his lips

seeing you entirely submissive does wonders to him.

while he traces the dull side of the blade against your thigh, he’d take his other hand and gently run a thumb over your clit/tip.

you’d stick your tongue out, letting maxim trace your taste buds with metal.

if only you could see his now-dark blue eyes watching every movement with furrowed brows, encapsulated with your body.

“you’re my prey.”

glaz

voyeurism.

it’s not super “nasty,” per se, but he definitely feels that way during.

you’re panting, legs spread to give him an adequate view of you touching yourself

other days he’ll stick a toy in you, manually controlling it and watching you squirm

people wonder why there’s a single chair facing the bed in your apartment

sometimes he’ll jerk off to you, sometimes he’ll just watch, painfully hard under his pants, denying himself the satisfaction and simply admiring your body.

he has this signature pose; one hand on his chin, other either on his cock or his thigh as he leans back

“just like that. you’re doing so good. keep looking at me, you cum when i tell you.”

talk about him like he’s not there, he finds it really hot that he’s in your head when you climax

timur wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable with the idea, but many times he’s touched himself at the thought of you flashing him in public

he just loves watching you in absolute pleasure, body arching this way and that as your hands take yourself to orgasm

his fascination with form goes beyond his art

he’s got some sketches he’s made from memory

you don’t know about them.

fuze

thigh-fucking.

the feeling of his cock between your legs as he thrusts back and forth is amazing.

when you two first tried it out, your inner thighs were red from his eagerness.

now you properly lube up, allowing his member to enter successfully

if you have a pussy, he wouldn’t insert himself, he would slide across your folds, one hand reaching to your clit to draw aggressive circles

if you have a dick, he’d absolutely jerk you off, sliding his thumb over your slit more than usual as he gets closer.

sit on his lap casually and slowly bounce, it drives him absolutely mad

if he’s really impatient, he’ll grab you by the hips and thrust on his own, groaning

“fuck.”

he’s not a loud person, but those growls he emits are beyond hot.

he can’t keep his eyes off of your thighs when you’re alone, a focused look on his face.

sometimes, you’d wake up with his cock already between your legs

something about watching his cum launch itself onto your lap is incredibly attractive.

tachanka

mirrors.

more public, the better.

alex gets hard at the idea of pounding you from behind while watching your face in a dressing room mirror.

“look at yourself, falling apart for my cock. what would you do if you were caught?”

he’d never put you in a situation where you could be caught, but he definitely finds the risk thrilling

the distant footsteps of customers or employees makes him thrust harder

as long as you finish, he’s satisfied

the way your legs tremble and struggle to hold yourself up as he makes you cum makes him feel unbelievably proud.

the way your breasts/cock move/s back and forth as you take him is hypnotic, which is one of the main reasons he loves it so much.

once you have to press your hands against the mirror to stay standing is when he thinks it’s the hottest.

on the rare occasion someone gets too close to your acts, you’d both pull up your pants, breathing heavily and doing your best to appear red-faced and calm

alex wants to try it at the base sometime.

[p-and-p-admin]

Interview given to The Severus Snape and Hermione Granger Shipping Fan Group.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/199718373383293/

Hello DeepShadows2 and welcome to Behind the Quill, I am pleased to have this chance to chat with you.

Many of our group’s members will know you as part of our Mod team but they might also know you as the author of Peculiar and of Good Night, Sweet Prince (written for our last Prompt Week of 2020!)

Okay, let’s jump right in. What's the story behind your pen name? 

I grew up in the martial arts and my 'warrior name' was 'kage urufu' or Shadow Wolf.  When I was in Creative Writing in high school, someone else was writing under that pen name, and they were more popular, and I was told I 'wasn't allowed to copy her name' by our teacher. So I went back and forth between some names and finally came up with DeepShadows. It is because during karate Kamp's ninja night games I would find the darkest spots in the camp and wait to sneak attack my enemies to steal their flags. The 2 comes from the fact that my first ever FF.net account got deleted because I put up lemons there instead of AFF.net.

Which Harry Potter character do you identify with the most?

Honestly, it is a mix between Severus, Draco, and Minerva. Each in their own way was in positions they would have rather not been in at one point in time, but made the best of those situations. Do you have a favourite genre to read? (not in fic, just in general) Strangely enough, I am really into my 70s Feminist Sci-Fi. Like Darkover and Tanith Lee's 'Don't Bite the Sun' Series. As for Fic, I am into many scenarios and it changes according to my mood. Recently I've been into fluff slice of life.

Do you have a favourite "classic" novel?

Oof. Asking me to pick solely one is a crime. I have always loved Gone with the Wind. If I had to point at one, it would have to be it. But I honestly went over 15 titles in my head trying to decide which one would be the winner. 

At what age did you start writing?

I have been telling stories and writing them since I was young. I could read and write at age 4 because my grandmother wanted me to be ready for school. My first written story was at 5 ish and I still have my Crayola blue five-line story about a Unicorn named Pepper.

How did you get into writing fanfiction? 

I got into fanfiction when I discovered that ff.net existed. My first fanfic is still up there under this pen name, but it is miles and leagues from my current quality. Spelling is still atrocious though.

What's the best theme you've ever come across in a fic? Is it a theme represented in your own works?

Honestly, hard to say. I love post-war fics. I love when the narrative is close to canon, but uniquely not, so it handles like it is an extension of the world and not a separate world. 

Theme wise, I am a sucker for hard-hitting drama.

What fandoms are you involved in other than Harry Potter?

I was into Kingsman, but not as a fic writer, but a Tumblr role-player. It's been a while, so mostly now I'm just back to being a Potterhead. It's where I began and where I always come back to.

If you could make one change to canon, what would it be? Do you have a favourite piece of fanon?

Snape lives! You cannot tell me that a POTIONS MASTER who spends ALL DAY every day keeping students from POISONING themselves and who personally makes BLOOD REPLENISHERS for the infirmary would not have been prepared for an attack from Nagini. It is not secret knowledge that Drama King Voldy likes to have her do his dirty work and Severus would have been prepared for the off chance he was discovered and attacked. He lived.

My favourite piece of Fanon.... hmm... I like a lot of Fanon.  It's hard to put my finger on just one piece that I enjoy.

Do you listen to music when you write or do you prefer quiet? 

Music! Nearly all of Peculiar was written to Folklore by Taylor Swift.

What are your favourite fanfictions of all time?

Cake and a Cup of Tea by Cybelle Somewhere I belong by .... I can't remember Not Only a Granger by my friend Ferporcel

Are you a plotter or a pantser? How does that affect your writing process?

I am a Pantser. I have beats and thematic key points I know I want to hit, but the characters sort of fill out the story as I go. Sometimes I surprise myself with where I end up and I love that. Example: Draco/Krum was a total accident in Peculiar, but I love everything about it. 

What is your writing genre of choice?

Hurt/Comfort and Drama/Angst

Which of your stories are you most proud of? Why?

Peculiar and Good Night, Sweet Prince.

Did it unfold as you imagined it or did you find the unexpected cropped up as you wrote? What did you learn from writing it?

Oh, my goodness, the unexpected cropped up. Peculiar was only supposed to be a 25 chapter post-war, post-divorce AU that turned into this beautiful beast. Characters were created as I went, and some side characters became major plot devices or turning points. I learned that sometimes my brain knows what it is doing before I know what it is doing. There were hints and notes of what was going on that I wasn't even aware.

How personal is the story to you, and do you think that made it harder or easier to write?

There are points that are special to me.  It made it easier and harder to write.  Having experience with some subjects Hermione goes through makes it easier to translate the emotions into words, but simultaneously, some of those factors are trauma-based and I had to navigate myself through.

What books or authors have influenced you? How do you think that shows in your writing?

I draw influence from everything I read. That is a key reason I don't read anything similar to my current work while writing because I don't want to accidentally lift from someone else. 

Do people in your everyday life know you write fanfiction?

Two of my roommates are readers and I get people barging into my room after a post a chapter yelling 'OH MY GOD'. I also have a typed and printed review handed in person to me by my roommate that is on my inspiration board where she says 'Fuck you, but with love'. My entire friend group knows I write fanfiction and I get some of them to read it from time to time. My mom won't read peculiar until it is finished because she doesn't want to nag me for chapters.

How true for you is the notion of "writing for yourself"? 

YES! I started Peculiar because I couldn't find what I was looking for. I wanted a high emotion, high stakes, drama and background rich fanfiction in which Hermione has completely broken and has given up on herself. Where she has nothing and no one and has lost that spark in her. I wanted Ron bashing where he is a villain and yet isn't the same time. I wanted Severus to be indifferent to her at first and slowly discover her suffering and set out to help her for the sake of the school, and it develops into more through feelings severed early on just after the war. I wanted her to have to overcome trauma and recover for herself, not for Severus, but instead with him and that they heal from their past together while facing continuous challenges that attempt to tear them apart. Along with other factors that haven't come to be yet, so I won't want to spoil.

How important is it for you to interact with your audience? How do you engage with them? Just at the point of publishing? Through social media?

I love my audience. It actually brought me here. Shout out to Geek and Tattoo for bringing me to this group’s Discord server. I answer every comment, I respond to any statements or comments I notice on social media. I'm an open person with my audience, which is why when I had to go on hiatus, I told them exactly what was going on.

What is the best advice you've received about writing?

Write what feels best. If you don't like what you are writing, no one else is going to.  If you don't want to write a certain scene but you need it, write an article or a letter about it. 

What do you do when you hit writer's block?

I cry. Then I put on the music that inspired the story/scene and I pace my room, going over the potential dialogue and basically acting out what I think should happen until it sounds right.

Has anything in real life trickled down into your writing?

Yes. Many of my OC characters are modelled after some of my real-life friends. And some other events have easily transitioned into events that Hermione and Severus have gone through.

Do you have any stories in the works? Can you give us a teaser?

I am currently writing the next chapter for Peculiar. I won't give a teaser, but I will say that Hermione and Severus give Rita Skeeter a delicious taste of revenge.

Any words of encouragement to other writers?

Don't stop, but also be kind to yourself. Not every writing session is going to be your best, but you won't have better days if you give up. Also, if someone doesn't like what you write, forget them, as long as you are happy with it, that is what matters.

Thanks so much for giving us your time.

[winnerloser]

idk who needed to hear this today but 

if you use fanart for anything, you give credit for it.

usually i would just implore you guys to at your own discretion but. 

i think sometimes people forget that if you use fanart without explicitly asking for the author’s permission, that's stealing. but obviously no one has ill intent behind it with this hobby, which is why crediting is important. it’s the least you can do.

it doesnt matter how much you use the fanart. even if it only appears on your blog once. even if it’s just a throwaway icon for a gag. even if you replace the icon with new icons from somewhere else. if it was on your blog at some point, and you don’t intend on deleting it, and it’s still on there, you give credit for it.

there’s maybe some leeway if you commissioned the art and/or the artist already cosigned you to using it without giving permission. but that’s the only special instance i can think of.

in that same vein, please just look on artist’s profiles to see if they allow reposting in the first place. if their account says no reproduction/no reposting/DONT USE MY ART.... don’t use it. if the bio is in japanese, chinese, korean, whatever- google translate it. i know google translate can suck but it’ll easily convey what you need to be looking for. 

if you’re one to think that you don’t want to use source media like screenshots or mangacaps because fanart is prettier, don’t ignore the fact that the people providing you the luxury to do so are just that- people, who spent hours to draw what could amount to just one or two icons. who could’ve drawn what you were using as a commission for someone else. who more than likely posted the image without any idea what you’re using it for-- more importantly;

without any idea what you’re using the image to represent, what messages you’re trying to convey- with their image. the fact that the subject is a copyrighted character/isn’t theirs doesn’t change the fact that the drawing in and of itself is still their creation.

it would behoove you to start keeping tabs of the sources you intend to pull from. if you see a piece from pixiv you think you’ll consider pulling from- pluck it, save it, so later when you open photoshop you’re not sitting with the pulled image thats titled computer jibberish with no artist’s signature.

YOU KNOW WHAT? i’ll go you one even better than that.

When you save an image from pixiv - this one for example, by default it’ll save it as 78827921_p0_master1200.jpg.  78827921 is the image ID. https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/78827921 will take you back to that image. Plug in any other ID, and it’ll go back to its source. There you go. Easy if you accidentally forgot to keep tabs.

nobody is entitled to the usage of another person’s art, and if you use the excuse that [just by virtue of OP posting it on the internet, it’s free gain], that’s bullshit.

if you post anything- even a text post or roleplay thread- going by that same logic, anyone should be allowed to reblog it, remix it, go to town on it; it’s on the open internet, after all... right? No. you’re entitled to security in the things you post. you don’t really need to say “don’t/ask to reblog” in the tags for people to get the hint to not or ask first if they feel inclined to. if you believe you’re entitled to that comfort and respect, i don’t see why that mindset can’t be translated to fit the situation of artists. even if you don’t give a shit how your stuff gets circulated, at least try to look at it in the way that not everyone is you.

and not everyone is me, so some may be wondering still why they can’t just go ahead and do what they want so long as they’re not hurting people/keeping it lowkey. i mean, at the end of the day, there’s nothing i can do about it either. you can totally do whatever you want, im not denying that. but just know that you’re not 100% in the clear from getting discovered by somebody. you’re not impervious to being found. and reposting/art being used or transformed without credit or consent is a very real reason that artists get upset or even sometimes lock their profiles, delete, or stop drawing/posting, or stop making their art publically available. this is NOT just a western philosophy. asian artists do this just as well- hell, you could even say that some are even more stringent about etiquette when it comes to treating their works with respect. that includes reposting policies.

if you’re too tired/busy/lazy/forgetful/cursed to credit, that’s 100% not an excuse lol. or if you’re thinking, crap, i have all these nicely done assets that i’ve created but it’ll be too difficult to go back and retroactively find the sources!

idk what to tell u but tough titties bro thats a you problem*

uh, so to end this:

再版ポリシーが破られている場合は、お知らせください。すぐに画像を削除します。このブログから利益を得ることも、失礼することも意図していません。再版は許可されているが、クレジットがない場合は、お知らせください。修正いたします。ありがとうございます、失礼します。

如果违反了您的转载政策，请告知我们。我会立即删除图像。它无意从此博客中受益或无礼。如果允许转载，但信用不正确，请告知我们。我会马上改正的。谢谢，不好意思。祝好

this is in my credit’s page at the bottom. i can’t vouch for the japanese, but i can say with more certainty that the chinese is legible. if someone is better at japanese and has any adjustments they’d recommend, please do so! it’s just saying that i don’t intend to cause harm or disrespect by borrowing the artwork, and that at any of the artists’ discretion, whether i’m violating their repost policy or not, they are urged to reach out to me and tell me to remove their art if they don’t want it on my blog. feel free to snatch it and use it for your credits page, or write something similar in lieu of that. i’m 100% in support of that.

please be conscious and considerate of the people who work hard and do a good deal of the heavy lifting for you to be able to make your blog pretty and aesthetic in the first place. i think the bounty of beautiful and high-quality art for the pokemon fandom- or for any popular fandom for that matter- sometimes makes us forget that it isn’t a commodity. it’s something that when taken for granted, can genuinely affect others who work hard to provide content for people to enjoy. at the end of the day, they do this to make themselves and others happy. seeing others take that work without any acknowledgement to them is demoralizing, don’t think that they’ll get enough recognition from others to compensate for you. that’s frankly not how posting art on social media works at all.

i mean, even if this doesn’t convince you, i can only hope it’ll spur you to be more conscious in the future. 

*i get that things happen and this isn’t meant to shame you if you happen to be one to do any of the things other than credit. but know that you don’t... really have an excuse when there’s so many different options, shortcuts and alternatives available to you. you don’t really cite from a shitton of different sources for your paper and then go back to pick through every individual quote to find where it came from to avoid plagiarizing. you just.. make a note or works cited. it takes like, 15 extra minutes. if you’re going to spend hours on photoshop or writing fancy infoposts, you can spend an extra 15 making a works cited.

[looney-joonie]

50 Questions Tag

I was tagged by @bts-blackpink-bitch about 10 years ago (1 week) and I am finally ready to answer them lol

1. What takes up too much of your time?

Daydreaming about fic possibilities and what I could do with my life if I had the ability to create art.

2. What makes your day better?

Two things: my fiance and laughing.

3. What’s the best thing to happen to you today?

My cat laid on top of me and purred really loud!

4. What fictional place would you like to go to?

One that I have yet to put into writing.

5. Are you good at giving advice?

It depends. I’m pretty good at it in general, but each situation is unique and anyone who takes my advice knows that I have a disclaimer stating that I am not responsible for anything that happens if my advice is applied...just as a precaution lol

6. Do you have any mental illness?

No clue.

7. Have you ever experienced sleep paralysis?

Yes and it’s terrifying!! I mean, one time I was able to make my head shake, but my fiance ignored my movement because I move in my sleep...so he thought I was asleep...

8. What musician inspired you the most?

I don’t really have just one

9. Have you ever fallen in love?

Yes

10. What’s your dream date?

My dream date is my fiance. HAHA! (It’s true..) 😂

But no, my dream date is being picked up at hotel in a big city <me wearing a very nice dress, my date wearing a tux or suit> and us going out for a ‘night on the town’. We would dine at a 5-star restaurant and then walk around downtown until we came to a romantic place. My date would then ask me to dance even there’s no music because ‘the music is in our hearts'. And then he would take me back to my room and leave me at the door with a searing kiss.

*sigh* I love my fiance, but he would ruin my dream date because he can’t keep a beat to save his life. I’m sure he’d be able to make up for it somehow 😂

11. What do others notice about you?

They tend to notice I have a huge ass. They never really mention anything else that they notice...IF they notice anything else.

12. What is an annoying habit you have?

UM - ALL OF THEM?? I mean, I have so many that it’s hard to name them. Just ask the people around me and they’ll make long lists without saying the same thing as the other. #iannoyeveryone

13. Do you still talk to your first love?

No, but that’s a good thing.

14. How many exes do you have?

Five...and yet, they never took me on a date. #losers😒

15. How many songs are in your playlist?

My largest one has over 600 songs on it...so many genres, so little time.

16. What instruments can you play?

I played the clarinet when I was in high school and the piano before that.

17. What do you have the most pictures of?

Blurry shit because my phone screen gets turned on and then I’m too lazy to delete the pictures. 😬

18. Where would you like to go before you die?

I’m not sure. I’ve always loved traveling, but have never been super passionate about just one place?

19. What is your zodiac?

Gemini

20. Do you relate to it?

Yup. I’m #twinning everyday.

21. What is happiness to you?

Happiness to me is being able to toss away all of my negative thoughts, just for a moment, and focus on something beautiful. It could be the feel of a cool breeze on a warm day. The fluffy white clouds against a light blue sky or speaking the compliments I think instead of just keeping them so myself. 

Happiness is something you continuously work towards...and sometimes you have to accept that being content in the moment is the best you’ll get for now. I purposely stop to ‘smell the roses’ and enjoy the little things because everything I know and love is in a balanced state. I want to enjoy the moments I have now so that, when things have shifted and there’s the sense of unbalance, I can look back and draw on those moments. Those little moments are so important to be able to recall so that you can continue to work towards happiness in times of sadness. (Sorry for the mini...rant?)

22. Are you going through anything right now?

Yes. I won’t get too detailed, but back in February I went on emergency hiatus because my dad has CIDP (emergency hiatus post here). He hasn’t had a treatment since February, so his ability to walk and do other things has gradually become much worse. It’s not something that many people have to live with for a long time...which is why I had my happiness rant above. Plus I’ve been trying to get a better job since I graduated from college in December 2018, but practically nobody is hiring. So that’s great.

23. What’s the worst decision you ever made?

There really is no ‘worst decision’ for me. I am who I am today because of all the decisions I have made both good and bad. So, for me to point out my ‘worst decision’ would be to say I have regrets. Which I don’t because I don’t have time for ‘what ifs’ and regrets. I only have time for helping myself and others to better themselves.

24. What’s your favorite store?

Gift shops.

25. What’s your opinion on abortion?

I strongly believe in keeping my political opinions to myself.

26. Do you keep a bucket list?

Mentally, yeah. But I’m forgetful, so it’s ever-changing.

27. Do you have a favorite album?

Yes. Comedown Machine by The Strokes. I bought it because it looked cool and I love every single song.

28. What do you want for your birthday?

I really want to have a full-time job! I also want these BTS Hanahaki Series pins by Wiblash on Instagram!!

29. What are most people’s first impression of you?

People think that I cower at anyone who seems to be an authoritative figure as well as be a ‘yes-man’

30. What age do you seem according to most people?

Everyone has thought I look like I’m either younger or WAY older than I actually am. Everyone also assumes I have kids. And I mean EVERYONE. 😠

31. Where do you keep your phone while you’re sleeping?

On my nightstand to prevent an accidental fire.

32. What word do you say the most?

I say um, well, and like a lot because they make it easier to drag my sentences out when I lose my train of thought.

33. What’s the oldest age you would date?

It’s kind of..besides the point now that I’m getting married, but at one point I ‘dated’ a guy who was almost 10 years older than me. I DODGED A BULLET WITH THAT GUY!! With my experience, I probably wouldn’t pick someone more than 5 years older than me.

34. What’s the youngest age you would date?

I’ve always liked my guys to be slightly younger than me ( my fiance is about 9 months younger than me) and all my exs except the one mentioned in the above question were either the same age as me or a little younger. I wouldn’t date anyone born after 2000. Still doesn’t matter much since I’m getting married.😂

35. What job/career do most people say would suit you?

Retail. But that’s only because I’ve been in customer service so long that I have a lot of mannerisms that I have accidentally brought over into my personal life.

36. What’s your favorite music genre?

I don’t have one.

37. If you could live in any country in the world, where would it be?

TL;DWR - Too Long; Don’t Wanna Research.

38. What is your current favorite song?

Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard

39. How long have you had this blog for?

01/07/2019 1:55:37 AM (thanks @memories)

40. What are you excited for?

The BTS concert on May 12th!!!! And for my ATEEZ project 'When Life Gives You Lemonade' teaser to be revealed on May 15th!!

41. Are you a better talker or listener?

Both. Once I’m started, I can talk for hours, but I love listening to people talk too soooooo...

42. What is the last productive thing you did?

AHGJDSAKLGHJA UHHH, WORK ON MY ATEEZ PROJECT!

43. What do you want for Christmas?

DLCs for some software that I have.

44. What class do you get the best grades in?

Um...College Algebra and English were my best subjects.

45. On a scale of 1-10, how are you feeling right now?

About a 9.8?

46. What can you see yourself doing in ten years?

I can see myself being an author and a mom. 😊

47. When did you get your first heartbreak?

First grade when I...liked this boy so much that I would kiss his cheek at least once every time we had gym class. Then he changed schools... (I found out later that it wasn’t my fault and that he had a slight crush on me then)

48. What age do you want to get married?

23. My wedding is planned for right before my 28th birthday, so ya’ll see how well that panned out.

49. What career did you want to have as a child?

Author!!!

50. What do you crave right now?

MORE TIME TO WORK ON MY ATEEZ PROJECT!!!!!! Gosh...there’s just not enough time in the day..............................................😑

I’m tagging @angstchim @ughdesighhns @parkseonghwa @gothicmingi @requestfairy @mhysaunburnt @yurakwonhoseok @today-we-will-survive @supersailorjoonie once again! If ya’ll get tired of it, let me knowwwwwww......😅

[transpcos]

PCOS Diagnosis: how to cope (trans edition)

So, someone sent in an ask on how I coped with my PCOS diagnosis especially when it comes to gender dysphoria, and if that was you I'm so sorry Im still getting the hang of tumblr and I think I accidentally deleted your ask but I'm still going to try to answer it!

So for me, the diagnosis was REALLY rough. I like to joke about out but fuck it really did impact my mental health. I did develop some coping mechanisms, so imma list them here:

-PCOS trans YouTubers! When I was feeling hopeless and dysphoric, YouTube really helped. It showed me there were others out there who also were like me. Elliot James is a YouTubers who is really cool and he has several videos on being trans and having PCOS.

Some more words of advice: those YouTube videos that are gendered as fuck and shame u for excess body hair? DON'T WATCH THEM! They only made you feel worse about yourself and often increase dysphoria.

-Find an outlet, a way to express your feelings. For me, it was this blog, but you can try art, making videos, poetry, writing. Just get your feelings out there. ALSO talk to your friends of you can!!

- After oby/gyn visits, I'm often very dysphoric. Here's a little thing i do to make myself feel less shitty

1. Put on my most gender euphoria inducing outfit. It's often something a little fancy like a shirt able tie. If I'm REALLY feeling horrible and don't even want to change, I find my good old friend the dysphoria hoodie

2. I make myself a favorite snack (carrots are great lol) as favorite drink, sit on the couch, cuddle my cat

3. And then just, process things. Sometimes i FaceTime friends, or my crush, or draw.

I just give myself space to feel less dysphoric, and I try to myself like a king for getting through my appointments. So that even while I'm in appointments, I have something to look forward too.

- last but not least, another coping mechanism I have is exercise. Not too much of course, but it gives me a feeling of control over my body when PCOS makes me feel so out of control. Even just taking a breath and walking around the block can help.

I hope this helps! My heart goes out to everyone who recently was diagnosed. The good news is, for most people you can still medically transition if you have PCOS. Bring newly diagnosed can make you feel so lost, but it gets better. You'll figure stuff out.

I'm here for you all and I'm always here to talk. Just know there's people out there like you, you're not alone.

[lambroseforlife]

The 2018 FanArt Contest Blunder

NOTE: Honestly I wasnt sure whether to make this post considering my dumbass self accidentally deleted the album of screenshots I took as evidence on my phone the day the contest results came out. (I meant to delete the album next to it, which was of SnS memes I had already posted on Tumblr to clear space on my phone, but instead chose the wrong album smfh). Anyway, I asked some people and after getting their feedback, decided that this should be pointed out anyway.

Some of you might remember that Sir Rob held a fanart contest in celebration of Rick’s love confession to Lilly back in chapter 36 (”Confession by Installments”) a few months ago. The contest submission period was held from February 14 to March 7 and the week after was the voting period which ended on March 14. Sir Rob said that as a prize, he would announce the top three winners. The winners were announced and their pieces were showcased in his Author's Note at the end of chapter 40 (”A Flapdoodle in the Snow”) on Wattpad. However in addition to that, he showcased 2 more artpieces as the runners-up:

As stated above, he said that these two pieces were the most voted after the top three. However, when I read that on the same day he posted it, I was very confused because technically THIS piece here was the piece with the 4th highest amount of votes and should have been the FIRST runner-up:

Unfortunately as I mentioned earlier, my idiot self accidentally deleted the screenshot I had of this piece’s number of hearts/votes at the time the winners were announced, but if you look at the author’s note in chapter 40, the 3rd place winner was announced to have 300 votes. I remember that this ^person’s art piece wasn't far behind it and that she had around 290-something hearts/votes at the time. 

As of right now that Im writing this post, these are the current amount of votes the two runners-up announced in the author’s note have: 

-”Runner up #1″: 225 votes

-”Runner up #2″: 198 votes

Don’t get me wrong, these art pieces are gorgeous but why wasnt that person’s art piece recognized as well? Her piece was submitted before the deadline, tagged properly and it had the 4th highest amount of votes. She deserved to be recognized and showcased fair and square by Sir Rob. I mean, instead of including the top two runner ups, he could have included the top 3 runner ups (since he announced the top 3 winners) if he really liked the other 2 people’s pieces that much. Or better yet, to avoid this whole mess, just DON’T announce runners-up since it wasn’t originally mentioned in the contest rules.

“But lambroseforlife, why are YOU getting so pressed? It’s not like it’s YOUR art piece and people make mistakes sometimes.”

You’re absolutely right, it’s not my art but I myself submitted an art piece for the contest, something that took me many, many, many hours to draw. I can only imagine the amount of time and effort that person put into her art piece especially with the amount of detail and preciseness in it. And then only for it to not get recognized when it should have been? I felt so upset for this person and I can only imagine how she must have felt to not see her piece get the recognition it should have received.

As for people making mistakes, that’s understandable as a general statement. However, this is a contest that Sir Rob himself decided to hold for his fans. He cannot afford to make mistakes when it comes to things like this and frankly, this is no small scale mistake. This is on a bigger scale because it directly involves his fanbase aka his support system. Misspelling words and forgetting details for the plot in a story is one thing, but not giving credit to a fan where it’s due is another.

“But social media can be so unreliable for these kinds of things. Don’t you think you’re being a bit harsh here?”

Maybe I am. But then again, if social media is so unreliable then how about not using it to hold contests? The SnS fanfiction contest was held through Google Survey, not Twitter. Find a better base to hold these contests where these types of errors will not happen. In the long run, people will be less inclined to participate in these contests if these kinds of mistakes keep happening and seeing as how Sir Rob really likes fanart (this was the 2nd art contest for the series), it would be his loss in the end.

Ultimately to me, a person that is dedicated to this series, this kind of mistake sends the message that there is a disconnect between Sir Rob and his fanbase. If it was him who tallied these votes himself and determined the winners, then I’m disappointed. I assumed that he would have taken more time to go through all the art pieces more thoroughly. If it was someone else who counted the votes and determined the winners/runner-ups, then I’m doubly disappointed. This is his fanart contest and he should be the one to be regulating this, not someone else. At the very least, he should have checked for accuracy. “I never trust. But I always verify.”  Noticing this error made no sense for me considering that Sir Rob says he regularly checks different media outlets and values fan input. I’m merely a bystander here but the fact that I’m noticing all these mistakes that keep on happening within the series and now the fandom speaks volumes about just how contradictory and dire the entire situation is.

Here are direct links to the references shown in this post:

@Mahita_Chocomimi’s art piece

@Meoiia’s art piece

@1Diana_1998′s art piece

Sir Rob’s reveal of the contest results (scroll to the bottom)

[erratically-present-gengar]

How I derp-art. Alma Tutorial

So a couple of you weirdos keep asking me for help with how to art/draw gengars or what my process is because art is hard. Art is indeed hard and even with gengars can be a pain in the ass and I am mostly bullshitng my way through it, and my process can be stupidly long and I need to work on screwing with it so I can get shit done faster.

BUT

I put a tutorial thingy together, though first ever one I’ve done so more of me not knowing what I’m doing and trying to get things set up right to be helpful.

I put some steps in one image file and idk how tumblr is going to handle it, so if it’s a pain and you guys want the individual files set up somewhere else let me know. Can let me know if you want to know what brushes I use if that’s needed at all, but mostly this is to show how much I bs my way through things.

This is all in photoshop too though, so why I don’t use a lot of info for shortcuts besides the grouping.

To start with I try to get my damn circles/ovals shaped right for whatever I’m trying to do.

Sometimes it takes me a lot of tries to get it, sometimes I just start all over and try something else, sometimes I use the Ellipse tool, and sometimes I give up, find a reference, and start out over that for sketching with general shape because sometimes my brain just is full on dumb.

Eventually I end up getting out a sketch, usually using multiple layers in case I need to move a part or make edits without messing up some other bit. This is also why I like messing with digital more than paper because it makes this part of the process easier for me and can easily hide or delete layers or adjust transparency when needed.

I’ve more or less settled on what to do with Alma’s design, so not necessarily something to do with drawing Gengar in general.

Alma has very large/long ears and a tail compared to the usual for Gengar. I still have no idea what I’m doing with those damn spikes/fluff, but I add extra fluff around the bottom of her ears too. These are all definitely style choices I have for her.

I don’t really bother with the back spikes on her either because I end up having some difficulty getting them to look right to me, and usually blocked off anyways. I just go with the biggest fluff/spikes are on her head and around her ears, and then they shrink as they go down the back and eventually smooth out by the tail.

Arms are just like attaching them to a ball and figure out where they sit. Usually I start around under the ears and around where the mouth is going to be, but it’s a gengar, the things can do some weird things with their bodies so can probably have their arms just about anywhere if you really wanted, though personally I tend to get stuck with realism and wouldn’t be happy with doing too weird of stuff with the arms so just shift them around closer to the front or lower depending on what I want to do or if she’s got her hands in front of her.

Hands and feet I usually just do 3 digits, but can have more or less if you want. Most times I just draw 3 lines for where the fingers may be or general triangle shapes around it. Fingers and toes have their own layers too in case I want to change them and then don’t have to mess with the main limb.

But definitely different shaping compared to the usual gengar shapes. It’s just a personal thing. I don’t recommend copying off Alma’s features for your own gengars, and it would bother me somewhat. First try out figuring out how to work with the basic gengar shape, and then play with the form to figure out how you want to draw it, if you want to go with ball/balloon with limbs and spikes.

Once the main body is done I try out faces, since half the time I only have some idea for what I want to do with it, and I may also figure out something better. There can be a lot of trial and error with this, and a lot of extra sketch layers.

The stylistic thing goes with her eyes and being shaped a bit differently than the norm to soften her looks so she doesn’t look so scary. She can look normal for eyeshape, but as she tries not to seem intimidating most times, it’s normally just different than the usual.

Once  I’ve figured out what I want to do with the face, I group up the Sketch layers and use the pen tool for neater lines, because I am terrible at getting my lines right and clean with a regular tablet, so I cheat for the base part of it.

Each part has it’s own layer, especially if lines overlap so that clean up of the lines is a bit easier. It also helps with making some adjustments for parts I decided that looked odd to me with the lines that don’t get noticed as much with the sketch layer. Even for art that I don’t use the pen tool on I will usually separate the lineart in to their own layers. It can help if I want to change a limb or hand’s/foot’s position, or just minor changes without messing with the rest of the drawing.

Yeah that last part looks pretty terrible, huh?

But I can just go through the layers and erase lines I don’t want, fix up some of the ends so they’re pointed, longer, shorter, or whatever.

When it’s cleaned up I use my main brush for the outside lines and look sketchier and/or add line weight so the lines look more interesting. I’ll also use a smoother brush for the face since a little bit of a harder edge for those parts than the body.

After that I duplicate the group I have for the lineart and merge the 2nd group to help with color borders, slap down my colors, use the selection tool for the outside of the lines layer, and modify/expand by 1 or 2 pixels, move back to the body layer, and then just hit delete to get at least most of it.

Sometimes I remember to clean up around the lines more because my sketchiness can still trap the color where I don’t want it... In this case I didn’t remember until later, but oh well.

After that I make some layers for the other parts that need coloring. In Alma’s case she’s pretty easy since it’s usually just the eyes and sometimes teeth or something involving her mouth. I’ll make some layers for each part’s shadows and highlights, then group those together out of the way.

When I’m done with that I’ll use the pen tool to try to pretend I know what I’m doing with how shadows work and put down some guidelines for shadows. They’re usually not great, but I’ll mess with them afterwards.

New layer for the shadows. It’s a whole lot of bullshitting my way through them and pretending I know how they work. I’ll use my brush at a higher transparency at the start and then lower it to mess with edges and soften them, or use it in areas the shadows may not be so strong. I’ll also do a lot of erasing along parts and usually use the sponge brush for the eraser. I keep playing with it until I figure it’s good enough.

To clean up around outside of the lines I just go to the body layer, fix up the areas around the edges, then select the white space, go to the other layers that need cleaning up, and just hit delete as I go through them to erase the stuff outside the lines.

Next I work on highlights. Again this is a whole lot of me pretending I have any idea what I’m doing. The little brighter ones get their own layers, and the body highlights get another. I’ll move one of my sketch layers up over the color ones sometimes to try to help me figure out where I want to put a highlight over the main body so it looks rounder. I spaced and used the wrong color for highlights at first but adjusted them for using the purple I had for it already. Usually I use the lighten or screen layers for it. One thing I’m trying to remind myself of is the secondary lighting and how light bounces and can highlight the outside of an object too even if that part is otherwise in shadows. It can help separate parts too, though not really needed if you guys don’t want to. I just like it myself. The extra highlights I keep in their own layers too. .... I use a lot of Layers

I’ll usually mess with the floor shadow too, to show if she’s on the floor or in the air, and usually to me it makes the image a bit more interesting instead of blank white, since I usually am lazy with backgrounds and I suck at them anyways.

Just copy the body layer and distort it to wherever it looks good and at least semi matches the main lighting direction.

After that I darken it and, while it’s fine like that, I usually mess with it a bit more for style stuff and have a few duplicated layers to mess with it until I like it, rather than accidentally messing up the main part of it.

When Shadows are done I’ll throw on a bunch of unnecessary bullshit using a grunge brush because I like the idea of a haze being around her, though it’s not needed and more just a style choice and I like using textures. I have a few layers of it until I’m at least alright with how it looks, make some last minute adjustments with liquify for somethings that are bothering me but I’m too lazy to redraw the lineart part of it to fix it, and there I am.

There’s my likely very long process for how I draw Gengar/Alma.

Aaaaand that’s about it for what I do with them.

Pretty much why it takes me forever to get art done when I have the free time, and don’t post daily with art. With the jobs and health I just can’t do it.

and I def need to work on simplifying things.

I have several boards over on pintrest now to help with learning some things like lighting, shapes, etc. It’s largely either objects or people kind of references for most of the boards, but it can still help with learning faces or people if help is needed with that too

https://www.pinterest.com/Kalooeh/

[emerald-amidst-gold]

About me

So, you wish to know about the face behind the muse, do you? Well, I’m not as edgy or ferocious, but I do all right! 

Thank you for the tag @noire-pandora! <3

1: Why did you choose your url?

The url that you see now was actually not my first url. I’m first one was lotus-dreamcatcher something something. (I forget what the numbers were lol). It was just a random thought since one: I love, love, looooove dreamcatchers, and two: I think lotus flowers are such pretty flowers! So, I combined best of both worlds and slapped two or three numbers on the end! XD

The reason I switched it was because I wanted to have a more personal connection with my blog. When I started writing my fic, I was like, ‘Let’s just go the whole nine yards! No one else has it!’ and voila! Will I change it if my hyperfixation vanishes? No. I’m stuck in hell, remember? *smiles*

2: Any side blogs? if you have them, name them and why you have them.

I have no side blogs because I would be terrible trying to micromanage them. My obsessions tend to ebb and flow, and this blog is the first time I’ve latched onto something for so long. I’ve had fixations with Dragon Age before (I’ve had the game for years, of course), but it always fizzled out and I latched onto something else (Fire Emblem, Skyrim, etc.). So, whatever fandom takes me by the horns, ya’ll have to witness it here! *cackles*

3: How long have you been on tumblr?

Hmm..I think for about...2 years? I made this blog a while back, posted a fic I had written for the first time, and then disappeared. I didn’t come back until just under a year ago when I wrote my first version of Emerald Eyes Amidst Golden Vows. But truthfully, I’m not sure. I know I haven’t been here long, though! XD

4: Do you have a queue tag?

Nope! I just scan the tags I like, home page, and those I follow’s dashboard and reblog/like what I find interesting, funny, or what pertains to what I’m currently fixated on. I might go ham and post a lot, or I just slap one or two things on while I’m on break at work. It’s casual for me. :D

5: Why did you start your blog in the first place?

I was curious, to put it simply. I’ve always been into art/writing, and all the art I used to see elsewhere always looped back to here. I actually spent a lot of my time, once upon a time, on DeviantArt (The days when I had a tablet and had the time to draw~). Once I got into writing, however, I decided this might be a better place to share that. Not to mention, I saw the community for Dragon Age and I was like, ‘I want to be a part of this! I don’t have many people I can talk about Dragon Age with or simp mutually about characters! And they all seem so nice! Let’s try!’ And here I am. It’s paid off. All the waiting, slight dejectedness, and quiet posts have PAID OFF. 

So, if you’re a starting blog and you feel kind of put off, just keep at it. It’ll gain traction. Trust me. :3

6: Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

Why not? It’s my BOY in his original, first play through form! (the play through I accidentally deleted, but you know *is still made about that*) 

I chose it mainly because it was my best screenshot of Fane, and I was like, “I am true Dragon Age blog now. :3″, but really, it’s just because it was pretty. I’m a simplistic creature with simplistic tastes. 

7: Why did you choose your header?

Again, it’s my BOY, and well, it was also pretty with the colors and his eyes and everything. I love my dragon son. What else can I say? *shrugs*

8: What’s your post with the most notes?

The post that issued by entrance in Solavellan Hell. 

THIS ONE

It continuously spiraled for WEEKS until it finally went dormant, and I was like, ‘Well, damn. That was a wild ride.’ We all fall prey to the wolf at some point. Even I, who was so sure I adored Cullen. ‘Twas not to be. I like elves. Sorry, Commander. XD

9: How many mutuals do you have?

26! Which is about a quarter of who follows me, actually. Huh!

10: How many followers do you have?

You know, I just checked it the other day and my eyes went wide because I broke a 100 and I was like, ‘Am I really that relatable or likable!? Awwww! *cries*’ I’m currently at 107, but in all honesty, I don’t pay attention to the numbers. Some may be inactive, too, but it’s nice to see people enjoy and relate!

11: How many people do you follow?

85! I don’t like to clog up my dash too much because it’s easy to miss things I’m actually looking forward to seeing (art, fic updates, etc.) I could filter, obviously, but I is lazy. However, if I see a blog I really think is cool and enjoyable and is right up my alley, then of course I’ll follow! :3 I also try to follow back if someone follows me, but I forget to sometimes. I’m a bit scatterbrained if you haven’t noticed from my writing. XD

12: Have you ever made a shitpost?

I think I made like...two? They got a good bit of notes, but mainly because they were relatable more than funny, I think. If you want to know one thing about me it’s that if I adore a specific character, I either RAG on them until the cows come home, or I cry about them hysterically. With Solas, I am both, so I throw swings at him while in the next minute running over and saying I’m sorry. And I vocalize that with random memes. XD

13: How often do you use tumblr each day?

I get on in the morning after I wake up a bit to check around, stay on until I have to go to work at like 2, and I’ll pop on a few times throughout the day during my breaks or lunch, and once more before I call it quits for the day. I have a bad habit of keeping a tab up while I write and hopping back and forth. No wonder my writing flow gets lost in transit. XD 

I also tend to fall asleep with my computer on, soooo yeah. X’D

14: Did you ever have a fight/argument with another blog once? who won?

Nope. I’m twenty-five. I left the drama bullshit back in high school when I graduated. I’m here to enjoy things that mean something to me, interact with people who share those interests, and just witness how creative everyone is and learn from them. Will I debate with someone civilly? Of course, I love debating concepts and interpretations of characters as much as I love analyzing those ideas. However, the moment those debates turn into ‘I’m right. You’re wrong.’ arguments, I walk away and ignore. I’ve been a part of internet discourse before when I ran a RP chat, I don’t need that again. Feel free to chat with me, but the minute it becomes a belligerent free for all, either expect a quick block or utter silence. 

15: How do you feel about “you need to reblog this” posts?

I try to reblog things from content creators because that’s how they get the exposure they need, and I wholeheartedly support those people because I want people to be able to pursue and live a life where they can do what they enjoy and make ends meet rather than be stuck at a 9-5 job where they’re talents are wasted and miserable because of berating circumstances. 

However, if someone explicitly says, ‘you need to reblog this because of some obscure reason’, I won’t do that. Be humble. That’s all. I understand the need for validation, painfully so, but there’s a line that needs to be drawn on some posts like that.

16: Do you like tag games?

You bet your ass I do! I love how interesting they are and that people are eager to involve me in them! Like this one! :D

17: Do you like ask games?

*looks at all the asks I’ve done for Fane* I adore them. Let me talk about my son until the end of time, even if I repeat things because he’s still GROWING.

18.Do you have a crush on a mutual?

Not romantically, but do I think everyone is worthy of love and hugs and yelling, complimenting words that make your insides all fuzzy and warm? YES. LET ME YELL AT YOU AND HUG YOU. <3

Tagging (if you want to of course!): @little-lightning-lavellan @oxygenforthewicked @aymayzing @dreadfutures @whataboutbugs and anyone else who’d like to! 

[maggiemcdesignforchange-blog]

Blog Post 3

The Art of Innovation- 5&7 Design of Everyday Things- 5

Chapter 5 focuses on the importance of having a team that is passionate, diverse and encouraging. As creative people, we understand the importance of being passionate about the work you are doing. Kelly focuses a lot on the importance of passion and motivating a team in order to have a successful outcome with teamwork. What motivates us to get out of bed in the morning should be the kind of passion a team should have towards a project. The whole beginning of this chapter reminded me of when I used to competitive dance. Our studio was placed in to 3 seperate competition teams that all performed a lyrical, jazz, and tap number. However, it seemed that the three groups were also ranked with favoritism. You could be the most passionate and hard working dancer ever but if another dancer paid more money to the studio than you did (or were able to) then you were never going to move up to the top group. In this instance, I am talking about myself. I was so passionate about dance and worked so hard to become better and felt like my passion and dedication was constantly overlooked. Once a person puts their heart and soul into something and no one seems to care then it is easy to give up and stop trying. This was an example in my life of how teams are not supposed to work. I agree with everything Kelley says that teams should be passionate and inspired and that everyone on the team should be accepting and receptive of those traits. If my dance leaders respected my hard work and dedication to my team then I probably would’ve continued on to be a successful dancer that still pursued danced today. Instead, I gave up on the team and my passion for dance and quit my senior year. 

It is also important to respect the diversity of the group. Again, as creatives we all come from different strengths and weaknesses. Some of us are great at drawing, others are better at concept and idea development. However, the right mix of different strengths can make for an amazing team. Kelley explains the benefit of team members having different personalities and those personalities working together to create. It is important for everyone to feel confident on a team and enjoy working together. Tension can kill the passion and make working on a team a bit miserable. As long as everyone has a positive mindset and good attitude towards the project I think the teamwork will be a valuable experience for us all. 

I have always been a believer that the space you live in should be decorated with the things that you love. Living in a box with white walls and no personality would make me very sad. In chapter 7, Kelley explains that this is also important for teamwork too. He says that great teams need great space, space that inspires and reflects their work. If you trap a creative person in a grey cubicle you limit the ability of their creativity. This summer, I visited Highmark in Pittsburgh to shadow a designer with my internship at the Daily Athenaeum. We took a tour of their creative advertising agency Tonic. The Tonic floor was decorated in a way that encouraged lots of creativity. All of the walls were painted with whiteboard paint so that when an idea came to mind the workers can write it down and share with others. All of the conference rooms were designed this way too. So in a meeting when they are developing an idea it was easy to write things out to share with everyone. The walls were decorated with inspiring quotes and bright colors and the rooms were named after super heroes and fantasies like Hogwarts and The Hall of Justice. The dress code was also very free because sometimes business professional attire isn’t very comfortable and uncomfort can limit creativity. The company being on a high floor of a gigantic skyscraper with an incredible view of Pittsburgh through the big glass windows was also very inspiring in itself. After my tour for the day I left very inspired and would love to work at a company that values the importance of a well designed space. I often think that the CAC is lacking an inspiring space and could use some updates. A lot of the classrooms I’ve had class in are dull and white. Updating the CAC would benefit all of our creative minds. 

Chapter 5 of The Design of Everyday Things focused on human error and how it is important to understand that everyone makes mistakes. I liked the reference in description errors to someone throwing their clothes in the toilet instead of the laundry basket, I do things like that all the time and wonder why I make silly mistakes like that on the daily. However the overall point was that design should allow for human error and like Norman mentioned in the first chapter, feedback is the best way to determine what human errors are typically made. In general, people can be unforgiving when mistakes are made. Being a waitress, it can be very hard to keep up with all of your customers. I make mistakes often and it is rare that customers are forgiving when you forget their extra side of fries. I try to be as forgiving as possible when it comes to error because nobody is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. Design needs to allow for human error and compensate for when we accidentally hit the “delete” button instead of “accept”.

[theglamfemme]

Zoha Van de aarde is this week’s “Femme Voices” feature interview. They are a photographer whose art is both provocative and beautiful. Zoha primarily photographs women of color, as they believe they deserve more representation, especially in a light that showcases who they are and not how the outside world perceives them to be. A creative at heart, Zoha constructs their shoots from concept to completion and enjoys collaborating with their subjects on different themes. In this way, they endeavor to inspire those who view their art and those involved in helping create it.

Read more about this gifted photographer below the break!

Please introduce yourself. What is your name? Where are you located? What are your pronouns and how do you identify? 

Hi, my name is Zoha Van de aarde. I am Non-Binary and my pronouns are They/Them. I’d like to say I’m an artist or creative with no favourite form of expressing myself but I have become known as a photographer because of me showcasing my work on Instagram and various other platforms.

I am from Botswana, so I’m a Motswana and do my work both in Botswana and South Africa.

On your Instagram page, you call yourself “occasionally a creative and expressionist”. One of the ways you express yourself is through your photography. Can you tell us a little bit about that? Is there anything else that you do? 

Not too many know this but on the second of January this year, my account @vandeaarde was deleted*. I’m not one who allows themselves to be consumed by social media and such but it was upsetting because it was all my work, literally from when I started four years ago. I have since created a new account @vandeaardezoha.

I spend most of my days thinking up and trying to conceptualise on as many different ideas as I can and it’s not all ideas I want to execute through photography. I occasionally paint and draw and write. But I’m not a professional at any of these, I just do whatever I can to express myself and to put my ideas out there in hope that they will help and benefit others.

* Zoha’s original page has since been restored.

Your photography shows women in a very authentic light even as they are in somewhat abstract and whimsical themes. Where do you get your inspiration?

I’ve never been sure how to answer when I’ve been asked where I get my inspiration from because truly it’s everywhere, whether it’s from everyday moments that would look beautiful if captured or from other photographers or things like sculptures or movies. I try and gain my inspiration from wherever I can.

I feel like a picture is more than just that so I sometimes want to take a picture for the sake of it being a story on its own. But I also try and have an overall theme in my work and that’s honestly just to make sure that women should be respected and that women should be allowed to be themselves, whether we agree with it or not. It’s not your problem what others do with their time or their bodies.

But it’s also not just about women, it’s also respecting each other, whatever race or gender, everyone should be treated as fairly as they deserve. This is a big reason why I do what I do. I am looking to make myself feel better by expressing myself as fully as possible but I am also looking to do that for others, using the work I create.

In all honesty, though, I can’t always remember where my ideas were born and I don’t always have a trail of breadcrumbs to show me the road back to the beginning of the idea. Most times, it’s just something that pops into my head, other times I’ll come up with, for example, a scene in a kitchen and I’ll want a certain kind of lighting and will know where my muse will be standing or sitting, but I won’t know what I’ll want them to be doing.

So over time, I’ll add and remove things, but all this is done in my head btw, and it could take weeks or months. But eventually, I’ll either complete it because I’ll have the image fully completed in my head or I’ll find the person who makes me feel that the idea is complete enough already and if it’s not then they complete it.

What is your favorite method of self-care?

Well, I don’t know if what I’m about to explain is a specific method of self-care but I also feel like there are no specific methods and it’s all person-specific. But my favourite is being alone, watching a series or listening to music, while having wine or something, but at a steady pace, and all this topped off with painting or drawing. This usually lasts hours and hours, so I make sure I can go a whole day or more, if possible. I get at least 3 litres of wine, I find a series that has multiple seasons or I find multiple series, and I just find whatever I’ve been itching to paint or figure it out as time passes.

What are you most proud of about yourself and what you have accomplished?

Well, I don’t know if I’ve really accomplished anything yet but I’m proud of the fact that I’ve carried on and that I’ve done as much as I can. I want to do more to help inspire and do for others. I enjoy the work I do so much and the fact that some of these ideas are completely mine while others are taken from other people’s work. But it’s not about me getting the credit, it’s about people looking at this work and seeing that there is something to relate to, there is something to feel in this image, there is something more and that it opens them up to ideas and ways of thinking that they didn’t always consider.

 Do you have any upcoming projects or goals?

One project I have already started showing is The Divine Feminine project, which I started kind of accidentally. The first image was all spur of the moment, but then I took another, then I wanted to take another and it just kept on going. At the moment, I am working on a few more images of the same light and will post them soon and finish off the series. In the end, I will be hoping to gain enough interest in the images so that I can sell a few prints of them.

I also have a Patreon, where I will showcasing a new project named “details”, which will entail different types of shots of a nude anonymous model or models. They will mostly be close-ups and such but also some that are full-body, while still hiding the face or anything that would give away their identity. I will be posting more about this in the next few weeks.

How can we see your work/contact you/etc.?

The best place to see my work is on my Instagram page, which is where all my work from the very first image I ever took is. That’s where I post a majority of my work so if you want to keep up with it that’s the best source. There is a link on my Instagram that will send you to a page with all my other social media, including Tumblr, my website, Twitter, and Facebook.

    “Femme Voices” Artist Spotlight: Photographer, Zoha Van de aarde Zoha Van de aarde is this week's "Femme Voices" feature interview. They are a photographer whose art is both provocative and beautiful.