Hello There, Gorgeous. Absolutely Perfect, Could Do No Wrong, Ever. I'd Die For Them. Oh, And Reave's

Common Phrases Correctly

art block, writer’s block, “art funk”, “burnout”, yada yada… it’s all the same thing, being a creator and wanting to create but having some kind of a wall preventing you from doing this.

this wall can take a lot of different forms, and i’m going to approach this post from the perspective of a visual artist, but no matter the medium, we all have a skill we’ve trained ourselves in and what I’m talking about will apply regardless.

Anyway as I said there’s a few different forms this wall can take. Here’s a few of them that I can think of:

Disillusionment with your current skill level

A loss of direction

Fatigue

Lack of drive

It’s really important to identify exactly what your wall is if you want to be able to dismantle it. This isn’t every way it can manifest either, just the most common ways that I see it manifesting, and you might have multiple at once!

Take some time to really self reflect on what the problem is if none of these are resonating after you’ve read the post, whatever it is you can find a way to manage it.

The most common advice I see for “defeating [creator’s] block” is committing to spending like five minutes a day working on something, anything at all. And that’s good advice! but not really for creator’s block, I think.

It’s GREAT advice if you’re lacking in discipline though, like I can easily get distracted and not work on things for months. So committing to work on comic related things for at least 30 minutes a day (and having this commitment be to other people that I’m checking in with each day, i think thats an important part) has worked really well for me, personally.

But I wasn’t dealing with any kind of a block, I just lacked discipline. I don’t think it’s very useful if for example, you hate how your art looks so you don’t want to draw anything anymore lmao

With that in mind, lets go through that list and I’ll try give you some advice from my experiences, and hopefully it’ll help give you the means to identify the problems you’re struggling with and find solutions to them if my advice isn’t quite what you need.

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1. Disillusionment with your current skill level

So! it’s time to pull out everyone’s favourite graphic! this version was created by shattered-earth on deviantart, though the original is by Marc Dalessio

obviously this says art, but again this is applicable to all mediums. It’s an important concept to understand, the idea of a creator’s high vs a creator’s low depending on how developed your critical eye has become compared to your skill level.

If you’re not aware of it and don’t understand what’s happening, it’s REALLY easy to lose all motivation to create anything. Because why bother, if everything sucks? Definitely one of the most dangerous blocks you can run into, I think.

The solution, as with all of these walls, is to be kind to yourself.

Your critical eye improving is emotionally taxing, but it’s also an opportunity for great growth! It’s not easy, though. To get through it, you have to really confront what you don’t like about your work and target your weaknesses, and then you have to put in the time to try and improve them. That’s tough.

But self study doesn’t have to be a solo activity. Talk with your friends, seek out communities of creators, and follow resource blogs, channels, etc. I really think the best thing you can do is surround yourself with other creators, I’m in a few discords and hang out in the creative section of various forums etc

But this is really important: The act of targetting your weaknesses in order to improve them is going to make it REALLY easy for you to lose track of what you like about your work, and can in fact compound the issue and make you only focus on your flaws.

So, be kind to yourself. If you’re not happy with what you create, take the time to critically analyse your work. What don’t you like? What do you like? Don’t lose track of what you like while you study the things you’re less confident about, and with some patience and work your skill will catch up with your eye again.

I really can’t emphasise enough how important it is to not lose track of what it is you like about your work. The biggest motivation killer is always going to be falling out of love with your work, so do everything you can to prevent yourself losing the joy of creating.

Like, sure, a work might be technically perfect, but did you enjoy yourself while creating it? If you always ensure the answer to that is yes, the mismatch between your critical eye and your skills will be easier to handle because at least you’re still enjoying yourself, you know?

Keep reading

I try not to post commissions on my main, because I know they aren't writing related, but look at the art my friend did!!

I'm so in love with how it turned out and so excited to run her in this campaign. My poor little, spicy firebender and cute little spark, Aki.

Thank you so, so much. This is my background and it's not changing anytime soon.

Please commission my friend! She's amazing and kind and awesome!

Got the honor of doing this little spicy fireflake for a DnD, ATLA themed. I present, Kyoko and her little fren Aki, from the Fire Nation! Thank you noodle, for supporting me. She was fun and I learned some things.

I still have commission openings if anyone is interested!

Kyoko and Aki belong to @sinedra

I love these two so much, I remember creating Sadira back in middle school. Then I forgot her and she just kinda faded and was forgotten. Now she's back and hot dang she has never looked better. She's the oldest character out of any I've ever made that I remember and her progression and new maturity has proved how much I've grown as a writer. As a person. Ulyesses as well, kinda, he's grown but his vocabulary of curse words just grew. Anyway, these two are my otp and thus piece was very ambitious. I waited months and every minute, day, was worth it. They look so amazing and that word doesn't even cover it. This is my background for every electronical device I have. Thank you, for making them look better than ever, for accepting this commission when it rejected by a few others. You have done them a great honor and I love it so much. I keep noticing new details every time I look at it. P.s. @janeopries your tags are gold

Finished commission for @sinedra! ♡ This is their character Sadira and @janeopries’ character Ulyesses. I loved their story and had a lot of fun drawing them (while listening to sad florence + the machine songs of course). Thank you so much for commissioning me!

[fullview] ✧ [commission info]

FOR UKRAINIANS WANTING TO GET TO POLAND

You can take your animals with you, they only need to be vaccinated against rabies and have a microchip. Know that there are vets on the border that are vaccinating animals.

Kids are able to enter without documents. They won't be separated from their parents.

You need any kind of identification to enter right now, doesn't have to be a passport.

Covid vaccines are available for people that are entering

There is also no quarantine after you enter

Please stay safe

Edit: people started to ask for sources so I'm happy to provide them

https://www.wetgiw.gov.pl/main/aktualnosci/Tymczasowa-procedura-przemieszczania-zwierzat-towarzyszacych-z-terytorium-Ukrainy-na-teren-Polski-przez-osoby-nie-posiadajace-kompletu-dokumentow-weterynaryjnych-dla-psow-kotow-i-fretek/idn:1999

https://www.strazgraniczna.pl/pl/aktualnosci/informacje-o-granicy-polsko-uk/9870,Zniesiona-kwarantanna-na-granicy-z-UA.html

https://www.gov.pl/web/udsc/ukraina-en

https://www.gov.pl/web/zdrowie/szczepienia-przeciw-covid-19-cudzoziemcow-narodowosci-ukrainskiej

All of them are official government or border guard website

Love it! It's so Sadira!

Did @sinedra 's Sadira for a Halloween prompt. The randomizer said cute grim reaper and I was like...bet.

You want weapons? We're in a library. Books are the best weapon in the world. This room's the greatest arsenal we could have. Arm yourself!

David Tennant as the 10th Doctor. - Doctor Who season 2: "Tooth and Claw"

A Gentle Reminder

I always try to keep things positive, but I saw something tonight which really upset me and felt the need to say this.

For most writers, interactive fiction stories are free passion projects. Hobbies which we engage in simply because we want to. Writers should never feel bad if they aren't finding the time to write or meeting deadlines that they've set for themselves. By the same token, people have no right to demand content or complain about how long it takes to produce something.

There are some people who write at a breakneck pace or who are able to make a living just writing IF, but readers can't hold all writers to the standards of outliers. Sometimes writers don't have time to write, no matter how much they may want to. Writers should never feel guilty for this and people shouldn't try to make them feel guilty either. Sending authors rude anonymous asks is not productive and I imagine they aren't particularly satisfying for the people who ask them. All they are is upsetting to those who receive them.

If the goal of an ask is to spur a writer to complete work faster, being negative and demanding is not an effective way to accomplish this.

If there is any way to help a writer produce content faster - and again, if - then it's by supporting them and cheering them on. Not anonymously making them feel bad for not creating something at a speed that's to your liking.

If you want to encourage a writer to write, then support them.

You can do that through nice asks, reblogging their posts, sharing their stories with friends, rating their games highly (if they've released them), or even tipping them on ko-fi/supporting their patreon (if they have one). Positive interaction - in general - works wonders. Let them know how excited you are, share your positive comments with them, or just gush about whatever thoughts you have on their game. That's how you help motivate people. Not by trying to make them feel bad. If you're uncomfortable with the social aspect of this, that's what anon is for.

But, if people are nice to an author, that doesn't mean they're owed anything. It might still be a while before readers see more content, but that's no reason to stop being supportive. Again, these are free projects that writers choose to share.

Writers don't owe anything to anyone but themselves.

Now there are times for criticism if it's constructive or warranted, but entitled complaints are neither of these things. Don't be negative if you don't have to be. It doesn't help anything and it's not a productive use of anyone's time.

Being kind and respectful doesn't cost anything. It's just a choice. You can either choose to upset someone or choose to make someone's day and, with that, help make our community a better place.

To the vast majority of readers who already support authors and respect the content that they create, thank you. We appreciate you so much. If you want, try challenging yourself to be even more vocal and outspoken with you support. It will only help.

And to any writers reading this who may be feeling bad about project timelines, you have no reason to be. Complete your work however you need to at whatever pace works for you and your life. You're wonderful and talented and valid no matter how fast you put out content, how much interaction you see, or what someone says. You are creating art and that is something to be immensely proud of. Keep doing whatever's best for you. The vast majority of us support you with no expectations. ❤️

I know, once again art instead of advice, but @janeopries ugh just look at this. Look at them!

Close up WIP of a commission for @sinedra! ♥