We Have New Poster Of Miraculous World: Shangai, The Legend Of LadyDragon !

Sometimes I get discouraged as a creator. I read a fic that’s just so achingly beautiful that I think, “What’s the point of writing if I can’t write like this?” Or I see a stunning piece of art and I almost want to give up because I know I’ll never be that good.

The truth is, there will always be someone who’s better than me at something I want to be good at. And that’s okay. The things I do can still be valuable even if someone else does them better.

When I think about my favorite works and creators, I realize how different they all are. Maybe some of those creators worry that their work isn’t that good or get frustrated because they can’t create the way someone else creates. But I love them all in different ways for different reasons, and they are all wonderful.

It helps me to remember that my favorite creators also have favorite creators that they look up to and that even they have room for improvement and that even they have bad days or weeks or months when they flounder and don’t feel satisfied with what they create. Growth is not a linear process, and beauty is possible even in our ugliest periods of struggle.

There is no one writing or art style that is The Best™️, and talent/skill can manifest in different ways. Whether you try to mimic a style you admire or create something completely unique to you, your work will still have your fingerprints all over it, and they are good fingerprints, and they are yours and no one else’s, and your work will be valuable and beautiful because of them.

In the end, all that matters is that people enjoy what you created and, most importantly, that you as a creator found fulfillment in creating it. That’s the point of creating—to express yourself in a way only you can and to find meaning in that expression. Even if that meaning is just to unwind after a long day or enjoy some time thinking about your favorite characters or laugh at your own stupid joke.

I hope all you lovely creators know how much you are valued, even when you’re in a low. Putting something you made out there for the world to judge can be really scary, especially when you’re not feeling confident in the first place. But things don’t have to be perfect for people to love and enjoy them. And honestly, as an imperfect creator, I find it strangely encouraging when I spot flaws in something I admire. Because it reminds me that I’m not the only one who’s still growing. And if I can love a flawed piece of work that much, then other people can enjoy my flawed work too. We’re all works in progress, and we can create amazing things no matter where we are in our creative journey.

I guess what I’m really trying to say is ...

@ creators: you’re doing amazing, sweetie 💖💖 Be proud, and don’t give up.

Do you accept requests for fanfics? CFV ones of course.

Yeah, I do! But I’m not really sure how good they are 😅

do me a solid and just reblog this saying what time it is where you are and what you’re thinking about in the tags.

I really need some advice. I just recently got a spark of inspiration after months of not drawing anything, but the problem is that it's been so long since I've drawn anything that I literally can’t do it now. It's like I've completely forgotten how anatomy works. It's so discouraging because I know I can do better than this. I'm afraid I won't be as good as I was before. Does this ever happen to you? If it does, how do you work around it?

Oh my, this is literally what I´ve been struggling with all this year, anon, so I´m not sure if I´m the best person to ask. 

I´m very very glad you got your spark back tho! That´s a very good sign! 

I´m gonna tell you a lil secret. You won´t be as good as you were. Your experiences, your muscles, how you see the world even, shifted in those months. Romantic as it sounds, its just that your ability changed and that´s not a bad thing! 

Artblock is our body and mind saying “BITCH, I´VE DONE THIS SO MANY TIMES I CAN SEE EVERY SINGLE IMPERFECTION. I CRAVE ENRICHMENT AND NOVELTY. IDC HOW UGLY IT LOOKS AT FIRST” and by that I mean attempting new things. New perspectives. Trying to see things from a different angle. 

My boss used to tell me almost every day how sad he was that he was forgetting how to draw anatomy correctly and so, started to draw hands, eyes, skeletons, figure drawings every time he could manage to take out his little notebook. 

Back to the basics.

So, to keep this short and concise, there´s always something you´ve not tried/seen before and you´re adjusting to that change. The only way to adjust to it is through practice and sometimes, adding a little new spicy thing to the creation. Focusing in something specific. (like learning to draw figure drawings with one continuous line or as if it was a wire sculpture, or focusing only on the sharpest shadows and lighting)

And also, don´t get yourself overworked on trying to learn anatomy in a single way. I got so frustrated with my anatomy classes at uni because while I was getting down volume and mass (important for animation when you focus on weight) I wasn´t getting the basic principles of shapes in the human body. That´s because my teacher used a mix of traditional with experimental art teaching methods, however, that was not practical for me. 

This video here is pretty good at explaining this. 

There´s a lot of ways to learn anatomy after all. 

(Images from Willwestonstudio at instagram; tb_choi at instagram and manga materials)

Shapes, boxes, line direction and weight, proportions, there´s a lot to learn! But also, how you understand something plays A BIG role in how you apply that knowledge to recreate it yourself. 

If you think you´ve forgotten how anatomy works, don´t be scared to go back to the basics. You never know what new thing you will learn or what new trick you can apply now.

It´s gonna be cringy at the beginning, but don´t beat up yourself for that. Even the best get rusty after a while, so don´t forget to oil yourself every once in a while and keep practicing. 

We can do this sweet anon! >:D

LAST- ?

A bolt of electricity behind him made him groan as he heard the all to familiar sound of his friends having their tenth argument of the day.

Thanks for the ask!

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