Ask me anything. I don't talk about myself very much, but maybe people would like to get to know me better. And of course, feel free to ask about my characters and stuff too. Probably the easier point of entry. :)

So good news mostly. Pretty much fully confirmed that my feeling that I might give up art entirely, though new and something I hadn't experienced before, was probably still just the symptom of depression. Fell into it real bad for the last couple of weeks, and now I'm feeling mostly okay, though my motivation is still completely shot. But that's more because my physical health is simply not improving right now, so every time I think about picking up the pen I can feel my sore fingers and shoulder and decide against it. But the desire to create is still there; it's just inhibited right now.

I don't know when I'll be back to actually working a fair bit, but for the time being I'm just kind of...not. At all. I'm leaving all obligations behind for the time being. If you're...
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Hoping it's temporary, but I've had these fucking injuries hampering me for so long that whenever I think about drawing, it's a calculation about how much I can do without making my conditions worse. I'm down to about three hours a day, max, and I've been skipping days much more frequently either because I'm in pain or, more commonly now, because I'm afraid of my hobby.
As you might be aware, these are not ideal conditions for creativity, and brain associations matter a ton for maintaining drive and a schedule. I've already lost my interest in most video gaming, and I'm terrified it's happening with art too.
The prospect of my long-term projects used to fill me with pride and joy, but this month that has slowly started being replaced with dread.

I honestly don't...
[ Continued ... ]

So injuries are still making me slow, but I still plan on doing "one-day" animations next month, where for $150 (or $200 for colors), you give me a quick animation idea that I could ostensibly finish in a single day (examples below). Prey will have to be female as usual, and either submit characters I know how to draw, characters with simple designs, or be willing to allow me to turn a complicated design simple. I think because I'm still slow, I'm going to have to limit this to ten submissions. I'll have a proper sheet up for it in August with more details, but be thinking if you're interested/able!

Examples:
https://aryion.com/g4/view/442809
https://aryion.com/g4/view/883664
https://aryion.com/g4/view/369600
...
[ Continued ... ]

https://gulp.cafe/@HumbugTheRat

Since Twitter's being eaten by an idiot dragon (and not in a hot way), figured I'd go with the writing on the wall and head to a cozy server on Mastodon. Interface there is already vastly superior to Twitter, but that's not a high bar to clear on that dogshit-UI website. lol

Ever since Anthrocon, I've been thinking about how lucky I am to be part of the furry fandom, and I think I finally solidified exactly why. Though there are a multitude of great things about this fandom, I think the most important one is this:

We say we are fans of anthropomorphic characters, which is true, but not the whole story. More than that, we are fans of each other and ourselves.

Seeing people constantly saying to fursuiters "Your suit is adorable! Can I take a picture?" and knowing the excitement of being told people love my characters, while feeling the exact same way about other people's characters just drives home how goddamn SUPPORTIVE we are of each other. Furry gatherings often fund charities, and we're quick to chip in when people are...
[ Continued ... ]

I'm contemplating getting a "normal" job again and just supplementing my income with Gumroad. The last couple months have driven home how difficult it is to make art sustainable. I did well last year, but getting injured is easy and limits the hours I can put in.
Also, there's the fact that so many places are hostile to NSFW content, and I feel like I'm on thin ice subject to the whims of Puritans.

This is not a guarantee yet, but a heavy consideration. It's also possible that getting a normal job that keeps me away from the computer for much of the day will help speed up and solidify my physical recovery, which would allow me to eventually return and actually put in the hours I want.

I'm going to make the decision one way or another after...
[ Continued ... ]

Jegus fuck, I didn't plan on being injured for two months. Schedule's so damn off. lol

Anyway, I'm (mostly) back to normal now. I finished the Gumroad stuff for the month and will now start working on those commissions I got paid for. Here is the current plan:

* Finish current paid commissions.
* Take a couple of commissions at a time throughout June from the list of interested customers from two months ago.
* Finish Gumroad obligations for next month.
* Take all of July to finish some projects that are nearing completion but aren't quite there yet.
* Release a big-ish animation that I hopefully finished in July on 8/8. Also release Hot Purrsuit publicly (the lower quality version).
* Make Vore Month (August) the month I do all...
[ Continued ... ]

So I'm able to draw again, though I still have to be careful. As such, I'm going to once again focus on Gumroad first since it has a deadline. After that's done, assuming I don't injure myself again (I swear to fuck I'm being careful), I will take a couple comms at a time. Two people already paid me, so I'll do their stuff first and when I'm nearing completion on those, I'll go down the line on my comm sheet.

Thanks for bearing with me through all of this. It's been maddening being unable to do this hobby/job, but I think I'm about ready to start it up again.

Okay, so if you've been following my other journals you'll know that I spent, like, all of April injured in one way or another.

Well I'm still injured to some degree, but I'm ALMOST back in working order. So here's the plan as of right now: I'm going to finish what I owe on Gumroad for April (real close to done with that stuff) and see how I feel. If I'm feeling up for it, I'll contact the people who wanted commissions last month and never got invoices. Not taking new comms this month, but if all goes well, I'll still be doing those $150 short animations in June, so get ready for that.

That said, I'm taking it as easy as I can to ensure I don't fuck myself up again, and if that means I continue to have minimal output so be it. I really hope I start feeling normal...
[ Continued ... ]