I appreciate that you guys appreciate me! Thank you so much for supporting me throughout my artistic journey. I will do my best to impress when I come back! So far, most of the improvements have been subtle. It's nothing overtly flashy or astounding, although my coloring skills have gotten exponentially better out of nowhere. It's a pleasant surprise, but one that makes no sense to me, because I've been focusing on anatomy mainly! How strange? A lot of what I upload when I come back will be classwork and sketchdumps, and not too many nice, shiny finished pieces... I hope this is okay with everyone!

Also, I love Digimon. I just... gah. Sometimes I'm rejuvenated in an interest in an old thing, and I have always loved Season 3. It showed at a point in my youth when I was very emotionally malleable and impressionable; Renamon was my hero. I used to pretend she was my Digimon partner and would protect me from the crippling panic attacks that haunted me at night! She would save me! Who else likes Digimon? The first three -- AND ONLY THREE -- people who respond to this journal who like Digimon (bonus points if it's Season 3!) will get a free quick sketch of their original Digimon character (the Digital Monster itself, not the tamer). You don't necessarily need to have a reference picture, but it'll make it go quicker. xD

DIGIMON SKETCHES

1.) For -- my take on Rookie-level plushy rat Digimon, Pringomon!



You know... and I used to do this amazing Digimon RP. It's probably one of my favorites I've ever played in. I really miss you, Ant! Let's all try to send him good karma. ~squints and concentrates~ YAY GOOD THOUGHTS!

After that unrelated interlude, we bring you back to your regularly-scheduled programming!

College is so competitive. An analogy; we the illustration students (note that in my college, Illustration is by far and away the most brutal of the departments available!) are like piranhas, and our goal is the capybara carcass that is our degree! We will bite each other to get it! I have very little time for fun things, but I do insist on making time to sneak on deviantART and talk to my treasured friends you guys! So please forgive my flakiness right now.

AniméUSA, like usual, I'll be at the How to Draw Manga-style panel! Please come join me. I am high-energy, talkative, and bouncy. (I also know what I'm talking about, I promise!) I will answer any questions to the best of my ability, nerd out about anime with you, and hopefully spark an interest in the casual hobbyist to pursuing any kind of art with your whole heart. I always meet the best people at this panel; there are so many artistic gems in the audience who don't even realize their talent..! I have to enlighten them! After these panels, I end up adding so many new artists to my watchlist.

and I will hopefully be going as matching kittygirls this year. Yin and yang cats! It should be very cute, she's so pretty! (Please realize I do not in any way adhere to the 'catgirl' subculture of animé -- I dress up like one because it makes me feel cuddly, and also to parody some of the behaviors of the more ridiculous stereotypes in the convention world. xD)

What's been going on in your life? Anything interesting? Are any of you having a kind of rough time of it this year, too? If so, I'm a listening ear if you want to talk about it. I can probably empathize. Is anyone's birthday coming up?

Commission Me:[link]
Art Blog: [link]
Writing Blog: [link]
Art Policies: [link]

The 24th. Maryland. Be there. [link]

Yeah, it's this upcoming weekend.

Commission Me:[link]
Art Blog: [link]
Writing Blog: [link]
Art Policies: [link]

Wow. I was clicking through my gallery (it's in storage, so I'm the only one who can see it right now), cleaning some things up and tidying, and one thing led to another, and I sifted through my old journal entries. There were, like, seventy-bajillion. SEVENTY-BAJILLION, I TELL YOU. So I combed through them trying to leave only the ones that might be interesting to read or relevant. (To something.) I also went on a cleaning spree around the house; lysol, bleach, febreze, windex! Yay cleanliness! Do you ever go on cleaning sprees?

I have the flu, though. But I feel so much better today than I did the past couple of days, these past two weeks have been some of the worst in my life. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, I suppose? _{Even if I feel like I'm dying on the way...}

I joined Thorns [link] , a play-by-post RPG my friend Alex `thundercake made. It's really fun so far. If you love to read and enjoy advanced role-play, Thorns is absolutely the best choice! Speaking of good choices, this artistic hiatus thing was a good one. I've been improving in my absence from posting art online -- the improvements are subtle, but it pleases me a lot. There's plenty of interesting things to show you guys already, but I'm not coming back for a while. My sketchbooks are getting so full!

Thank you very much big bro Curon =DarkKnightCuron for the subscription! I'm so happy for the continued support even when I'm not actively posting up my work. I've got to do my best to impress! When I come back with new art I'll probably make a fun new journal CSS or something.

Now, have some random funny crap:

[link] <- funny little commercial involving gender confusion

Commission Me:[link]
Art Blog: [link]
Writing Blog: [link]
Art Policies: [link]

Okay, guys! (See if you can count how many times 'Jingles' or 'Jingle' is used in this journal. I did it in a feeble attempt to make it sound more appealing. LOL.)

I need a team of people who are willing to be my assistants during the artistic zen training in the mountains. You will be wearing the padded gauntlets as I practice my karate kicks! Holding the plank as I smash it in with my face! Etc. In other words, I am looking for a certain amount of people to join -- no more than seven, because that is the lucky samurai number! BUSHIDO! If you agree, here's what you'd agree to:

Reply (optional) to e-mailed art pieces from me with fairly detailed critique and suggestions.

That's it! (Much more low-key than the title makes it sound. LMAO.) Once in a while you'll get an e-mail from me titled 'Critique Team Piece #' and off you go. If you're too busy you don't have to reply with critique, but be aware that you'll be missing out on Jingle Points if you do! Benefits of being on the Jingle Critique Team include:

Get to see some of the more important art I make aeons before the internet public! (This doesn't include sketches or most schoolwork; the professors at college'll take care of my critique needs for that. xD)
Get to influence the pieces directly!
Get rewarded for your time with varying amounts of Jingle Points -- which go towards art prizes!
Best of all, the same favor is formally returned to you, from me. E-mail me your work and I will ALWAYS reply with a detailed critique if you're part of this group! (Oh, shush, I know I already do anyway. XD!)

To 'apply', just fill out this little form:

_{Name: What shall I call you? (Combine your name with a fun samurai title, like, "Shogun Sara the Sassy Socialite!")
E-mail: Put the e-mail address I should send my WIPs to here.
Artistic Strength: What should I listen especially to your advice on? Are you great at lighting and coloring? Are your anatomical skills super? What can I learn from you?
Why?: How come you want to be part of the Jingle Critique Team? (It's okay if you're in it for the Jingle Points, but you might not want to just say that. LOL.)}

What the hell are Jingle Points?! They are worth the same as real money to Jingles, because your critique is worth its weight in gold! You can exchange Jingle Points for prizes! Check out the prize list below. You are only eligible to recieve Jingle Points if you are part of the Critique Team. It's my way of saying 'thank you for your time'! The art is REAL art, with REAL time and love put into it. Srsly. Basically, you put in a few minutes of thought into helping me improve on some pieces, and you gradually earn reward art. It's THAT easy. (I sound like Billy Mays. ... TOO SOON!)

Prizes!
10 JP, sketch character face portrait
20 JP, full-body character sketch of your choice
35 JP, Color Character Portrait of your choice
50 JP, Color full-body character of your choice
100 JP, 3-page mini comic written by you and illustrated by me

The Jingle Critique Team!

1.) "The Sexy Shogun Sery!" 5 JPs
2.) "Bandit Prue the Multiversal Ronin!" 8 JPs
3.) "Katana Kelly the Kritiquing Killer!" 2 JPs
4.) "Lord Cathto of Kyuden Purin!" 5 JPs
5.) "Kabuto Kim the Noodle-eater!" 1 JPs
6.) "'Only' The Critique Crusader!" : 11 JPs
7.) "Lord Jarke of the Mountains!" 3 JPs

If any of you are trying to improve, know that I am there for you 100%. I will always give you critique on a piece if you send it to me via note -- but I will put in extra time to those who are part of this mini-club. Time is a commodity down here at this super-competitive college. Thusly, it's precious. So, er, be happy. Haha. If you're a 'real life' buddy of mine, this whole journal pretty much doesn't apply to you (with the exception of Sery). Also, my buddy Saxy =SaxGirl1010 and Marty *sadwonderland have both called me a vigilante. LOL. Am I? I can't tell!

Commission Me:[link]
Art Blog: [link]
Writing Blog: [link]
Art Policies: [link]

Hey guys!

From now on, in an effort to show the kinds of comments I want in my own work, I'm going to be giving critique on pieces. Every piece that catches my interest I will offer critique if I see need to. I hope this will help everyone! deviantART is very focused on 'buttkissing' and generic "Awesome!" "You rock!" comments that are totally unproductive to the artist.

From now on, I'll be taking everyone here seriously as an artist and offering them critique on every piece I view unless critique has been discouraged, in which case I will be very disappointed in you. LOL. I encourage everyone to do the same as well! This is an art website, let's rejuvenate the art part!

Just an update!

Also, this artistic hiatus thing is working. o.o Without the need to have others validate me and tell me how great I am on the internet, I can be as harsh on myself as I want, and actually DO BETTER. It's... amazing, I'm really glad. I know now that when I do come back I'll be a lot less likely to let comments go to my head. This pleases me immensely.

What are all of you up to?

Commission Me:[link]
Art Blog: [link]
Writing Blog: [link]
Art Policies: [link]