12 Years

 It's that time of year again, folks! My imaginary kids are getting older and I'm getting wiser.

Or if not wiser, at least more skilled in art, which is something infinitely more practical I think. 

Originally I was planning to make two pieces for today, almost as mirrors to each other and to express that even if my characters change shape and get put into a different world, they're still the same at the core.

But then after drawing this I realized "Wait. I don't want to redraw these five characters again. NEVERMIND, this is good enough!" but at least I got the important version of my idea onto paper! XD

Just look at these idiots go. The OG terrible trio with my other favorites on either side. Y'know, thinking about it now, if Reginald and Harland had been there while this was still an AJ plushie blog, it would've been so fun to have bought a big wolf plushie and just stuck it next to the long noodle-boy that was Midnight's plush. Would've been very funny in my opinion. XD

 But anyway! Cheers, you funky lil animal weirdos that still haunt my brain to this day. Can't wait to see how you infiltrate through my other stories and grow into new exciting flavors of yourselves!

Old Core Memory back from the dead

 First time in about a month I've been home on a Saturday! Still exhausted, but at least it's nice to be home for a while before whatever is about to happen... happens again. XD

But while the horrors outside my head might persist for a little longer, I've at least got some horrors inside my head to entertain me too. 

Probably not orthodox, but getting back into my zombie obsession from my tweenhood-teenhood has been a good way to deal with burnout and exhaustion. Not sure how long this is going to keep me interested, but for now it's all I could need.
Would be cool if I ever wrote a proper story about this trope though, because I know I'd have a lot of fun with it.

Attained: Memories of Gold Coast

 *Dramatic swig of apple juice before thunking it down on a wooden table*

So.

It's been a long, very long, long and rough couple of weeks lately. Pretty much every weekend since my last blog update we've been traveling back and forth across states. Which is obviously very tiring, and between that and not having access to my drawing tablet on the days where I'd usually be drawing the most, that means I haven't had the energy to post on my blog lately.

Which is fine! Some times of life will be like that, and I'm glad I'm not obsessive enough to think not posting my weekly artwork means I'm a bad person.  But still! For the first time in a while, I've had the spoons to think about doing this, so let's do this and do this in style:

Normally I'm the kind of person who doesn't take pictures of anything, preferring to let my memory and emotions do the work of photos. But after that one experiment I did a few months ago, I've been on the lookout for opportunities to do something like that again. And I figured "why not this?" as a way to make sure I had some positive memories mixed with all the exhausting ones. And a fun creative project too, of course! XD

And even if today has been the first real Sabbath that we've gotten to slow down and relax in (despite still being in the Gold Coast) I'm hoping next week will go smoother than the last few weeks. But only one way to find out, I guess! 

Who needs the sun when you could stand next to someone with a really bright disposition?

 Considered not making a post this week because I was tired and figured I hadn't drawn anything really interesting. Then remembered this blog is as much a record of my shenanigans outside of drawing, even if it's primarily a visual reference for how much my skills have improved over the years.

Anyway! I'm far from home this weekend, and despite all attempts upon my sanity I am still kicking. Wooh! 

It's not everyday you take a drive to a different state to spend time with your mother at a different public hospital, that's for sure XD

"Any brighter than that and you could see it from space-"

 *stares into the void, sipping an apple cider through a long twisting straw*

Well!

Wasn't expecting to get hyper-fixated on a new OG idea, but then again... am I ever? 

I've had a long week, but at least we got glowing vampires showing their new travel partner what happens when a bunch of people are scared of the dark and decide that best way to fix that problem was to build the biggest eyesore for miles around XD

Breaktime

 Okay!

NOW ArtFight is over! Now I can put down my pen, fall backwards and give myself a well deserved rest after a month's long grind to balance quantity with quality.

It was a good fight! But I'm completely done now, so here. Take this sketch and let me go back to bed-

-where I'm going to brainstorm some new ideas and make some concept art for it.

I'll also play video games too, don't worry! But what else was I gonna do on a Saturday night? XD 

Vision restored! Rejoice!

 *Radio crackle* WE INTERRUPT YOUR USUAL WEEKLY BLOG UPDATE WITH A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:

VISION HAS BEEN RESTORED! I REPEAT, VISION HAS BEEN RESTORED!!! 

Seriously tho, it's nice to have a new pair of glasses that helps me see beyond my immediate vicinity XD And pair that with my new pen (for my drawing tablet) I can now see better and draw without fighting for control every second or third stroke!

So now all I have left to do is draw two more attacks, and then I can officially collapse and retire from ArtFight! Here's hoping my crash landing is at least a little more graceful than last year! XD  

Dawn (Bringer) and Ray(bies)

 *claps hands together* OKAY

Final stretch of ArtFight, here we come!  Still haven't crashed and burned yet, so I'm hoping that now that the finish line is in sight I'll be able to get my second wind and cover all the ground I want before the month ends.

My goal is to make 8 more attacks before ArtFight is over. So if I can do 1.5 attacks a day, I should be able to do just fine. Maybe! XD

Til then, I'm pouring all my time into making attacks, but here's something I made the week before: 

Some OCs I was thinking about for about a day. But only one day, because I needed something new to play with that I could put back in the box very easily. And these two girls fit that bill perfectly XD 

Maybe later I'll come back and play with them properly, but for now they exist and that is all they need to do. 

Inside Out sketches

 Right! Halfway through the month, and I've made 16 attacks on ArtFight so far. My goal is to make 30 attacks this year, but even if I don't quite make it, I'm pretty pleased with all of the stuff I've drawn so far.

I've had to take a few days off to make sure I didn't burn out (too badly), but I'm hoping to get the momentum to make more art next week :3 

Gotta make sure to give myself time to draw personal stuff, too. Need to give myself treats too! At least a few times during the week! XD

Making stupid little flower crowns for stupid little friends who are too stupid to understand that you don't hate their stupud little heads

 Now with ArtFight truly kicked off, and me only having to deal with another power outage to make me restless for an afternoon, I think I'm starting to get into my groove for this month! Already made 10 attacks, which on the one hand? Maybe not as impressive as what some other people manage, but I'm personally happy with the pace I'm setting for myself, and I hope I can successfully draw another 20 before the month is over.

Although me having enough time and energy to draw personal stuff is going to be rare, it won't be impossible! As this week proved to me XD 

Made about four pages of concept comic pages for Bristly and Lapis, which still gives us big feelings if the fact me and my big sister still haven't gotten over this development for these idiots' relationship XD

We'll see what the next week offers us! And regardless, I'm going to look forward to what I'm about to draw next! :3 

Bored out of our minds

 Well! First few day of ArtFight has gone well for me! Started with a scheduled power outage that meant I couldn't use my tablet for the half the day, and then on Friday I got a flu shot so meant my body had some fun things to deal with while I desperately tried to finish my first attack.

You know! Just typical starting line stuff hurdles. XD

Jokes aside tho, I'm pretty happy with how my first drawing went, and I think it's one of the biggest pieces I've ever made for ArtFight (so far) 

 A collection of Ennui's! There's been a small surge of people adding their Inside Out sonas onto ArtFight, and since that timed perfectly with my own IO obsession coming back, I figured I might as well do something with it.

We'll see what else I draw during the month, but I'd say I am pretty excited to see what I do next! 

Eyes of the Beholder (I believe I'm a monster. So what does that make you?)

 Right! June is almost over. The official countdown to ArtFight has begun, and with it any last preparations I needed to make have been done. Now all that's left for me is to bide my time until the whistle blows and I can throw the first punch at whatever unsuspecting passerby that catches my interest first.

But until then! I'm pouring out all of my creative juice into a project I can easily put back down again once July hits America! 

I can't lie, there's a good chance the first attack I'll make in ArtFight this year is going be against a mermaid character. I'm having so much fun with mine, it'd be a shame if I don't share the love a little more XD

Useless fighter vs. Defenseless coward

Taking things slow and steady. Just rebuilding whatever motivation and endurance I'm going to need for ArtFight in a few weeks.

I guess being bored and not having anything specific to be hyperfixated on is a good thing right now. Means when I am supposed to pour my heart and soul into July, I'll be biting at the bit and ready to go.

Til then, making little sketches about all the RK things me and my sister have been talking about has been good. 

Nothing like watching an entire room getting slaughtered by your Knight and political rival, only to face down someone who (for some reason) thinks you're still the most dangerous thing in the room.

Briar's been having a weird week, to say the least.  

The White Sheep of the family

Right! Now that I've properly gotten over being sick, it's now just a matter of getting the momentum to draw like I usually do. And sure, I've had some days that I've had to spend face-down on the floor, but for the most part I've been pretty content with what my hands have been finding to do.

Especially all the Rose Knight stuff I've been making: 

Congratulations, Morgan! We now have a clearer idea what your parents are like, and now I can't imagine the story without them.
I am so sorry tho, you're now related to Tara. But no helping that, I suppose XD

The place where we played

 Okay, so this week didn't pan out how I expected it to. But once I realized that I wasn't having a really bad case of anxiety but instead having a minor anxiety attack WHILE being sick, I cheered up significantly and readjusted my expectations for what I could do in accordance to that.

I've spent most of my week being either too tired and sick to play games, and then being too tired and sick to draw (but enjoying video games, thankfully) and yesterday I stared into space like "I want to draw. I don't want to play video games for 4-5 hours in the afternoon anymore. But I'm still not feeling good enough to 'make' anything new..."

But I found something to keep my hand busy and to get my confidence back, even if it was a little unorthodox. :3

Before we moved to our new house, I was doing some kind of... arty-3-month online uni course or something. I remember it stressing me to hell and back, because I had never done anything like this before and I was unused to the idea of working with a LOT of things I had never tried before (like making paper collages and working with charcoal and paint and stuff) but one of the things I remember having to do was take some pictures for "inspiration" for the assignments we were given.

Long story short, I collected as many of those pictures I took for my uni assignments and just... thought it would be fun to draw over the top of one of them, in an effort to recreate some childhood vibes.
I played on that brick wall a lot. I banged rocks into dust under the shade and made games with chalk on the driveway and scratched shapes onto the wall and watched ants go about their anty business.

I wish I had taken more pictures of the house. But at least I have this one to keep close to myself now. 

Panic! And Boredom! At the Disco!

 Once again getting inspired by a song and using it as a springboard for some good old fashioned creativity! Because as if ONCE wasn't enough this week. XD

Social anxiety has never sounded so boppy before XD 

"I'm trying to accurately depict an anxiety attack and you're not helping"

Funny thing happened on the way to getting up on an average Tuesday morning and having no idea what I was going to draw, but knowing I wanted it to engage me on at least two different vectors.

Also funny thing happened when I was browsing through what kind of song to listen to while I warmed up my hand for drawing said nebulous and engaging thing.

Turns out one triggered the other and I haven't been able to stop drawing about a comic about Anxiety's average day, but to the lyrics of a song I already liked but it'll be imprinted in my brain forevermore after it's over!

Such is the way of inspiration, as always. XD

Sleeping on the job

Okay

So maybe saying to myself "you know what I should do this week? Rewrite 9 character bios for ArtFight within a week, AND write up 8 brief descriptions for the relationship every character has with EVERYBODY ELSE" was maybe a little ambitious.

And maybe I should've have been surprised when I felt like death before the week was out. XD

But all things considered, I'm happy with the progress I've made so far! And I've done more than half the work, so with any luck I'll get the rest finished well before July hits! 

In the meantime tho, I'm following Ennui's lead and I'm going to crash out. With any luck I won't wake up until a thousand years has passed XD

Hanging out at the Sniper's nest

 Howdy, folks! Spent most of my week writing again. Writing and sleeping, actually! Been going through a weird time when my brain needs more rest, I think. Or at least more rest during the times when I want to be awake XD

Despite that though, I think I've managed to mitigate most of the damage and whatever else I needed. Still going to take it easy, but I'm happy to be poking my big SWH2 fanfic project with a stick this much. 

Nice to be back in a small SWH2 mood, too! Haven't fallen in that deep yet, but the ground is soft and anything could happen.  

Seas, Skies, and the Shattered World

 Right! Out of all the things I expected to happen this week, getting invested in writing and drawing SteamWorld Heist shenanigans was not one of them. But this has been a welcome distraction from everything else! Nice to get back into the robot stuff again.

 Was pretty proud of the colors for this came out. Definitely want an excuse to play with more tropical colors again!

Selkie Transformation

Think I'm finally starting to get some momentum to draw again this week.

If all the new concept art for a story about Selkies I've been thinking of has been any indication, it's  probably only a matter of time until I do something insane again

And by insane, I mean creative!

And by creative? Well.. we'll find out when we get there! 

In the meantime, seals are fun to draw! 

Take a walk with Mii

 Okay

So maybe redrawing 9 character sheets plus half a dozen other smaller (but no less creatively-draining) projects in the span of a few short weeks was maaaaaaybe going to have a higher cost than I expected.

But in my defense! I was riding the high of Completing Tasks and forgot that there are consequences to my (creative) actions!

So yeah. Had a good drawing day on, what? Monday? And then crashed and burned for the rest of the week.

Good thing a new game came out so me and my twin got invested in! 

I played the original Tomodachi Life game as a kid, so watching my twin play it for the first time has been enriching. Some things I remember, and some of my knowledge can be transferred! Other things we are learning together.

Either way, we're making sure we are best friends in every universe and every game. So far it's going well XD 

Finding our Routes

Another week officially done and dusted. Minecraft is still inspiring me to draw a lot of stuff, and I've made a lot of progress (in the game) since last week. Documenting all the shenanigans I've done is taking time, but at least it gives me a good list of options to draw should I need the inspiration.

However, I am also busy redrawing all of my Inside Out character sheets (which I made in 2023, I think?) so it's been tricky balancing all the things I want to do at once. But I haven't burnt out yet, so I suppose I've been doing a good job making sure my plate isn't too full everyday!

 

  

 I think this is one of the favorite things I've drawn this week, though. Really proud of how the map turned out, and the lighting feels exactly how I wanted it. Can't wait to find more excuses to draw maps :3

Mapping our World

 Ha! Well, it's that time again folks! A time where the fourth day of April lands on a Saturday.
It's happened once already - 2020, I believe and fact checked! - and now it's happened again.

On the one hand? I've felt a year older since January/February, so like. Officially reaching 24 years of life is like *shrug* "yeah, I know. No big deal." And on the other hand...? Well, it's just funny because I'm glad I've reached to the point where having another birthday isn't sending me into bad spiral anymore.

In fact, I'm almost looking forward to seeing what kind of shenanigans I can cram into my life until the next birthday happens!

But anyway- enough introspection and musings. Here's this week's art showcase from yours truly! 

Last week I bit one bullet (I had many bullets to choose from) and decided to try playing Minecraft again. And it's been inspiring me to draw again! I was kinda going through a writing phase during March, being more interested and motivated to write instead of draw... but it feels good to wake up in the morning and feeling excited about art again.

... also it feels good to wake up in the morning and get excited about playing Minecraft like a kid again. Except this time I'm being an Adult(TM) about it XD  

So yeah! Let's see where this year takes us. I'm planning to celebrate my birthday properly when my twin gets to come home from studying, but until then let the Emotional times roll!

Whether the Weathers

 March coming to a close feels like a small ripoff, but since I've already started thinking of myself as a year older (even before our birthday has happened) I think that balances things somewhat.

Maybe not a satisfying balance, but a balance nevertheless! We'll take what we can get. 

 

Whatever the next few weeks brings us though, may we get through it all as best we can. 

Don't stop now! There's an army of Sharks around that corner!

One week later, and I am resigned to report that the Ninjago hyperfixation hasn't abated yet. It has shifted towards a Ninjago!Movie flavor of the characters I know and love very well, which was... weird! But if it sparks joy, who am I to question it?

And instead of drawing a lot of the things in my mind, I've been writing about it instead! And it's been enjoyable, digging my teeth into a big writing project for a change of pace.

Maybe I'll keep writing fanfiction for another week before getting back into my art. Sometimes flexing my other creative muscles for long periods of time is a good thing. And I'm enjoying it, so why not?

Of course that won't stop me from drawing things like this, though. Even if it's only a little. :3 This sketch is inspired by the things I have been writing. And we'll see if I can make a few more companion pieces to go with it later. 

Fire Ninja Fight

*Long. Very long. Drawn out sigh.*

So.

After 3 years of radio silence, guess what hyperfixation has reared it's masked head from the depths of my brain again.

Yeah, I don't believe it either! But it's Ninjago, folks! 

I'm hoping this is only a temporary bout of madness and then my soul can be cleansed again. But until then, I guess I'm gonna be thinking about fruit-colored ninjas for a hot minute.

Such is the way of the dormant hyperfixation from your childhood. XD  

Not a competetion, but if it was...

Had a bit of a rough week, but despite dizziness knocking me around a lot, I managed to eek out another SWH2 comic before Friday so that was good I think!

Also in-between trying to make comics, I also doodle some RK stuff. Which was an unexpected but pleasant surprise :3

Once again Lapis and Jim are my go-to nerds for easy and comforting RK characters to draw. As they should be. XD

What do you see (when you look in the mirror)

Currently feeling like a horse stuck on a broken carousal, because my inner-ears are going through the wringer for bizarre reasons

But lo and behold! Art!!

Made this at the beginning of the week because I saw some cool pictures of broken mirrors and reflections. Figured it would be good practice and good fun, and I was right

We gotta get Tristan a dictionary or something, I swear

 Another week done, and another comic done. Although the comic I made this week was 10 pages long, and I got it down in 5 days, so it was a little exciting and thrilling to get all that down on paper!

Unfortunately I didn't really draw anything else this week, except concept art for a Spiderman OC I've started musing about during the quiet moments of the night when sleep is fickle and the dreams won't come. So even if I have been too busy, I've at least been entertained by all sorts of thoughts.  

Anyway, I'm pleased with how everything has turned out this week. I look forward to seeing what happens during the next 7 days of my life!

Beacon sketches

 I think it's at this point that I have come to a realization: it's February!

Which is something that I should probably have already known, but in my defense it's funnier if a part of me was still absolutely convinced it was still December of 2025. The year's going to be over before I even register it's begun, huh? XD

Still trucking my way through Steamworld comic projects, and I'm pleased with how good my endurance has gotten in the last year. Averaging a comic project a week is pretty good, and I'm optimistic (and excited) about all the other things I'll get to do with these advancing skills!

But that's future problems and delights. For now, practice (and persistence) makes good things better! And I'm relieved I'm FINALLY getting the hang of drawing Beacon's face. XD 

A man and his nuclear-powered therapy crab

Okay, after that intensive odd week of Warrior Cats, I am pleased to report my Steamworld obsession is back on track!

Not like it ever left, but now it's back with a new interest and passion! And also a mild fascination for new ideas I'll want to explore later.

But til then! Behold! The man of the hour with his therapy dog best friend! 

I'm still learning how to draw Trophy, but I'm pretty pleased with the vibes I'm getting down on paper lately. I'll see if I can start making some comics including them or not over the week. :3

Cats cats cats

Well this is an unexpected shot of nostalgia for my system! Warrior Cats, huh?

I figured one day I might become interested in cat drama again, but also getting invested in a bunch of WC OCs too? Now that's something you don't see everyday! 

We'll see how long this lasts, but until then it has been very fun spinning these cats around in my head while I work on comics. :3

A wheelchair user, a HoH person, an amputee and a half-blind kid walk into a bar-

What was supposed to be a brief creative exercise turned into a sketch that I actually quite like

And by that, I mean who knew translating robot designs into human variants would be so much fun?

Also Quincy, you are living up to the Pirate stereotype of hiring people with disabilities and we love you for it very much XD

My Bane, My Antidote

So.

This piece got slightly out of hand! A little more polished than I was bargaining for.

But you know what? Some days you just gotta draw something and then keep coloring it until it accidentally becomes something more than you first planned! And that is okay.

Quincy Leeway doodles

Well! I sure drew a lot this week! Roughly 12 comic pages of various projects, and a handful of smaller doodles throughout the week!

Unfortunately none of that is easy to show off in my typical blogger format, and the thought of having to dig up and upload even one comic page out of context exhausts me, I have decided to go for option B! Something I made on New Years day that still amuses me! 

Love how despite only having one arm, Quincy is still hilariously chatty with his hands and unreasonably fun to draw. I'm so glad I've started to get the hang of working with him. XD

Remember the Fallen

Wrote a SWH2 fanfic earlier in the week, and then decided to make some kind of 'art companion' piece to go with it.

I didn't want to draw any submarine interior, but honestly the wispy smoke and steam works better with the emotion I wanted to capture. 

It was an interesting experiment, one which I am not unpleased with. 

If there's breath left in our bodies, there is Hope

It was only a matter of time before I started making fanart inspired by SPG songs, and I guess this week was that time!

Pretty much an excuse to draw something with a lot of steam and smoke.

Miss Phroggy

After a few ego deaths and a great Herculean effort, I have finally started trying to learn how to draw robots that aren't Quincy

And this one is frog-shaped! 

Still got a long way to go in terms of figuring out how to make the shapes and colors work for me, but any progress is good progress, and Poe is a delight to me

Burning eyes. Glowing furnace.

Another week passes and I am still invested in steam powered robots going on submarine adventures.

 

May next week teach me how to draw these steam powered robots going on submarine adventures with more confidence, though XD

-that one meme where the guy slaps a car- This Robot can fit so much Anxiety within him

... *SIGH*

Okay

 So.

I might have a new hyperfixation right now. 

And you'll never guess what that is, unless you remember what I uploaded on my blog last week 

On the one hand, I want to say "who could've foreseen this?" with a lot of irony. And on the other hand, I want to say "WHO COULD'VE FORESEEN THIS???" with as much genuine bemusement I can muster. Because REALLY, Apple? You Do Not like drawing machines or robots of any kind!
And yet here you are! ACTIVELY CHOOSING to draw machines and robots! Probably gonna learn how to draw a submarine to boot too, aren't you?

Ha! I am always fascinated by whatever the end-of-the-year obsessions I get, but THIS! This is somehow inviting every creative outlet I have to demand my full attention. And there's only so much time to write fanfiction and draw art in a day, y'know!

But we'll see how this goes!