Post by pomato in //TODO: today comments

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Aaaah, someone beat me to it with a fanart, hahaha.

Here's a fanart of mine that I have been postponing forever, since I don't have a Joyce to push me and support me to actually finish it. (There are some inaccuracy, but oh well. Too lazy to fix it now!)

https://killerkirb.deviantart.com/art/027-Joyce-TODO-today-712230965

There's a lot of things I want and could say about the Visual Novel, but it's going to end up like a wall of text and the comment section might not be the right place to post it.

I hope I'll get enough motivation to keep practicing and become a good enough artist so I can create neat stuff like a Visual Novel as well.

Boys Laugh +6 years ago

Aaah that's really cute! And the attention to detail is great!
Getting fanart is really exciting so thanks for drawing Joyce <3

Motivation can be tricky and it's different for everyone but we hope you'll find something that works for you! Teal's struggle with it is partly based on personal experiences so it only shows one side of it but we're trying to also show some other perspectives as the game progresses.

Thanks for playing (and drawing) and we wish you good luck with your art!

pomato6 years ago

Thanks for reply! Motivation has always been an extremely huge struggle for me, I never really improve since I always get too demotivated after a month and don't draw at all. And after like a year I try again and the cycle just repeats itself haha. Maybe drawing just isn't really for me, but when I think at all the ideas I could express in drawings... (Visual Novels that I could make, comics that I could make, etc.). That is what makes me want to try again. (Though my motivation usually don't last).

I do have to say the pacing of the visual novel is pretty good. It isn't too long winded and tedious as some other indie visual novels I've read. Teal's situation at the start of the VN is also very relatable, (aside that Teal is already decent at drawing). I might redo the drawing in a later time just to adjust a few things here and there, but that's if I manage to continue to practice and get a bit better at it, haha.

eZombo6 years ago

Hey, writer of BL+ here. I thought I'd reply with my own account since I'll be mostly speaking from my own experience.

I might be kind of in the same boat as you in terms of 2D art. I enjoy it but only draw occasionally since I quickly get demotivated again. That's probably partly because I want to improve and have high standards but they aren't really realistic considering how little I draw.
I think having high standards and being ambitious is theoretically a good thing but in my experience it can also make you feel pressured to improve quicker than you actually can. But of course it's difficult stay patient when you're not improving as quickly as you want to.

Something else I realized is that great technical skill or being good in all aspects of art isn't necessarily necessary for good art. Take ONE for example: his art-style and linework maybe aren't the most elaborate but when it comes down to it, the atmosphere and composition usually still pull you in. Of course that only works because he's making comics where there are more aspects to it than just the art but I think it's worth thinking about what aspects you are good at and if you can somehow make that the foundation of your art.

If you want to make comics or visual novels it might also help you to look into paneling, cinematography, or narrative techniques and how you can use them in combination with your art skills.
For example, if I were to make a visual novel on my own I would probably use a fairly minimalistic art-style where I can make use of my knowledge of graphic design and composition and try to carry the rest with story, writing, or sound.
I don't know how interested you are in things other than visual art but at least for me it usually helped to learn about other disciplines when I felt demotivated in one.

Anyway, I probably know too little about your situation to really give good advice but maybe some of it was still helpful...

Also I'm glad you like the pacing! I sometimes feel like parts of it are still a bit slow but it's good to hear otherwise ^^

pomato6 years ago

I can relate with you with the wanting to improve, but not improving fast enough. And I 100% lose my patience really fast, because often I just feel like I haven't improved at all. Sometimes I feel like I did a fluke that looks good and I can't replicate it anymore in the future, it feels like I've gotten worse. It's all in my head, but I can't shake the negative feeling off.

ONE is amazing and I'm pretty jealous of him. I'm pretty sure he's fairly decent with his art, but he just intentionally doesn't as much effort in it as he could have and his manga is so nice.

I actually have some experience and knowledge with Paneling, Narrative techniques, etc. (Scott McCloud's book or PDF files talks so in depth about it and it's lovely), but I haven't really been practicing it at all. I probably should start doing some comics, even if it looks horrible. Cinematography is something I'm somewhat practicing, so I at least have that. I'm not really passionate about these subjects, but I do look into them and try to understand them. I probably would want to try and write stories aside from Visual Art, since I can later on apply it and make a VN or Comic out of it. I don't know why, but I feel like I need to get good with basic art first before I do that, while I know that it's better to practice a few multiple things at once, instead of just solely 1 thing. I'm not really good at writing either, so that's probably why.

As for the Visual Novel, overall I did think the pacing was pretty good. I do agree with you there are slow parts. I do have my criticisms, but I decided to not start, since I won't be able to stop and it'll end up being a huge wall of text hahaha.

eZombo6 years ago (1 edit)

I think if you feel like you should focus on visual art first then that's probably what you should do. Switching between different disciplines works for me but everyone is different and it's even harder to be motivated when you don't really want to do something.
Problems like these are tricky because it's mostly psychological. But something I've been practicing is to not feel bad when I have days where I'm not very productive or creative. That was actually one of the ideas behind //TODO: today and one of the messages I want to bring across, that sometimes just doing a little is at least better than doing nothing even if it doesn't bear big results. And sometimes it's just important to rest and take time off (although it's difficult to feel like this is actually for the sake of productivity :'D)
Of course that doesn't change quality or improvement but I think even there it's helpful to try to accept that there are days where you are better or worse than usual.

I haven't completely solved this problem either so there's not really much else I can add, but I think ultimately everyone has to find an answer for themselves anyway (although taking a look at other people can still be a valid way to get there). I hope this wasn't completely off the mark for your situation!
And fair enough with the criticism :'D If you still feel like sharing it and don't want to post a wall of text you can contact me at felix@boyslaughplus.moe

itch.io

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