trumermaid:

hi!! ok so one of my goals for the new year is to work more in journals and sketchbooks. so recently i’ve been searching for resources to help me. i figured some other people might want to see the resources i found too, cause journals/sketchbooks are really cool but they can seem difficult and hard to get into. so i made this masterpost! i hope this helps anyone who’s interested and happy journaling!

get started

how to start a journal

journaling 101

art journaling 101

lots of blog posts about journaling

start a sketchbook

start a sketchbook and stick to it

what to put in a sketchbook

sketchbook ideas

random art prompt generator

giant list of sketchbook ideas

100 sketchbook ideas

149 sketchbook ideas

sketch using a grid

journaling ideas

119 journal prompts

365 journal writing ideas

journal prompts about memories

more ideas

ideas from keri smith (creator of wreck this journal)

one word prompts

50 art journal prompts

52 list prompts

101 list prompts

lists to keep updated

how to collage in your art journal

collaging 101

other masterposts like this one

how to begin journaling

what to put in notebooks

what to do with a new notebook

journaling ideas and inspiration

ok that’s all i’ve got! i hope some of these links and resources help, and have a great year!

Your Fantasy Story is Bothering Me Part II

thewritingcafe:

Part I

I’m back with more complaints about fantasy:

  1. Huzzah! I Have Outwitted The Entire Royal Court!
  2. The Midlands, The West Islands, The Dark Lake
  3. The Council of Elrond
  4. Let’s Paint Our Faces Bright Orange to Find One Another
  5. Hello My Name is Dq’eobh’mt
  6. The Misinformed Feminist Preacher
  7. The Broken Queen
  8. Sing to the Goddess of the Earth!
  9. Let’s All Listen to this Stranger and Finally Revolt

Read More

theroughcopy:

Tension. It’s important to a story, right? How’s it done? Anna Jacobs of AutoCrit.com wrote an article about it for you, and here’s what you need to know:

1. Don’t shove information in the reader’s face; in fact, it’s best to not tell them anything they don’t need to for their comprehension right at that moment. Hey, I do believe we already had a post on this …

2. Surprise me: Characters shouldn’t be predictable, if you remember, that’s what makes them 3-dimensional (click the title for your link). If what your characters are doing always feels obvious, your readers might get bored. Life in general is full of twists and turns, things we’d never expect. If your world is realistic, shouldn’t it be a little unpredictable, too?

3. Let the readers know things the characters don’t. Not too much, or else your readers will feel like they’re always waiting for the characters to catch-up. But if you give them a taste of what’s to come, say, a trap set in place by your antagonist, they’ll be dying to know what happens … then you can surprise them.

4. Cliff-hangers. ‘Nuff said (which, come to think of it, probably hasn’t been said since the 90s)

5. Short, quick sentences. It keeps them reading. If there’s a scene that needs it, ramp up the tension by keeping it short. This works well for more action-oriented scenes.

Here’s the real article for your leisure.

lyinginbedmon:

bogleech:

shiroxix:

It is not the prettiest but here is a little chart I made of skin tones.

The idea is to eye-drop anywhere on the chart to get a unique skin tone instead of getting stuck in the loop of “white, tan, dark”.

USEFUL.

FLESH CLOUD EAGER TO ASSIST YOUR ART.

Oh god someone draw a cheerful flesh cloud

girl-havoced:

I believe in free education, one that’s available to everyone; no matter their race, gender, age, wealth, etc… This masterpost was created for every knowledge hungry individual out there. I hope it will serve you well. Enjoy!

FREE ONLINE COURSES (here are listed websites that provide huge variety of courses)

IDEAS, INSPIRATION & NEWS (websites which deliver educational content meant to entertain you and stimulate your brain)

DIY & HOW-TO’S (Don’t know how to do that? Want to learn how to do it yourself? Here are some great websites.)

FREE TEXTBOOKS & E-BOOKS

SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES & JOURNALS

LEARN:

1. LANGUAGES

2. COMPUTER SCIENCE & PROGRAMMING

3. YOGA & MEDITATION

4. PHOTOGRAPHY & FILMMAKING

5. DRAWING & PAINTING

6. INSTRUMENTS & MUSIC THEORY

7. OTHER UNCATEGORIZED SKILLS

Please feel free to add more learning focused websites. 

*There are a lot more learning websites out there, but I picked the ones that are, as far as I’m aware, completely free and in my opinion the best/ more useful.

Nonsexual acts of Intimacy – Select from the following for my muse to respond to…

♔ : Finding your muse wearing their clothes
♕: Holding hands
♖: Having their hair washed by your muse
♗: Your muse falling asleep with their head in my muse’s lap.
♘: Cuddling in a blanket fort
♙: Sharing a bed
♚: Head scratches
♛: Sharing a dessert
♜: Shoulder rubs
♝: Reading a book together
♞: Caring for each other while ill (specify which party is which)
♟: Patching up a wound
♤: Taking a bath together
♧: Your muse playing with their hair
♡: Accidentally falling asleep together
♢: Forehead or cheek kisses
♠: Your muse adjusting their jewelry/neck tie/ etc.
♣: Back scratches
♥: Your muse crying about something
♦: Slow dancing

canadianstuck:

Ok cosplayers, it has come to my attention that a lot of you don’t know what this stuff is. Sit down and let me learn you a thing. This stuff here is called Frog Juice (there’s no real frogs in it). It’s originally for stuff like vinyl signs (my dad owns a sign company, so I grew up with this stuff), but it’s even more useful for a wide range of cosplay stuff. 

Since it’s designed to protect outdoor vinyl signs, it can do a whole hell of a lot. It dries super fast (three minutes until it isn’t tacky) and shiny, so it’s perfect for anything that’s supposed to look like metal, ice, gems, etc. It’s incredibly strong and weatherproofs your stuff against ANYTHING, rain, snow, UV rays (so it doesn’t fade in sunshine), sleet, hail, whatever. It’s flexible too, so your foam will still bend and move with you without cracking. Not only that, but since it’s an aerosol, you can’t miss patches and it leaves no brush strokes, and it goes on so thin you can’t see it’s there. It doesn’t smudge, smear, scratch, or leave fingerprints, so your stuff can go a whole weekend at a con and still look brand new. 

The kicker? It’s cheap, and a can will last you forever. I kidnapped this one brand new from my dad, and I’ve so far used it (in double coats, which is unnecessary, but I like to be on the safe side) on a full set of armour, three pairs of bracers, a top hat, pauldrens, two bows, and a pair of greaves. And there’s still plenty in the can. Did I mention it can also be used to seal foam in a single, flexible coat that can then be painted over, so you don’t have to spend two days messing with glue and whatnot?

TL;DR – If you need a foam sealer, a top coat, weatherproofing, or any kind of shiny finisher, GET SOME FUCKING FROG JUICE (the brand I use can be purchased here: http://www.signwarehouse.com/FL-CC-p-FL-FROG-12Z.html)