Well, it's been a little while. I do still draw somewhat regularly, but for a while I've been seemingly incapable of finishing any pieces (minus those that get posted to my irl account). But lately, as my life gets more and more hectic, it's becoming quickly apparent that I'm not suited for a traditional workplace. I'm working with an actual case manager kind of person and attempting to file for disability/SSI benefits. But even if I qualify, it's... not a whole lot of money. So, obviously, I need some side income.

Basically, I'm going into proper business sometime this year, and I need to have an established portfolio. In order to draw attention to myself and garner some tips, I've revitalized my ko-fi and will offer doodle rewards for donors! But I have to be able to catch someone's eye and prove I can draw. So I've been working on art for my page and for an eventual Instagram/twitter post about the rewards with, hopefully, some examples.

First, I came up with a cute, easy-to draw mascot. And decided to try out a marker-type brush for that textured doodle look. I knew I wanted to use purple as my main color and incorporate a coffee cup into the picture. And I came up with this little bun:

I was pretty happy with it at the time and eagerly updated my share image. But I've developed this weird ability to redraw and edit my drawings days after publishing them, so I decided to trace over the old bun and take another crack at it. Even before then, you can see that I could decide if I wanted it to have all black line work or not, which is why there are two versions of. I later decided to stick with a clean standard brush and a more cel-shaded style and that resulted in this version, which I can now say I AM happy with:

So the share image is done. And this bun is my new ko-fi mascot. I wanna sell it on sticker sheets someday!! I'm still not sure if it's supposed to just be me but as a bun, or a separate entity with a different name. If you have a good idea for a name, tell me!

Next order of business is a photo set to use for Instagram and Twitter. It's not a SET yet because I'm only done with one drawing, but I think it actually looks pretty great! And this time I used the marker brush successfully. So here's my promotional art with me instead of the bun:

I love how the chibi portrait came out, and it's from something I made a while ago that I plan to turn into a YCH base! People will be able to buy icons just like this one and pick either cel shading or this marker style. I'm gonna draw lots of little hand poses to pick from. Not sure what I should charge yet, but as it takes me forever to do any art and I have been doing it for at least a decade, I feel it's only fair to charge at least $15 for each one.

My design actually had change a bit for this poster... I had to lighten my hair! In the base color I usually use, it barely stands out against the dark of the purple background, and I needed more contrast. The rest of the photo set will likely have less formal drawings, as they're mostly just meant to explain the tiers and show reward examples.

...Okay. Still reading? You guys still with me? Been keeping up with this artbook? With my stuff in general? Here's your chance to claim your free "thank you" package. Follow me and hit me up in the DMs on Twitter (@valethra), on Instagram (@valethra), or on discord (valethra#4264), or join my discord server (https://discord.gg/EgbF7B9), and you will qualify for a TOTALLY FREE doodle. I'm trying to get my name out there and get some practice and consistency in, and I need examples for my photo set. So if you're one of my lovely followers, you can be my test subjects!

I'm planning to offer rewards in at least three tiers. Don't worry about those for now! Each tier will still result in a simple kind of scribble drawing that I have to be able to execute fast. So follow the instructions and you can get a free doodle of an animal, plant/flower, object, pokemon, animal crossing villager, fictional character, or oc. If you want more information on how the tiers will work, feel free to ask! Doodles can be in simple color or uncolored (the tiers factor into that).

I look forward to hearing from or working with you guys! Assuming anyone actually read through all this shit, lmao.