Art Update & Moving Forward From Here

Hey there, it's been a while! Sorry that I haven't made many updates here on my main site. But that doesn't mean I haven't been working on my project and developing my art style! I have been doing some thinking about how I want my digital footprint to look and I have realized that I need to focus on one thing at a time rather than trying to do too many things all at once.

That being said, here are some general updates:

• I have reworked Part 1 of the Sooted Star novel. I will focus on bringing that to life and making updates according to the novel. I plan to publish a chapter every other Monday. (Disclaimer: any chapter of this novel that I publish online is still going to be a clean draft, technically. What you are supporting is my process!)

• The Sooted Star webtoon has been put on hold until further notice. Drawing a webcomic/graphic novel is a vastly different workflow than writing a novel, so I've decided I should really focus on the novel.

• I will continue to make art, but it will be character/concept art drawn parallel to my novel updates. I figure these will make good references later when I actually get back into making the webtoon.

Along with these changes, I am also changing how I run my monetary sites.

Originally, I was managing two sites for receiving monetary support: Patreon for monthly recurring support and Ko-fi for taking commissions. However, I don't enjoy managing both sites at the same time. So I've made to decision to move fully to Ko-fi as it works best for me at this time.

For folks who have been supporting me on Patreon, I will be shutting that page down on August 15, 2023. (I will also post an announcement about that there).

Using Ko-fi gives the following options to folks who wish to support me monetarily:

• With a small monthly recurring payment, you can become a member who can see exclusive content, including reading up to 3 chapters of Sooted Star before anyone else.

• If you don't like recurring payments but still want to give a little something, you can leave a one-time tip.

• You can commission me there, just like before.

• I will be working on a little shop on Ko-fi where you may also buy digital and physical merchandise (don't expect that too soon, though!)

• Ko-fi takes no fee!

Lastly, thanks to the folks who have supported me both monetarily and with your encouragement. Your continued support means a lot!

Cheers,

A. Jaecadin V.B.

August 2022 Artwork Summary

A few stylistic tweaks found their way into my art pieces this past month. For instance, I utilized my new digital watercolor painting set much more and got bolder with the lights and shadows. Ironic, since watercolors aren't known for their boldness, but that's the magic of digital painting for you.

My color scheme also seems to have become duller, but quite honestly, I really do like those muted blues and yellows. Probably won't be dropping those as my main color scheme for a while.

My stylistic goal lately has been to contrast a soft and subtle kind of elegance with a boldness of light and shadow. As well, I want to contrast muted colors with bits of vibrant light. It's been tough to try and pull off, but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.

Brand New Commissions Site Section

If you've known me long enough as an artist, I've been taking commissions. However, I've updated my commission information quite a few times over the years. This time, I decided to sit down and really contemplate for a long time how I wanted to go about doing them. After some research and much-appreciated feedback, I now present my site's brand new Commissions section!

Within this section you can see:

• An updated infographic about my commission prices

• A Terms of Service page

• A step-by-step How to Order page

• A Commission Examples page

• And last but not least, an official Commission Request Form you can fill out with what you want to order

Important to note regarding the price changes since the last update; my commissions are indeed more expensive. However, this is mainly because I want to loosely reflect the minimum wage in my current area of residence plus how long it generally takes for me to complete a painting. I hope this is understandable.

And by the way, since this commission update is a special event for me, all my commissions are 25% off until late September or early October (specific date TBD).

Thanks for reading. It means a great deal to me.

- Aber out