Return of the Revenge of the Son of Saying Hi to Josiah!

[PoisonWing14]

Moi,

Really, my dislike of Mary Sues also, partially, comes from their unfortunate first name...or rather my unfortunate first name...leading to a few somewhat awkward moments.

Anyways...
My plans for today:

- Finish up English homework (not too much to do, so that's awesome)
- Watch PewDiePie's playthroughs of various horror games
- Play Animal Crossing: Wild World
- Maybe play some chess
- Stay as far away from the TV as possible

Yeah, I'm not really a football fan...I'm just going to look for some peace and quiet today and maybe raid some of the snacks...

Stay radical people!

[Josiah]

Hi! I posted the car washer trailer last night, I'll have the web site updated later tonight. After that, I just need to submit it to various online stores and get my own store set up. It won't be long now...

[Siranae]

There's a trailer for it? Awesome! I gotta check it out.

Also forget work I am posting here at least once a day because gosh darn it I miss you guys.

[auragongal]

Hey Sira! Long time no see!

[Josiah]

Hi! I got Car Washer submitted to Steam and some other downloadable game stores. Now I just need to get the Xbox Live indie arcade submission done, get my own online store set up, do what I can for advertising and then I can finally move on to some of my other projects.

[auragongal]

Hi. Has anyone had one of those days where they feel like that no matter what they do, they'll never get better at what they do, and they'll never please anyone? I am having one of those days now.

My thoughts are basically this, I'm just mediocre. My art, while not as good as someone like Kako, just goes unnoticed, my RPing skills on another forum, as I have learned recently, aren't good enough because I'm a mediore writer that's never going to improve, and that I have a tendency to share my random ideas and no one likes them, and it irritates others to know end.

Not to mention I feel like no one even looks at my posts, so there may just be a chance no one reads this anyway.

....

I'm a sad girl that belongs in the background, and is never going to be noticed...

[Siranae]

Hey Aura! Long time no see too! Though that's probably more my fault :P

In other news a fairly large portion of my clothes are now covered in paint varying in material from acrylic, oil, and latex. Also surrounding yourself with open bottles of paint in a closed workroom is not a good idea.

Okay was going to stop there but I just saw Aura's post.
Aura, trust me when I say you're not alone on this one. Everybody feels like they aren't good from time to time. I mean there's just so much talent out there. So there are some days where you're going to feel a little hopeless. I know when I got to college my confidence in my work dropped at first. But really, you're your own worst critic. What may seem like mediocre work to you could be great by another's standards. And even if it seems like you're never getting better, there is always room for improvement. And I mean always. Believe me when I say that you're not as bad as you think you are. Don't give up! You might just be stuck in a rut. It happens! Happened to me a lot. One thing I tried was moving out of my comfort zone, trying new things and messing with new techniques. Maybe drawing in an entirely different way than you did before, messing around with styles. Sometimes people can get stuck in one style and it stunts their growth as an artist, and they just need to give themselves more options. As for the roleplaying, as far as I'm concerned, as long as you're not godmoding, being a Mary Sue, or talkn liek dis lol, there's really no right or wrong way to roleplay. And like art, your writing will improve if you keep practicing. And there's no harm in trying a different direction. I've experimented with different writing styles as well, ranging from a melodramatic style to one that was basically me talking :P. And anyone that thinks your ideas, that you've genuinely put thought into, are stupid, then they're stupid for saying so.
And you don't irritate us, Aura. I don't know about others, but I can't see a reason why anyone would be.
Well that's my two cents...well, it's more like a dollar twenty-five, but yeah.
*hug*

[Saber Knight]

Hey.

*points at avatar*

So be happy you're here, think of life as a thrill, and if worst comes to worst (as we all know it will), thank your lucky star you've gotten this far and tell yourself how lucky you are!

And that's all I really have to add to the matter! I have plenty of days where I feel that way, too... but then I just point at my avatar and do the best I can! [/cheezy]

[Metalheadz]

Hi!

Hey Aura, don't feel down. Trust me, I have plenty of those feelings, too. Both online and especially in real life. Sira practically said everything I wanted to say, and I agree with her on all points. Contrary to the reward in my signature, I really don't really view myself as that good a roleplayer. On Sira's note of Mary Sues, I had plenty of them back then (which I strongly regret making...) We each have flaws, but that's what helps us learn to develop. The value of your gifts and talents isn't measured by money or popularity, but it's instead looked at about how much you love doing what you do. In fact, as a friend, why don't I check out your art right now?

In other news, this one B in English is driving me crazy! I am so good at numbers but I stink with words and literature. Sigh, would be in the A honor role by now if it weren't for my lackluster performance in this particular subject. Better keep working at it.

Peace out!

[Neo Zanther]

Hi.


Don't worry Aura, I tend to feel the same way a lot myself. I'm always wondering what will someday get me noticed by people. I've yet to really find that out yet.

[Josiah]

Hi! Sira makes some good points though, at the risk of sounding negative, I do want to point out that while it's very easy to become overly negative about your own work, it's just as easily to become overly positive about it. That aside, don't worry too much Aura. There will always be someone who is better at you at any given thing, but that's no reason to get depressed. There are some people bettter at art and/or writing than you, but there are other people you're better than. More importantly, you should never think that you won't ever get better at them. With time, effort, and hard work you can always improve.

In other news... I submitted Car Washer to several online stores and XBL Indiecade. Annoyingly, the Xbox process is on hold for now. I was alerted to a bug and tried to upload a fixed version but the process of uploading a new build mid-review was kind of confusing and, as a result, I ended up accidentally withdrawing it from the process entirely and you can only submit a game once a week, so I need to wait a week before I can resubmit.

As fas as the Windows version goes, I'm going to start working on my own store system later today and I'm waiting to hear from most of the places I contacted. I did hear back from Steam very quickly. So quickly that I seriously doubt they actually played the game. They turned me down, which is pretty dissapointing since getting on Steam would almost certainly guarentee lots of sales. They didn't give a reason (they specifically said it was their policy not to) but, taking another look at their catalogue, I suspect they don't accept indie games unless they're by established developers, have won some major awards, or already have strong sales and/or a lot of positive press coverage. I was hoping they went solely off of the quality of the game itself and the developer/publisher's willingness to go along with their resell agreement but apparently that isn't the case. So Steam is a no go for now but if Car Washer gets some decent sales numbers and/or a bunch of positive reviews I'll try resubmitting it at some point down the road.

[grassaquilUV]

Hey guys, grass here!

Ok, down to business. First Aura, I cannot really add to what the other's have said, so..... foloow what they said!

Second, Josiah and Car Washer, Sorry about the Xbox deal, but hopefully that week will just zip by, and you'll be able to resubmit in no time to Xbox.

Third, I CANNOT BELIEVE IT!!!! On Youtube, I have for the past month and a bit watching a series called Battletoads by ProtonJon and three other LPers, first of all, DO NOT WATCH IF YOU HATE SWEARING!!!!! Seriously, there is so much, yet it is funny to watch. I finally finished the series, and man, I'm exhausted, even though I only watched, weird, hmmmmmm...... Anyways, that's all!

See you guys later!

[Faustgy]

A bit late, but I second everything Sira said.
I can’t say much about art, seeing how I’m a terrible artist myself, so I often have trouble giving critiques. But I’m going to be a bit blunt here, Aura. Judging from the first page of your art thread, you became a tad bit defensive when others critiqued your art. Not overly so, but enough to possibly dissuade others from giving you critiques in the future. But hey, that was years ago, and I’m sure you’ve changed since then. Personally, I would say that unless the critiques are just plain flaming, accept them and try to learn from them. It might be a tad bit humiliating- I always feel embarrassed to show Mandi one of my doodles- but it’s a good way to learn and improve.

On the topic of RPing, which I’m far more comfortable with…
Sira’s correct in the sense that there is almost no wrong way to RP. I mean, there’s paragraph format, which is most common , script format, and even art format. As Sira said, to improve in writing, just keep practicing, and again, if you want to, ask for critiques on how to improve.

Speaking of Mary-Sues, I’d like to point out that many traits can make a character into a Mary-Sue. Generally, though, it all boils down to how the character is terribly written. By that, I don’t necessarily mean grammar and spelling. Just…overall bad writing and characterizations. I’m sure everyone has made a Sue in some point in his or her life. I’ve made some. I know some friends I’ve Rped with made some. Even some of the characters I’ve seen in the RPs here can count as Sues. I personally would say to just have fun with writing, and if someone ends up suggesting ways to improve your characters or story, to just listen and see if their reasoning is valid. If it is, try to work on improving based on what you were told.

That’s pretty much all I can think of at the moment. So, to sum it all up: don’t be afraid to ask and accept critiques, and just keep practicing.

[BionicleMandi121]

* reappears out of nowhere*

Hey Aura, Faustgy alerted me to your little dilemma and I decided to pop in. /o/

I'd never considered myself THAT great an artist, but I did think I was pretty decent at drawing.
Then I went to art school, where I wanted to just hide in a corner after seeing all the epic stuff my classmates turned out.

Pretty general rule for just about anything is, as other people have already mentioned, to assume there is always someone out there in the world that is better than you at any given thing. At the same time, there is always someone that isn't as good. The only way to improve your own standing amongst all the other people out there is to practice. I've been drawing steadily since at least 2004, using a combination of reference images and real-life observation, and almost everyone I know would agree that in that time, I've gotten better. Even if you don't feel you're that good yet when compared to other people, try to have faith in your own ability. Having that confidence in yourself makes you more willing to practice, even when knowing it might not turn out the way you want it.

I guess my point here is, don't be so hard on yourself, believe that you can get better, keep practicing, and consider what other people say about how you can improve (and do your best to not get put down by the flamers; they're usually not giving you constructive criticism). Whether you think they're right or wrong doesn't really matter. Just think about it, or maybe set your drawing aside for a day and go back to it later. Sometimes it takes some time for you to realize you've made a mistake somewhere. It's hard to admit you did something wrong, but acknowledging it and trying to do something about it will let you avoid doing the same thing later on.

[Marluxia]

Hey Aura, word of advice, don't become like me. Thinking like that is a terrible way to live. Instead think of the things that you are good at. Thinking your useless and worthless leads down a steep, steep road into a very dark canyon of self hatred and jealousy. You continue on thinking like that and you'll end up like me. Not a good thing. Oh yes, in much, much, much happier news I have gotten a puppy. He's quite a happy little ball of fun. His name be Chase. I have a pretty close example of him, best google has. He be a Shetland Sheepdog.