So.... Now what?

[aqua03]

Well, the good news is that I've finally had a breakthrough and gotten over my weird hang-ups regarding the Dragoons and related projects: I've been keeping them in a limbo state out of an existential fear of "Growing up". SO yeah me I guess. I've decided that I'm gonna be putting the Dragoons and the general "Empyreverse" setting on the shelf for the time being indefinitely as I work and focus on other stuff in my life.

The bad news is that I'm now kind of left really aimless with my creative life. I'm not entirely sure I know what to do beyond just general practicing of art and even then that still feels very aimless as well. I want some form of project to work on, but I'm afraid it'll become unhealthy like the Dragoons had become. But also I feel I need some form of thing to owrk on as i move forward to help "guide" my practicing as well.

I feel kind of stunted from the Dragoons given how much I focused on them solely over the past years that I don't know what to do.

Help and advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

[DualDragons]

Well tbh I am in a similar situation with me putting Square One on the shelf for now. Difference is I still have my other comic to work on.

You could always work on Edible Green Tea (but that's just a suggestion and I dunno how you stand in that)

[VibrantFox]

If anything it sounds like it's time to explore and experiment, whether it's trying new stuff in terms of subject matter or trying new mediums but something to help you get the ball rolling again and regain that motivation momentum

I'm kind of in a stuck place with art for reasons that i think even i'm losing sight of what they are so i'm putting what energy i do have into writing (even tho the itch to draw is crazy strong) but if i do try to do art stuff maybe i'll try traditional or finally bite the bullet on 3d with blender

but in an instance like this with finally dropping one burden finding a new path forward becomes an obstacle of itself so branching out, throwing darts at the wall or whatever metaphor works for trying out a bunch of stuff to see what sticks usually is the way that i've gone. it's also probably why i've wound up with so many different story project idea things that i wanna work on but if one thing is stuck and not going anywhere i can at least fall onto another one

[darthmongoose]

I think you need to try to set yourself a goal.

A lot of my completed projects that I've learned the most from were comics I made towards a goal, like entries into specific competitions, like the Tokyopop Rising Stars of Manga, or the Manga Jiman , or they've been pitches for a specific publisher, or portfolio pieces designed to impress potential clients, or submissions to specific anthologies.

So... set yourself a goal. It shouldn't be an unrealistic goal like "I want to make a comic that will be adapted into a movie", but it can be a goal that could build towards that as a longer term goal like, "I want to make a comic pitch a publisher will pick up" or "I want to make a webcomic with enough fans to fund a print run on kickstarter", or "I want to make a comic that gets a Tapas feature", or "I want to make a comic that gets accepted into this anthology, or places in that competition." that kind of thing.

Because then you have a concrete thing to work towards. If you want to say, place a specific yearly competition, you can look at previous winning entries and make notes of what the judges seem to favour (for example, a lot of short manga competitions tend to favour simple stories that aren't too comedic in tone, often a little sentimental and with some sort of a little twist reveal at the end.) Or if you want to pitch to a publisher, you can look at what they already publish and look up info about what goes into a successful comic pitch.

Try to think about what you'd like to achieve, and then you can research what you'll need to learn or do in order to make that happen.

[Kelheor]

I like the goal suggestion. It's something that got me into comics, it's something that made me create a few short titles in a set amount of time and finally start working on a comic I couldn't find time to work on before. Medibang always has a few contests here and there. You can also join art competitions if you want to try your hand in styles and illustration without putting too much thought into comic process. Maybe try finding if you can join a zine or few. Make yourself a monthly challenge and commit to it. Draw a fanart challenge or monsters challenge, find something active on social media you can join (like, Smaugust is soon), learn new things. Ever wanted to try yourself in something completely new or refine your battle drawing skills? Now may be just a right time to give yourself a month of intense practice!

[DanielRKM]

I hear you on the "aimless" feeling. For me too, it was just really hard to be motivated to make anything that wasn't comic related because it didn't feel like I was going in the right direction otherwise. But learning/practice can be so beneficial to your goals, so I hope you find some that get you excited.

There are some absolutely great suggestions here on the work side of things- so I'm just going to dip into more of the personal life bits that help me when I have feelings similar to these.

First, do your best to get into a good habit (whether it's sketching, stretching, exercising, going for a walk, grabbing a cup of coffee or tea (or any other sensory bits that bring you joy), meditation, what have you. Make active steps to walk away from the slumpy feelings and do something that invigorates you.

Second, try to open yourself up to wonder. Be a scientist and see how such and such an artist makes their art work for you (in terms of appeal, action scenes, emotional scenes, etc) and find a way to emulate it. Or, away from art, it could be reading more on a subject that you're curious about, trying your hand at a musical instrument, cooking, etc.

Third, continue to boost others. The easiest way to get out of your own headspace is being there for others. It's one reason why I love this community. The sharing of time, talent, and heart is so stink'n awesome.

Be well. You do you. I've always appreciated and loved your energy here.

[aqua03]

You could always work on Edible Green Tea (but that's just a suggestion and I dunno how you stand in that)

I've been debating on reviving EGT recently as well actually, coincidentally.

@darthmongoose

I know I've been thinking about that as well given that I did enter a manga contest back in 2020 with Sorrel's Quest, and it went well and felt really good even if I didn't win. Probably wouldn't hurt that much to try again.

[cookieroach]

Do you WANT to work on a creative project right now? What I mean is you could allow yourself to take a break and focus on something entirely different. And then come back with new energy and ideas. I’ve done that a few times and often feel a lot better afterwards

[TheLemmaLlama]

Not much to add, except for the goal thing, it might also help to do something adjacent to comics (i.e. still art/writing related) like making a game, song or video One of my biggest leaps in art skill was after entering a board game design contest on The Game Crafter :D

[aqua03]

Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I realize that maybe art in general has been an unhealthy coping mechanism for me to have 100% control over what I find to be an increasingly uncontrollable world....

And honestly, I'm not entirely sure what to do. I've spent so much time focused on art that now that it seems that it's not in my future and with the entertainment industry as a whole seemingly in freefall, I don't know where to pivot to next. I don't have enough experience in other things I'm passionate for like music/acting or marine and environmental science to pursue a degree and career in them now.

I just... really don't know what to do or how to solve this problem.

[irresponsiblepics]

Might sound mean but you seriously over think things.
For all the advice and support you're given it just seems like farting into the wind.

Creation comes from within irregardless of a"uncontrollable world" or whatever that means. You don't have that in you? Then don't do it. It's not for you.

So why not pursue a degree in something you do have passion for? What's to stop you? Start from scratch at the bottom THEN work your way up.
Everyone has to start somewhere. You're young. Don't get to the point of being oldie reflecting on lost past opportunities.
Do something..anything...that makes you get out of that void and do the best you can. That's something you do have control of.
Grrr if I was talking to you in person I'd give you a slap!

Sincerely 48 year old wagging finger man.

[DanielRKM]

And from a freshly minted 38 year old, I can say that life is weird (you got 10 years on me, @irresponsiblepics ? No wonder you seem a decade better adjusted than me 🤣). Following your bliss doesn't have to mean following what you're good at. It's creating a lifestyle that brings you the most amount of joy regardless of anything else. For instance, I left college with an animation degree I was pretty sure that I'd never use (I found out a bit toooooooo late that the accompanying lifestyle that comes with the animation industry wasn't for me after getting, oh, 100K in debt) BUT I knew I loved beer (that sounds worse than it is. I didn't turn to the drink on THAT way, folks). So I did some bartending at a fun brewery, surrounded by cool people, great beer, and soul-affirming music. And doing art on the side got me a spot on the brewery's art team after a little while. You never know what will happen to you, but if you find your place, find your people, and follow your bliss, life may be different than what you expected, but it can actually turn out pretty great.

Life doesn't hang on a right or wrong choice. Fortune depends on the tone of your voice- The Devine Comedy

Sorry if that was too toxically positive, but live a life you love, push your boundaries, and kick ass.

Floof!

[irresponsiblepics]

@DanielRKM wait till you get into early 40s. Things get mellow!

Devine Comedy y'say? Kind of topic related

"When I hold you in my arms
And look back on my charmed life, my charmed life,
I hope, I hope if nothing more
That one day you'll call your life a charmed life.
Well I've never really worried that much
About making lots of money and such
And I always seem to land upon my feet.
And though there's been some difficult times
The good times were never far behind.
I've snatched all of my victories from the jaws of defeat.
When I hold you in my arms
And look back on my charmed life, my charmed life,
I hope, baby I hope if nothing more
That one day you'll call your life a charmed life.
Well the course of true love never ran smooth.
They broke my heart and I broke theirs too,
And breaking up is so very hard to do.
But I knew I'd find the one,
And sure enough she came along,
And not long after that along came you.
Well sometimes this life is like being afloat
On a raging sea in a little row-boat,
Just trying not to be washed overboard.
But if you take your chances and you ride your luck,
And you never, never, never, never, never give up
Those waves will see you safely to a friendly shore.
When I hold you in my arms
I know that this is a charmed life.
A charmed life."

[ueonts]

Feels like maybe you don't actually want to quit the project? Just a thought.

[DiegoPalacios]

The bad news is that I'm now kind of left really aimless with my creative life. I'm not entirely sure I know what to do beyond just general practicing of art and even then that still feels very aimless as well. I want some form of project to work on, but I'm afraid it'll become unhealthy like the Dragoons had become. But also I feel I need some form of thing to owrk on as i move forward to help "guide" my practicing as well.

Simply approach art and comics as a hobby. That will put less stress on you and you will have a creative outlet.

if you eventually want to publish that it's up to you and not a weird obligation.

There are many comics and games i made when i was younger that i never published and in some cases haven't even finished. But i had fun with it and exercised the creative muscle.

[TheLemmaLlama]

I don't know where to pivot to next.

I'm totally biased here, but in that case I actually sincerely suggest looking into learning about a very 'general' field like philosophy/logic/math XD (Don't be intimidated by people saying it's 'hard'; there's no one discipline that's universally harder for everyone than another discipline.)

But why do I even suggest this? Because it let me get a 'bird's eye view' on everything and I honestly feel that having that sort of perspective has made me feel like the world is predictable; not controllable, but navigable in a legible way. You see things coming, and you see where you're heading.

It might seem a bit random, but I thought I'd just throw that out there anyway, just in case XD