A bit off topic for this blog, (and a bit somber for my taste) but for those that don't know, I've been an artist for over two decades. In the same vein, for 13 years, I've been posting my art journey online over on deviantart to share my characters and fanart with others in hopes to create things people will be excited to see. The journey has been extremely slow, but I've remained optimistic. I draw because it's fun, not for anything else.
However, recently, I searched for my account over on google to show a friend a drawing I had done for him, and we couldn't find it anywhere. After some digging, we figured out the only way to find my account is if you turn off safesearch on google, despite my account being entirely safe for work. This was extremely disheartening. It was basically like learning my art will never reach anyone, ever. Period.
To be clear, I don't care about numbers. However, after learning about my account being hidden, the numbers on my account made sense. I'm extremely grateful for the watchers I do have over there, and I get super excited whenever I get another, but I've always felt it was a bit disproportionate for 13 years of work. How long was my account hidden? A month? A year? All thirteen? I have no clue.
My goal for this post isn't for any type of boom in followers, or for people to commission me. In fact, my commissions are closed, right now. I just feel making a post here is the only way my art is now able to reach people. (Although, it would be interesting to hear if anyone else can actually see the account? Nobody I've asked has seen it so far.)
While I don't support dA's usage of AI, I have no intentions to join another site, as I've joined them all before and found myself a bit miserable or the sites lacking features. Besides, tossing 13 years of posts behind doesn't sit well with me. So, I just wanted to hand out what I already have to offer in the only way I can think of.
If you've read this far, thank you so much. ❤️ I've always wanted my art to put smiles on people's faces, and I don't plan on quitting now. If you like my art, feel free to show it to others you think might enjoy it, too. That's all I ask for, nothing more.