Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Day... what was it again?

Okay, so I haven't been keeping up with the Monster Girls as I should. In truth, I drew a couple more before I pooped out completely. However, I've got a new life-driving goal this month, and that is, as some of you already know, my desire to complete a 50,000-word novel in a single month.

That's right, ladies and gents, I am participating in that world-renowned literary contest known as NaNoWriMo. Never heard of it, you say? A Google search should clear that right up.

It's awkward getting back into writing. I've been jotting down ideas and story summaries for years, but actual prose... I don't think I've attempted that for quite some time. It was hard getting used to writing dialogue and description again. I'm quite rusty. However, despite my failings (I am also currently under par for word count at the moment, but am slowly working to fix that), I am thrilled out of my socks.

The writing I have done so far may be fourteen pages of utter tripe, but it is tripe that will later be ground down into the foundation of a much tastier treat.

Okay, possibly not the best metaphor, but the truth is this--I'm having a blast. This stream-of-consciousness type writing has me working out creative muscles I forgot I had, and learning about more every step of the way. I've already had several epiphanies about the structure and flow of the story as it is going to exist once I begin the editing process in December. I also become more familiar with the setting, characters, tone, and general themes of my tale as I go, so that by the end of all of this, I'm sure I'll be much more confident with what I want to do with this creative explosion.

In the meantime, I probably won't have a lot of art to post here. But here are the two monster girls I came up with before throwing myself into the literary winds.

Day 9 - Demon

I'm not terribly happy with this one, as I began losing steam around the time I started drawing her, but I like the concept. The mental image often associated with 'demon' is full of red skin, horns, spaded tails, and fire. In my world, demons are often subtle creatures, taking advantage of whatever form will get them what they want with minimal effort. I chose a cheerleader for their obvious appeal. It doesn't take much to manipulate a horny teenage boy, but this girl has the skills to get what she wants already in place--leaving the demon with a job that requires minimal effort.

Day 10 - Succubus

As you can see, I put a bit more effort into this one. A good friend of mine had the brilliant idea of starting a bit of a drawing chat. It didn't work out quite as well as we would have liked, but it did mean that I had little to concentrate on other than this image as I worked. I think the result is pretty good--especially for one of my first attempts at color. 

The concept behind this was that the succubus was a living doll onto which she would paint whatever appealed most to the one she was seducing. I suppose it's difficult to tell (I'm still working on the color thing), but her aqua features are supposed to be ghost-like, the phantom portrayal of an ideal. Maybe I'll come back to this idea some other time, when my skills are more developed.

I'll undoubtedly come back and finish the Monster Girl Challenge, but probably not anytime before November's end. 

8k/50k and counting! Wish me luck!

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