At tumblr, I was asked a fun question! I wrote a lot, so I thought to put it here too.
Anonymous asked:
What would you say to a beginner artist that wants to join the SF fandom but has half developed skills and is really self conscious? How do you get over that, any tips?
Being part of a fandom is all about gushing what you like about the character/series, be it essay-like chatting, drawing, or fic--whatever inspires you. This is where we're allowed to have fun, let loose and celebrate with others who love a thing! So don't worry about how skilled you feel; we all feel like we can't make our favorites as good as we vision them to be no matter what. (But because I want to make Ken as cute as he can be has inspired me to buckle down and learn the fundamentals.)
If the characters inspire you, you'll feel like you want to make the idea you have about them real no matter what. What you make, there will always be other fans who will love it; because they can feel the love you have for the characters that they love.
On the SF fandom side of things: I won't lie, I felt spooked "joining" the SF fandom--and it's still spooky! It's overwhelmingly large compared to the previous ones I was in. There's smaller fandoms within the fandom, cliques, etc. RyuKen feels massive to me compared to my last fandom but it's still rather tiny compared to the rest of the popular SF general and pairings groups. To keep myself from being too stressed about it I've resorted to being in my own little corner on the internet. I do my own thing because my brain won't let go of these two old woobies. So when it becomes overwhelming, focus on your faves. They brought you into the fandom in the first place.
P.S. Once you made your things, some advice to get other fans to notice your works: Use tags on tumblr! The more specific the better! (ie: the "RyuKen" tag) Post your works on Bsky/twitter and mass-like/follow same-minded folks. It helps to have your fave as an icon too. The curious will peep back to hopefully find a like-minded fellow fan.
