Pixel Icon Raffle! - Winners!I have now raffled the winners! > v <
First winner is ~Kiwi-San and the second one is ~Frangasm.
Congratulations! ^ - ^
Here's the screenshots: (If the image won't load click here.)
You can now delete this journal from your favourites.
Thank you for joining everyone! > v 0
Samples of my pixel icons:

10,000 Point Give-AwayAlright, my brother just left dA, so he gave me the rest of his points (20,000)
He told me because the Deviant Art community was so good to him (he said he met a lot of great people) that as a thanks I should give away half the points.
So, I'm going to hold a contest to make things fun.
You must:
*Watch me
*Advertise this journal
*Comment your journal here
*Favorite this journal
1st place gets 10,000 points
2nd place gets 2,000 points
Good luck guys

Fan Art Contest! UPDATE WITH FAQ

hi everyone! to show my appreciation for all the love here on deviant art i am holding an otto an victoria fan art contest. the grand prize will be a signed limited edition of my book with an original drawing included! submissions must be done by july 17th! that gives you a month. be creative and have fun! please tag "otto and victoria" and "brian kesinger" and make sure your your piece is appropriate for all ages!
******************************update!**********************************'
i created a group here called OttoAndVictoriaFans http://ottoandvictoriafans.deviantart.com/ when you finish your entry feel free to submit it to that group so that all the entries can be in one place!
also i wanted to reiterate that all artistic media is welcome from sketching to sculpture, hand drawn to cg. thanks again and let me know if you have any other questions! thank you!

Tiny contest! Point prizes8D Time for another little fun challenge!
Draw inside the shape contest!
Rules

You can enter as many times as you want.

No shading required

You must choose one of the characters in this folder http://griffsnuff.deviantart.com/gallery/24055808

Remember to remove the shape/lines when you are done!

The character needs to be full body.

try to fill as much as the shape as possible!

You can not alter the shape.

you can not draw outside the shape!
If you want to enter, you choose between the shapes linked under. You can however do all of them if you want to!
Lineart only -> http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m78/Greiffen/tttt-1_zpsed0fbbf4.png
Shape only -> http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m78/Greiffen/llll-2_zps87cb9751.png
And then you draw the character you choose inside the shape as best you c

A giveaway??? Rules are below. (80 pts)Yea... and if you don't read the rules, you won't get anything out of this.

The whole reason I'm doing this is because my group, #Traders-123, has reached over 100 members! And speaking of 100, I also got over 100 watchers!!!

What you have to do
Favorite this journal... you don't have, you don't enter
Comment saying you entered; I'll be lenient on this one
Advertise; you don't have to but is looked up upon
No duplicate accounts; seriously, you need points THAT bad???
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prizes[Star!]
[Bullet; Green] 1st place is 50 [Points]
[Bullet; Green] 2nd place is 30 [Points]
[Bullet; Green] 3rd place is a llama.
_________________________________________________
Deadline is July 4th. (It's an easy date to remember)

And some art exposure! (Just some random and a

Weekly 100 Points Giveaway [OPEN] Week 3Alright, time for another one

There will be 2 winners ( 50

each ) on this giveaway.

It's easy to participate

This journal.

Share your favorite youtube channel.
And that's it :iconfeelingfreeplz:
The winner will be announced June 23
Extra: Please comment if you take point commissions :iconmikulaplz:
Good luck everyone.

[WINNERS!] Giveaway! [1000 points + Free Chibis~]WINNERS!
Thanks to those who participated! <3
#1 - :iconstellarhohoemi: =stellarhohoemi #145 http://gyazo.com/3c85275328e20e9c29b4df497496a3be
#2 - :iconpastachan415: =PastaChan415 #97 http://gyazo.com/ed9cd42a6db6852445a9238d2e97a10d
#3 - :iconanichan7: *anichan7 #1069 http://gyazo.com/c13f0ba1315169bd8c3535e8f3c39b6a
#4 - :iconUnImmortalBunny: ~UnImmortalBunny #1027 http://gyazo.com/a805ffcc725b8d75d08cabc0f47496c8
#5 - :iconSaKetosan: ~SaKetosan #1055 http://gyazo.com/f619d82896957ab4794d367f23a31e9c
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Win a Premium Membership! [Raffle]Ohaii everyone! Chieri here. >u< Still not dead yet. ~~Still just smelling like it.~~
I know I have been quite inactive the past month, alot of private stuff going on and upcoming exams, but I will try to be more active again from now on. I miss being here with you guys and drawing so much. I will try my best to at least submit something regulary and reply to all notes & comments sooner as I did lately. (I really apologize for the wait.) I promise. You may slap me really hard if I neclect it again.
As a little consolation / thank you / because I want to, I decided to raffle away

3 x a 1 Month Premium-Membership
^_^ Because I have some leftover points on my hand and I love hosting little events and raffles.
I hope everyone will enjoy participating. It's easy!
As usual I will use random.org to choose the 3 lucky winners, providing screens that everything will be 100% fair.

Microsoft Employees Disrupt Wii U Best Buy EventsRemember how Nintendo was showcasing some of their E3 games at participating Best Buy stores around the country? Well, apparently Microsoft employees have been hired to go to these events and preach about the Xbox One and make comments like "why would you buy a outdated Wii U when the Xbox One is right around the corner?"
However, the employees aren't getting what they hoped for. Most customers just start bashing the Xbox One in response. Seriously, Microsoft, the people attending these Best Buy Wii U events are people who are intimately familiar with the crap you pulled at E3. They ain't takin' your shit.
At first I thought this might just be a case of one really loyal Microsoft employee taking matters into his own hands (especially since the original source was /v/), but reports have come in from numerous Best Buy's around the country that indicate many Microsoft employees have ambushed the demo lines trying to persuade people to switch to the Xbox One.
Since so many reports have com

10,000 Watchers! +PointsWow, 10,000 watchers! Shame it happened at the worst time (giveaways temporarily deleted).
Still...thank you all for sticking with me!
I guarantee we will have things running as normal again soon!
Much love,
Moomin-Man
PS: I'll giveaway 400

away at random to celebrate! Leave a comment and I will enter you for the chance to win!
1st 200

2nd 150

3rd 50

Join me on swagbucks! Get paid in gift vouchers if you don't have a credit card!

Please Pants Responsibly (Paper Notebooks FTW)

There are two ways to write a novel. Plotting (you make an outline, a plan, a roadmap if you will, and then you sit down and write it) and pantsing (you write "by the seat of your pants, throwing caution to the wind). So when I get asked if I'm a plotter or a pantser, I'm all like er, uh, hold on, let me? Pantser? I think? But I kind of, um, do planny things?
And it gets kind of awkward because in these inarticulate moments I have managed to confuse everyone including myself. And probably spilled a drink.
In recent discussions, however, I've had a bit of a revelation, silly as it is. I've realized that I -- like many writers -- am a plotter/pantser hybrid. And perhaps what I'm doing is something we could call Pantsing Responsibly. And, maybe, just maybe, I could share some of my responsible pantsing tips with other writers. Starting with paper notebooks.
Anyone can find a notebook. If there isn't alread

The Used Game ParadigmOver the course of this past generation I've been watching the video game market react to the way it's been forced to deal with increasing changes. I've come out against used game sales and even written a journal about boycotting GameStop because (like most people at the time) I believed they were the root cause of all the problems the video game industry has. But that's something I don't believe now as intently as i did then. From where I sit, piracy and used games sales are a problem, but not in the way game companies want us to believe that they are.
Used games are a good thing for consumers. We get to try games out, and if we don't like what we see or finish it early, we trade it in and try another title instead. It's a very good system for us since video game rentals are much harder to come by. Most video rental stores in America have gone extinct and outside specific Red Box Kiosks there aren't a lot of places for consumers to rent video games. The exception, of course, being thr

Draw my OC Contest! $35 in prizes!Drawing Contest Topic: Drawing my Original Character doing something! Seriously, anything PG.
Deadline: September 13th, 11:59pm http://wwp.eastern-standard-time.com/

Guidelines for participants~

Your submission can be done in any drawing media (traditional, digital, pixel)
Please do not change or alter her gender without permission.
You can enter a maximum of three pieces, but only may win once
Send me a note or comment here with a link to your entry, and I'll add it to the entries folder. (I will not go searching for it)
You're free to submit your entry to any group you want, but you must accept my request to put it in my group #Collection-System

Drawing Smoochy is what this contest is all about!

Please link to this journal in your contest entry's description!
The entry must be made specifically for the contest! (You cannot use previous deviations for the entry, this includes bases. Collabs are fine as long as the

SPIKE updatesJust thought I'd share with you guys some updates on the progress of finishing my "SPIKE" novel.
A lot of people have asked me how it's going, when it will be published and stuff. I really appreciate getting asked these things because it shows that people are actually interested in my writings, and that it just such a great feeling

I've got two news for you guys today though: one bad news and one good news. Let's start with the bad news.
I haven't finished writing SPIKE yet.
And I honestly don't know when it will be finished - which oddly enough brings us to the good news:
I've made a new, major decision in the SPIKE story that I think a lot of you will be happy to hear. As usual I don't want to spoil too much, but there is a part in the story where Spike and Sam are separated from each other for quite a long while. At first I was planning on only writing from Spike's point of view, like, what he's experiencing during this separation period. I figured that since he's the main cha

WIN A 3 MONTH PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP!so i decided to just do a giveaway for the premium i wanted to give.

i'll be doing more of these in time, since that's mostly what my points will be for- giving premiums away. ♥
WAYS TO ENTER:
• you must be (or can become) a watcher of mine
• make a journal or poll featuring this giveaway, then comment this with the link to your journal/poll
• do not enter more than once, you will be disqualified
after you comment i will reply with a number and i will choose the winner using http://www.miniwebtool.com/random-name-picker/
GIVEAWAY WILL END NEXT THURSDAY (THE 20) AT 6 PM (PST)
winner will be announced via journal and will receive a note from me
have fun! CC:

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ETSY - Advice for a Newbie?

by *rachaelm5, Feb 14, 2013, 5:07:33 PM
Journals / Personal

I'm getting ready to set up an ETSY shopfront. I've read the fine print and looked at the pages of several friends, and I think I have the hang of it. However, I'd like to hear from you other folks who have ETSY accounts. Do you have any advice to offer someone who is new to the system?

Here is the ART TO COLOR folder.

I have Commissioned Project and Print information posted here.

"Planning" means that I'm thinking about your project, but don't have anything on paper yet.

"In Progress" means that I am actively working on your project. I am drawing it, or inking it, or coloring it.

Commissions:  Open.  Here's information.
Trades:  Closed while I catch up.   Waiting list open.
Requests:  Closed permanently.
Kiribans:  Next one at 150,000 pageviews.

The Dastardly Project List

Kiribans/Contest Prizes

Commissions and Trades

Commission: Tall, narrow piece with layered angels, dragons, and Art Nouveau froo-froo for Mary W. In progress.

Commission: A Stone Dragon "rainbow" diptych, with dragons based on the Chinese zodiac, for Mom. BIG. In progress.

Commission: More Tremorworks Demongate High critters for ~phoenixsamurai's beastiary. In progress, ad aeternum.

Gift: Album art for my brother's current music label, Scientific Uppercut. In progress.

Commission: A triptych featuring the Chinese Zodiac animals which match the members of her family. Planning.

Commission: A pair of Stone Dragons featuring the birthstones of she and her husband, Peridot and Ruby. But it shan't look CHRISTMASSY. In progress.

Commission: Tattoo design for work-buddy Sal: Crouching angel statue, ancient and crumbling. Planning.

Trade: Four-seasons dragons. In progress at last.

Waiting List:

Ye gods. Rachael is crazy.

29 Comments

Mood: Optimism
Listening to: Thor soundtrack
Reading: Infinite Crisis/New 52 comics
Watching: Battle: Los Angeles
Playing: with watercolor and colored pencils
Eating: Banana nut bread
Drinking: hot chai latte

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ETSY - Advice for a Newbie?by *rachaelm5

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Submitted on: February 14

Views: 5,141 (23 today)
Favourites: 0
Comments: 29

~Ucaliptic Mar 19, 2013 Student Digital Artist

you still have time for a trade?

*rachaelm5 Mar 19, 2013 Hobbyist Traditional Artist

I don't have any openings right now, as I have a big pile of commissions I need to finish first. I will put you on my waiting list, though, and I'll be in touch when I have time to take on some new art trades!

~Ucaliptic Mar 20, 2013 Student Digital Artist

thats okay. Ill be waiting!

~OneCrazyCleric Feb 21, 2013

Other folks have said this before, but it does help to post new things frequently and individually rather than in batches. Looking forward to checking out your shop!!

*rachaelm5 Feb 23, 2013 Hobbyist Traditional Artist

Yes, that makes sense to me, too. I find that is true here at DA - if I post too much at once, people get overwhelmed.

*ArdenEllenNixon Feb 17, 2013

All of the above! I also tend to include a small freebie of some sort--a spare print or sketch, a bookmark, etc--that doesn't cost too much to make, as customers really enjoy an extra surprise and will be more likely to return to and recommend you because of it. It's also a great way to keep the studio tidy and to save on waste (prints that aren't quite up to my OCD show standards--were slightly mis-cut, slight color difference, etc.--but that are still too good/expensive just to chuck).

Speaking of OCD, be very clear in your shop policy and item descriptions. I have a notice about my rights to my work on every listing and watermark the holy Hades out of everything, just as I do on DA. Be very clear about international shipping costs or ask the buyer to write you privately for an estimate, especially for Australia. In addition to the initial listing fee, Etsy also takes a small percentage of each sale, so account for this in your pricing.

SandFibers (Carol Deane Sharpe, a friend of mine) makes her living off of her Etsy beading shop, and she recommends renewing a dollar's worth of listings every day for cheap advertising. That's not so cheap for me, but I do try to renew a few listings every few days or a handful every weekend to keep myself in the search results. It's certainly cheaper than paying for ad space on Etsy's front page, which never garnered me anything.

Lastly, don't expect a consistent stream of people (not that we artists ever plan on that!

. There have been times where it's all I can do to keep up with sales, and there have been others were the cricket chirping went uninterrupted. Add credit cards/gift cards as soon as you can, as not everyone fancies PayPal.

GOOD LUCK!

*rachaelm5 Feb 18, 2013 Hobbyist Traditional Artist

Excellent points, all. I also really like that freebie idea - I'll have to explore that option.

How does one set up to accept credit cards?

*ArdenEllenNixon Feb 18, 2013

This may have changed since I joined Etsy a few years ago, but credit cards could be added via 1) an application that you fill out when you set up your shop, or 2) after you had been open a certain amount of time, the option became "automatic" with a much simpler application. Etsy should give you that option during the set up process--they want more money, just like you

You will need to have your checkbook handy, or at least know your routing and account numbers, as any payments made via card are automatically deposited to your bank. You can also have an "other" payment option for those who still prefer to pay via check or money order. It's rare that they crop up, but it happens. I've also had a few trades via Etsy with other sellers (sometimes they ask me, sometimes I ask them), which is a great way for both parties to gift shop on a tight budget, to say nothing of new friends and networking. For trades, you can either have them choose the "other" payment option so that it's marked as a sale on your page, or you can just remove the listing (if it's one of a kind--if it's a print, don't worry about it) so that it doesn't sell twice.

~Duzloo Feb 17, 2013 Student Interface Designer

Good luck with it!

=SteelJaw Feb 17, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

Wish I could offer some words of wisdom, but I'm a real n00b there myself. Will definitely add you to my circles, though!

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