December Update | Time for reflecting
Taking a break for the holidays
I hope you all had an amazing Christmas! We spent the past few days with family and lots of food. I’ll be taking a break until January 4th and will be minimally active online. Instead I’ll be spending some time eating oliebollen, spending time with family and friends and picking up some video games! And probably watching lots of series and reading books.
I’ve got a new finished page scheduled for Patrons next week though! I’m so happy how the new scene is turning out, so I’m glad to be able to show the first page fully finished.
Streaming
Streaming has turned out to be very rewarding! It’s so nice to have some conversations with the people in chat, get to know the people who are following Netherrealms and see what random sparks of joy come out of it, haha. I’ll be working on the comic, with either inking, flatting or possibly some shading, though I think I need too much concentration for that.
I’ll be streaming every Tuesday afternoon for the foreseeable future. Though I’m turning that upside down right away by doing my first stream on Friday the 6th of January ‘cause I’m still on break that Tuesday😂 After that though, I’m blocking Tuesday afternoons!
So follow the channel on Twitch to get notifications when I go live, or tune in on Friday the 6th and every Tuesday at 2.30 PM GMT+1 after that.
Re-evaluating my relationship with social media
I usually do this every year with a social media break, but these past few months social media did seem to be extra exhausting. With Twitter having become a platform where every whim can make a big difference for a small business, and AI making a big impact on how artists need to protect their work from being scraped, I need to take a good look at how I want to spend my time online next year.
The chaos at Twitter emphasized how we can’t rely on one platform for all our income, especially if it’s a platform we don’t own (like having a website). On the other hand, I’ve spent the past few months trying to keep 10+ platforms updated, and it’s obvious to me that I can’t keep it up.
My goal for next year is to focus on the two or three (preferably two) social platforms that I enjoy the most to meet new people, and focus the rest on my Patreon, Substack/mailing list and my own portfolio website and Netherrealms website. I want to take some time during my break to crystallize which social platforms those will be and if I’ll be moving my mailing list to Substack.
Wishes for the new year
I’d like to call them goals, but so many things happen outside my sphere of influence during the year that I’m tempted to call them wishes instead x)
By this time next year, I’d love to:
Have 50 pages of the Netherrealms graphic novel finished
Connected with more of Netherrealms’ followers
Still be working as a freelance artist (the turning point, for now, is this summer. If you’d like to extend that deadline, please consider commissioning me :) )
Have created 3 more D&D Dress Up art packs
Have spent more time drawing than promoting (this year it’s the other way around)
And lastly, a big thank you to all of you!
I’ve been getting to know my followers better over the past couple of months and it’s been incredibly rewarding. That’s also due to you taking the time to respond or reach out and talking to me. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and I’ll see you next year!
-Rengin