#I’ll post these individually from my queue i keep forgetting to post my art | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

haunted-house-heart · 2 years

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ok finally making an intro to pin <3

you can call me emery or ghost, or if you know my other names you can use those too! my pronouns are they/it. i’m autistic, queer, nonbinary, demibiro, and ace <3

you can also find me on ao3 (starry_eyed_knight) and tiktok (starry_eyed_ghost)

read more for blog info <3

i do check every blog that follows me. i do rb things that are nsft sometimes so keep that in mind if you follow. (if i follow you and you’re under 18 and don’t want an adult following you please let me know or block me, i won’t be offended)

i won’t put a big dni list bc who the fuck is going to say “oh i’m racist so i’ll be respectful and won’t interact” anyway?? but just know that if you’re any sort of bigot/terf/exclusionist/etc you’ll be blocked.

harry potter fans fuck off

moving on! some important info:

i use tone tags, feel free to ask if you don’t understand one.

you can always ask to tag, though i may not always remember to and i do have the right to say no.

for instance, in the sanders sides fandom, i will tag individual characters (ex: remus sanders) but i won’t use a bunch of tw tags for them (ex: tw remus, dukedontlook,etc) as tagging their name will filter the posts just fine.

i do my best to add image descriptions to my own posts and to undescribed posts as well (though admittedly not as often) but if i forget you can remind me or offer kind constructive criticism for my ids.

i tag all gifs as #gif, and do my best to tag flashing gifs as #tw flashing gif, however if i miss one or you think there’s a more effective way to tag those, please let me know.

tagging info:

personal posts: #emery.exe

favorite posts: #👑

things that i relate to: #me core

writing: #emery.txt

all non-writing art/crafts: #rose's creative corner

current projects' updates (finished pieces will also be posted under the craft tag): #poe's projects

asks: #emery’s asks

posts about my cats: #cat shenanigans

posts about my ocs: #poe's ocs #peregrine odell #jack b nimble

other people’s fanart: #emery’s fanart faves

other people’s fanfic: #emery’s fic recs

queued posts: #emery’s queue

asks/convos w friends: #friend tag!

videos: #video

music: #music

interests:

mothman!!!

moths <3

cats

halloween/fall

music

gender

autism

punk things (check out my project tag for battle jacket updates!)

fandom list:

welcome to night vale

the raven cycle

the adventure zone

watcher/buzzfeed unsolved supernatural

sanders sides

six of crows

the witcher

death by dying

the strange case of starship iris

station arcadia

hades game

animal crossing new horizons

hollow knight

stardew valley

disco elysium

the penumbra podcast (i don't interact with the fandom due to issues w the creators of the pod but feel free to send me asks or dms to talk about juno steel)

merlin

percy jackson (and the related series)

some of those i almost never post about but feel free to send me asks about them^^ this also isn't a complete list it's mainly just the things you may run across on my blog

i absolutely Love getting asks ! i reblog ask games a lot, feel free to send asks from those, or just ask questions or tell me random things! it doesn’t matter i just crave interaction <33

i may edit this later but for now i think this is all! have fun <3

#adding my main tags for easy navigation #emery.exe #👑#video #emery's fanart faves #emery's fic recs #emery.txt #cat shenanigans #emery's asks #music #me core #poe's projects #rose's creative corner #poe's ocs #poe's poetry picks #art gallery

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snailymailybaby · 4 years

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My Take on Snail Mail Etiquette

As anyone who follows this blog has picked up on, I am a very uninvolved blogger who infrequently makes large aesthetic queues and posts their own mail art before logging off and reappearing whenever I have more mail to post. I am going to borrow from the blogging style of my other blog and go ahead and write a bit of a thought piece. The inspiration from this is the most recent in a string of unfortunate experiences while penpaling but it’s not a unique situation or the only one I’m pulling from.

Penpaling Etiquette Penpaling is an extremely old practice and as such there is a certain decorum I believe many people associate with it. Of course, as it’s a practice that’s endured despite changes in technology that means it’s also a practice that’s adapted. Our use of Tumblr to find penpals is a great example of positive adaptations to an antiquated art. Where change can exist simultaneously with stagnation in any practice that naturally creates divisions among the practitioners. I, for one, consider myself to be part of what I consider the Old School way of penpaling and my thoughts on etiquette will be reflective to that style of penships. Though I think much of the etiquette I believe in is universal to all types of penpalers.

Seeking Out Penships Penpaling is undeniably an intimate thing by the nature of it being centered around building a relationship with another person. Even with all the art on our envelopes, on our letters, or even sent with our letters; at the end of day we’re seeking out a connection with the person we’re writing to. Keeping that in mind, there is a right way to seek out penships and there is a wrong way. For me, the right way is to approach the person you’re seeking to write the way you’d look to make a friend back in grade school: introduce yourself, include a little info about yourself, and politely ask if the person is accepting new penpals. I always feel that can be done in any order, but for me a red flag has always been people who without divulging anything about them or inquiring anything about me ask to be my penpal. Or worse yet, tell me they want to be my penpal. I read a certain entitlement into people who do not ask. I’ll admit sometimes I’m imperfect in my responses to people looking, I’ll forget to give them my spiel because I’ve assumed they’ve read it somewhere and that’s why they’ve contacted me. People are imperfect and as the person seeking out new penpals or accepting new penpals it’s important to give as much grace as possible. So long as people are communicating with sincere interest little flaws in forgetting usual etiquette can and should be forgiven. Age Appropriate Penships In any practice that is welcoming to all ages it’s important to set up and maintain appropriate age boundaries. This is simple in penpaling, do not write to anyone under the age of 18 if you are a legal adult. If you are a minor, do not seek out or accept penpals over the age of 18. Minor to legal adult correspondence has an extreme imbalance in the power dynamic. Often adults who will seek out minors to write to are doing so because they’re seeking to manipulate the minor. Minors who are accepting of adult penpals are unwittingly engaging in penships that can have undue influence on them . Even within the 18+ sticking to themselves age rule there can be age gaps between penpals that aren’t in the best interest of the younger party. An 18 year old writing to a 40 year old could be subjected to the same predatory penship as a 13 year old trying to write a 20 year old. There’s also a non-predatory reason why age gaps for adult penships don’t work. Quite simply, a 20 year old and a 25 year old are often at drastically different points in their life and that can make it hard to find common ground. With the 17 and below age rule, again it’s imperfect and there can still be inappropriate age gaps. A 12 year old and a 17 year old shouldn’t be writing to one another for the same reasons that them hanging out in person or even dating would be problematic. A good rule of thumb for minors: Keep it within a 2 year age gap. A good rule of thumb for adults 18-22: Keep it within a 3 year age gap. A good rule of thumb for adults 23-30: Keep it within a 5 year age gap. For adults these are what I’ve discovered to be “easy” to connect over age gaps, but obviously it’s up to the individual’s discretion as to what is a compatible. Disclosing Mental Health I mention this only because I’ve come across it, so what’s the “right move” in disclosing mental health struggles you may have? If it’s something that changes the way you socialize or requires you take extra precautions in who you socialize with/how you socialize (i.e. needing to share triggers) then it’s certainly worth including in your bio when reaching out to penpals. Otherwise, just be wary of oversharing. If you have something you’d like to be upfront with because you feel it’s a deeply ingrained part of what makes you “you” it’s definitely fine to share that! Just remember that while the goal of penships is relationship building, from the start people are still strangers. Sharing the traumatic depths of your struggles extremely early in a penship can be overwhelming for your penpal. It also can cross into territory of unintentional emotional manipulation and cause a penpal who otherwise finds themselves incompatible to feel compelled to keep writing you because they fear for your well-being. Remember, mental health is personal! That’s doesn’t mean you can’t talk about it (I talk to plenty of penpals about mental health!) but just remember it’s not something strangers have earned the right to know about you! Respecting Boundaries When establishing a penship it’s important to create and respect boundaries. Some such boundaries that people have revolve around who they are comfortable writing too. Personally, I do not write to men.It’s a preference built off bad experiences with a few people who aren’t reflective of the whole--- but to look out for me I choose not write men. Should you seek out a penship and learn you fall into some demographic the person chooses not to write to, simply accept that respectfully and move on. In my situation, I have had people argue with me about my choice not to write them because they’re men. This will not endear the person to you and cause them to change their mind. People have reasons for restricting who them write to. Aside from who people are willing to write to, another common boundary is in regards to communication outside of letters. Personally, as someone who belongs to the Old School style of penpaling I do not want to receive messages on social media outside of initial agreements to write one another. For me and others like me, much of the allure of penpaling comes from distance from my “real life”. Communicating solely through letters gives me material for my letters (I am a diary-style writer) and frankly gives me the space to connect with person’s true personality versus being biased by a social media presence. Be clear with the people you’re seeking a penship with whether or not you’re open to developing a friendship over social media as well or if you prefer not to. Again, personally I prefer only receiving initial informational exchanges, updates on addresses, check-ins if it’s been a while since one of us has sent mail, or an occasional birthday/holiday message. For extremely longtime penpals I make exceptions. Social media is another boundary. Unless someone invites you to add them on social media, please do not do this. Yes, you have the name of the person off their address and can technically “easily” discover their social media but that person is trusting in you to respect their privacy. If you want to share your social media that’s wonderful! Just recognize that your penpal may not want to and will not want their privacy invaded. Patience Above all in penpaling you need to be patient.Postal services aren’t perfect whether it’s sending mail on the national or international level. Generally they’re reliable and predictable, but sometimes things go awry. Personally, nothing bothers me more than someone who sends daily or near daily messages inquiring after the arrival of their letter. While it generally can take 3-5 days for mail to travel in the US (where I am) this isn’t exact. If you’re concerned your penpal hasn’t gotten your mail, it’s appropriate to ask them if it’s arrived and if it has not then ask that they update you when it has (assuming you’re concerned it’s lost). Do not message daily or multiple times in a week. If your penpal doesn’t get back to you within 2 weeks of your initial message, it’s fair game to message them once more in order to determine the likelihood the mail has been lost. Often people forget to update one another in the Old School community of penpals--- just by nature of being a little bit of penpaling Luddites. Another reason patience is absolutely necessary in this practice has to do with the rate of letter writing. Penpaling can be a time intensive process that take creative and emotional currency to partake in. As a result, many people do not write a response immediately upon receiving mail. Life and stress often get in the way of penaling. Or even when we have ample time, for those of us who are diary-style writers sometimes we feel there’s not enough going on with us to warrant writing a letter. If you feel you really cannot wait indefinitely for mail then that’s something that needs to be disclosed when you begin penships. There are people who can commit to consistent writing schedules and those that cannot. Ultimately with penpaling, just remember that there’s another person who is sending and receiving mail. It’s not you and a robot. It’s living, breathing person who should be treated with the respect that they deserve.

#Penpaling #penpals #penpal community #snailmail #snail mail #snailmail communuity

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chaoskirin · 4 years

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Reblog Survey Results

I know it’s been a while. I had a lot of data to go through, and I also had to run some reblog experiments to determine whether my guesses were valid or not. I’ll first discuss the raw data, then the results of my experiments, some conclusions that may be drawn, and finally what might be done about the lack of reblogs on tumblr.

Please remember to reblog this, so everyone who responded to the survey can see the results!

First: A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who participated. I didn’t expect this sort of attention. I hope this essay helps, and to everyone who wants the actual data to go over for yourself (it is a lot!) please message me and I can send you a PDF. No names are attached, so it is entirely private.

Respondents were offered the choice of eleven options and could choose multiple options based on their reblog habits for art.

A total of 150 people replied. Two responses were deleted due to the fact that they were spam and clicked every option without explanation, leaving a total of 148 viable respondents who clicked a total of 337 options:

Respondents were allowed to expand on their choices to describe other options not presented. Some of these options restated those that were already presented, and the others can be split into several categories:

No one reblogs my art, so I don’t reblog anyone else’s.

I don’t reblog art that is NSFW under any circumstance

I feel like original art is too personal to reblog, no matter the subject matter.

While I may like the art, I feel as if I need to tag/comment on it, and I might not have time when I see the art, and so I end up not reblogging it at all. (This response was overwhelming!)

If the artist ever discusses lack of reblogs, I make it a point not to ever reblog from them.

I don’t reblog from artists who state things such as “my art is so bad” or “this sucks but I’m posting it anyway”

I’m afraid of offending or triggering my followers.

Some people just expanded/reinforced the choices they made when selecting options. Many were explanations of why they were selective about what they reblogged.

I also included a section where respondents could add comments related to the survey.

One respondent stated that they considered a “like” as something to let the artist know that they like the piece, while they consider a reblog an endorsement--and that they want to be sure the original artist isn’t homophobic/transphobic/terf/etc.

Another stated that they needed to feel attachment to the work in order to reblog it.

Many people stated that reblogs were a privilege and not a right, and that likes should suffice to make an artist happy. In the same vein, another respondent said that if tumblr is being used for emotional validation [you] are “setting yourself up for failure.”

There are also many responses that encourage people to support art and fanfic, as well as thanking the author for doing the survey and encouraging the posting of results.

It was initially difficult to make a conclusion from this data, as almost 60% of respondents say they reblog as much art as they can. This didn’t seem to match up with my own personal experiences, as if this was true, every art piece posted on tumblr should receive somewhere in the range of 90 reblogs at the very least. Of course, the issue is that the people who stated they reblog as much as they can don’t all follow my blog; the survey itself reached a huge audience and most of the people who replied likely do not follow me. So this alone might prove that reblogs on tumblr definitely lead to more reblogs, and thus, more people seeing posted artwork.

So the issue lay within the breakdown of the “reblog chain.”

Essentially, while there are a lot of people willing to reblog art, there are various barriers any one piece must pass through in order to reach a wider audience.

First: There are the people who are particular about what they reblog (another 88 responses, or another 60%), people who are afraid of upsetting the artist or their followers (an answer given by 47 people, ore about 31% of respondents) and then those who gave an option I didn’t anticipate: that they simply didn’t have the time or energy or tagging capability to reblog when they saw they art, and went on to forget to reblog it. (This may include people who reblog most of what they see, but either sometimes or usually forget to do it.)

Seventeen (17) people stated this outright, and if I had the option in the survey, I believe it might have accounted for more. These answers came in at different times, so it’s impossible that these 17 respondents discussed their answer with each other. Furthermore, to have such a percentage of people individually state the same thing, it stands to reason that this is one of the major barriers when it comes to reblogging art.

I attempted to run an experiment to determine the reblogging habits of tumblr users, whereby I posted three separate images and encouraged people to reblog them. Unfortunately, due to the above limitations and inability for the experiment to reach past my own blog, I could only use data I already had.

I looked at the reblog patterns of my own art and followed the posts in question through several blogs.

The first interesting pattern I noticed was that one person I’ll call N, would almost always rebog my art, which would then almost always be reblogged by a second person (S). In cases where N did not reblog my art, the piece in question was never reblogged by S, as S does not follow me. Interestingly, if S reblogged my piece, it was then usually reblogged by at least one other person--not always the same people. But through this pattern, I tended to gain at least 4 reblogs through this chain.

I also looked at blogs with many followers who reblogged my art. This one I will mention by name, as it is a content collector blog. @theworldofthedarkcrystal often reblogs my Dark Crystal art, leading to incredible numbers when it comes to reblogs. One piece, my drawing of The Heretic, received 145 reblogs, which is very high. However, you’ll notice that it also has far more likes, sitting at 430, which illustrates the problem with art on tumblr.

But what about average users who happen to have a lot of followers? I looked at one popular user who follows me, who I’ll call A. A reblogs from a certain fandom, but doesn’t reblog every one of my pieces from that fandom, which meant they were perfect to examine the differences in visibility.

I won’t share the pieces here to protect this person’s identity. But this popular user’s occasional reblogs of my art would sometimes cause the notes on my art to take off... And sometimes it wouldn’t make any difference at all. So the first conclusion that can be drawn is that it doesn’t necessarily matter who reblogs your art, because individual groups of followers may not share the same taste. (And/or they may be affected by the various other options from the survey!)

This is not a scientific survey. If I expected so many responses, I might have structured things differently, however, using what I know about tumblr and the responses I received, I can draw certain conclusions.

I’ll admit, even I have scrolled past art before; I don’t reblog every bit of art I see, because it has to be relevant to my interests. Since putting together this survey, I attempted to reblog more art in general, as I realized that I was part of the “problem,” and had to make a conscious effort to change.

While I didn’t ask every respondent whether they had ADHD, autism, or mental illnesses such as depression or anxiety, my experiences have shown me that many people who call tumblr their home also feel a kinship here, because other people share the same conditions.

If this is taken into account, it’s not that people are maliciously skipping art to reblog. But those of us (myself included!) who hyperfixate are sometimes incapable of giving attention to things that aren’t currently at the forefront of their mind.

This makes it difficult for original art to take off, because those who are hyperfixating literally cannot give their full attention to something they aren’t currently fixated on. I did some research on hyperfixation, and it is also referred to as being “in the zone.” That it’s an intense focus on something for hours, or days, or years... Then it’s over. One of the articles I read stated that the writer read mystery novels en masse for a time, then stopped completely, and hasn’t read another mystery novel for twenty years.

Another article stated that “When a fixation takes hold of me, it manifests as an inexplicable compulsion to just keep consuming this new thing until I’ve absorbed it all. Sometimes this continues even to my own detriment. My sleep schedule is routinely screwed up when this happens. I consume every bit of it as rapidly as possible until it’s done and I don’t want to stop or slow down.”

Due to the respondents who stated that they were very selective about what they reblogged, I can conclude that at least some of the issue is innocent hyperfixation--as someone who is hyperfixating is not able to devote their attention to other things.

(This is not an attack on people who hyperfixate! It’s a logical explanation that I believe people who seek reblogs should take into account--hyperfixating people hyperfixate.)

Secondly, I’d like to address the response I didn’t anticipate--that people do intend to reblog art, but don’t have the energy for it (IE: tagging or commenting.) As I stated before, I believe this has a lot to do with art not getting reblogged, especially when the same people don’t then go back and reblog what they intended to--instead scrolling tumblr and adding more work to their queue that then also never gets reblogged.

I have also personally noticed a great many people on tumblr (again, myself included) who suffer from depression and/or executive dysfunction, leading to an inability to complete tasks that sap too much energy or don’t have a specific deadline.

And while I can’t conclude that this is the major issue when it comes to reblogging, I can say that this plays a large part, and that those of us who worry that we are being excluded or deliberately ignored should take this into account. Reblogging, tagging, and commenting does take a lot of energy, that people rightfully reserve for the things they care about the most. And there is likely huge overlap between the people who hyperfixate and those who don’t have the energy to reblog things.

At least from a technical standpoint, I can conclude that there’s no confusion on the difference between reblogging and reposting. However, there was some concern that artists might not want to see their art on certain blogs.

So what can be done about this situation?

For artists:

Start deriving comfort from the attention you do get. Even if it’s the same person or couple people reblogging your art every time, make sure to thank and appreciate them. This is something I’ve learned recently; while it’s okay to pursue popularity, your achievements and personal successes are separate from that, and it’s okay to start small.

And if someone reblogs your art that you haven’t seen before, you might consider sending them a “thank you,” as some people tend to only reblog art from people with whom they have a relationship. This might help you find some fans!

If you’re seeking to encourage reblogs, due to certain responses on the survey, it might be advantageous to add “Reblogs are appreciated and encouraged” to your works. There are few enough people that consider this “whining” that it shouldn’t affect your overall success.

For hyperfixators:

I am not an expert on ADHD, so I won’t presume to tell you to change. If reblogging one kind of art makes you happy, then you keep doing you, because this world needs happiness, and if your current hyperfixation provides that for you, then you’re miles ahead of most people in the world. If you’re ever able to, consider reblogging one or two pieces of original art, as you’ll make an artist very happy!

For That Other Big Answer:

The idea that people didn’t reblog because they didn’t have the energy to do it was surprising to me, and an answer I didn’t anticipate... but one I also felt in my soul as soon as I saw it come up.

We all have to remember that on tumblr, we’re one point in a long chain of people. If you don’t have the energy to tag or comment, it’s best to reblog that art anyway, so that other people can see it and perhaps comment themselves, reblog it, and keep the visibility chain going. If you’re so inclined later, you can go back and tag or comment! As an artist, I regularly check tags to see if anyone’s said anything nice, but reblogs make me equally happy, even if nothing is said.

For the Clutter Crowd:

If you’re afraid that reblogging too much art might clutter your blog (but you still want to reblog it!) consider making a blog where you only put art. There’s a chance people might follow that blog, thus perpetuating the reblog chain, but it’s also a place where you can comment and/or tag without adding too many art posts to your main blog.

---

There are certain answers I cannot do anything about. IE: people who only reblog refined/finished works or works they consider favorites. I’d like to gently remind these respondents that while you are not personally responsible for the success or “advertisement” of newer or less skilled artists, we as people live in a society where we take comfort from the attention of those around us. Sometimes the only reason for reblogging a piece you don’t find completed to your standards is just to make someone’s day a little brighter.

In conclusion: Reblog art!

#art #artists of tumblr #artists #reblogging #essay #data sets #survey results

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