#but when people draw these two as conventionally attractive in their mid-20s

[bellybiologist]

On Depicting "Aged Up Characters"

Just some rambling and ranting about something im coming across with work regarding character depiction.

First and foremost, most of my long-time followers probably already know that when it comes to fictional characters, i do not care about needing to age up characters to enjoy them and whatnot, cuz fictional. But also, i 100% understand why people age them up to properly enjoy them.

That said, i need people to at least kinda explain to me what they need to see to consider a character aged up.

This is mostly for patreon work and commissions, cuz this pops up really often???

I don't subscribe to "traditional traits" of what makes a person appear "aged up." Stylistic choices aside, i generally try to make a character look as much like how they are canonically as possible with more realistic proportions, barring me changing traits to something i personally find more attractive (see me making literally every character i like chumby with a tumby). My drawing actually being seen as "oh hey, its THAT character" asap (preferably, on sight) is very important to me.

Real people don't always have the (mis)fortune to get all the traits that people need in order to appear like an "adult" to everyone.

Not everyone gets taller after that last growth spurt they got at 15.

Not everyone gets facial hair, or hell, they decide to stay clean shaven regardless of the level of hairy they achieve.

Not everyone gets broad superman shoulders or huge tits

Not everyone gets a Dorito-faced bad touch senpai chin. (this one drives me up the wall because round face shapes are CUTE and not everyone gets chiseled cheekbones or jawbones at 18, god dammit.)

A lot of these traits are only seen as "adult traits" mostly cuz hollywood really fucked us because they depicted a LOT of teenagers in media using adult actors that are deemed conventionally attractive. So most people's perceptions of what looks like an adult is pretty warped.

IMO, subscribing to traditional traits of being an adult, or simply appearing older, limits what you can do when designing a character, and also comes with othering people who dont get those traits in reality. I, myself, for example, am pretty short compared to most amab people of the race on my mom's side (which is black). And when i shave, people tended to think i was like, 16, even in my mid-20s because my filipino genes kept my face relatively roundish too. (Which is to my advantage being a trans woman, but thats not my point.). Most traits that are taped onto a charatcer to "age them up" dont apply to me when i became an adult. Then this becomes more difficult when you add in stylistic choices in art (see: chibi art)

So where i stand, i dont care for traditional adult traits because most of them are dumb anyway. But, im more than amenable to depicting them for work and art if asked!

When people ask, i follow up to ask them to clarify how they'd want them to appear "older" or "aged up" or "adult" and one of two things happen:

they never explain what would they want to see and magically expect me to read their mind or something

They literally don't know what they're looking for.

Which is problematic to me because, some people dont change at all as they get older. Genetics just be like that; Some of us grow into our final proportions once we hit 15, and das it.

So my choices in this situation are to either take a wild guess at what they want, or just do nothing and leave them the same (the latter often being suitable enough to most situations since my style is semi-realistic enough in terms of proportions, which leads me to think its less them wanting them aged up, and more to cover their own ass in case of implications). I don't like defaulting to "the traditional traits" to make them appear like an adult cuz it may end up not looking like that character after a point. Some of those traits dont even apply when you make them chubby or they gain weight or won't even be noticeable unless you put in something else as a frame of reference. ie. being fat diminishes the chiseled cheeks/chin that a lot of older male characters are depicted with, so to some who follow this rubric, chubby faces make people look younger.

But it also infuriates me because it goes to show that people are often just saying these things in order to adhere to demands of the political climate. Which, of course, is totally valid when you want to avoid Discourse™, but less so when you're not thinking about it critically and go around assuming that everyone reacts to and copes with the concept the same.

Also... it dumps all the brainwork on ME. >:T

I know i'm a badass artist and whatnot, but guesswork is my least fun thing to do to make sure some cartoon character looks suitably adult enough to enjoy guilt-free by one-person-in-particular

Taller? i can do that. Body hair? sure! Definitely. But you gotta give me something to work with. I can't read minds (yet).

So in the end. When you ask for commissions or make patreon nominations, tell me what you want. xD

#verzi rambles #tl:dr is that i cant read your mind and i dont subscribe to traditional characteristics when drawing characters #so tell me what you want before you go saying aged up or adult

[spaceshipkat]

Hi kat sorry for bothering you but do you think it's possible for unattractive women to find love? like I'm 25 and while i've been kissed/been on dates, i've never had a real relationship, all my crushes have been unrequited and my worst shame is that I'm still a virgin. I truly believe that it's all because of the way I look. I have thin brown hair and a widow's peak, acne scars and am overweight by about twenty pounds. Every new years I feel the same existential dread bc I know 1/2

I'm going to have to suffer another year of being horribly single. I hate looking at myself in the mirror and I constantly feel jealous of any pretty girl I see. All my friends are conventionally attractive and have boyfriends/fiances and my family always jokes about my singleness/how I'm the "ugly duckling". I have a really good life otherwise and I know I'm ungrateful, but I really want romantic love and to be seen as pretty, even by one person. Am I stupid and shallow? 2/2

hi anon! first, i’m so glad my blog is a safe place for you 💖 it’s taken me a couple days to get to this bc i wanted to make sure i had enough headspace to give you a good answer, but i’ve been thinking of you since your ask first came in! (i always read asks the moment i notice i’ve received one, though it can take me a little while to get to them.) and it’s not a bother at all 💖 like i said, i’m glad my blog is a safe place for you, and that i can be here for a booster. 

so lemme start with the idea of virginity: remember that it’s a societal construct, one in which people are shamed for still being a virgin and shamed for not being a virgin, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with having sex and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with not having sex. it’s unfair that society makes us feel like failures either way, but it only does so in order to continue to control us and our actions. having sex doesn’t make you better or worse, nor does it mean you’re missing out on something simply bc you haven’t had sex yet. there’s so much more to life than just that, and it’s why i’ve been focusing so much on setting up my life the past few years over being in a relationship: to me, it’s more important to figure myself out, to make a future i’m happy for, than to try to fit into a box that society demands of me or to rush into something i’m not ready for. 

it’s certainly not easy, i’m not going to lie: most of the people i went to high school with are now engaged, married, or have children, while i’m still living at home to save for grad school and to focus on my writing. i’ve often said that age 25 would be the age i’d be okay with getting married, and although i’m now 25 i’m still single but i’m glad i didn’t rush into anything bc i would not have been in the right headspace. i needed to give myself time to grow up, to find a way to balance my mental health with my career goals. i often tell my brother, who’s 28, that it’s good he’s still single (he wanted to be married with a couple kids by now) bc he wouldn’t have been in the right headspace for starting a family in his early- to mid-20s. i keep reminding him that it’s unfair society demands 20-somethings have their lives figured out when we’ve only been alive for two decades. there’s so much to learn and experience, so don’t put a deadline on it. 

anyway, to get back on track, you’re not stupid and shallow at all for wanting someone to look at you the way you hope. but i think it’s also important that we accept ourselves first. i’ve noticed that as i’ve gotten older i’ve begun to have fewer fucks to give over my appearance. i just got tired of feeling badly about myself, of not finding confidence in myself no matter the flaws i see on my person (flaws that, by and large, aren’t seen by anyone else bc people don’t look at us for flaws--well, people who are worth knowing don’t!), and i’ve noticed that the confidence i feel translates to an aura that’s inviting (as my little sister would say) and draws people to you. it can be difficult to do so when you’re not happy with your appearance, but you can still be confident, still dress the way you like, the way that makes you feel good about yourself, and roll back your shoulders, raise your chin, and be confident. when i was younger, i was often self-conscious about how i liked to dress, but now i’m happy in it, find confidence with my eyeliner (which i jokingly call my battle armor), and continue to get my undercut buzzed bc i like how it looks, like how it makes me look and feel. 

i’m not sure if you saw it, but Charlize Theron was talking about how she adopted the “Queen” style of confidence when she was acting in Snow White and the Huntsman: she stood tall and rolled back her shoulders, thought “murder,” and walked. here’s a vid, if you wanna see :) and i think that holds true for just everyday life. find that confidence and use it, and you’ll find that people will be drawn to you, merely bc you exude a personality, a behavior, that’s intriguing. i often find that being body positive on here, the fact that i can help people see beyond what society force-feeds us, does wonders, too, in my confidence and outlook on myself. you offer positivity and you’ll receive positivity in return, bc you reap what you sow. 

so to try to conclude this ramble, try not to look at the new year in the viewpoint of “i’ll remain single forever” (this is hard to do, believe me! it’s been a while since i’ve dated anyone and i worry i’ll never find The One, but i’m also aware that where i live is hardly a well of opportunities. that’s why i find it important to look around, to travel, to find out who else exists in other parts of the country and even the world, to not limit myself to where i happen to live, to never settle) but “i may be single now, but it will happen when i’m ready”. you give out positivity, you put a bit more confidence in your outlook on the upcoming year and what you hope to achieve in it, and that positivity will, day by day, little by little, help you to roll back your shoulders, raise your chin, and walk confidently while thinking “murder.” 

i tell myself and my brother all the time that it is never good to settle. don’t settle for something bc you worry nothing better will come your way. as i often say, i would rather remain single than be in a relationship that doesn’t fulfill me, that doesn’t have the makeup of epic love stories we see in fiction, that doesn’t make me realize this is what i’ve been waiting for my whole life and how could i have been so silly as to think it would never come to me. there’s nothing wrong with waiting for the best life has to offer, even if society judges us for doing so. 

and to society i say:

i hope i’ve helped! i believe in you, and i know good things will come your way 💖

#ask #anonymous #long post #body positivity #romance #romance advice #relationship advice #positivity #on the matter of love #friendly reminder #i'm not sure what else to tag #ask to tag #please lemme know if there's anymore i should add! #kat rambles #sex positivity