Which is why I take offense to someone claiming that it selects for and requires skill. Especially because the ones making that argument are usually the ones arguing that they’re incapable of making art. I would tell them they just need to spend more time finding themselves.
And spend more time (and intentional effort) in making art! It's like people want a shortcut to end result, when "real" artists know that the process of self-discovery is the reason and means through which they make the art in the first place.
The map is not the territory. The purpose of the journey is the journey itself; the destination is simply a guiding star. A whole lot of aspirational mapmakers think if they only had "this one weird trick," they'd be gods.
Art is in the eye of the beholder.
Do you share your stories publicly? I’m curious what kind of stories you would write.
It would be cool to have an HN writing group!
It’s over here: https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/shards-of-a-br...
I like the pictures, and I can see how using AI would help a lot with that, especially in the context of existing characters, as matching styles and designs is something that AI is likely well-suited to do.
I read a bit about Shugo Chara to see what it's about, and it seems like an interesting series. The way you presented your story reminded me of Steins;Gate a bit with the reality manipulation.
Should I be familiar with the source material in order to appreciate your work better?
Thanks for sharing your work. Are you working on any other pieces?
Any anime recommendations, while you're here?
I've worked on other stories, but this is the only one right now. As to source material, knowing it would be beneficial, but it's all new to the protagonists and the only one I'd say is a must-have is Shugo Chara. Though not even that; several players did not know anything about Amu in advance. You'll be a little lost, but the wiki entry will suffice for giving you the basic idea. The story's set post-canon, with some divergences, so it starts off by trying to describe the current situation.
And anime... Magilumiere is great. Give it a try.
That's pretty cool! At first when I saw the boon/bane thing, I thought you were writing one of those RPG style choose your own adventure gamebooks I remember reading in the 90s:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamebook
I wasn't disappointed, I just got my hopes up a bit. Once I figured out a bit more about the quest and how it worked, I didn't even look at the comments or votes, just went right to the reader mode.
Have you played any visual novel games or interactive fiction? I think you would be good at making one!
As for that anime, it seems neat from what I've read. I see that it's on Amazon Prime and also seems to have some fansubs maybe? How should I experience it?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magilumiere_Co._Ltd.
As for myself, I just started watching the new 3D/CGI Gundam anime on Netflix, and it's pretty well done. I think they're using Unreal Engine to animate it, and the production values on it are really quite high, though I know 3D/CGI anime are controversial in the anime fandom, to say the least. I'm a Gundam fan though, and I like what they've done with the opportunity.
Maybe writing a story is your art… Part of self-discovery is in finding out how you desire to express yourself. There’s a reason many books have a an author and an illustrator.
Great if that’s how it works for you, but for me it’s a means to an end.