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On Discipline, Self- and otherwise
Jul. 23rd, 2007 12:09 amI've been bitching and moaning all summer about the essays I have to write as deferred assessment. So far I've written part of one. I've never been very good at these long-term project things. Unlike some, I really don't work best under pressure--trouble is, I don't work at all unless I am under pressure. I need a deadline kicking my ass to get anything done. So tonight I set myself two arbitrary essay deadlines, with Kalea to hold me to them.
We've also concocted a plan for working steadily next year, so as to avoid all this perpetual stress and deadline crap. We'll make studenting a 9 to 5 occupation, so if all goes to plan we might actually have our nights and weekends free, to do or read whatever we want. Glory.
Progress so far: I keep getting distracted from the Aristotle I'm trying to read and read about. All I really have to show for the last couple of hours is a decent enough drawing of my phone, which was the only object at hand when I decided to try a pen drawing.
I want to learn how to draw with pens. I've been a pencil girl for ever and ever--I used to hate even writing with pens. The difference between writing with a pencil or a pen is minimal. But in drawing, it is immense. I use pencils in much the same way I use charcoal--the same sorts of shading techniques, particularly: smearing the lines, smudging darker here and lighter there, going for a realistic effect. You can't really get a realistic effect with pen, though; you have to choose the lines that are important. This is why I want to learn pen-drawing: because deciding which lines are important is a skill needed for cartooning, which is something I really want to do more of. Anyway, the shading in pen drawings is normally done with an assortment of small lines. I've never really had the patience for them, nor the confidence (pens make no mistakes!). But these are both things I need to develop anyway. So you see, it all fits together.
Incidentally, my pencil drawing (+ photo manipulation skillz) is apparently good enough to use for official publicity. :-D
We've also concocted a plan for working steadily next year, so as to avoid all this perpetual stress and deadline crap. We'll make studenting a 9 to 5 occupation, so if all goes to plan we might actually have our nights and weekends free, to do or read whatever we want. Glory.
Progress so far: I keep getting distracted from the Aristotle I'm trying to read and read about. All I really have to show for the last couple of hours is a decent enough drawing of my phone, which was the only object at hand when I decided to try a pen drawing.
I want to learn how to draw with pens. I've been a pencil girl for ever and ever--I used to hate even writing with pens. The difference between writing with a pencil or a pen is minimal. But in drawing, it is immense. I use pencils in much the same way I use charcoal--the same sorts of shading techniques, particularly: smearing the lines, smudging darker here and lighter there, going for a realistic effect. You can't really get a realistic effect with pen, though; you have to choose the lines that are important. This is why I want to learn pen-drawing: because deciding which lines are important is a skill needed for cartooning, which is something I really want to do more of. Anyway, the shading in pen drawings is normally done with an assortment of small lines. I've never really had the patience for them, nor the confidence (pens make no mistakes!). But these are both things I need to develop anyway. So you see, it all fits together.
Incidentally, my pencil drawing (+ photo manipulation skillz) is apparently good enough to use for official publicity. :-D
