Overwhelmed by Inktober
But perfectly happy with Octsober!
It’s been an exhausting, but oh-so-delightful start to the month! I had a late night with some neighbors last Friday and the next day I felt very meh, so I decided this month I’d take a break from all things mind-altering. I’ve found other ways to boost my mood - like trot-training 4x a week, drinking fresh pressed POG and embracing a “10-4” theme on October 4th (the Janes make excellent truckers).
But seriously, why is being silly the best drug!?
“Breaker, breaker one nine, this is Lady Rascal, do you copy? Over.”
“Lady Rascal, go for Demented Critter. Over.”
“DC, LD has to Drain the Dragon, I repeat, we got a Double-D situation over here, except the second “D” is diarrhea. Takin’ this exit. Over.”
“Copy on the Double-D, LD. Godspeed, over and out.”
October also ushered in Inktober: a 31-day illustration challenge, started by some man I don’t know, and honestly, don’t care to know (for no reason other than they’ve had their turn). Also, every year there’s some renewed “controversy” in analog artists versus digital artists, and I can’t be bothered with that elitist, gate keeper-y, absolutely-putrid-and-crawling-with-maggots garbahge.
Until 2021, when a friend of mine introduced me to an Inktober facilitated by local Long Beach artists Heidi Moreno and her sister, Priscilla - their prompts are campy, sweet and spoopy, and I’ve generated some wonderful work the last two years!
But this year, they reduced their already reduced prompts (the normal 31 in 2021, cut to 15 in 2022) to a total of 5.
FIVE PROMPTS?! It’s Inktober, not Inkafewdaysorwhatever!
Oh, how I have been humbled.
Two years ago, we were still pretty deep in the pandemic (and I was pretty deep in the grief of losing my dad), so we had the time. I had the time. I took hours every day, to watch TV and painstakingly generate my art.
Last year? I didn’t even finish the 15 prompts.
So why, last Sunday, delusional in my Inktober optimism, did I think “5 prompts?! This will not do!” and sat down and generated 31 very silly, very campy, Halloween prompts, with Pete’s help (thank you Pete!):
I did not, I do not, need 31 prompts. I am already behind. I am already feeling exhausted by the idea of having to make one of these every day. Because I do not spend a few minutes on these (despite what you may think); I spend at least an hour on each one of these, more if I can (and as a childless woman, I can). And it hurts my neck. And my back. (And my p*ssy and my crack.) No, but seriously, I think I am giving myself tension headaches with my insane concentration.
So this brings me to ask you, dear reader: do you often find yourself in these situations? Are you currently stuck in a prison of your own making? How do we show ourselves grace (and give ourselves a freakin’ break!), but still make sure we’re pushing ourselves?
Perhaps my imperfect Inktober could look like one of the following:
Completing every prompt with a time limit
Completing only the prompts that speak to me
I made the list, so they all speak to me - this won’t work.
Waiting until I have time and completing several prompts at once
Going on Fivver and paying someone $5 to do the prompts I can’t get to
Quit my job(s) and JUST focus on Inktober because I committed and it has to get done
Rage quit
Perhaps it’s an entirely different scenario I haven’t thought of yet! Like severe food poisoning, or getting hit by a tween on a razor scooter (an event which almost occured on yesterday’s trot). If that happened, maybe Pete takes over my Inktober, since both my hands will be in elevated casts, duh.
Stop by my #soshmeeds to see how this all plays out (or just say “hey, good job there, Nicole”). I’m posting my illustrations on my Heartsick Studio Instagram daily! Or whenever I get around to it.
Until the next unhinged newsletter!
xo Nicole
Those razor scooters are deadly!