CONCRETE TIPS TO COMBAT ARTBLOCK
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Tried and validated by yours truly. Experience is the only master you need!
The most important tip is to do.
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I´ve found that finding your very own workflow elevates alot of artblock - and getting comfortable with the idea of iteration of lots of thumbnailsketches from your own briefs!
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Identify why and what is making you not want to draw and list possible solutions .
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Identify what kind of art you like and want to be able to do
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Find the idea generation technique that works for you (research!)
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Writing in Art idea journal with mindmaps (my technique)
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Idea notes app in phone for on the go
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Record idea asap or it´ll be gone forever!
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Try to generate atleast 5 new ideas daily - the more the better!
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Split your day - ideas in the morning, art in the evening for example
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Writing helps you stay as non-judgemental as possible.
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Keep a visual idea sketchbook where you sketch those written ideas
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Really let your ideas get on the page before judging them!
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Keep it simple & readable - try to describe what you see in your art vision.
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Pick the ones that interest you most - keep the rest as "backburner ideas" for those days you really don´t feel like drawing!
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Try to draw things you love - fanart is powerful to re-ignite your art love again
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Set aside x hours for just sketching daily to build habit.
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PRACTICE THOSE IMAGINATION SKILLS DAILY!
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Read books AND try to paint the scenes in your head as you mosey along
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Expose yourself to as many genres of things as possible!
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Music, movies, videogames, books...
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Expose youself to new ways and new experiences or perspectives, nurture your curiosity and always try to find out more about stuff or how the world works!
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Combine refs together is the core to what really ideas are - say 80%. The 10% is how you combine them and is your personal flair.
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RP! RP stimulates your imagination and visualization skills endlessly as you learn how to describe scenes, characters and scenarios in words. It´s fun!
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Combine things IRL together in your head as you see them
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Ask questions - why, what, where, how, who, what if? etc
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Take an existing IP and play pretend you´re redesigning it - use screenshots, lore as base and try to come up with new scenes ;)
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The real core of artblock is lack of ideas and a proper workflow.
It is essential to learn how to put down ideas in their most crude form, learning to
ITERATE.
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