Nyou Fiction Forums

@Jimmy Olsen

QuoteBy the way, I'd like to thank Nkay7 for saying such nice things about my stories. 

If only the editors of fiction magazines had such a high opinion of my writing.

Well Jimmy, in your case it might not be a question of writing ability, and more about just finding the right material to apply it to. And I know that's not saying much, because that's the hardest part.
You mentionned dealing with editors: do you also have plans to professionally have work of fiction published?


Quick update:
Story is 40% done, but no one cares about my pet project.
I know there are some people who'd like me to make more drawings, and it's only fair I give a heads up on my current situation so as to not create false hope. I don't have free time right now. In fact, I've barely had time to sleep.

Things have been pretty crazy for me since Irene, with helping out the Red Cross in the relief efforts, and all the contigencies firing off at work. That's calmed down a bit, but it turns out I'm also getting assigned to a fast-lane project, and I'll be moving out to a new place for a while. Long story short, I don't even know myself when I'll get another break.

I'm one of those types that always have to be doing something, but even I have my limits!

My priorities are set in stone, but I'll return to finish what I've started once the dust settles.

@Orpheum

QuoteHehehe, I'm always a little weary of revealing the idea online because of the fear that someone could steal it, but I guess it's nothing to be really concerned about.

Originally, the series started out a simple "play time" thing I had with some toys, except I had created quite  a bit of backstory to each "character" (originally being McDonald Beast War toys), something most kids probably rarely did when just playing around pretend (at least more so than "This guy is a super warrior!"). Anyway, as I started to roll the idea of a series around, I incorporated elements of Dragon Ball Z, at the time being a very big fan, making it very action heavy. Granted, I was quick to make each character fight uniquely so it wasn't DBZ's "Everyone's a clone with the same move set".

I didn't ask because I figured you were reluctant to reveal more, but it's nice to see you're quite open about this. I think we were all guilty of this when we were younger!

You mentioned Gainax (by which I assume you refer to Evangelion), but are you a japanese tv show aficionado per any chance? Your idea has a fantastically retro feel, and while I'm not sure how things work for American cartoons, it brings up to my mind elements of Devilman and Shōwa-era Kamen Rider. Those are considered pretty camp nowadays, but they were a bit more hardcore than what you'd see on this side of the Pacific. Devilman (and in fact, a lot of Go Nagai's work) ended with everyone on both sides of the war dying, and the hero carrying away the severed head of his love interest before getting himself finished off by Satan or something. And this was a manga for kids, so it's something that just wasn't done...


@Bluesniper

QuoteUh, so I guess that's my contribution? A pair of (presumably male) detectives who are also vampire hunters, trying to find a vamp in the city who's stalking a young lady. The vamp may be either gender. And...go.

...You'd be surprised with how close you are to what I started with...I didn't have vampires, but there are eerie similarities.
At the moment, the plot I managed to conjure has to do with an idealistic detective and his mentor (a grizzled old cop) investigating a bordello, but running afoul the owner of the place, an abusive pimp who's also a capo for the local mob. The plot then starts revolving around the girls that are kept under control by their cocaine addiction, and how the detective becomes obsessed with doing the right thing for once: even if this means getting in trouble with the mob, and even if the girls themselves are too stoned to show any gratitude. It's...about as depressing and down-to-earth as it sounds.
Oh, and coke is known to cause constipation...so yeah~, pretty weak link to nyou content as it is right now, but that's what I have.

2 detectives, a powerful antagonist with sexual offender undertones, and a damsel in distress...hmm. Makes me wonder if there's a cliché here I'm not aware of.

QuoteHmm. That's certainly tough. I have to say that part of the reason why you may not have gotten much of a response is because writing outside of one's comfort zone is hard.

Oh, yes~. But the point of making contests is to pick out the best of the crop, and that's something done by pushing participants out of their comfort zone to see how they fare under different conditions. Being hard is the core of any challenge: staying hard while doing it is just a bonus (and no, I will not apologize for that horrible pun). But...oh well. I do understand that Duce has to play it the way he does because the number of entries is low enough as it is.

Parodies are fine! Again, I don't think parodies really get the respect they deserve. Sure, it's not the highest brow kind of writing, but people tend to underestimate how compelling it can be when channeled as postmodern commentary. You've got the usual shallow parodies, that don't really understand their material (think Meet the Spartans) : and then you've got the good ones, which lampoon the more absurd aspects of the original source or juxtaposes it with contemporary bathos (like the Naked Gun series). The Noir genre has never seen vampires: they're more associated with horror, the gothic and (very unfortunately) metrosexual heartthrobs. But there are gritty elements to vampires that would have meshed well regardless into a Noir setting, so it would've been a surreal and unique approach.

Sort of in a "Who are we kidding, with all the bullshit we already have going on we might as well have vampires" kind of way.

Purposely pitching a premise that checks every item on the cliché list, and yet is so bad, so politically incorrect that there's no way in hell it'd ever get serialized...it's food for thought.


@Toasty

QuoteAnyway, excellent criticism, even if it's probably nicer than I deserve. Normally I don't put a ton of effort into the plots of my stories for this site, and using established fictional properties acts as sort of a "shortcut" so I don't have to do as much legwork with the setup. Significantly, Method Acting is the only story I've ever written for Nyou Fiction that had original characters. If you really think it's that much better than the others, perhaps I'll try it again sometime. It was pretty fun to write.

Hey, I'm not saying that "raw pornage" is bad per se! There are great stories that take that approach: rather than that, my qualm is mostly with half-hearted fanfiction that attempts to be semi-serious and ends up coming through as lukewarm. It's when there's a lack of direction: if you're gonna go the porn way, at least write it with no compromise. To my fellow perverts I say, be proud damn it!

And, well, original content just has less canon chaining down the creative process (it also doubles as fewer excuses to be lazy with the writing).

Quote
As for your own story, wouldn't the voyeurism be less rapey if it was unintentional? What if instead of a femme fatale, the female lead is an ingenue who witnessed a mob killing or possesses some kind of key/locket/briefcase/gemstone/MacGuffin which puts her in danger, and the male lead has to (begrudgingly) protect her, possibly at the behest of a dead friend/partner or just for money. Any story in which the hero can't leave a woman's side has all kinds of opportunities for nyou occurrences. Maybe a hitman breaks in while she's in the bathroom, and the protagonist gets in a fist fight in front of her on the toilet. Or you could leverage the old "handcuffed together" gag. It seems to me like this setup would be less creepy than the protagonist just spying on women
in the bathroom

It's a good point, but there's a lot of typical "anime" approaches that would look really out of place in a more sleazy and mature environment as Noir. Take for example the idea of making it intentional or not: a hardboiled character type is more likely to be a cad or an asexual than a good mama's boy. Femme fatales also offer another approach, as they could have become so used to being perceived as sexual objects that they now simply act nonchalant rather than ashamed. The MacGuffin approach didn't cross my mind though, and you're right, there's a bunch of ways to exploit that: plot twists, red herrings, not to mention driving home the fact that the characters need to be more pragmatic with their "accommodations". Hmmm...a bathroom fight could definitely be used though. Finally, the handcuff approach is just so damn...kinky, I don't know if that'd work wonders or just make the entire thing too contrived. That's also part of the reason why I don't personally like the protector/bodyguard device too much: too heavyhanded, too gimmicky...maybe even overdone, since the RE4 fics that have been floating on the site?

Thanks for the suggestions, Toasty.

QuoteAxon Mobile Corps - as stated before, vaguely magical girls with callipygian figures, piloting giant robotic things against alien squads who will later be revealed to be the minions of some super powerful race of space Amazons with telepathic powers and lots of fiber in their diet

Am I the only one who think this is the best synopsis ever? FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, SOMEONE MAKE THIS INTO AN ANIME ALREADY.

QuotePlatinum - A traveling rock band, post-apocalyptic setting.

I don't even know why, but FUCK YES.

Quote from: Toasty on August 19, 2011, 03:36:12 AM
Hahahahahah

Anyway, it's fine if you don't want to look at my stuff due to subject matter, although I have some stories without pantypoop (Hermione's Plan, Bathroom Turnabout, Method Acting, and Lute's New Hobby). Don't worry about my ego - I can handle honest criticism, because I'm confident in my ability to improve based on feedback. If somebody raises a legitimate complaint with my writing, it's not the end of the world. You just gotta work with it.

Your criticism is so well thought out and in depth that is seems a shame to waste this opportunity just because of a little squeamishness. If you said everything was perfect, how would that help me as a writer anyway? Take a gander at my stuff if you so desire, but if not that's fine too.

Not to mention, most of that stuff is over a year old anyway, and I'd like to think that I've improved since the time of its writing. That doesn't mean that a critique wouldn't be helpful, though.

To get slightly back on topic, I'd love to see a story of the sort you described, and I'd surely return the favor to the best of my abilities if you wanted feedback on it.

...Yeah, this turned out to be anything but an update thread...
Well Toasty, I'm happy that you value my input enough to actually ask for it: but before moving any further, I have a feeling I should establish my credentials and go through with my own story project. If it comes out right, and if I apply my ideas right, I'd have an easier time explaining certain things down the road, too. Besides, no one respects big heads who can talk the talk but can't walk the walk.

That said, for now I can point out a few general things about your work if you want. Now that you mention those titles, I do recognize your stories! I remember reading all of those you named, as a matter of fact. Probably the one that struck me the most was the Method Acting one, and that was a looong way back. If you hadn't mentionned it just now, I think I might have remembered it as a Jimmy fic instead, since it just sounds more like something he'd do. I do apologize for my mistake.

So, on the top of my head...Method Acting is interesting, in more ways than one. There's the story, there's the "scene"...yet what pops out to me is the framework. It makes me realize this is like one the few stories on this site with enough structure to actually incorporate a punchline of sorts. The nyou material is also integrated into the fabric of the plot, so it never feels out of place either. It's a self-contained piece, and I'm surprised I haven't seen more of these (again, except out of Jimmy).

Now, I'm aware there are writers out there who push for free-form writing, as traditional formatting (AKA, setup, buildup, conflict, resolution) sometimes just doesn't cut it in brisker-paced narratives. And in a media like ours that's specifically designed to titillate, it's because no one cares about the shirtless milkman & lonely housewife setup anymore the moment the funky porn riff kicks in. This does create an interesting distinction: on one side, you'd have the usual short stories that are really just a linear string of pornographic depictions slapped back-to-back. And on the other, sometimes you find short stories like this one, that actually bother building up plot elements for the explicit purpose of knocking them down in the end and make a point (or a joke): there are no residual leftovers here, no wasted ideas, no indulgence in arbitrary content.

"Less is more," yes?
Method Acting follows a classical farce format: it introduces absurd situations, blunders and misunderstandings over the course of the story, and ultimately untangles the conflict with a happy and comical resolution. I'm not going to say that this is the most brilliant example of such a story, but just by the virtue of having plot elements work towards the planned ending like this already makes the work a bit more layered than the usual stuff. Contrast with the Harry Potter fic, which also contain some elements of this (ridiculous means to a ridiculous end, played straight), with the Fire Emblem and Phoenix Wright ones, which don't (raw pornaaaaaaage!!!).

All I can say is that it's one of those subtle things that you either gun for, or you don't. Most untrained writers would just approach their stories like serials, throwing out as many open threads as possible, so that any of these could be revisited or retconned at a later date (if their story even lasted that long!). One-shots on the other hand aren't designed to address things like character development or expansion of the canon: you could say it's the purest manifestation of a concept or an idea committed to story form, with the overlying theme acting as the cohesive agent that makes the whole greater than the sum of its parts. It's a more modest and elegant solution...and unfortunately also an underappreciated one, which is a shame.

Long story short: the setup has purpose or it doesn't. But I've said too much already.
Again for standard nyou fiction, most pretenses at being something more just stop mattering after the pow chikawow wow, symphony of blowing butt chunks and all that jazz.




Okay, phew! Back on topic now.
Actually, just discussing this stuff out loud has made me seriously reconsider what I had been planning towards my own story. After a few trials and errors, I've come up with this.

Sometimes ago, I suggested a stylistic contest, instead of the usual "thematic" one. The idea was received about as well as you might imagine, which is just a polite way of saying that no one gave half a fuck. Looking back, I guess it's one of those things that had no chance of working unless I first showed I was myself willing to do it, and so I'll do that now.

I'll kick off with a story written entirely in Noir style. The objectives of the project will be multi-fold:
1) Demonstrate that there are alternative methods to exposition through stylistic choice of narrative pace and tone
2) Demonstrate the strength of a self-contained piece by providing a setup which gets addressed and ultimately deconstructed
3) To incorporate Nyou content incidentally rather than as the focus, allowing for the seamless existence of plot
4) To experiment and just have fun with it.

So, it'd be porn with plot...and the challenge would be to adjust how much porn, and how much plot. I'll probably stick with a male hero protagonist just to nod to the genre, so descriptions would be less intimate and more voyeuristic...although in a gritty style like Noir, I'm not sure how to incorporate nyou voyeurism without having it take undertones of sexual harrassment/rape, too. It could still manage to be funny, but more in a cynical way. I'm still not up to that part in the actual writing, so anyone's got a few suggestions they'd be willing to part with?

@Toasty

QuoteI almost feel like we're getting our fortunes read by an old gypsy woman or something. 

ME NEXT, MADAM NKAY! DO ME NEXT!

I 've never quite seen it that way! It's not so much reading fortunes as simple abstraction and commentary; as any opinion, it's by no means absolute, either. That said, are you quite certain you'd want me to offer a crit of your work? There's always the very real possibility that I might not like it, and express that dislike to you in the bluntest way possible, right? Be careful what you wish for, young seeker.

Seriously though, I'm not into the messing scene. The pantypoop tag is one of those red flags I stay away from, and I haven't actually read any of those stories. Nothing personal, it's just one of those facets of the fetish I don't quite understand, so I couldn't offer you much insight. Yes, I am aware of the hypocrisy!



@Orpheum
Hmm...I'd rather not comment directly on any exact title, and I'll just agree that all your stories each have at least something enjoyable.

Despite what I said to Toasty, I'm just not mean enough to make a good critic of anything. The worst I'd do is give you some food for thought.
For example, I know you've got your sources down pat: you demonstrate remarkable understanding of the universes your fanfiction draws from, and of the characters your write about. We've also established that your writing is competent: so where then do you think the problem would lie? Why would some of your stories be considered weaker than others, if the contents are so thematically similar? Do you think it might just be a question of erotic intensity, or is there another factor at play?
Me, I'll just suggest that you take more risks to your usual approach, as you might learn to improve even further in surprising ways. You're not quite out of your comfort zone yet, and I'd definitely like to see you attempt something like that. Hell, you might find the experience interesting too, even if it ultimately doesn't turn out the way you want. But that's just me.

QuoteBut you do have to admit it's important to have the eroticism since this is largely an adult site, not that some plot doesn't help to spice things up.

As for my stories, I have been told that regardless of the great/not so greatness of the story, they're always enjoyable in, some way, which is something quite

rare for an untrained writer as my myself (I've never had anything beyond your standard English and Litertature classes).

I never said anything to the contrary. As a matter of fact, that's the main attraction of these stories, and you understand that quite well. You've probably heard the comical expression "God has given Man a brain and a dick, but only enough blood to operate one at a time" ? Applies here as much as anything, and that's the way it should be. I mean, seriously! Do I look like I parse for intellectual content when I read stories about toilet terrorists? I like this stuff as much as the next guy here, and by extension that means I enjoy yours too.

It's just that a breath of fresh air every now and then is nice, and having a plot on top is a way to do that.
It pleasantly surprises. It adds multivalence. It makes people wonder why they never thought of such and such approach before.

Every genre of literature faces redundance, even fanfiction: it is an inevitable part of the cycle, as themes and ideas are exhausted through exploration, or lose their relevance as trends and popculture change. That's when previously acceptable material starts to lose their edge, and people start questioning what made them so interesting in the first place. The only remedy to that is further innovation, through which the cycle is reborn anew. And so on, and so on, and so on.

So yeah, this is not English class, thank God. We nyou members aren't the biggest bunch of monocle-wearing sophists either, even if I like tea with my english biscuits. But eschewing pure porn and trying something else? Why the hell not? Short of inducing instant flaccidity, the worse that could happen is just that not as many people would read it. But it might be worth it just to find new grounds to thread.

Oh well. It won't be said that I didn't push for this.

Quote
On the fiction side, I've said before I do fanfiction on ff.net, and have actually since around late 2002, though it's only been since about 05-06 that I

started writing genuinely more deep and involved stuff and not just goofy parodies, which were my big thing for longest time. And I already have finished my

first novel (again), and just have to get some people to look it over so I can gather notes on things that need fixing/changing. Then of course I also have my

big animated series that I've been planning since I was about 9-10, though I can never agree with myself on how certain details (like how everything begins,

though I do have a rough idea of the end...).

I believe goofy parody in itself can be quite an involving genre too, if you really know what you're parodying. Seeing how fond you are of nostalgia cartoons, how about a pitch for an original saturday morning nyou cartoon? It's this kind of surreal undertaking that draws out from all the culture you accumulate in a lifetime, and regurgitates it into something new. Certainly, it would be more challenging to make than direct parodies of Naruto and Street Fighter and whatnot, but just as fads lose their relevance and are forgotten in time, true satire becomes timeless. It's just a thought, but you have to admit that sounds right up your alley.


I'm amazed I'm even talking about this stuff on the nyou forum. It's a good thing I have my own thread, if only so people can avoid it altogether!

@Yarr
Come to think of it, the slice-of-life and purely "observational" approach may very well also be a viable alternative for a good story, in instances where plot isn't a primary concern. I stand corrected, good sir. But that would mean someone like you just needs to be the "right person" observing, now wouldn't it?


@Orpheum
Ha! True enough, Orpheum. You do have stories I have enjoyed a lot. I wasn't purposefully giving out a peer review or anything of the sort, just saying what came to my mind. Allrighty then, let's talk about you.

Let's see, the vibe I get from your writing is more that of erotic fanfiction for the sake of erotic fanfiction: however, combined with an impressive willingness to ride the Zeitgeist and beat the topic of the day while it's hot. Perhaps the best way to describe it would be like running a weekly column in a syndicated paper: due to the sheer quantity and variety of work you've produced over the years, you've become a nyou fixture of sorts, comfortable enough that anything you make is almost guaranteed to meet a certain level of standards. The Orpheum brand, if you will. Conversely, bearing a brand also carries its share of implications: some lofty, some constricting.

Certainly I don't need to tell you Internet leechdom is a fickle thing: creators often find themselves cornered by their audience to become mere enablers of selfish requests and personal fapquests. This is the bane of the brand: in exchange for more of the same, it discourages change, stifles creativity, murders artistic curiosity. But I suppose that on the bright side, in a small community like this one, at least you get to choose whether an audience matters or not to you. Deviantart has proven that some people certainly wear their brand like a badge of honor, if that works for them. That's all I'll say about that.

As for your prose style itself, as something that molds itself to fit purpose and circumstance, it is hard to define in a few words. It is certainly competent, certainly entertaining. And you have your moments of brilliance, I'll grant you that; if anything, it just goes to show that you can be quite versatile when you want. I understand that you're an aspiring author, yes? I'm curious: not limiting ourselves to nyou fiction, what would you like to write about? Write for?



*Sigh*
On that note, I do apologize to everyone here if I always sound insufferably categorical. As you might have noted, I have a crippling tendency to overthink things out loud (but shhh~! Don't tell anyone!), but the truth is that I'm always interested in hearing other opinions. Chalk it up to being a geek purist.
To some people, the process of learning is synonymous to leisure: alas, I understand tis' not an universal truth, and have long given up on demanding of those around me what I demand of myself. That said, please do take everything I say with a grain of salt.

The really big problem when attempting something like this is to first figure out how to integrate the nyou elements into the greater picture. As far as I know, there are only 2 ways for those scenes to make sense without looking too out of place:

1) Its implications are an integral part of the overall arching plot.  A switch-and-bait maneuver, it is relevant because it actually has an important effect on the story's direction.
nyou example: Schizophrenia
2) It's a recurring gimmick, an integral part of the story's language itself. It's shameless, it's absurd, it knows what it is and that's the whole point.
nyou example: Melina

If neither of those points are respected, then the story becomes an excuse plot (or as Majora4 puts it so eloquently, fetish vessels). Sometimes it works, but most of the time it will lack direction and suffer from transitionary rough spots, yes?

Conversely, I think we can all agree that if a story is given a very clear direction right off the bat, then anything goes.
Some of the more memorable stories from the site become so due to this, even if not always for the most cerebral of reasons. Anything Yarr touches could be probably counted as distilled fun that doesn't take itself too seriously. The Sakura fic knows what it is, and it works because it doesn't compromise on that. These are also good examples of how fics don't actually have to be maudlin and serious all the time to convey a story successfully, as vacuous as plots tend to become when overloaded with porn. It's why humor lends itself so well to this genre.


You know, I'm kind of glad I got Jimmy and Bluesniper in here. Out of all the people on this site, I figured you two would know what I'm trying to get at.

Jimmy, I've always been a fan of your easygoing style: it flows naturally, and I can't think of another word to describe the way you write. You seem to be one of the few writers here who actually takes time to establish his fictional credit through thorough fleshing out of characters and settings. This lends to a narrative all kinds of imagery, color, life. The author stops being a creator and becomes a storyteller: events stop unfolding because the plot inexorably demands it, but instead do so because that is the natural course of the universe in question, and that is how the entities within respond. No matter how pulp the fiction, or how alien the concept, or perhaps even how at times it may be difficult to take your own inventions seriously due to winging it, I think you're one of the few authors on this site who consistently pull this off with some skill. And it is good to see.

...And yes, this is a porn site. I'm just saying, though. You know you've got a nice premise on your hands when it could be potentially interesting even without the nyou elements. That's not the fun part for the author, true, but it makes it fun to read.

Bluesniper, I have a confession: I was actually thinking of making an Axon Corps picture before I finally opted for the Chun-Li & Sakura one. I'll admit this decision was in part because that series is just more popular and would be better received, but I do have lingering regrets. In the little free time I have, I would've really enjoyed working on something original. Hell, an original retro mecha series? Fuck yeah, I'd work on that.
I think you're one of the more ambitious writers here, willing to drive simple ideas and concepts as far as you can take them. This betrays an underlying urge to create, explore new things, or at the very least marks a pronounced interest in looking for something different. On this, at the very least, we might think alike. Hopefully we'll see more of you again!


This is encouraging, and I think I'll get back to brainstorming that story. I'll throw the general gist of it out here when most details are crystallized, and see if I can bounce back some feedback off of you guys.

Thanks all of you again for the feedback on the Sakura pic.
Now that I take a closer look at it, I'm finally noticing Chun-Li's awkward lip thing. It was an overdrawing mistake on my part! By then, I must've been so tired from staring at that image for weeks that I didn't notice. I'll take note and double-check next time I work on something.

Maybe it's because I'm not used to it, but it'll be a while before I can muster the energy to follow through on something that demanding again. Monochrome art and "dirty" handsketches, on the other hand...that, I can do. Personally, I enjoy original material more than fan-stuff, but the latter is also interesting to work on every now and then. To emulate a distinctive art style can actually be quite challenging!

(Just...keep in mind that there are certain shows that I wouldn't stoop down to touching, even with an eleven-foot pole. And that spamming the forums requesting it won't change anyone's mind about it. To hell with this, you know who you are.)


Right now though, what I'm thinking of is writing a story for the site.
Not to add to an existing universe, not to enter a contest, not to get reviews...more like an experiment just for the hell of it.
Granted, I wouldn't be going for the good ol' fap 'n go, so how interesting the story itself would be is quite debatable. All the same, I think all of us could stand to open our minds further on how to approach writing, and the first step to that is just to keep trying new things, for better or for worse. And of course by trying out new things, I mean tone, articulation, setup, mood...not new fetishes!

So while this means most of the nyou material would be incidental or a gimmick rather than the backbone of the story, I'm wondering if anyone would still be interested in reading something like that?

For the general purpose of keeping track of whatever it is I do, so that I don't have to hijack other threads each time I make something.
Granted, I also tend towards the wordy side of the spectrum, so this is really for people who are interested in how I work. That said, if you just want to shoot the shit (pun intended), that's game too. I'd welcome the discussion.

A bit about myself:
I guess I'd be one of the older (read: ancient) members of the internet "nyou" community. I've been around since the old Yahoo groups days with Micro and Jupiter, and have migrated around the Web with the rest of the flock wherever it went. I was never really an active member though, so treat me like any newcomer.

Though I've never pursued either hobby seriously, I'm a capable writer and artist. I find a certain enjoyment in those activities, as the whole creative process is really far removed from what I usually do for a living. I also toy with new software depending on my fluctuating interests, and as of late have begun employing Photoshop as a coloring tool.

Ideology-wise, I'll say it right now: I'd rather do something for the "awesome" rather than for the "porn," so expect faux pas and stuff out of left field that disregard inherent fappability. Sure, that misses the point of this site: but that's what keeps us motivated and the learning of our respective crafts interesting.

And...that's it, really.

In my line of work, I have to adhere to a very strict development schedule, so I can only do nyou stuff whenever things calm down on the "legit" business end.
For anything else though, I'll be around.

@Skunkyfarts
I don't know what to tell you. Aside from the more obvious child porn restrictions, I don't think anyone has set ground rules within this image board yet. However, I agree with Bones that unless the modifications reach a certain level, photoshops of already-existing pictures can feel like an exercise in redundance. Would posting those annoy everyone? No, but it would definitely annoy at least someone. But hey, if you feel your work's good enough, I don't think anyone would complain about new material.


@DrBones
While I enjoy the occasional thumbs up (who doesn't), it's a nice surprise to see someone took the time to really look at the picture.

I don't think anyone can color without at least some prior knowledge of how to draw, so my way of doing things would logically carry over from piece to piece...although to be quite honest, it could just as well be that I don't really know any other way of coloring as of right now. I basically proceed with brut splotches of color here and there and smoothen out the edges to make it look like two different tones merge together. Hell, I think I probably use really inefficient methods overall and while these two projects have made me less of a Photoshop noob, I'm still in the midst of figuring out what the damn software can do! So the whole "cel-shading" look of the image is incidental, really. I'm happy people like it despite the jagged linework. And I'm happy you noticed the tiny details! That was a real headache to draw with a mouse.

I'm glad to see there's someone else who enjoys softcore pictures. I think of it as focusing more on posture and original source acknowledgment rather than on...well, ass and output. Considering the outrageous and excessive nature of the Sakura fic though, it's weird to think the latter approach would have been ultimately truer to its spirit. So in the end, there's really no place to criticize s2x's art when it comes to fulfilling this kind of commission. No sweat, I just wanted to try something different.

And now, I will stop abusing this thread.

Was intending to post this up monday night, but, well...real life happens. I've contributed a pic to the Toilet folder, not sure if anyone was waiting for it.

I dedicate this image to Yarr and Orpheum, and I don't think the subject matter needs an introduction. Come to think of it, I suppose it's a bit too prudish for Yarr's tastes, but I think softcore fans will like it. While guro material abound, less graphic stuff like Micro's seem harder to come by. This is the second image I've colored for the nyou board, but it's also literally the first original drawing I've made since those days scribbling in my notebooks during middle school. Brings a tear to the eye, really. I hope y'all enjoy, and I'll be around.

Mind you, I'd honestly rather not see this get posted on other imageboards/forums, but that's all I'll say about that.



(The following are passing insights -and frustrations- duly noted for progress tracking and self-crit purposes. I also find that the more challenging the work, the more amusing the trials tend to appear in retrospective, as if to rationalize our angry ramblings from those early hours of the morning.)

nkay7 Project Log #002 : "Sakura's Awesome Experience.jpg"

Deadline (self-set): 1 week.
   Edit: OHGODMAKEITSTOP. Fixed to 2 weeks.

- Tried to distance myself from s2x "pure ass" approach with something less explicit but also more challenging to make.
   Edit: Wondering if challenge level is set too high. Bitten more than I can chew?
   Edit: Nah!
- Surfed Gelbooru for reference materials, mostly Udon stuff. Settled for a ahoge-sporting Sakura.
- Spent way too much time on the ink line drawing. Half-assing the cleanup part.
   Edit: Does anyone know how to smoothen line drawings during cleanup? Because the linework looks really jagged.
- Starting to wonder if the level of detail was a bit too ambitious from the start.
   Edit: Yes. Yes it was. There's no way this is getting done in a week. Need another week. Also need a drink.
- Lifted color palettes from ref materials. Applying matte layer.
- CLOTHES DON'T WORK THAT WAY. It nags at me, but I probably should just move on as long as it looks cool. The more my judgement erodes from lassitude, the more likely I'll be to make mistakes.
- Done with highlighting layer. Moving to shading layer.
   Edit: OMGWTF SHE HAS A MAN'S THIGHS NOW
   Edit: That's fine too.
- No time for drawing a background. Adopting a grayscale minimalist approach.
   Edit: Well, that sure is one ugly ass background. Moving on.
   Edit: Got a bit of time now. Switching to basic geometric shapes and colors.
   Edit: ...And now it's a disco hall. Man, I suck.
- Cut and pasted an angled marble floor in a feeble attempt to add texture to the image.
   Edit: ...Didn't quite come out as intended. The perspective's all wrong. Wasted too much time to re-do by now.
   Edit: Looks surreal, so kept it there in final version just for kicks.
- Final touch up. Detailing hair. Detailing eyes. Adding blush and sweat. Should be done over weekend unless something comes up.
   Edit: And it did. Staying sober was wishful thinking.
- Completed project. Not sure how some people do this regularly, but I'm drained. If there's a next time, I might try something more stylized and less demanding. Constructive commentary would be appreciated.
- Time to tend to my broken neck. *Wheels away*

@JManime
Wait a minute, how did anything I said appear offensive, or could any part of it be construed as a rant? Just because someone has a bit of a tendency for...purple prose doesn't mean that they're necessarily out to criticize stuff. I assure you, I meant what I said as neither complaint or demand: it was more of a pondering out loud about how things are. I've been around since the Yahoo Groups days with Jupiter and Micro, so I certainly know how things go.

There's no need here to take the highground and call bullshit on each other. If you believe there is, then I will oblige appropriately, but keep in mind that would say more about you than it would about me.

(That wasn't a jab at the talkbox. It's a talkbox. That's what it does, and that was the whole point of bringing it up.
The comment merely referred to its consistent and clockwork nature in contrast with everything else, which seem more sporadic.)

Maybe it'd come as a surprise, but I actually agree with you on a lot of stuff. Even so, I invite you to revisit the points you made.

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1. This isn't deviantart, only a couple people can draw, and only a couple more people can write, meaning your not gonna get activity every 24 hours, most likely we'll get something once a month if we're lucky (maybe longer since yarr is taking a well deserved vacation).

True, and contributors and lurkers run on double standards. Besides, wouldn't you agree that it's hypocrisy to ask "why don't you make something" when this whole gig runs on a volunteer basis in the first place? Hmm?

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2. Everything produced from this board comes from an abundance of free time that the author/artists has, which is hard to find with school, work, friends, family, or any other obligations... orrr maybe even just something good on T.V.

Again, true. People are inherently lazy, and I'm not saying I'm an exception. Generally speaking for forums, it's okay not to do anything, ever. Perhaps the generous folks who pay for the servers consider their donation as charity and don't expect to gain anything from all this? Who knows?

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3. Although one of this board's focuses are pics and fics, the main focus is just gathering like-minded individuals... and in that aspect I don't think we're low on activity at all, in fact I seem to see a new person on these forums every other day

Very true about the like-minded aspect, but I'd have to disagree on the activity part. Obviously, it's impossible to always have new content: still, even during the dry spells, it's nice to see new discussions or venues of interest pop up. Or are you saying your definition of activity is a bit more, shall we say, lax? By all means, if you're a true believer, just belonging to a plane of existence is in itself an activity.

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4. Beggars can't be choosers enjoy what ya got... because I'm sure it's not a small amount

Considering how far this place has gone since the old groups, I have to agree there's not much to complain about. Hell, this place is great, no irony here. That's also why I don't want it to die for the wrong reasons if those can be helped.

On your final piece of advice, perhaps you speak the way you do because you're used to making miracles. I work fast, but unfortunately I'm only human: my infinitely mundane posterior isn't a dimensional rift of magicks and wonders from which I could pull new content on a whim, and even that concept wouldn't make a good nyou story. Tell you what though: as a show of good faith, I will be making something, and I'll let you hold me unto that. My break from work ends beginning July, so if I work at breakneck speed, I'll see if I can post something before things get too hectic for me again.



@Yarr
Heck, you've done more than share many times over. You know, I've always enjoyed your work, Yarr (which was why I offered to work on the Melina pic, really). The stories are consistently ridiculous all while being unabashedly fetish...and undoubtedly that's why they work so well. Hah! I think I'll be making a Sakura pic this time. You ready for it?

@OrpheumZero
Yes, and Amen to that, brother.

Yes, but that's if you consider that there would only be a few pictures in those new folders...which is more than likely, I admit. Still, there should be some acknowledgeable differences between the stockpile of anime smut that's been amassed from all over the internet, and the (arguably) few images that would originate from over here. What if it's nyou "fan art"? Little inside jokes only people from the story site would actually get? What if it's something that adds directly upon the story site content, instead of just being part of the rest of the image repository?

Perhaps it's not reason enough still, but I'm just trying to put it in another perspective. I actually have no problem using a generic folder.

It's funny that you mention this. Probably going a bit off-topic here, but accessibility is always an issue when running a public board, and true, generally it's got a lot to do with keeping spammers at bay. It's also the most reliable way to control user-content, so you don't get offensive material that would needlessly raise red flags for the rest of the community. But all the same, there is a balance to be found: the more restrictions there are, the less opportunities the community has to grow further. Playing it low-key seems to have always worked so far, but as the regular contributors move on with their ever-busier lives, there's not much keeping the rest of the lurkers together.

I don't think I need to say it, but without a new consistent flow of input, the story site is on its last legs. Notice how nowadays the only thing that sees notable activity is the forum's talkbox, and even then it's a few voices being louder than others. I'm not saying this as criticism: it just saddens me this place isn't active as it used to be, and it also makes me regret not contributing earlier to keep the place alive.

Seeing as bursts of productivity could be very sporadic, maybe a generic "nyou originals" folder or something like that? For anyone interested in making something?
I like the fact that since the media folders are only accessible to members, it gives the contents a sort of exclusivity to the people of this site. Sure, generally speaking we lose some ownership of our own work the moment we place it on the internet, but this would at least restrict/stall dissemination somewhat. It's reassuring to know, in a way.

I appreciate you telling us about the specs, Duce. That answers my questions, and that's actually plentiful for a web imageboard (easily handling highres like 300 dpi).

Guess it's time for me to put my money where my mouth is and fire up photoshop. I'll start working on something, and looking forward to seeing if anyone else will do the same.

I just love how every time I raise a topic or ask a question, it's like talking to a wall...and that's putting it politely.

Seriously though, technical aspects aside (server limitations, caps, auto-resizings on boards like these not originally designed for hosting images), I'm asking because there are those that get pissy when they feel that outsiders have come out of nowhere and messed with their shit. But if there's no complaint, then I'll just proceed and do whatever it is I do. Not like there's much else productive going on around here anyway (no offense to those who always contribute).