@robbery I have to agree with @gavpartridge . With professional work, be it a commission or an illustration for a company, you're not just creating work for yourself but for someone else, a client. Of course it's ideal if you're satisfied with the work too, but the main aim is that they are happy with the art they purchased. Creating 5 finished pieces and not liking any of them enough to give it to the client seems wasteful, inefficient, and you're not giving the client the opportunity to decide for themselves if they like it. Like Gav said, create some sketches and then let the client decide if they like any of them, and if it suits them. It's not only a good practice to let them know what you're doing and give them a chance to give their input, but also if they like where you're going with it, it would give you confidence to continue. As long as the client is satisfied with the art, part with it happily and move on to the next. You're constantly going to improve your art hopefully for the rest of your life, so if you're waiting until you're 100% happy with it until you can take commissions, that time may never happen. But with commissions and client work, it's not all about just your own satisfaction with the art anymore. And that can be a good thing if you tend to be all up in your head.

@MyArt-Multiverse depression and addiction? I think you have to be confident you understand these topics well enough to explain them to children. I not sure i would be, and ive had experience of both. But if you can do it well, you'll probably win an award. Good luck.

@Nyrryl-Cadiz You've obviously taken great care and been very sensitive in your creation of this project. So why not just forget what other people think and do what you feel. If somebody does become offended, so what? You have not intended to cause offence, in fact quite the opposite. Youve gone to great pains to show respect. If even after all that someone chooses to take offence, then they are in the wrong, not you. Its a good project, and it seems to mean a lot to you, so you should finish it and produce something you are proud of. If you accidentally get a few colours of a dress wrong or something, surely that could be pointed out in a civilised fashion and rectified, If its a problem, which it wont be.

@davidhohn @TessaW That Earthsworld resource actually come from Brooklyn Walker's Introduction to Gesture Drawing course here on SVSLearn. It's hidden at the very very very bottom of the Additional Resources tab. I agree it's golden. There isn't a single person on there that isn't a walking character!

What an invaluable thread. Thank you for sharing @Neha-Rawat [It's easy to see how your portfolio won Grand Prize!]

Any one of those ideas sound amazing so I have no advice for you, but I just wanted to say how much I admire this methodical careful plotting at this stage..I need to implement this skill. I'll bet you have an organized studio too! I can't wait to see your finished piece!

@Jeremiah-Gorrell Thanks ..that's what I was feeling as well..even with playing with color the lines are bothering me, so I will eliminate them or move onto a different background. Thanks so much for the feedback.

@Gary-Wilkinson Thanks for sharing this mockup. As a beginner in these areas, you've help me a lot with the way you illustrated your points.

@xin-li Thank you! Yes I did stumble across one of those but had not heard of the other. I guess I was just curious if I even have a shot at getting represented with my style or if you guys believe they are only looking for a more traditional children's illustration styles?

@Ruth-Tripp I really enjoy the "dragon and a fly" concept! It's a good play on words. My favorite sketch is the first one with the bearded dragon. I think it could make a really cool and striking image. As others have suggested; more storytelling can really bring the concept and overall drawing to life! I can't wait to see what you decide to do

Thank you @Lee-White! All critiques welcome, that’s the only way to improve!

@jdubz Clip Studio was a little more daunting at first, but I found a few videos by Reuben Lara on how to set up my workspace and use the tools, then everything clicked. Overall it probably took a couple weeks to get into the flow of Clip Studio. Favorite things Clip Studio can do: lasso fill tool automatically fills selection with color smart paint bucket tools for fast flatting you can paint in "transparent," no need for a mask layer you can mesh transform multiple layers, awesome for adjustments in the final painting stages it has awesome comic-making tools if you're into that

@Georgios-Christopoulos These designs are looking awesome! I really like the overall shape language going on in some of these characters. I feel like they could be a lineup from a heavily artistic video game. However, please do share the backstory and what the project is about! That would help in getting more specific critique; as others have already stated.

I made a couple of interior illustrations to go with my Wizard of Oz book cover so I'd have a nice project for my portfolio. Next cover is Howl's Moving Castle!

@aprilshin Good point! Thanks

@dafoota You are absolutely right! In an era when there is so much rancor online that it makes you not even want to open a comments section, people on this forum are very cooperative and helpful. Many people spend their time contributing information that helps everyone along. A lot of people have improved their work greatly and even moved into the professional sphere. There's a nice "pay it forward" mentality. And I see the entire group working according to wise suggestions made by the SVS founders, for instance in offering a "critique sandwich" and applauding the use of 50 thumbnails. I have learned a ton on this forum! So yes, thanks to everyone who participates, and to our moderators, for making this such an outstanding forum!

https://www.artslant.com/global/artists/show/258586-tatyana-markovtsev?tab=ARTWORKS https://www.pinterest.com/pin/375698793892854350/ @TessaW that's a good call, even to upload what i'm looking for might be a good solution? then pinterest will give me the options by itself?

@Auterald you can post them here or maybe you can email low res illustrations to an artist you trust