Whoa! So many unique takes on this prompt. Here's my (not so unique) submission. Good luck y'all and have a safe and happy New Year.

Here's my entry for this month. I wanted to do a piece that would tie into Earth Day so a recycle-bot seemed appropriate. Good luck everyone!

Good luck everyone! Here is my entry...

Here's mine. Good luck everyone!

Hey everyone! I haven't entered for a few months, but I couldn't pass on a halloween theme ...a vampire party that runs out of blood. Good luck y'all!

Here is my entry for this month. Good work everyone!
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I haven't entered the monthly contest in a while, but here goes....good luck everyone!

Wow! Good stuff everyone. Here's my entry...the premise is a botanist girl brings her dog back as a hybrid dog/plant. Good luck everyone!

Here is my submission. Good luck everyone!

Every month the quality of the entries get better! I will probably never win one of these things, but good work everyone! You are all too good...Maybe SVS should just start publishing books. Here is my losing submission

@Gabby-Correia have you downloaded Kyle's brushes? They are free if you have a Photoshop subscription. Kyle's set of brushes has more than I know what to do with I also get a lot of use out of the free ctrl paint brushes. I downloaded them years ago so I'm not sure if they are still available...it looks like they might be, but they are definitely less about texture and more a solid set of basic brushes. Hope this helps.

https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/brushes.html

https://www.ctrlpaint.com/brushes

@Aaron-Cutright Very cool style! I love the minimal-ness and the implied lines. I'm glad you finished it too Are you planning on adding color?

Every month the quality of the entries get better! I will probably never win one of these things, but good work everyone! You are all too good...Maybe SVS should just start publishing books. Here is my losing submission

@Toony-Days I think we all struggle and have similar issues. Character design is definitely a skill that I have been trying to improve for years. Anna Daviscourt's SVS character design class is excellent if you haven't already watched it. I also like to do master copies of characters I find unique and interesting.

Looking at your squirrel I would suggest exaggerating the small, medium and large even more. Take it to the extreme. Also I would make sure to have some reference photos out when you're sketching. Maybe try designing the entire character instead of just the face. I think squirrels in particular get a lot of their character and charm from how big their tales are in proportion to their bodies. Try moving the position of the facial features...the eyes and noses on all of your sketches are about the same size and in the same position.

I think you're on the right track. You might just need to add some more variation between your sketches.

@Asyas_illos Thank you for the advice! You are right. The storytelling could use some work on the back half of the portfolio. I'll work on some more sequential illustrations too. I appreciate the feedback. Thanks!

@Melissa-Bailey-0 Thank you so much! This is so helpful. I can't believe how thorough you were. I really appreciate it.

I agree that the storytelling falls off with some of the pieces. I want to show some spot and vignette illustrations for some variety, but I tend to struggle in the storytelling when I do. I guess I'll work on it some more.

As for the sequential art, I could break the "Step One" into two separate pieces. That's originally how they were created. The "Where are the Cookies" has two other companion illustrations I could add too.

I should have more variety of emotions in my characters. I think I enjoy working on silly/happy illustrations more so than others–so those illustrations tend to be my "better" work or at least the ones I prefer. I'll work on it.

Thank you again! It means a lot that you took the time to do this for me.

Hello everyone! I finally got my act together and got a website. It is still a work in progress, but I was hoping I could get some feedback. I am not a web designer so I might be making some incredibly stupid design decisions. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Also I would like to know if you think I should cut any of the pieces from the portfolio or which ones are your favorites.

Thanks in advance! Here is the link...

www.jtsienkowski.com

@shereen-said Love this!

I don't think this is "drawn really bad." I regularly get crits where I'm told that my anatomy / proportions are off. Given this unique pose with out reference I have no idea if the anatomy is off. I do think some the proportions seem a little out of wack. The legs seem really long–especially from the knees to the hips. Also the hips / waist seems really tiny compared to the shoulders and rib cage. If you have reference I would take a look at it again. It also might just come down to a difference of opinions and how you have chosen to stylize the human form. I think @Kevin-Longueil nailed it. If this character was placed in a similarly stylized world it would look great.

@donnamakesart I love your dream project list. It makes me feel like I should be doing something more substantial in 2021

I have two minor suggestions on your spreads. On the right side of spread 2 I would consider moving the text into the negative space in the sky. It kind of feels cramped in that corner plus I think it will be easier to read on a lighter value. The left side of spread 3 feels too sparse compared to all the other pages. Maybe that is by design, but I think you could add a little something to help push the storytelling (maybe show more of the village?). I love spread 4! You had me at wolf in a top hat :), but also really enjoy the composition. If I were you I would keep working on this project. Good luck!