Streaming and YouTube

In April, I asked a guy that was livestreaming the Arma II Mod DayZ if anyone had answered his request for a redux of the stick man that was his avatar.  When he replied in the negative I sent him a few of my ideas for a fancier, more apropos stick man.  That character became known to his viewers as "Stick" and that guy became one of my best friends and the catalyst for a creative resurgence.  I have gone from a glorified doodler back to a real, honest-to-goodness digital artist again.  That means so much to me.  Thank you, Jon.

When I started livestreaming my work in December, I never thought anyone would watch.  But as it turns out, I have a regular base of folks who stop by everyday and participate with me.  This still baffles me. Moreover, they interact with me, ask questions, make jokes, and overall just make everything more fun.  By speaking about what I am doing, where I am going, and what I am planning with a piece, it helps me organize my approach and creates a better workflow for me.  The addition of starting every day at the same time helps immensely, too.

For those that don't have the time to watch the live stream I have been putting together time-lapse videos from those streams and uploading them to YouTube.  These have also proven popular.  Backed by the awesome royalty-free music of Kevin MacLeod (incomeptech.com) , they off a speedy look at the day's events.

2013 ended far different than it started for me.  A creative rebirth has me in the most optimistic mood in which I have ever started a new year.  I genuinely look forward to where this year will take my art, and hope that it is at least as fulfilling as the last month or so has been.

Happy New Year!