Joker

You're definitely on the right path by writing your name over and over, in different ways, trying different styles. It's the best way to find the style/flow that feels best to you. Looking at all your work... we need to simplify the majority of it while giving bits and pieces some flare. Your tag needs to be done quickly, but look like it took five times as long to write. Few things to note: 1. Don't use crowns. Crowns are for kings and there are very few writers who can claim to be such, and even they don't use a crown on their tag. 2. Arrows coming off letters rarely works. If you want to use an arrow in your tag keep it to the underline of your tag, like this Ekser tag. 3. Big overlaps in your tag (like your K and A) can absolutely work (see above link of Ekser tag), but you'll find that when using a chisel-tip marker that overlap can get muddy. Something to think about. I've written out your name a few times to give you something to go off of. Not sure if any of it helps but I tried. I used some of your bigger flourishes that you were already using, like on the K and E, to give it some life. Kept the A and N simple. Let me know if this helps or you're looking for a different direction.

I like it. It's easy reading but it keeps you interested once the set-up is established. Plus, all the 80s references in both books keeps an old nerd like me entertained. It's Sci-Fi but not "in space on a space ship" Sci-Fi. It's like Minority Report in the sense that it takes place not that far in the future.

Cool. I can help with that. I'll put together some stuff and get back to you soon. Question - I know this is going to sound weird coming from someone with a super-common name like "Joker", but are you aware there are other well-established writers who use the name "Kane"? I'm not here to discourage you from using a name you really like, just want you to be aware there are others out there with the same name so there's a potential for problems down the road... especially if there's already one in your city/town.

@Cyrusthevirus505- well, if you're looking for feedback because you think you might be toy... the toy thread is the place to go. I've kind of made it my mission to help toys develop to a certain point, and then set them free. Willing to help however I can.

Looking good @Ray40 the fill is looking good, colors are good. Keep going! @KaneVCBwhat are you hoping to get as far as feedback? Help with handstyles? Simples? You can obviously draw boobs, but what about letters? A 10 year hiatus from writing isn't a big deal. I'll help however I can... kinda what I do around here.

I really liked Ready Player One (as well as his other book Armada) so I was stoked when this was released. Just picked it up last week and I'm about 2/3 of the way through it. Similar to RP1 but a deeper dive into the characters.

One of the great classics. Easily my favorite song from Throbbing Gristle. Speaking of classics... Skinny Puppy and à;Grumh were some of my early introductions into industrial music, along with bands like Cabaret Voltaire, Ministry, and Front242. So when Skinny Puppy and à;Grumh collaborated... I was all in. I must've listened to this a hundred times when this was released. The late 80s were a really good for industrial music.

Falls more in line with Drone music, but I'll share anyway...

@Ko SprueOne- I really enjoyed It's Not Over Yet but it was definitely too short. Would be interesting to make the track longer and evolve from the opening loop. I also liked Grown but as with It's Not Over Yet... I'm left wanting more. Are these yours or something you found?

I first saw Crash Worship in San Diego at this tiny, low-ceiling venue, and it was amazing. More fire and nudity than should be allowed. After only listening to their recordings for a few years, finally seeing and hearing them live cemented their sound into my collection. Such a great live band.

I don't remember when I first heard this album, must have been 1985-6, sometime around there, but it was recommended to me by a salesperson at my local record shop. He handed me Hunting Lodge - Will and NON - Physical Evidence and said something to the effect of "These will keep you awake at night". Power electronic music is definitely a "taste" but I do enjoy it from time to time. Great background music when you just need something to break the silence.

I bought this album the year after its release and it's become one of those albums that I put on from time to time that bring up lots of great memories. I remember that day - sitting in my room listening to this album over and over on a cold rainy day, drawing, feeling encased in my own world as if there was nothing else outside those windows. It was perfect.

@nicklesndimes- I like the Jesu sound. Reminds of shoegaze but with a glitchy background instead of just slow beats and droning guitars. Thanks for sharing!

I've been doing research a little bit and everything I read always comes back to real estate. It's a sound investment. Especially if its a place you plan to stay in for a while, and if you plan to remodel even in the slightest. Even if you just maintain the home and do nothing you're going to make money on your investment. I'm hoping to refinance in February next year, and I'm hopeful the low rates will still be active. I'm at 3.5% right now and if I could get that to even 3% I'd be stoked.

I mess with sticks in the form of a 401k and an IRA. I don't personally get my hands dirty because it's just another thing for me to try and learn and eventually fuck up, so I figure I'll let the pros do it. Well, kinda. I'm sure it's all automated and I'm paying a fee for the automation, at least with my 401K. I know my IRA is handled by folks monitoring my account and adjusting where necessary, which makes me feel somewhat good about paying the fee. @Dirty_habiT- sorry for the long delay on this, but congratulations on making moves! Sounds like you know in your gut it's the right move even though you have (had) a solid job. Curious how it's working out now that you've been in it for a little while. I personally made a leap in 2012, kinda. For several years prior I had been trying to break into the Graphic Design realm but was getting nowhere, mostly because I had zero experience, and little to zero knowledge of the tools of the trade. It was frustrating but I understood why. I really dug in teaching myself how to use Adobe suite but ultimately chose to only teach myself Illustrator... mostly because I saw it as a great tool for creating outlines and ideas for canvas work. And because of that... the Graphic Design agencies never came calling, what a surprise. And then in the summer of 2012 a guy I used to work with who was now in the corporate offices as a Design Director called me up and offered me a job designing for the company. I told him I didn't know the software very well and he said he didn't care, that can be learned quickly. The big leap/scary part comes in because I left me wife, our home, family and friends and I moved to Seattle for two years to learn all I could about being an in-house designer. It was scary and hell but I knew in my gut that it was the right move if I wanted to do what I wanted to do. And it was the right move. That's why I think if you know in your gut you made the right decision, it'll only get better.

@the.crooked The yellow one is by Joseph Lee... or maybe Daniel Benneworth. I can't remember. The first one is by Fabio la Fauci The last one is by Ryan Hewett. The squiggly lines one is by Loribelle Spirovski. The blurry one is by Guy Matchoro. Sorry... I should have noted that in the original post.

Yeah, I think we should keep brainstorming around this. I like the treasure hunt idea because it's more engaging than the forum itself. I mean, it requires the user to interact with the forum which is typical but engages them differently, especially if it's their first time here.

This is going to sound silly, but bear with me... A treasure hunt. Vans recently launched in their Oxford Street store a QR code treasure hunt. Simple idea, nothing new, but in my world (I'm a retail designer) this was something pretty cool. What if there's a way to create a treasure hunt on the forum? There's a list of ten items to find, and when you find it you have to like it or prop it or maybe there's a special "reaction" specifically for these ten posts. Finding all ten gets you a discount code or a special code needed to buy exclusive content available only in the 12oz shop. Not only could it draw folks to the forum but it cold get folks to dig through the forum and see some of the great content already here. There's probably more to the idea than that, but wanted to get it out before I forgot. @misteraven

Exclusive writer interviews or spotlights, whether video or a gallery of images, could draw folks to the forum. I know this is something you've done in the past, and I'm not sure how well it was received, but throwing it out there anyway. Another round of art prints. Seems like folks who missed out on the last round are kicking themselves or are jealous of those who got in on it. Maybe another set of exclusive black & white art prints, with 12oz branding, could draw some folks in. Create some hype via social media prior to the release of each one. Exclusive content per artist can be found on the forum. There was chatter a while back in another thread about creating some kind of Graffiti Alphabet template - similar to what Bombing Science has done - for folks to create their own handstyle, or dimensional letter, alphabet. Create a thread dedicated to it. Speaking of... As mentioned in a post above mine the rise of digital Graffiti as the new blackbook is noticeable... though I know it's not popular with purists. Regardless, how can we create content around that and draw folks to the forum? Templates as previously mentioned? Tutorials? Contests?

You could launch a few different packs of templates to start with. A freight train pack that consists of several templates - engine, caboose, boxcar, autorack, covered hopper, etc.. Then a delivery van/truck pack with a couple templates. Then a city specific subway car pack. A city specific commuter train pack. I mean... there's options, right? Create templates for Procreate users on iOS and Autodesk Sketchbook for Android users.

I use Procreate on an iPad. It's easily the best drawing/painting app I've tried. The community is great as far as help and tutorials, and there's tons of folks who've created custom brush packs and custom color palettes that you can import into the app. You can create your project in the app and export it as a PSD to work further in Photoshop, too... if that's a thing you'd like to be able to do.

Example of the digital template I was talking about...

Something I've noticed is the rise of tablet use for sketching Graffiti... I guess the new blackbook (?). That guy Mr. Baker consistently releases brush packs and recently released a sketch template of a subway car sitting in a station that you can draw over. Corny, sure, but shortly after he launched it I noticed a lot of folks posting images or screenshots on social media of the sketches they were doing on his template. Coming up with something like that could draw traffic to the shop/forum and generate some income. We could create contests around the template, or templates, which could also drive traffic to the forum. Contest winner gets a forum specific t-shirt... or maybe just bragging rights. I'm trying to think of ways to generate income and drive folks to the forum.

On repeat at the moment...

I use it often on sites where copy is smaller than usual, but I don't have it set for everything.