I used to believe everyone did, but I know better. Some people don’t like it from people they don’t know. Others don’t like receiving it from anyone at all. What do you think about it?
I personally like writing giftfic. I don’t do it all the time, because if I did I would never write the stuff I like the most (as no one else writes the stories I really want). But how happy people have been when I have? Has always made it worth it.
Receiving it is always nice too. Especially when people have made the effort to write the specific tropes/pairings/whatever I love. After all, most of them are rare. It’s always appreciated.
I’ve done a couple of giftfic! A couple of gift comics. But I have done far more general art exchanges/trades. Artfights. I have been a backup for art events and filled out for people who couldn’t fulfill theirs.
I have flexibility to draw somethings beyond my interest. Against my will I have to fight myself to even draw certain things for my stories. Even if they are structurally very simple (like cars, buildings). Thankfully though most people only want characters made of flesh drawn so I don’t have to worry about not being able to fulfill anything that would take too much time.
However when it comes to writing I don’t have that flexibility. Heck, there’s a lot of stuff I’d love to write but I can’t quite get my brain in the right headspace for! Maybe it will be something I can grow into one day but for now, no. Any giftfic I do have to involve things I am also into.
I’ve gotten a few gift arts, always a lovely surprise! Most of the ones I had gotten happened in one Artfight. You are the only person who has written giftfic for me!
It’s cool to see another writer who’s also an artist on here :D And I admire your ability to draw things outside your interest, I’m trying to develop that discipline as well. I used to draw only “fun” things that were directly related to my fandom/area of interest, but I’ve since become interested in making fancomics. And in order to be really good at making them, you need to be able to draw lots of boring/difficult things, like buildings, cars, airplanes, etc.*
*Cars and airplanes are awesome, since a lot of my fandoms include them in fun contexts, but for whatever reason I feel immensely bored even thinking about drawing a house in perspective. Though I could probably make it fun with study/practice
(kbin has eaten my comment twice so I’m rather done trying to sound like I know what I’m talking about)
Developing one’s artstyle can very much be built on things you love to draw! My favourite Pokémon is Mew but how I draw its anatomy is based on my love of birds and sighthounds. Perhaps as you develop your skills, your houses can have structures and designs that echo things you love in your favourite cars and planes!
There is also to account for how you write your comic script. To ease what you have to draw, you can challenge how you write the story to avoid drawing things that take weeks to render as suppose to hours. Some franchises are easier to do this than others: I will never have to worry about having to write an excuse to why no one uses a car in Pokémon. Perhaps your stories end up adventurous and your characters end up living in cars or planes as they get to their next destination!