✨Weekly Update ✨
🧺SDV Mods:🧺
This week, I worked on a few random portraits for the Stardew Valley co-op save I’ve been playing with a friend. I made Aymeric’s Midnight Jellyfish Festival outfit— he turned out super cute. I also started working on a couple of characters for Baldur’s Village. A few people reached out and were interested in SDV portrait commissions. So, I’ll have to put my free retexturing work on hold for my commission work for a little bit in the coming weeks.
🎨Art: 🎨
Still working through more typesetting examples on the custom book cover commission. We’ve narrowed it down to a few fonts, and I think we’re close to finding the right fit.
Been having fun creating designs for some handsome original characters. I might show them off later if I have room in my image post.
🎮Games: 🎮
- Stardew Valley: My constant playing of Stardew Valley is still going strong. I’ve got two saves at the moment. My solo file is nice and relaxing. I might be marrying Rasmodius first since he has the most hearts. (I really like the RRRR mod). In the co-op file with my friend, things are moving slowly but nicely. I’ve already got three husbands, and Elliot’s probably going to be number four. Also, Phillip and I are about to have a baby!
- Shapez: How can a game be both amazing and so irritating. Trying to build a clean and efficient system feels super satisfying… until it turns into spaghetti. The shapes are getting harder now, and I still can’t figure out how to make the logo. It’s a love-hate relationship.
- Finding Paradise: I finished the game this week. I loved “To the Moon,” and while this one had good writing and great animation, it didn’t hit as hard as the last one. It felt more like a mystery than a tearjerker, but still worth the price (I got it on sale).
- Pony Island: I tried finishing this game, too, but it didn’t happen. It’s a puzzle/arcade game I picked up a while ago. My body wasn’t really cooperating this week, so I couldn’t get past the adventure levels. The dexterity-based sections were a bit much right now. I’ll probably come back to it once I’m feeling better.
- Coffee Talk 2: I also started the sequel to one of my favorite VN games. I adored the first one, so I was excited to finally sit down and play this. It’s been a great game to play whenever I feel unwell. The pixel art is even better this time around, and I’m happy there are some returning characters. I’m about halfway through, and I’m loving it so far.
📖Reading: 📖
- Heretical Fishing: I’ve been rereading the Heretical Fishing series, which is one of my comfort reads. Right now, I’ve finished book one and have moved on to book two (again). It’s a cozy fantasy and perfect to listen to (the audiobook) when I want to relax. I love Fisher and all his animal pals.
- The Fourth Wing: A couple of my friends recommended this book, and I can see why. It’s a high-stakes fantasy with a strong disabled female lead with a romance side story. The whole dragon-riding-school-killing-recruits is a bit much. And of course, the main character is into the love interest I didn’t care much for. But this type of disappointment is normal since I always like the guy who isn’t chosen by the MC. Still, I like how the MC has to work around her limitations and think her way through challenges. I am only 20% into the story, but I’m enjoying it so far.
- Power Broker: Also chipping away at this brick-sized book. I like to switch to nonfiction sometimes. It’s about Robert Moses and his impact on NYC. Right now, I’m at the part where he’s trying to seize beachfront private property to make it into a public park. It’s hard to root for either side — Moses is using shady tactics, but the landowners are powerful elites trying to keep the public out. It’s a bit of a moral mess, but it’s super fascinating.
📝Writing: 📝
- Koriko: TTRPG solo journaling adventure is going great. I’ve almost finished the “Arrival” section of my teen witch settling into her new city. Soon she’ll have a more permanent place to live for the year. The next couple of sections will cover the Four Seasons while she lives there. I’m really loving this campaign and might turn it into a full story when it’s done.
- Flash Fiction: This week’s flash fiction prompt was “pixel dust.” It took me a while to figure out what to write. I ended up writing a short cyber-noir piece about a malicious cybernetic virus that infects its host. I liked how it turned out. If you’re curious, it will be up on my website’s blog.
💖Life: 💖
Bit of a mixed week overall. Some family stuff came up, but my health was mostly stable, and I still got a decent amount of work done. I had to share my main computer with my hubby since he had some things to work on. I don’t mind using my laptop, but I can only do art on my main PC, so that slowed me down a bit. On the bright side, I got a good chunk of writing done.
That’s it for me this week. If you made it to the end, thanks for reading. I’ll see you all next time.