Umasabirah - These Are The Things That Keep Me Up At Night...

The Library, or Back to Before

I want to go to the

Library,

The one that exists only

In my mind

When I was a child

And couldn’t read

Reviews in my hand,

When I had to rely

On my mom to drive,

And I'd wander, until

I found something

That struck me.

I want to return

To a time I was still finding

How to feel,

Before I understood

How I am supposed to think.

The freedom in

Not knowing,

In nothing

Expected.

I yearn for my wonder,

The joy in simple things

Before I learned

How much can be taken

So quickly.

That thrill

Of discovery.

I don’t want to know

The pain of grief, of loss,

I pine for the naïvete

Of before she was

Gone.

I miss the me

Before I knew

What I was capable of

And what I was not.

Take me back

To possibilities

Before life and death

Crushed everything.

The Alley

Jana had taken this shortcut through the alley hundreds of times. She knew which backyards could be seen clearly along the dirt path and which ones were hidden by tall fences. She knew which yards contained loud, barking dogs and which had friendly cats that would welcome the occasional ear-scritch. She had memorized the careful placement of trash-cans, and the neighbors who would spend the evening on their back porch, greeting her with a friendly wave. Not only would this particular shortcut save her a good twenty minutes of time, it would take her far from the busy road she lived on. On the sidewalk by that road, she faced regular cat-calls and inappropriate offers that made her shoulders shrink and her insides squirm. The alley had always been her friend, her ally, her quick path to her own lovely backyard. In her head, she could already see her back gate, hear the rusty creek of its hinges, smell the scent of elder-flowers wafting from the large bush by her kitchen window. 

Something was different about the alley this evening, though. She felt sinister, unseen eyes lurking in the shadows that awaited her, causing her stomach to flop and the fine, blonde hairs to raise on her arms and the nape of her neck.

“I’m being silly,” Jana said to herself, hardening her resolve. She had already lost precious time making a decision and scaring herself with her own wild imagination. She was wasting time that could be spent finishing her homework, time she could be using chatting with her friends online. With a final, decisive glance toward the flashing headlights of the busy road, Jana turned to the darkened alley.

Jana never made it home that night. 

people moving to tumblr from twitter please fucking reblog art likes literally dont do anything except make the artist upset bc they have 2 reblogs and 55 likes

Project: Akimoto

I was hoping to have this be a new print to sell at AZCAF last week…but then I had to go and catch COVID.

Anyway, enjoy the latest designs for Archanger, Jillian Akimoto and her alter-ego, Cutie Mask!

reminder to worldbuilders: don't get caught up in things that aren't important to the story you're writing, like plot and characters! instead, try to focus on what readers actually care about: detailed plate tectonics

New story on Vocal:

Art

Words & Pictures

A Queer Comic Story

Derrick Pthalo, semi-retired henshin hero, has decided to take up magick as a hobby. Along the way he's gathered a diverse group of ladies to help him on his way. Life should be easy, but strange monsters seem to follow Derrick wherever he goes. What is the secret of Neo Teal Crisis?

An idea for a new story brought about by seeing multiple posts encouraging artists to make "really weird niche self-indulgent" stuff. I'm not sure where it would go, but I do have a prologue chapter written in my head.