Hi! I was hoping you wouldn’t mind me asking, but how would you suggest going about running an art blog? I’ve especially been wanting to make art for ffxv for the longest time, but have been a little anxious about the fact that my art might not be “good enough” or that I won’t have the time to maintain the posting consistency needed to remain relevant. I know that art isn’t all about notes, but I’m nervous about being completely obscure

destiny-islanders:

Hi, Anon!

I understand your nervousness. I remember how scared I was the first time I posted my art. (Tbh I still get nervous sometimes!) But once you’re able to deal with that nervousness a little bit, it’s hard not to pay attention to how your work is received. Does someone leave a needlessly rude reply or tag on your post? Do you not get that many notes?

The best thing you can do for yourself is to not lose sight of the fact that you enjoy creating art! Unless you’re drawing for work or for commissions, you should always be drawing what you’re passionate about. (Of course, there’s always fun to be had in doing a piece for a commission that features a character you’ve never drawn before– it’s a good way to stretch those artist muscles!) This is a little sappy, but my grandma can always tell when I’m super enthusiastic about a piece. When you have fun and enjoy drawing something, it shows! And I think people will respond well to that.

As for how often you post art– this is something I used to really worry about, and maybe still do a little sometimes. But, tbh, as long as people like what you post, they’ll probably stick around. The only consistency I’d suggest focusing on is the content of your art posts. I have this blog for KH/FF posts. I have another blog for Batfam. I have another blog for Voltron. And another blog for Persona that unfortunately I don’t use too often haha… But the point is that someone is more likely to follow a blog if they have a good idea what to expect from it. That’s not to say I don’t post art from other fandoms on this blog from time to time. It’s just that the majority of what I put out there ties into what my blog is all about.

Now, here are some tips I’ve read elsewhere that can help you post your art in ways that will ensure you get the most exposure possible:

• On Tumblr, the peak time to post is at 7pm EST. That’s not to say that your post will be lost in the void if you post at any other time. I’ve posted comics at 3 AM that still got thousands of notes. But especially when you’re first starting out, this is something to keep in mind.
• Use and abuse the tag system. The first five tags you add to a post are the ones that your post will be sorted into. But I still add other tags, anyway. They work in general searches, as far as I can tell. This also helps keep your blog organized!
• Speaking of an organized blog– make a tag for your art, and put a link in plain sight for potential followers to find. If someone sees one of your posts and likes it, there’s a chance that they’ll visit your blog to see more from you. Show them your stuff!! If they like what they see, they’ll want to see more! :>
• Avoid using external links without running them through a Tumblr re-direct. I’m not sure if they fixed this yet, but posts that have links to external sites tend to not show up in Tumblr searches. That’s devastating, especially for new, up-and-coming artists.
• Here is a link that explains how to use a Redirect Page: https://tumblr.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/231449328-Redirect-pages

I hope these are some helpful tips. Good luck to you, Anon! I know you’ll be great!