Well, first, not everyone has the patience, time, and motivation to actually draw things themselves. It's not about laziness, it's about interest. Why obligate yourself to another hobby just to supplement the one you already put a lot of energy into? Independent directors tend to spend money on royalties to music tracks so they can use them in their short films. I haven't noticed any musicians saying "I record music every damn day, why would I spend money on it," or anything similar. :p

But let's put that aside for a tic and say that there are two practical and immediate solutions here. One, grab a traditional art set of stencils and paper. Two, buy a tablet/stylus. But there are caveats which practically negate both solutions for anyone who either can't (or simply would rather not) get into drawing as a hobby.

Assuming someone already even has access to a scanner, going out and buying the supplies and equipment for traditional art (also considering all the waste, as per) would come to roughly the same as just buying an adoptable. Then, of course, there's the concept of having to develop and cultivate a new skill just to supplement/complement one they already have.

Drawing anything digital without a tablet/stylus is a right pain, and I don't know anyone who'd spend anywhere from ~80 to ~300USD on something they'd likely scarcely use. Again, no point in investing in another hobby if you've not much interest in the first place.

So on one side of the coin, it's another way for artists to get an easy buck. Come up with random designs and sell them for a profit which is, typically, considerably less stressful than commissions. On the other side of the coin, you've got two main possibilities: First, it's an easy way for someone looking for inspiration to grab something visual and work off of it, rather than the other way around. Second, there's always a chance that someone is already working on a character (as in writing) and happen to spot an adoptable which already matches said character closely enough such as to not need to spend the time and effort working out references and colour panels for a commission. That, and adoptables are often cheaper than commissions, anyway. Bit of a win-win for everyone, no?

And yes, of course, there are plenty of lazy people who just want an easy-in when it comes to having art. But I'd strongly prefer artists taking advantage of lazy folks well over artists guilt tripping everyone (acting like the only alternative to starving is overcharging for everything) just because they can't pay their bills via their hobby.

I've only ever splurged on an "adoptable" once, and only because it required all of two changes in order to perfectly match a character I'd already been working on. That, and I had the rare occasion of having a few bucks to spare. So it worked out. Wish it'd happen more often, really.

Bit of an overshare, here, but I've got nerve damage in my hands and wrists which precludes me from taking the "git gud" advice when it comes to drawing. Won't matter how much effort and practice I put in, everything I "draw" would still look like scribblings of a five year old. So adoptables and (when I can afford them) commissions are the best way to go.

As for who "enforces" the "rights" to a character? Same goes for anything else when it comes to "furry copyright." It's between the artist who drew it, and the person who bought ownership of it. The enforcers are typically site admin, and (when such is unavailable) it's often just random virtue-signallers who like to gang up on others for ostensibly noble reasons. Y'know, "business as usual."

All of that and yet even if you have nerve damage I'm sure people could write or roleplay.

Adoptables to me are like selling an idea to someone, except that idea has even less potential than one that can be applied in the real world. Great for you that you wanted to spend the money on an idea, but again the concept makes no damn sense.

If I designed an OC and decided to sell it off for money I'd feel like a piece of shit. I love all my drawings, because they're mine, I made em and they are apart of me. Plus, again, whats the point of selling something even less tangible than a digital picture.

It all feels like one big racket.

Okay now I see what you're getting at. I've actually rarely seen fully laid out characters being sold. Even when I have, those ones are usually in the hundreds of dollars. Only times I've seen them are when people have grown detached from said character, and they want someone to "adopt" it instead of it just going to waste.

I was only thinking of the usual dime-a-dozen ones that are scattered about all over FA and Weasyl lately. The ones that are literally nothing more than simple visual design concepts, and often come with a free bonus (like a custom bust, personality pose, icon etc.) for those who "adopt" or whatever.

I do write (didn't my abject verbosity give it away, or was that too obvious? heh), and that's why I mentioned that the one adoptable I did buy only needed two edits in order to match one of my existing characters perfectly. It cost me all of fifteen bucks, which was way cheaper than most would offer for a commissioned work, especially considering all the extras. So when it comes to design adopts, I really don't see the harm.

But now that I understand what you've actually been talking about, I mostly agree with you in principle. You wouldn't just sell something you still have some sense of attachment to. You're absolutely right in that. I just don't think that's what all of such people are doing, since as I already mentioned, they're usually selling off older ideas for which they've run out of motivation to continue working on. I think it's actually part of their attachment to those characters that drive them to do that. They don't want them to "die" or something. It's silly, I know. But to everyone their own... silliness? Heh. Either way, I don't see the harm.

Though I don't doubt there are quite a few of them out there that perfectly match the "dead inside exploiters" descriptor; I just happen to think those greedy imbeciles are in the minority. I mean if you just wanna rag on those ones, I'm right beside you.

In fact I was exactly that a few years ago. Always writing ranty journals about greedy shitbird artists who overcharged for everything and guilt-tripped anyone who didn't see the point in paying several hundred bucks for a damn picture. Y'know, "muh starving artist narrative" kinda bullshit. But eventually I learned that those dumbasses are in fact in the minority, and most artists actually aren't like that at all.

Adoptables are dumb as shit. But not all people can draw. Although it should be easy to describe an OC with words and have someone design it for you instead, but i guess some people dont have a basic imagination or level of creativity, and artist exploit that for money.

Or are they helping?

Gheez the essay above. Am i right..

Exploit is the best word to describe it all. To me it all feels like a big racket. Its not about being creative anymore and a lot of artists don't seem to give a damn about creativity. Sex sells and they're making a profit while being dead inside.

Its sad...