Hi guys! Rambly sorta journal inbound. I don't make journals often, so this is just making up for lost time :3

First, I appreciate all of you! I just reached 300 watches here, and I thank all of you for doing so! I know I'm just a random addicted commissioner uploading his commissions little by little here, with the occasional art on the side here and there, but I really do appreciate all the love and attention you've been giving me and my beloved OCs over the past few months of me actually being active here. All of you guys' favorites and comments left on my posts make me smile, and I do really enjoy interacting with you guys and sharing your excitement for the comms I post. I haven't even really made a dent in my backlog as of yet, so I hope you guys enjoy whatever else I post ^^

Speaking of posting, you guys may have noticed I'm being a little more proactive in posting batches of backlogged comms. I've been getting into the habit of posting a batch of around 8 or so commissions a week, sometimes more if I end up posting a whole folder from a regular artist, or if I was particularly irresponsible with my spending to my regulars well documented here XD
Needless to say, this will hopefully continue until I get completely caught up, which will take A WHILE. I keep a spreadsheet of all of my individual commissions just to have some sort of documentation outside of FA, and my spreadsheet says I have over 600 commissions... considering I keep track of all the costs involved with commissioning this much, that's incredibly sobering XD

Related; I'm also refreshing my FA profile and gallery just a little bit. The folder system on FA may be one of the most useful things about this website, as it allows me to curate galleries of each of my OCs, as well as individual folders of my favorite regular artists. One day I may set up a Toyhouse account and have a little more creative freedom with how I set up my OCs galleries, but for now, this works perfectly fine. Each folder I have set up for my characters has their ref sheets conveniently linked, and even has their own bio snippet from my massive OC lore document. As I go through and upload more comms featuring them, I will be sure to add more information to their folders as well. I have a little bulletpoint spreadsheet that gives each character a little itemized list of likes, interests, occupations, housing, that sort of thing. I may drip feed that information into their folders little by little, or again, may just bite the bullet and set up a Toyhouse for everything XD
Also, I've noticed that in setting up these folders, I've neglected posting a bunch of comms for some of my characters. My 3 mains (Scotty, Nikea, Hayato) have gotten the majority of my uploads (and for good reason, they are who I commission the most art of), but some of my secondaries have much more art than what has been posted so far. Aside from uploading full backlogs from trusted artists that include these characters, I may also dedicate a weekly batch upload to a specific character; for example: 8 comms of just Calvin or Everett, to name names. I love all of my characters dearly, so I want to make sure that my secondary characters aren't left with a barren gallery, when I KNOW I've gotten more than just a handful of commissions of them. So, be on the lookout for full batches of specific characters in the future :)

I'll leave you guys with two questions before I wrap this up.

Q#1 -- I've made mention of this before, but my primary creative discipline is writing. I've written fanfictions and personal fiction shorts for the better part of a decade now, which is crazy to think about! I've started writing more OC-centric shorts with a few of my close friends on my writing discord server, and we've actually created a pretty in-depth OC-universe for all of our characters. In fact, you may see me make mention to certain locations, places, organizations, and the like in some of my commission posts, which is directly tied to this OC-universe! My question is: would you guys like to see me post my writing here on FA? I've attached a little short story to one of my commission posts recently, but I have plenty more short stories written, and plenty more coming too. Let me know if you guys are okay with me posting those shorts to my profile! They'll primarily be silly one-shots or smut shorts, but it does give you guys a unique look into how my characters act and interact with others, which often gives them a more accurate personality than what you see in commissions. Also, I can attach them to commission posts, or I could post them as standalone stories as well. Not sure what would work better, so I'm interested to hear your thoughts.

Q#2 -- Most of the commissions I post are pretty vanilla, with a little kink thrown in there to taste. I do, however, have a few commissions that I have always been a bit hesitant to post as they are a bit, unsavory, I suppose? For lack of a better term lol. I do make sure to tag everything if there is a kink/fetish involved as well, but now that FA has it's own tag blacklist feature, it does make it a little more enticing to post certain things, so long as the blacklist feature works. Question is: so long as I tag things correctly, are you guys okay with me sharing some heavier stuff? I don't delve too deep into kink as I find most of them to be relatively unsavory, but I do find some mild interest in some topics and commission art of them from time to time. Biggest one off the top of my head is piss/watersports. Unsavory, yes, and I'm absolutely not into the hardcore stuff behind it. But, it is there, and for some, just the mention of it is off-putting. Totally understandable and I respect it. But, again, I do make sure to tag everything, so if you have it blacklisted, you won't see it if I do post it. So, again, as long as it's tagged, are you guys cool with me posting some kinkier commissions?

I've rambled enough, but again, I wanna thank each and every one of you for being a watcher and a supporter. My OCs mean a lot to me, so to see this many people give this much love and reception to them, it does make me a little emotional sometimes ^^;;

And lastly, if you guys are interested in getting art with me and my OCs, I will gladly entertain offers! Most of the time I pay outright for comms you wanna get with me so long as they are with my regulars and I vibe with your OCs, but I would also be very gracious to split 50/50 with anyone who offers, and I will also never say no to gifts (but just beware I WILL pay people back for gifting me art; no exceptions).
If anyone wants to discuss further: leave me a comment here (I'll reply back to you with a note or elsewhere), shoot me a note yourself with a pitch, or you can add me elsewhere! I'm @/sheppard_sd on Discord (preferred) or @/SheppardSD on Telegram (not as preferred but I'm still very active there). I love meeting new friends and I have had some really excellent experiences meeting new people here recently (you guys know who you are <3), so I'm always up to chat and get to know you guys more ^^

Hey friends!! First, thanks everyone that has given me love, favs, and attention, both on my personal art projects as well as my ever present commission backlog I chip away at now and again! I read all of your comments, appreciate all of your favs, and thank everyone for watching my humble little corner where I play with my characters like silly little action figures :3

I have already made quite a number of fantastic new friends from those who have left lovely words of encouragement and appreciation on my posts, and I look forward to meeting and talking with more of you guys going forward as well^^

Just as a note also, if anyone is interested in getting some art with any of my characters (both sfw and nsfw ideas are on the table), just send me a note and we can talk some details! I’m also available on Discord (primarily) and Telegram (if needed) to chat with you guys too, so just shoot me a message and we can connect :)

———

Unfortunately, the main point of this journal is to rant a bit and set a personal boundary. I’ve been recklessly commissioning many artists since around 2022 or so, after I had spent a year or two at my current job and reestablished a healthy savings after the woeful apocalypse that was graduating college in 2020. In my few short years as a suspiciously wealthy furry (not particularly wealthy at all, just poorly managed spending habits on art, lmao), I’ve established really great relationships with a large number of trusted artists; my most frequented getting special artist folders in my gallery. Even outside of my large circle of frequented regulars, I’ve had the joy of working with hundreds of artists, who have all mostly given me a very positive and memorable experience as a client.

Mostly.

As of late, I’ve had some pretty negative experiences with some artists; whether it be comically long wait times (we’re talking over a year wait), little to no correspondence, poor end results, awkward conversations, difficult means of securing a commission, or just straight up getting ghosted after paying and never seeing the money again. It’s really demoralized me from branching out when it comes to commissioning new artists, or even commissioning artists I’ve had on my radar for quite some time. I think the fandom at large has a serious issue when it comes to artist/client relationships, both in how some clients treat artist poorly and how some artists seemingly abuse this inherent level of respect and patience awarded by clients; creating a vicious cycle where some artists feel like they sit above the fandom at large and have complete power to dictate when and how the client gets their commissioned work, based solely off of past precident that they themselves created. Anyway, I digress; it’s not my place to soapbox.

Needless to say, I think it’s in my best interest personally to stay with the artists that I trust and respect. I wanted to take the time to document my regulars and trusted artists here. This journal will act as to showcase my personal experiences with them while also offering my recommendation for those I think are very much worth your time to commission. This list includes artists I trust, artists that I have had wonderful experiences with and have great relationships with, and also artists that have unbeatable value vs quality, impressive turnaround times, and open lines of communication to never leave you in the dark.

Hence the title of this journal: If you are not on this list, I probably won’t commission you..
That also includes artist that ask me to commission them too. If you’re an artist and don’t see your name here, chances are I will reject your proposition. Nothing personal; honest. I have just had some negative experiences lately and don’t want to put myself in that position again.

MY BELOVED REGULARS:
 smutzkii — my OG regular. Her weekend sketches are my favorite to commission. She has since started a very popular Patreon (I don’t subscribe to Patreons, sadly) so weekend slots are hard to come by nowadays, but if ever the opportunity arises, I will never say no to snagging a weekend sketch slot. She is a wonderful artist and an even better friend ^^
 glooum — $50 flat rate for sketches featuring 1-3 characters, often times with a background included. Stellar artist, amazing grasp of anatomy, usually offers multiple rough sketches to choose from right away, and despite usually working on upwards of 5-6 comms at a time, will always finish within the month. I’ve done batch comms of 5 different arts at a time with him, and they’re always done within the month. I often call him “Glooum my beloved” for a reason.

MY TRUSTED REGULARS:
 butteredshep — proportionally more expensive than the rest of my list, but they are incredibly worth it. Their level of detail is to die for, and they always ace drawing my characters, no matter who is up. Usually longer wait times and longer periods of radio silence, but I have never been ghosted nor let down with a finished comm. They were a dream artist to comm when I first got into the fandom, and I’m so happy to consider them a friend and trusted artist. They are impossibly sweet, too ^^
 ariozyn-soulcatcher — a wonderful bean who often holds commission specials, including sameday sketches and week-long wing-its for incredibly reasonable prices. Another artist who aces every character I give to her. She sometimes forgets comms, and her art manager can also forget to send pictures too, but she will always give you a comm that never misses.
 taintedstar — they have a telegram channel where they post comm openings, super reasonably priced and usually has them finished within a day or two! Very great work! They also designed my catboy Calvin ^^
 boypretties — A wonderful artist with an unbelievable grasp on anatomy that does timed sketches for incredibly reasonable prices. Those timed sketch hours disappear quick, so get them as soon as he posts them!
 knlght — Another awesome artist that does great sameday sketches ^^
 kaitoharo99 — Often holds discounts for very high quality sketches!
 dirtyjace — Same as above!
 renhard — out of everyone that has ever drawn my fox Scotty, he’s one of the best! His style is so soft and warm! Always love getting commissions from him, and always works so quickly too!
 wormsking — $20 character sketches! An impossibly great deal, and she usually finishes them in a day or two! Many of my friends like working with her too ^^
 gordonb — another great $20 character sketch artist!
 darinakanfff — unbelievably high-quality full render pictures for total bargains! Another artist that draws my foxes so well ^^
 dxm8 — She loves drawing dragons!
 kicoffe — She loves drawing beautiful girls :3

YCH ARTISTS I TRUST:

 starryprince — often gives me a massive bounty of additional versions for no additional cost! I especially like the spicy versions he offers me :3
 annairu — her YCH’s go quick, and the lead time to completion can be a little long, but I have never ever been disappointed with her quality. She is amazing!
 flamero — a quick base filler that does nice work ^^

EVERYONE LISTED BELOW ARE TRUSTED ARTISTS I WILL 100% WORK WITH AGAIN:

 mankokat  q-nik  kivahunter60  gimka  kohevkass  ketty  f-r95  saronrot  aussieneon  nootkep  yshanii  puddingpaw xeshaire sirod 1cassius1 zefa valbits el-gallo snowy18 box-cat maaia gehirnlie castycom yosha mataki

(this list can and will be modified with additions / subtractions as needed)

Heyo!

To anybody watching me here, I'm gonna start posting a huge backlog of commissions I have received over the past couple years or so. I'm terrible of keeping track of the art I get, so this is gonna be an honest attempt at getting everything I've ever commed documented here in a gallery versus keeping everything in a folder buried in my devices. I post a lot of my comms in the Discord server I run, but as a few people there have rightfully pointed out; I don't post everything (some have even posted art I've commissioned before I could, which a. you know who you are, and b. I probably would not have posted it anyway because I get so lost on what I have and have not, lol)... and if the artists themselves don't post what I commission, does it even exist?

So, over the next little while I'll post everything I have, bits and pieces at a time. Then and only then will everyone get a grasp of where my characters have been and what they've done :P

I'll start with some of my regular artists, post everything of theirs in one fell swoop, and then move on to others! Some of my regulars I've commed like 10-20 times, so some days will have much more content than others :P
Once the batches are done, I'll post everything else, maybe one big handful at a time. I will do my best to credit everyone... but full transparency: I know for a fact that some arts in my pile are from accounts no longer active or from artists that go by different names now. Artists: if you see your art in my gallery that isn't credited (or credited correctly), just post a comment on the art in question and I will make sure your hard work is correctly acknowledged!

And please, if you like the art I post in these dumps; follow the artist I commissioned! I'll admit I'm a bit of a one-trick-pony with my art, so if you want to see more art like what I post, give your watches to the artists!

Thanks for reading everyone! And I preemptively apologize for my spam at times XD