Or at least, I intend it to be relaxing. Hopefully it delivers.
4:22 minutes

Materials:

• Pen: Moonman Starry Glass dip pen, Mars: https://www.jetpens.com/Moonman-Starry-Sky-Glass-Dip-Pen-Mars/pd/31536
• Paper: Strathmore Writing Series 500, lined: https://www.jetpens.com/Strathmore-500-Series-Writing-Pad-8.5-x-11-Lined-50-Sheets/pd/15322
• Ink: Robert Oster, Rose Gilt Tynte: https://www.jetpens.com/Robert-Oster-Rose-Gilt-Tynte-Fountain-Pen-Ink-Shake-N-Shimmy-50-ml-Bottle/pd/25170

In which I talk about the paper, the paint, and the experience of oils versus gouache. Fun stuff, will do more.

Thank you Locals supporters! Your contribution to my art war chest here is what's powering these experiments and videos. For now I'm keeping them public but I may start doing some subscriber-only videos if you all are interested.💖

My initial review on receipt of the three oil paper products I ordered: the Canson pad, the Rembrandt block, and the Arches single sheets.

Thanks for your comments yesterday on the business post... all very provocative, in a good way. I'll try to respond to all of them today.

Some Alysha misc now, since I'm gearing up for the results of the Kickstarter!

Petrov is giving away coupon codes for every book in the Alysha series (and has some leftover coupons for Marda and the business book). You can pick those up here (and please do! The books are bought already, someone should use them!) https://twitter.com/PetrovNeutrino/status/1457344535843987461

Our own @JudasComplex sent along a sample of the Faith in the Service audiobook, which I've attached for your delight! I... haven't had a chance to listen to it. Don't ask me about my past week and a half or so. Putting it here will guarantee I get to it.

After hearing the amused comments during the livestream, I went ahead and added all the ship type illustrations I have inked from the 90s to the wiki. Glory in the rampant adorableness of their anthropomorphic stylings! See those ...

A little comedy today, at least in the link. Transcript follows.

Hi, all. Welcome to this episode of The Jaguar’s Heart.

A while back I was introduced to a comedy sketch about Cuban coffee by a Mexican comedian, Gabriel Iglesias. ( The sketch begins with him greeting all his fellow Latinos and then backing up to say ‘but we’re all different, aren’t we’ which is a segue into a demonstration of how different Hispanics speak Spanish.

It is hilarious. First, because I am a Spanish speaker and a linguistics hobbyist, and his portrayal of various accents resonated with my experiences in trying to make sense of them myself… Not always easy, since from culture to culture, slang and accent are often totally different (and sometimes grammar! Spaniards use a grammatical construct that has died out in many other Spanish-speaking countries, the plural “you.”)

I also loved it because the Cuban coffee part is real. I grew up with Cubans. I know how we are....

One of the most common things I hear (and say) right now is "the asymmetry is the story." Here's one about how none of us are innocent of the sins we hate in others.

Hi, all. Welcome to this week’s episode of The Jaguar’s Heart.

It’s been weeks since the Baen’s Bar incident and I’m still thinking about it... because the longer I do, the more I feel, overwhelmingly, that it’s obvious that the problem is deeper than “this forum was saying stuff that offended us.” We have to back up to the glaring fact that people on opposite sides no longer consider each other human. Nothing I say will matter because the people disagreeing with me don’t think I’m human. They have denied my humanity; they have not bothered to listen to my beliefs, or have fake-listened to them in that way that people do when they’re so ready to prove you wrong that they’re only using your speech to provide talking points for their own ideas.

We have forgotten how to listen.

Increasingly, we have also ...

I am supposed to be launching the Kickstarter for the second Jokka collection this week. In fact… my planned date for that was… yesterday.
You will note that I have not launched the Kickstarter. That would be because the Ai-Naidar showed up, and while they didn’t do anything as uncouth as punch me in the face, they’ve laid me out anyway, like a boxer down for the match. Most of you have noticed the eruption of meta-conversations on patrelocals, and probably knew before I did what this portended. But I’ve had occasional clusters of visits from the Ai-Naidar before without needing to write another story in the canon, and honestly I thought their next story was going to be written four years ago, and it didn’t happen. I have lots of notes, but no book.

Well, now I am two chapters into a book. Not a long one, I don’t think. And not the one I planned (of course). But I don’t think I’ve had an idea eat my brain this completely in years. I am once again so full up with Stuff that I am ...

Some quick updates! First, and most notably, the next Kickstarter will launch sometime in February (late, probably) for a second Jokka collection. You can sign up here to be notified of launch: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mcahogarth/the-smell-of-intelligence-and-other-stories

Second, I’m wrapping up the writing on the gamelit novel, and have started work on the cover art, in the hopes of having that ready soon. First readers, take note! I’ll be asking for help for this one soon. I expect the book will be available direct in March, with retail launch in April.

Third, having discovered how to set up forums, the Discord now has a forum section for live-reads, for people who want to share their jaguar-book-reading experience as they’re doing it (and for people who’ve already read the books to enjoy). If that kind of thing is your jam, stop by and check it out—we have threads for Princes’ Game, Zafiil, and the Jokka books currently active.

Fourth—despite not really ...