Moving on-- my new blog!

Hello everyone!

It seemed my letter to 2015 worked. 2015 was a wonderful year, for the most part. Totally crazy (i.e. my brother got married, my other brother found out that his wife would produce me a nephew, my sister went to Wales for college, my other sister went to UNCC for college) but still wonderful, and I will never forget it.

I have a feeling that things will only get more exciting via 2016.

For starters, I am moving on to a new, less rambly, more focused kind of a blog. It will be about making a webcomic on the iPad pro. It is called The iPad Artist. Wish me luck, and if you or someone you know is interested in this sort of thing then please share the link with them.

Cheers!

-Zoe

The Secret to Dieting

Dieting is great. For the first five minutes.

After that, it seems that nothing can hold back the craving for just plain old junk food. Caloric sweets that make you happy for the few minutes that you are eating them. Delicious desserts that sprout a heavenly odor.

The truth is, sometimes veggies just don't cut it. You can fill your stomach with them without feeling quite satisfied. So, what is a wanna-be dieter to do?

My secret?

Gum.

Candy without the guilt.

Each piece of gum costs less than five calories, and yet will satisfy for longer than two hundred calories worth of candy. It is a miracle.

Pop a piece of gum in your mouth after dinner at a friends to keep yourself from having dessert. Chew when you are tempted to snack. Swallow if... Well if you absolutely have to.

Gum comes in so many different favors, you are bound to find some that you like. My new personal favorite is Sour Patch Kids gum, because that is my favorite candy and it tastes just like it in gum form. Yum!

What is your favorite flavor of gum?

Dealing With Disappointment

Every human has their own way of dealing with the dreaded ache we've named 'disappointment.' After all, if you've never experienced it, you are hardly human.

There are different degrees of the stuff, from a scale of 'Mom said she was making bacon for breakfast; she didn't mention that it was turkey,' to 'I won't be able to fulfill my life long dream of being an Olympian because I broke my leg.' It just so happens that the same curing techniques are effective no matter what side of the spectrum you are on.

What techniques am I talking about? Well, yoga always helps. Particularly the yoga move 'curl up in a fetal position and cry for three hours straight.' That one almost always does the trick; works like magic.

Another good idea is finding various ways to distract yourself. Although this is more effective for overcoming turkey bacon, it doesn't hurt to try on any scale.* The key here is to push your feelings deep within yourself until you are emotionally stable enough to deal with them. Although it may seem like a temporary solution, it really isn't, as long as you teach yourself to do it properly. Some people are better at it than others, but don't worry; all it takes is a little practice.

*Warning: this technique, if used too often, may result in depression, headaches, heartache, stomach aches, and plain old aches all around. If you have shown signs of these side effects, please consult your doctor (or mother, or father, or sibling, or friend. Anyone who will listen to your whines) and tell them everything that is on your heart. This may be, in fact, the most effective way to deal with your problems, come to think of it.

How do you deal with disappointment? Let me know in the comments below!

The Articles of Consideration (Concerning the iPad Pro)

Okay, so I'm thinking of making [The Articles of Consideration] a series where I review something and point out the different reasons why you would or wouldn't want to buy the product. Yeah... I've been studying for the AP US Government and Politics exam. The only problem with this amazingly clever name is that [The Articles of Confederation] were a huge flop. On that note, shall we get on with this?

Yesterday my family and I made a "quick" trip to the Apple store. We were attracted to go because of Apple's sweet new gadget, the iPad Pro. Now, I'd already read everything that I could possibly read about this tablet, and so I had many expectations of this device.

I was blown away.

Let me tell you, reading about something can only take you so far. Using it yourself is a completely different experience. Still, here are some things to consider if you are on the fence.

1. There is a reason it is called Pro.

With 'Pro' prices...

First, let me say that this tablet is not for everybody. Simply put, not everyone needs an iPad the size of a laptop. If you already have an iPad but want this as an "upgrade," and you just think the big screen is cool, please reconsider. Because honestly, the iPad Pro's size is just slightly awkward, and will not be an upgrade for some people.

On the contrary, the 12.9 inch display is great for professionals. Artists can see more of their artwork, multitasking and therefore productivity is boosted, and presentations are a beautiful breeze. I'm an artist, and this is about the size of my sketchbook, and so the hugeness seems almost natural. The weight of the iPad Pro is about the same as my sketchbook as well.

(Since I have experience as an artist, the rest of this review will be focused on that perspective.)

2. The Apple Pencil

Yes, it is possible to make a painting that precise.

Yep, I'm in love. When I made my first stroke with this fancy stylus, my first thought was "Wow, so much control!" I'd never had such an enjoyable digital drawing experience in my life. I was drawing in a free (!) app called Adobe Sketch, and felt it was almost better than drawing in real life, because I could add color without any mess, and I could undo! Also, shading with the side of the Apple pencil was easier (for me at least) than a real pencil, because with the stylus you can get a much broader, softer stroke. With a real pencil you are limited to the length of the graphite, and how much you are able to sharpen it without the lead breaking off. Overall the Apple pencil was just a joy to use, and it took quite a lot of coaxing to get me to leave.

All that considered, I hope that people who aren't artists will not throw away their money for this pencil. As a general rule, if the word 'Wacom' doesn't mean anything to you, or if you don't own a single sketchbook, then you probably don't need this specialized stylus. Speaking of Wacom...

3. A replacement for your Wacom Cintiq

This picture is AstroPad with an iPad mini, but you could show the whole computer screen with an iPad Pro.

There have been a lot of complaints from artists who are mad that the iPad Pro doesn't run OS X. After all, how can it call itself 'Pro' if it doesn't even have a full version of Photoshop?

Well, fellow artists, let me show you something really, really cool.

It is an app called 'AstroPad,' designed so that artists can mirror their computer screens and use their iPads as Cintiqs. And they are fully supporting the Apple Pencil, tilt and all. Finally, the company that has had a monopoly over the digital art industry for the last decade now has some competition! Hurray!

So at home you can hook up your tablet with AstroPad, and on the go you can use an app like Adobe Sketch as your sketchbook. Neat!

Not only does the iPad Pro have a way better resolution than the Cintiqs, but it is also much cheaper than most of them. Plus, it isn't super bulky and doesn't take up an entire desk. In fact, with AstroPad you have the option to connect it via bluetooth, so you don't even have to worry about cords.

Convinced yet? Here is link to AstroPad's website: http://astropad.com

4. Procreate

It won an Apple Design Award!!

If you are faithfully chained to Photoshop, than you can use AstroPad. But if you are open minded to trying new things, you should give the app Procreate a go. You may never want to go back. Procreate is wonderfully optimized for the multi-touch screen of an iPad, and has worked out brilliant ways to keep the workspace simple, easy, and fun to use, while still being just as capable as a desktop app. On an iPad Pro, you can work with canvas sizes up to 16k by 4k pixels without a problem.

Also, Procreate has very active forums where you can share your tips and tricks with the community, or even suggest ideas for future updates. Speaking of updates, Procreate updates are completely free of charge, even major ones. Not that paying $6 again would be a big deal.

Savage Interactive, the company that made Procreate, realized that the iPad would be the future of digital art long before the iPad Pro even came out. It makes me wonder what kinds of apps will come out now that the iPad Pro is here. The prospect is rather exciting.

Here is a link to Procreate's website: http://procreate.si

Conclusion

No, those are not my hands. I was too busy creating my masterpiece to take any pics...

I'm not going to tell you how to spend your money. All I can say is, I feel like the iPad Pro was made for me, and I know a lot of artists who feel the same way. In fact, my sister joked that they should have named it the iPad Zo, instead.

I would highly recommend that you go to the Apple Store and try it for yourself. I can only tell you my experience, I can't tell you yours.

Good luck with your decision!

-Zoe

Audio Books vs Bound Books

Recently I've been listening to an abnormal amount of audiobooks. I can get so much reading done, and that is a very exciting prospect! But does listening to a book bring the same benefits of reading one? Or is it almost as mindless as watching a tv show?

When I began to wonder about this, my first thought was grammar, since I'd just written a blog post about that. Reading in the normal way will automatically give you an ear for good grammar, and help you with your spelling. Audio books do not have this benefit, but since grammar help is not exactly what people have in mind when they start reading, that hardly seems relevant for most everyone. If you already have perfect grammar, this doesn't apply.

The next problem was the temptation that comes with listening to a book. Multitasking. One of the most beautiful things about picking up and reading it is that it brings you into a different world and lets you escape from this world for a bit. But when you can multitask while reading, it hardly seems like a retreat.

But multitasking is also the biggest benefit of listening to an audio book. I can do something mindlessly productive while I'm listening, which is a huge breakthrough, and allows me to read twice as much as I normally would.

So, does the quality or quantity matter more? Or do you think that listening to audio books is better quality reading? Discuss in the comment section!

My book on JukePop!

https://www.jukepop.com/home/read/9176

When Eliza Brooke wakes up from her medically induced coma, she can't remember anything. As she battles to find her true identity, she is faced with extreme versions of the struggles that everyone faces.

At the moment, I have posted the prologue and first chapter. But I have written more, and will be updating every week. I am super excited about this story. It is inspired by a documentary I watched about the first girl to ever survive rabies after showing symptoms. Do you like my cover? I made it. Comment here, or on JukePop. I would appreciate the feedback immensely.

Three Stages to Becoming a Master Writer

There are three types of writers. Three levels of writing ability. Three stages to becoming the greatest you can be. Let's see what they are.

The first one is what I like to call The Typo. These are your typical tweeters, young children, and everybody else who just refuses to write proper english. Now, I understand that most great writers often make grammatical errors in their first drafts, but this is not the same thing. The Typo is someone who hasn't read enough to sniff out bad grammar when they come upon it.

One step up is The Half-Baked. This type makes up the majority of authors today. They know the difference between a flowing sentence and a staccato sentence, and they have the potential to be grammar nazis. Paired with a good plot idea and first person perspective, they can write a best-selling young adult novel. These novels are often mistaken for good writing, but if you strip away the story and look at the actual word choice, what you have left is dull and lifeless.

Last but certainly not least, we have The Masters. Their writing has so much personality in itself that they hardly need a plot to make it enjoyable to read. The Masters have such an extensive vocabulary to choose from, that they are able to choose the perfect word for every situation, which makes the pages come to life.

Now, how can you become a master writer? What is the key, you ask? The key is reading. Reading is the cure-all. But why?

Well, take the first stage of writing. The Typo. This is the easiest stage to get past, because bad grammar is such a straight forward thing to correct. But my personal favorite way of correcting bad grammar is by reading. If you read enough good grammar, you will develop an ear for it. This is better than just learning grammar by memorizing rules, because rules are boring, and won't necessarily help build your inner sense.  I've been an avid reader ever since I learned how, and grammar has always come naturally to me, even though, being homeschooled, I was never taught anything specific until high school.

If grammar isn't your problem but you want to develop your 'style,' I would still recommend reading books. Not only is it the most natural way to expand your vocabulary, but if you find a few authors that can act as your 'style icons' than you can just read all of their books and soak in their style automatically. I have found that my personal writing style is much more prominent if I am reading a good book, even if that author's writing style is nothing like my own.

And so there you have it, another installment of my ongoing 'reading is the answer to all of your problems' blogposts. I hope you enjoyed! Comment below with your thoughts on the topic, and let me know if there is anything else that reading can cure.