Why The Change These Days and Another Fantasy Sketch

What on earth is Susan doing these days and why the change????

Trying to keep this as short as I can, here is what has been or is going on...............

1)  I have felt like I've been in a rut losing interest in wanting to sketch.   Sketching the same thing that others sketch or even the subjects I tend to work all the time have become very predictable ... with my lacking desire in wanting to pick up a pencil or pen.

2)  I'm struggling with the ability to feel any excitement or find much in the way of inspiration even visiting all the groups I'm in with regards to sketching and painting.

3)  For the longest time I have felt like I had no imagination and lacked the ability to be creative.  By exploring the fantasy world I've found myself in lately, it's proving to me that what I felt was not entirely true.

4)  The illustrations I have managed have been fun to create (often making me laugh) and I find it's exciting to see what I end up with considering I am not following anything.  I haven't felt that excitement in a very long time!  It's almost like being a kid again not taking things real serious and just having fun!  Often I sit there thinking............"where on earth did that come from??!!"

5)  I'm working strictly in black and white, providing me with practice in tones values....particularly darks I tend to fear.  And instead of worrying about color, I can concentrate on the marks I make and the shapes that start to develop as I work......ending with many of the fantasy creatures I seem to enjoy creating and/or the themes I end up with.

While many who know me have been enjoying this change, there are those who don't quite feel the same .... missing what they have come to know of me producing.   I expect that and truly appreciate their feelings (hugs to those of you who don't much care for what I'm doing these days), while at the same time, I sketch for me and the joy and therapeutic value my sketches bring me.  If I lose that joy, why bother?

So changing direction for a little while is important to me.  I feel to tap into a bit of creativity and imagination is a stepping stone that will hopefully help when I decide to return to my normal that reflects who I am, what I enjoy, and places I've been.

With that said, here's a twist on nature journaling :-D