Need artists for a Visual Novel

For recruitment of team members to help create visual novels and story-based games, and for people who want to offer their services to create the same.
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Xyphon
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Need artists for a Visual Novel

#1 Post by Xyphon »

I am creating a Visual Novel in Ren'Py. Me and my friend have written out character descriptions for the 8 main characters, and have written a 1000 word summary of each of the arcs.

The 5000 words of writing for the arcs is clearly too much to reasonably post here, so I will post the character descriptions(which is a little less than 1500 words), and a brief description of their arcs.

But, first of all, the current staff members:

Xyphon - Designer/programmer/writer(Writes a lot of the dialogue and adds everything into the game)
Quote - Writer/BGM Maker(Writes dialogue and BGM)

Needed:
CG artists
Character artists(Preferably more than 1)
BG artists

I would greatly appreciate it if any artists join, and thanks in advance.
Now, if you are interested in the characters, tell me, and I will give you the summary of their arcs which is much more in depth..

Story:
Itsuki is starting his second year at high school. For a while, he has been a loner, other than his one friend, Jin Takeshita. This is because in Grade 5, him and his "friend", Kaito Omori bullied a girl named Hana Hatsumi for a scar she had on her face. However, what he didn't realize, is the scar was caused by her abusive father. When he figured this out, he felt unbearable amounts of regret, and decided to avoid all forms of social confrontation so he would not pain someone like this again. Now, 5 years later, he is finally getting into the grove of things again. He finally has a friend, Jin, whom he met in his first year, and he is slowly but surely getting his love life on track. Throughout the decisions he makes in life, he can meet different girls to fall in love with. But, many obstacles stand in his way. Whether it be his problem with social confrontation, their own personal problems, or simply Kaito trying to thwart his every move, he needs to surpass it, to finally get to his one true goal: Love. How will this story play out? That's up for you to decide.

Here are the characters:
Itsuki Takahashi (protagonist):
Hair: Medium, brown
Height: 5’10
Eyes: Brown
Size: Average
Age: 16(Second year high school)
Bio: Itsuki Takahashi is kind of a loner. He doesn't have any REAL friends, although he does have one person that could be considered his “friend”, named Jin Takeshita. However, when you move further through the game, Jin and Itsuki become close friends, inseparable, even.
Background: He bullied Hana Hatsumi with one of his “friends”, Kaito Omori, back in elementary school about the scar across her eye caused by her father(although he did not know how the scar got there at the time). After this, he later walked in his classroom after school, forgetting his bag, and saw Hana crying, begging her mom to let her leave school. He also heard Hana say to her mom that she is bullied for the scar that “daddy gave her”, and realized how she got her scar. He realized what he had done, and fell into regret. He decided to confront Kaito Omori and ask him to stop bullying Hana. When questioned “why”, Itsuki told Kaito that he saw Hana crying, and that the scar was from Hana’s dad. Kaito was pleased to hear this, and in turn bullied Hana even more, and told the whole school how Hana got her scar, making Hana hate Itsuki. To make sure he never hurts someone like this again, he decided to avoid social confrontations, which is why he is a loner.

Jin Takeshita (protagonist’s friend):
Hair: Short, blonde
Height: 5’11
Eyes: Blue
Size: Muscular
Age: 16(Second year high school)
Bio: Is your average guy. Slightly more popular than usual. In 1st year, during the opening ceremony, Itsuki and Jin sat next to each other. They talked for a while about random things, until a teacher told them to stop, and since then they have talked casually. Later, he becomes a big aspect of Itsuki’s life, and even his best friend.
Background: Not much about the past of Jin… Jin can get a different girlfriend depending on the player’s choices.

Hana Hatsumi (Girl #1):
Hair: Long, black
Height: 5’7
Eyes: Brown
Size: Average, big boobs
Age: 16(Second year high school)
Bio: She is a very lonely and shy girl, and always has a very cold look on her face, especially towards Itsuki. However, a lot is revealed on her past and Itsuki and she eventually overcome what happened between them and between herself and her father.
Background: When she was young, she was with her father and mother during a fight. Her father was drunk and tried to hit her mother with a beer bottle, but she stood in the way and was cut in the face, leaving a scar on her right eye. Afterwards, she lives with her mother and her father loses custody. Because of this, Itsuki when he is younger and Kaito bully her, causing her to cry. She then is pulled out of school for a while at her request, and when she gets back is made fun of by Kaito for crying and because her dad abused her, and Itsuki decides not to make any more social confrontations.

Iori Ryusaki (Girl #2):
Hair: Medium, brown
Height: 5’4
Eyes: Blue
Size: Small, small boobs
Age: 16(Second year high school)
Bio: She is very small and sort of shy, although can be energetic. She is anorexic and suffers from bulimia, which is the reason for her small size. Despite this, she continues to think that she is fat despite what anyone says, although most people aren’t aware of her condition.
Background: When she was in middle school, she asked out the main character’s “friend” from elementary school who used to bully Hana. Instead of simply saying “no”, the “friend” comments on Iori’s weight (although she is of average weight for her size), and says “Sorry, I don’t date fat girls”. This causes Iori to be very self-conscious about her weight and go on many diets, even leading to anorexia and eventually bulimia.

Chiyo Takeshita (Girl #3):
Hair: Medium, burgundy
Height: 5’2
Eyes: Brown
Size: Small, average boobs
Age: 15 (first year high school)
Bio: This is a yandere-esque character, and Jin’s little sister. She is completely obsessed with Itsuki because Itsuki saved her from drowning in the past, and tends to even stalk him. She tends to snap at the smallest things involving Itsuki, whether it be him being with another girl, or someone doing something mean to him or whatever.
Background: In Itsuki’s first year of highschool, Jin invited him to the beach. Itsuki agreed, not knowing that there would be other people there. Unfortunately for him, considering he likes to avoid social interaction, Jin’s little sister, Chiyo was there. Chiyo and all of her friends were playing out in the water, and Jin was there, too, although he didn’t talk to anyone. Chiyo went out too far and got pulled in by the undertow and started to drown. Jin was out getting food, and none of Chiyo’s friends knew what to do, so Itsuki swam out and brought her to shore and saved her life. Ever since then Chiyo has been watching/stalking Itsuki, because she now “owes him her life”. She likes him even more because he avoids social confrontation, but he still saved her life despite this.

Kaito Omori (Antagonist):
Hair: Brown, somewhat spikey(Picture Seiji from Midori days with brown hair)
Height: 6’1
Eyes: Brown
Size: Muscular, big
Age: 16(second year high school)
Bio: He is the primary antagonist and often gets in Itsuki’s way. He is a generally mean spirited person, especially to Itsuki and girls. Despite this, he is fairly popular and has had a lot of girlfriends, as well as harshly turned down a lot of girls. Although, a lot of girls know his true personality and turn him down as well.
Background: He was Itsuki’s friend back in 5th grade, elementary school. It was him who originally made fun of Hana, and Itsuki tagged along, like a 5th grader normally does (copying your friends, that is). Ever since Itsuki saw Hana crying, and Itsuki broke off his friendship with Kaito, Kaito has made fun of Itsuki very often, calling him things like “wuss”. He also has caused trouble for many other girls beside Hana, namely Iori and Rena in which he made Iori become bulimic and asked out Rena on a nearly daily basis. Because of this, Itsuki hates Kaito, but has been up until now afraid to do anything to Kaito. Kaito is also viewed by a lot of people as very cool and strong, but he often doesn’t live up to his expectations and isn’t what everyone thinks he is.

Arc summaries/story:
Arc 1: Hana
Hana strongly dislikes Itsuki for what happened between them in the past, and is very cold towards him. After some attempts at desperately trying to talk to Hana, wanting to patch up what happened between them, she finally gives in and allows Itsuki to accompany her while she goes shopping. At the end of their shopping, Hana drives home with her mother. After many more days of Itsuki attempting to talk to Hana, she one day shows up to school with a bruise. In the past, Itsuki told his past “friend”, Kaito Omori, that Hana got the scar from her father. This intrigued Kaito and he told the whole school that Hana was abused. Now, 5 years later, Kaito still makes fun of her, and asks her if she got the bruise from her dad, in a menacing way. For many years, Hana has been holding all of her emotion inside, and bolts out of the classroom. Itsuki decides to chase after her, and sees her on the edge of the bridge, where it appears as though she’s going to jump off. Itsuki stops her, and Hana yells at him, saying that she doesn’t want to be helped by someone she hates. Itsuki and her have a conversation about what happened between them, and Itsuki apologizes, but Hana says that it is too late for his apologies. Itsuki doesn’t want to risk Hana committing suicide, so he gets his friend, Jin, to follow/keep tabs on Hana when Itsuki isn’t around, and Jin agrees to do so. Itsuki continues to attempt to talk to her for many more days, until she finally tells him to leave her alone, because she doesn’t want to risk falling in love with someone she hates. He asks for forgiveness, and she says she will consider it. However, now they are finally what you could consider “friends”, or more-so, Hana finally gave in to his requests. But then, the unavoidable happened, her father got back in the picture… Now, Itsuki has to deal with Hana’s abusive father, and Kaito’s terrible bullying at the same time. What will happen? Well... You’re going to have to find out on your own.

Arc 2: Iori
Iori is a small, skinny girl in Itsuki’s grade. At first, nothing seems very suspicious about her, but Itsuki overhears someone throwing up in the bathroom, and catches Iori red handed. He thinks she is just sick, and takes her to the infirmary, but she lets some words slip and admits that she is bulimic. Now, Itsuki has decided to find a way to help her with this, and wants to know the reason behind it. He decides not to pry any further for the time being, but the next day catches her once again. She seems to do this every single day after lunch. Itsuki tells her to meet him outside at the courtyard, and she reluctantly agrees. After some persisting, she gets Iori to tell her the reason why she’s bulimic. It appears that Iori asked out Kaito Omori in the 8th grade, and Kaito said “sorry, I don’t date fat girls”. It may not seem like a big deal, but it hit Iori pretty hard and she has been bulimic ever since. Iori doesn’t believe Itsuki when he tells her that she isn’t fat, so Itsuki turns to Jin for help. He knows Jin is fairly popular with the girls, and gets Jin to comment on how skinny Iori is. Later that day, when Iori and Itsuki are talking, Iori admits that she knows that Jin was told to do so, because Jin and Itsuki are good friends. Itsuki says while that may be true, Jin wasn’t lying. Iori finally decides to trust Itsuki and says that she will try to stop forcing herself to throw up. However, one day, Itsuki and Iori are walking together and Kaito makes a remark at Iori’s weight again. Later that day, Itsuki catches Iori throwing up once again, and even though the girls washroom is full of girls, he opens the stall with Iori in it and brings her out of the bathroom. He is positive that this is Kaito’s fault… But, what is he going to do about it… And what will happen in the end? Well, why don’t you find out?

Arc 5: Chiyo
Chiyo Takeshita is Jin’s little sister. For a few days, Itsuki felt like someone was following him, and every time he turned around, the person ran away. One day, he decided to chase the person, and found out that it was Chiyo, but she assures him it was a mere coincidence. At the end of school one day, Itsuki hears a scream. When he goes to investigate, he sees Chiyo holding a girl by the throat against her locker, flipping out. Itsuki intervenes, and gets Chiyo to stop. On the walk home, Chiyo says that she acted the way that she did because the girl called Itsuki a loner. Itsuki remarks that he IS in fact a loner, and Chiyo says that she will be his friend. Itsuki agrees, and for the next few days Chiyo asks him every day to hang out. One day, Itsuki wants to be alone for the day, to catch up on work and play video games or whatever, and tells Chiyo this. Chiyo starts begging Itsuki to hang out with her that day, and he reluctantly agrees, seeing tears about to build up in her eyes. Itsuki that night wonders why she was acting so desperately. One day, Itsuki goes over to Chiyo’s house because it is a weekend, and Chiyo confesses to him. Chiyo says she will do anything for him, even sexual “acts”, and she kisses him. Itsuki, confused, realizes that she is obsessive, and decides to leave. Chiyo screams for him to come back several times, but he leaves anyway, thinking it is for the best for them to get some space. The next day at school, he gets a note in his locker says “I am waiting for a reply”, from Chiyo. The next day, he gets a note saying “I’m sorry..”, and the next day, his locker is full of notes, all saying “Please.. I’m sorry.. so please talk to me!”. Itsuki finally realizes the severity of her obsession. Itsuki hears another scream later that day and sees a girl on the ground, with Chiyo over her with a clenched fist. Itsuki intervenes and stops Chiyo by hugging her. Itsuki takes her to a fast food restaurant, and Chiyo explains that she is obsessed with Itsuki, and that the girl said that she was going to ask Itsuki out on a date and Chiyo couldn’t handle it. Itsuki asked why Chiyo loves him so much, and why Chiyo follows him. Chiyo said that she follows him to protect him, and that she loves him so much because Itsuki saved her life a year ago, saying that she owes her life to him. Itsuki says that he will continue to hang out with her as long as she stops acting so obsessive, and she agrees. After a while of hanging out, Itsuki hears another fight starting, knowing it is Chiyo. He runs to the scene and sees Chiyo attacking another girl again. What will Itsuki do this time? Will Chiyo’s obsession be cured? Again.. Find out!

Any suggestions or improvements would be wonderful.

So, PM me or add me at dbgt525@hotmail.com for the detailed arc summaries, or if you're interested in joining.

Thanks.
Last edited by Xyphon on Thu Dec 30, 2010 9:31 pm, edited 11 times in total.

okonomiyaki
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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#2 Post by okonomiyaki »

I need top quality art, the stuff you'd see in a commercial VN.
What's your budget like?

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#3 Post by Xyphon »

okonomiyaki wrote:
I need top quality art, the stuff you'd see in a commercial VN.
What's your budget like?
Err, it was sort of a stretch to say what you'd see in a commercial VN, it was more-so saying that I want really good art. For lack of a better explanation, my budget is near nothing, but I CAN pay, if that's what you're asking. This is a non-commercial VN, so this is to gather a team to create this VN, I'm not working for workers, per-se. Any donations that come in from the finished project (I will pay for the domain and so-forth), will be split evenly amongst the members of the team. If you need compensation other than that, then I'd like to see your work. If the work is seriously top-notch, I may be able to pay, albeit not much. Sorry if I'm not descriptive enough, I edited the content of the original post to basically state that it doesn't have to be as good as commercial, as long as it's good.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#4 Post by okonomiyaki »

Well, a word of advice...no one comes here looking for artists that are "really bad". It's natural to want good artists. Unfortunately, mainstream "good" (which I suppose I'd call commercial quality) costs money. I don't think I can take on a project this large, myself, though.

(My other bit of advice would be to double check some of your Japanese names, as they are incredibly odd.)

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#5 Post by Auro-Cyanide »

I think what okonomiyaki's point is that the reason a commercial visual novel can often pull professional art is because the artists are either paid commissions, which can add up quickly but you can claim ownership of the art because you bought it, or they expect a cut of the sales.

Wanting professional art but not wanting to pay the price is a little... difficult. It isn't impossible, but it is pretty hard, especially since artists are in high demand as it is, not to mention they are often fickle. It is hard to work on someone else's project when it requires so much work. It is hard to find an artist with dedication and you may run into a lot of dead ends.

You could try asking around DA. Try looking at some of the visual novel groups and approaching some of the artists through notes. Not a great deal of artists hang around here, so it might me your best bet.

I would also recommend posting some kind of overview of your story. Try and put your best foot forward and really capture the attention of the reader. People are lazy, if there isn't anything interesting to them they are unlikely to pursue it with an email. Sell your idea.

I wish you luck with it though :)

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#6 Post by Hollow Gourd »

It might be helpful to give a basic overview of the game's storyline.
Character bio's are nice, but they're also meaningless without any knowledge of the story they belong to.
Last edited by Hollow Gourd on Fri Jan 21, 2011 10:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#7 Post by Xyphon »

Yeah, I understand that. I don't need it to be perfect art, just good. It's not as if they'd be the only one doing work, either..

Also, the only problem with putting a story line is the story line is well.. Relevant to the character descriptions. If you read the backgrounds on all of the characters, you can get an idea on what the story is about. But I will try sending private messages to people on dA(I did make a post, though), thanks.

Also, I'll try to fit it to make a decent story line description, as well.
Well, a word of advice...no one comes here looking for artists that are "really bad". It's natural to want good artists. Unfortunately, mainstream "good" (which I suppose I'd call commercial quality) costs money. I don't think I can take on a project this large, myself, though.

(My other bit of advice would be to double check some of your Japanese names, as they are incredibly odd.)
I've seen a lot of projects where no money being paid is involved, that's what a team is all about.
Also, the japanese names are all legitimate, although they may be a little rare.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#8 Post by Auro-Cyanide »

Project forum yeah? No offence to people who hang out there, but they are not the best artists. It is mostly taken up by people looking for artists or people wanting to practice on small scale request stuff. But you do get the odd passer by who has stronger skills and may be looking for a big project. I volunteered for Winternight's project there. He got the other two artists by asking directly.

The major reason an artist works on a project is because they are interested in the story. It is the same reason why they will keep working on the project, especially a long term one. Your story feels very slice of life, but I don't know how long that will stay interesting. How long are you planning to have the game? Is there an over ridding plot or is it simply getting to know people and dating someone?

Never underestimate the amount of art work that has to be done. You have to do initial sketches (for the love of god, make sure this is done. Nothing will annoy an artist faster then asking them to redo finished work. This means you will have to conceptualise a bit and don't criticize on technique that is only half finished). You have 8 characters so far that will need a sprite with a full set of expressions with the option of extra body positions and outfits (figure out if you want these before the artist draws them. Different outfits require a naked sprite). You either want to have only one person work on the sprites or have a situation where someone does lineart and someone colours. You will have to at least have backgrounds of a bedroom, outside, classroom, hallway and that is the minimum. That is approximately 32 hours (just over $500 if the artist is paid minimum wage) just for those backgrounds. Visual Novels always take way more work then you expect. Since you are not making the art, do not underestimate it.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#9 Post by Xyphon »

Oh, no, I understand fully how much work it is, but it's not as if I'm putting in less than them. I'm programming it all, putting it all together, that's a lot of work, too. I'll try asking directly though, thanks.

Also, it doesn't seem that interesting, but the arcs are. I have a 1000 word summary for each arc so far, and for the most part they are pretty interesting(could use some work, however). There's no big background plot, I'm looking for more of a "Clannad" style game where you go down someone's route and that is the basis of the plot.

Also, I plan on having the game fairly long, not like Clannad's size, but the size of your average commercial VN(somewhere between 15-30 hours?), which yes, will require a LOT of work.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#10 Post by Auro-Cyanide »

Ah, but the thing to remember, this is your story. You have created it and are involved in it. They will be working on a story that isn't theirs and so the work will be for someone else and not themselves. Put the shoe on the other foot. Imagine if you had to write 5 arcs for someone else without having a great deal of say on what it was about. It is hard to stay motivated like that.

You are asking the artists for quite a big favour. You should try to accommodate them and their skill level.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#11 Post by Xyphon »

I see where you're coming from, yes, and I understand. But I'm sure eventually someone will like the story, and want to join. I can't compensate very well, I go to a boarding school so I am unable to get a job with much ease(not much free time, hard to leave, etc). If we make money from donations, again, it will be split evenly. I also am giving everyone a say on how they want the arcs to change or anything they don't particularly like, because this is a group project.

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#12 Post by yu_eriyama »

If you're willing to pay, I can do the work (or I can ask my friend in my studio who expert on drawing girls).
I know this is free project, so I think even if the payment is very small, it still encouraged the artist.

But if you're searching free artist...
I really suggest to reduce the characters in game... (Sorry, this is just my suggestion, please don't get angry >.<...)
With five (5) characters available to get, there are at least six CG, that would be 30 CGs or more the artist will have to work.
If you want the game to look professional, the artist must draw all the characters, include CG (or the style will be different)
Umm... It just my thought ^^ Please don't take it too personally

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#13 Post by IceD »

It might be hard for you to find such artists here; it would propably be much easier if your project was smaller and finished in terms of pre-production (to put it bluntly, finished in terms of overall design and writing), but you're just beggining. Also note, that most of communities are kind of self-centered and they won't be willing to help anyone that just pops out from nowhere shouting he has an idea and wants to make something out of it. You're had to be either someone remarkable (quite well known in some circles), or had something REALLY REALLY interesting and worth to look at. I'm sorry, if it sounds offending but that's how thing are, but... don't lose your hope - if you won't stop searching, you will finally find someone.

Most artists of proffesional skill are usually cluttered with various commercial work or already busy creating their own stuff, and because most of them are elder (20-30 years), they have less time to spare. They won't work on something, that has a small chance of being finished which is a case with almost 90% of begginers amateur work (and don't forget about most of them hold their reputation in high regard). Of course, there are some exceptions. You might find younger, talented people that draw as good as proffesionals, have more free time and usually look on fun ways to improve their art and earn some experience (if they're thinking seriously about what they do), but such cases are rare and like diamonds, so plenty of other dev's also look for such people; you can still get the pro's, if you hand over enough cash, but this will require a lot of it - even if you persuade them for less, prices will mostly still remain high and most of vn's are very heavy in graphic department (it's obvious, isn't it?), so you'll have to pay big ammounts of money for their work. There's also another possibility - artists looking for more publicity and experience; they are usually willing to work on anything, but it has to meet one condition - it has to be a really solid thing, that way they'll know it has almost a 100% chance of being finished, so their work and time spent on it won't go to waste (well, it won't because no matter what you do, if you do something, you always learn but they could be spending that time working on something more fullfiling); you can always pay them some cash as as repayment for their work, at least a little bit so they will feel more secure.

I have only one word of advice - if you are thinking about this seriously, you will have to heavily cut on content, and propably aim a little bit lower in terms of art quality - everything depends heavily on the art style you'd like to see, or if you are willing to give artists freedom, what personal style they use and how do they work. Some of art styles can look quite good even when becoming more budgetwise and be finished in a short ammount of time, while others require many hours of heavy work and backgrounds usually take the most time to finish....

Honestly, you don't need 20+ character cast to make your story interesting. I see you will be writing about emotional/psychical problems, so instead of that it would be more wise to create a three-four character main cast (protagonist and two, three girls to catch at most, and a supporting character) and focus more on the story itself. Don't create everything purely because of characters. When I want to read a vn, I'm firstly interested in the story and I hope you have an interesting one to share; characters go secondary after that, because no matter how your characters will be interesting, if they won't fit or have a tale they're will be entangled within, there's no point in reading. Your story idea is bland average, but it can still get interesting along with less few (but more developed) characters. Mabye you will be even able to add some twists... Write well, write short and don't forget about conflict.

I hope you'll succeed :)

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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#14 Post by Elze »

Umm I think the problem with your proposal is that you're not pitching it well. You must understand that this is your project and that you're pretty much asking for a favor. That means there has to be lee ways and some give-and-take. By stating that you only seek "commercial" quality art, then stating that you're not able to pay anything, following up by saying that you're putting in just as much effort and that a real team works without profit.. Well, no offense, but it comes across as a lack of consideration for the artists. Most artists here are nice and will work for free (I think, but I haven't been around long enough so..*shrugs*), but you're not asking the right way. People like being appreciated and respected. Even a simple note like "I'd really appreciate it if an artist is willing to work with me on this" can aid in recruitment. Also, some artists might be intimidated to even try for the position since you put up a quality check. It'll be better to keep your options open.
justpolitelyrejectapplicantsthatdon'tmeetyourexpectationslater8D;; /bricked

Like Auro has mentioned, when you form a team, everyone is directly involved in the game and story development itself. For starters, the artist is given his own discretion regarding the character designs. By setting the height, build, hair colour and endowments of the characters, you're already restricting the artist's artistic freedom. In such cases, the game creator usually pays the artist or get a friend who's willing to help you on account of your friendship. Otherwise, you'll need a compelling story that the artist wants to see completed, thereby offering his services for free. ((Yes, that means you should share more titbits about your story and not keep it to yourself)) However, the problem with this is most artists of the skill level you are seeking are likely to be able to make money from commissions. Seeing that they can get paid for their work, what makes your work worth sacrificing their time spent on this project as opposed to using that same amount of time to work on paid commissions?

I don't think it's a good idea to ask around on DA though. At least the artists here are here because they're interested in drawing for VNs. To be honest, if some random passerby drops me a note on DA asking me to draw for his manga/novel/VN/whatever-you-can-think-of, I'd decline straight away because I won't be willing to expend so much effort (or any) on a stranger's work. =x ((It's a separate issue if it's coming from a highly supportive watcher or a friend though.)) Most people will dismiss such notes as spam and not everyone considers being asked to work for free as a compliment, especially the more popular artists who are prone to receiving such requests. Asking on VN groups around DA would be a safer bet, but always read the group rules as some groups regard such advertising posts as spam. However, do remember that you're not the only game maker out there and you need to have something different from the rest to get people's attention, like IcdD had mentioned.

I don't think you mean any ill intent but you might want to rephrase your post or something. Otherwise, it's going to be pretty tough for you to get an artist. I agree with everything that has been mentioned above too. Good luck with everything and I hope you get someone to work with you on this. C: Alternatively, if all else fails, USE STOCK. It works. And looks decent. 8'D;;
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Lumen_Astrum
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Re: Need artists for a Visual Novel

#15 Post by Lumen_Astrum »

Hmmm... Your request for top quality art is kinda weird, considering that you have not offered money, our your services for another job aside from art. On that way, it would be pretty hard finding a "top quality" artist, because most of the artists in that level I know of are all busy.

Maybe rephrase your request just like Elze said. Say some things you are willing to do in return, like programming, music, story, or something else that can be useful also in their projects. And don't specify you need top-quality art! Because when they really like your idea and they want to volunteer, of course they know in themselves that they are good enough on the work. Right? XD Don't be that picky. (No offense)

As of the artist thingie, I can volunteer. But sketches are all I can do for you and ask somebody to lineart/color them for you. And plus, I'm thirteen and I'm not the best you can find out there. C:

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