FallenUmbrella

FallenUmbrella has requested that random works from her favorites be featured instead of her works.

How did you first discover deviantART?

I never knew about the internet until I was about 7 or 8 years old, where I would just play games on there once in a while. When I was about 11, I browsed around the internet a little more often, and ended up reading fanfiction of some movies and TV shows . I looked at some of the profiles of authors, and some linked their dA accounts. I browsed around that deviantART for a short time and dismissed it as nothing.

Shortly after turning 13, my English teacher made my class participate in the National Novel Writing Month where I typed my fingers off over 21,000 words and became an active member in the forums. After almost one year, someone posted a thread about deviantART. I visited this wonderful community again, and joined "just for the heck of it". Gradually, I became active here ever since.

What was it about dA that made you want to stay?

It's hard for me to say, really.
Well, I transitioned from one website after another over the years I have been around the Internet because I grew out of some of my interests that I had when I was young.

deviantART is different, I must say. I might not have an interest in art like I do now in the future, but the amazing support and community spirit makes me want to stay. This may be an online community of over hundreds of millions of deviants all around the world, but the people on here who actively get involved in projects, contests, and features bring this huge community closer. As if we are family I never really experienced much of that with other websites that I lurked around in.
Just recently, I posted a journal about issues going on between life and dA, and the support was unexplainable. Phenomenal. I got replies about opinions and perspectives from from people I know and people that I don't know. It brought me to tears knowing that dA is a true community

Speaking of community spirit, don't ever forget dA friends. I never thought that I would become so close to people who live a million miles away from me.

What is the story behind your username?

<.< I have no idea because I joined "just for the heck of it", and I never thought I would love being here so much. It is totally random.
I usually go by variations of "blueneonlights". I would make another account in order to change my username, but I'm too lazy and I don't want to leave everything that I have done on here behind when so many people have seen me around. So don't feel embarrassed if you accidentally read my username as "Fallen umbrella" because actually like it and because it's easy to poke fun at it.

What do you remember of your childhood in regards to art?

Hmm, I read. A lot.

I struggled to read and comprehend stories before I was 5-6 and entering kindergarten. Later on, I read above grade-level as a grew up to the point where I had to read 500 picture books in the 3rd grade
I started going on the internet a little more often, and, believe it or not, reading fanfiction actually partly inspired me to write original stories

Also, I got into music. I played flute ever since I was 9-10, my music teachers motivated me to practice playing music in the concert band. I never wrote my own songs, though, because I prefer to play along with other people.

Was there anything or anyone in particular that prompted your choice of art form?

For writing, my English teacher a few years ago encouraged my class to write fiction novels and poetry. I learned how authors use many methods to make their characters and situations throughout their books seem realistic and exciting. I'll admit, I miss doing that because now all I do is read and write essays <.<
But reading a lot helped

For music, I even decided to play in the marching band almost a year ago because I loved playing flute. The whole concept of expressing ideas through different sounds and voices is fascinating. A few months ago, I decided to learn bassoon when the opportunity came, which is something I would have never done if I had not got involved with music so much.

Who or what motivates you to continue creating?

Life motivates me to create. Many things happen in my life that makes me want to write it all down to form ideas. Right now, writer's block is not fun For music, I just play whatever and keep practicing (a little bit ^^  I'll be too busy nowadays). I like to do both writing and music, but I don't see myself making a living off of both. Still, I create to keep me sane

Of your own work, which has the most meaning to you and why?

At the moment, it might be Writer's Blockmy mind
         is as  b   l   a   n   k  as this page
unmotivated—
                                 —uninspired
i talk to the walls
[but they never talk to me]thoughts scattered, words wasted
my mind
      sits |isolated| in my room
it cannot see through this horrible disease
i am
shipwrecked—drowning in the sea of doubt
stranded amongst a forest of ideas—lost within direction
{I ask for directions, but each turn leads to the end of the lonely road}
words do not come out of my pen…
ink b•l•o•t•c•h•e•s do
only to smear on my hands
what unproductive, wasted paint
every plot, because when I am going to have a busy schedule and a ton of things to focus on that I need to get done, sometimes I need to remind myself to just sit down and write down what I feel. I did just that one day.

And this short story Inescapable Conclusions                                     Inescapable Conclusions
         Assumptions. First impressions. Conclusions. For some reason, everyone does them. Even I make assumptions. Maybe because I was only thinking of myself. I know because I made the mistake of judging someone I never even talked to.
See, it all started one day after art class. I was sauntering at a steady, but fast pace to my next class. Everyone else ambling by me weaved through the crowded halls of this high school. No one was paying attention to my cautiousness, for I was keeping a watchful eye to someone a few feet away from me. Some kids could only growl at me to move out of their way. Through all the shoving and elbowing, I could see someone in the crowded hall slowly maki that I wrote when I was about 13 is still something that I hold close to my heart. I wrote it after I had a friend who didn't like another friend of mine because of the way she acted and talked, but I did not believe that she knew that my friend had a good heart inside. I published it in a magazine for my English class, but I wish I could rewrite it and whatnot It is still something that I'm glad I wrote about.

Do you have any personal goals in relation to deviantART?

Yes, I do

Some of my dA friends are devious DD suggesters, and they encouraged me to suggest some of my favorite deviations as DDs. I am beginning to suggest now and then.

Groups were one of the many things on dA that got me involved here. I'm looking forward to get involved with the groups while I still can

Are you working on any projects or wish to promote some projects?

I am horrible at coming up with my own ideas for projects and contests <.< So I get involved in group projects.
I am planning to get some people to help me with critiques in a literature group. If you could help me with that, that would be awesome.

But I do wish to promote some projects going one with friends and groups.

Make sure to join Community-Projects and support the community projects gallery

Join Forum-It and suggest funny quotes from the forums!

Make sure to read namenotrequired's news article, "Improving your Art--what dA news can teach you".

  Suggest deviants to be interviewed for bradleysays's ABCs of Deviants!

Take a look at hiddendelights's recent Deviants Discovered news article and make sure to read the other volumes in this wonderful series.

  Please read WDWParksGal's journal about nitchwarmer's project "to put together a book of short stories and art created only by the members of deviantart" here. There's a deadline for it to be published, so hurry!

JOIN THE REVOLUTION and Spank me! For charity.

So much going on

Which movies did you enjoy most?

I don't watch too many movies in general :/  But I'll admit that I love to watch Finding Nemo once in a while as well as any other Pixar movie. Avatar is another favorite

If you have any recommendations, please tell me!

What type of music do you listen to? (Specific groups/artists?)

Anything that sounds good, actually Ironically, I love making music but I don't listen to that much music anymore. :/ It was probably those pop songs that I got sick of listening to

But some friends did show me some of Adele's songs I love her voice. I remembering having a conversation on Skype about "real music" and ended up listening to some of Ellie Goulding's songs (damn you, VelCake ). I would love it if I could get more recommendations of good songs, though

Which books could you just not put down?

When I was younger, I used to read different series of books, but now I just love to read anything except fantasy (though I may give in to that genre). I stay away from girly juvenile and young adult fiction books and romance novels that my mom has on her bookshelf. I love a good mystery, of course, and perhaps some suspense I just wish I could go to the bookstore more often

What foods can you just never seem to resist? Drinks?

Chinese food plz
I would not say that it's the best, but I'm open to any kind of dish.

Water is okay for a drink. I actually like drinking soda when all the bubbles are gone
But I like making tea once in a while

What are your pet peeves on dA and in general?

Pet peeves? I have some.
I don't like trolls, art thieves, and other types of dArama. Watchbots and pageview bots are just as sick. In general, I don't think a lot of people like to get involved with stuff like that. I also hate it when deviants post hate comments on a Daily Deviation because they don't think it was worthy. A DD is just a 24-hour feature, people
When random people beg for points, watches, llamas, or anything else, it annoys the hell out of me because that's just not the way to go. You'll get those things if you don't go whining for them in the first place.
I think that the biggest pet peeve that I have about dA is when some people make assumptions of deviants based on symbols. Just because you are a premium member or a beta tester does not mean that you are popular. Regular members aren't always inactive accounts, but are just as important. Seniors, Community Volunteers, and the dA staff are regular members as well. Just because you may be best buds with a few of them doesn't mean that you are automatically popular and special. dA is not a popularity contest.

Oh, and I hate the excessive use of 1337 speak.

In real life, sometimes I have pet peeves about what my parents say and do. My mom pronounces "bike" as "bik't" as if it sounds almost like "bite" and "umbrella" as "umbera" <.< I can really explain "vacuum".
I also hate it when my sister wants to use the computer, and she grabs the mouse while my hand is still on it.
I really hate it when my mom and dad tell me that I've been on the Internet for too long or mention it to the point where every time I'm actually typing something up on the computer and not on dA, they think I'm on the Internet. Even when I was upstairs in my room reading a book, my mom yelled at me to get off the Internet
Oh, and my sister would talk about her friends a lot. She told me that she used to have a friend who used her religion as an excuse for her bad behavior.
</rant>

Something random about yourself you wish to share?

I speak music. It's my second language. Should have been Chinese, but whatever.
And I'm left-handed, too

What tips can you offer to better oneself in his or her art? Life?

I think this :thumb197147822: says a lot about many blooming artists here. In my opinion, don't tell yourself that you suck and that you will never make it in life as a photographer/writer/designger/etc. Practice everyday and take advice from your own peers. Search for tutorials that might be helpful to you and always take constructive criticism from other people. Also, give feedback to other artists; you need to give in order to get Often, you just have to do your best no matter what negative things others may say about your art. I think everyone knows that, but it doesn't hurt to remind yourself to do one of these things once in a while

And in life, you are not alone Nuff said.

What does Art mean to you?

Art is everything, not just a painting on a canvas Without art, you cannot express many emotions and ideas. Whether you know it or not, it keeps us sane. You would be pretty surprised once you stop telling yourself, "I'm not an artist".

Is there anything else you wish to say?

Yes Thank you so much, PurpelBlur, for the interview! It is such a great honor. And I hope most of you stuck around long enough to read this.

:thumb186485959: :thumb210836911:


A list of previous Devious Minds can be found in a widget on my page.

If you have a recommendation of someone you think I should interview for this series please send me a note with a subject of "DM Rec"