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This set is my most popular set, ever. By far.

  • It's sold 4 times more than most of my other art packs on Gumroad,
  • that month (April 2019) was the largest growth of patrons I have ever experienced, nearly doubling the second best month to date.

But I don't know why it's so much more popular than the rest of my work! 

If I could figure out the essence of it, I could apply that knowledge to my work, going forward. of course, as an artist supporting himself with his work, it's lucrative nature is important to me. But even more interesting to me is the "why". I want to tap into that, so I can concentrate it into new works, with intent instead of accident, to make even better art going forward.

I recently posted this question on Twitter:

 https://twitter.com/RoninDudeArt/status/1278495839774597120 

And I received some good reasoning. I'd like to ask you all here, what your opinions are on these. I'll list the popular points in the poll, but feel free to add your own in the comments! But do try to pick at least one of these that most fits your reasoning, if you can.

So here's the question:


"What set's this work apart from my other works?"


I appreciate the feedback!
~Ray

Comments

jo holloway

aside from the feet option(i'm not a foot guy) it's all the above for me.

Anonymous

I'm just a big fan of ass and vag shots more

Anonymous

I can't answer, cos I think this does not stand out as much for me. I responded on Twitter, but I can expand upon it here. I feel like this one hits a lot of different notes, for different people, while she is a conventionally attractive elf character. This sold well, cos she is like the mainstream champagne bottle that tastes good, not too expensive, but not cheap either, and is available. She is a nice glass of champagne. Not your best work in my opinion. It's not always the best that sells well. If you want to sell more, obvious choices are fan favorite characters, in consumable package. Not fetishy, only a little bit. And note here, selling more, doesn't mean selling out. You can still add your Ronin Dude touch. After all, this one sells good, even tho she is a nameless OC. You don't necessarily need to do fanart. I think however, your best pieces are more experimental, 4 panel story sets like the Shantea one you just made, or the Cave elves' battle with the octopus. Story + cute characters + impressive dynamic poses, is your strong suit. Ohh and setting! Beautiful backgrounds. Question is, how to combine the two, for super great results. Cos experimental pieces, can be less attractive for a mainstream audience. We are not looking for the same things.

RoninDude

I appreciate the feedback! I've been collecting opinions from people who did like it, because I personally really liked it too. Probably one of my favorite sets, personally. To you, it may not be my best work, and I respect that, totally! But to others, it is a favorite, and that's what I am trying to understand. understanding it's qualities in a conscious way has been difficult for me, so I wanted to get the opinion of others who felt the same as me, and also enjoyed it. That way I can act consciously, instead of instinctively, or worse, blindly mimicking. Speaking of experimental, this actually was one of my first experimental pieces in a long time. What with it being the first nude-non-nude variant set, the particular beaded lingerie, the poses and different camera angles and outfit edits, the white hair and pale skin... it was all new, or at least uncommon, for me. I understand if it's not the favorite of some people, but that's the cost of experimentation, as you said. In truth, I've experimented a lot, but it's not always noticeable, especially with some of my sets that just weren't that popular at all (like July 2019). Ultimately, considering too many thing makes me go in circles, so it's useful for me to just hear everyone give their opinion, make a list, turn the list into a poll, and analyze the data. After doing so here, my takeaway from everyone's opinions is that drawings with a hint of story combined with sexy poses, and a hint of something daring, like the beads, helps make it engaging. And that is exactly what I needed to know. Those are things that I don't always consider when I make a drawing. Often I just daydream and put that down on canvas, whatever it is. But being specific and deliberate has always given me better results, so this has helped a lot. :) Again, I appreciate that you took the time to leave such a detailed opinion on the topic. Thanks!

RoninDude

XD I put the foot option because it was one of the things mentioned more than once on Twitter when I asked. I appreciate the feedback!

Spike Jonez

NSFW variants, poses and angles were awesome, and the lingerie really stood out on this set.

Anonymous

It might be the nudity aspect, being the first set with a nude variant and an experiment, everyone had to see!

Grumpy Guy

The combination of sweet and ravenously sexual. The blue eyes that look right at the viewer. This is a girl we want to meet. Feet do nothing at all for me.

Anonymous

No need to thank me dude. Just keep doing great stuff! You faced a lot of hardship lately, yet you stayed positive, improved and kept on entertaining.

Jordan Breon

Blonde and blue eyed. We just have a natural allure.

RoninDude

That certainly had an effect on the big spike in support on that month, yes, I'd agree! But the consistently high sales on that one above others, even after the fact, seems to suggest that the art set itself has something special to it, besides my other nude/non-nude sets. :)

RoninDude

Thanks for the feedback! I'm not a foot person myself either (not against it either, just don't favor it above the rest of the female form), but I put it in there because it was mentioned by commenters when I was gathering info. :)

Jonathan Allen

Two observations. I'm one of your gum road purchasers, and I had drifted away from your stuff at that point. Don't get me wrong, your stuff is great, but I was juggling where to spend my patron dollars. Your change over to full nude variants is one of the things that brought me back, and since I was coming back I had to have this in my collection. Hence the gum road purchase. Also the Ass-in-the-air pose is one of my weaknesses, along with loving the stockings and glove/arm things. The other thing I do notice from going over and looking at your gumroad artwork. The main picture makes her breasts look bigger. Of all your recent artwork that main picture makes it look like she has really big breasts. It's noticeable. The optical illusion of the angle of the shot and the cut of her dress makes your usual body style exaggerated in that image. There are a couple others that look close, but that one is by far the biggest looking. Might be worth a shot to try going big and see if the market responds. 8)

Jonathan Allen

An additional thought: Your usual style is really cute slim athletic girls with really nice asses. This one gum road set reaches the additional audience of big boob lovers too. 8)

RoninDude

I appreciate the feedback, Jonathan! In terms of making changes to my art, I do have to keep in mind what I like, and what I would enjoy drawing on a regular basis. I certainly won't deny that more sales is motivating, but it doesn't outshine my desire to spend my time drawing what I enjoy drawing. The whole reason I do art for a living is because I want to enjoy my job. I certainly didn't go into this to be rich or anything, I just want to enjoy my days as I go on with my life. :) That said, I may experiment with bustier ladies, withing a realistic range, as inspiration strikes. I've never been into super large busts (though the interpretation of that is wildly different from viewer to viewer lol), but I like lots of body types too, more than the usual fit/model body types I usually depict. So yeah! It could totally happen! :D Anyways, enough rambling from me! I very much appreciate the feedback! I'll can't promise I'll take every suggestion, but I will certainly be taking all these comments to heart, as I go forward. :D

Jonathan Allen

Yay for bustier ladies! (in whichever way you interpret that in your work) But, as a fellow artist, I totally appreciate that you're going to do whatever appeals to you. I look forward to your art in whatever form it takes. 8)

RoninDude

I honestly feel my best work comes from me doing what I feel is the best. However, that's easier said than done, as a lot of needs and factors and doubt can distract me (and I am sure many artists) from that. Hearing other people put these things into words help me consciously decide if I agree or not, and that helps a ton in re-centering, I've found. I can't please everyone, but if I can make myself happy with my work, it'll make others like me happy, too. Kind of like finding a tribe, I guess. XD I think my art would die if I completely gave up my own interests for the sake of what's popular. If I do fan art, or popular trends, it's because they excite me, too. It's just sometimes hard to put into exact words what concepts excite me, I suppose! lol Anyways, thanks again, Jonathan!

Duck-Bot

Truthfully one of the draws (no pun intended... wait.. yes it is!) to your art were the expressions that were both sexy and cute. What I think I remember most about that series was that it was one of the first times I ever saw you make nude art..and on that lovely elf no less! For the poses, I was always a big sucker for the point of view shots. The extra lewdness level just solidifies that I will take it in the shorts financially before I would ever drop out. It makes me want to commission you one day to make my vampire OC cutie because I know she is in amazing hands.

RoninDude

I really appreciate the feedback, and the supportive comments! I want to keep pushing myself to do better with each set, so thanks for sticking around! Means a lot more than I could ever communicate.

Anonymous

For me its a couple of factors combined that make it one of my favorites (I also consider the Dark Souls themed one you did with her bathing to be one of my other favorites.) For me its the mix of the concept, theme and her expressive nature. I have been a game master/player for various table top role playing groups for about 10 years now and I originally discovered you while browsing DA for inspiration for new characters. The picture you have of her in the dress is exactly the type of picture I would use for inspiration when designing a new character for a campaign. So after seeing that image I immediately start to draw assumptions about who she might be as a character which then gives the more erotic images of her a little more charm. With the other one my mind sees a battle worn adventurer finally having a chance to unwind in a safe place and taking advantage of the opportunity to let their guard down and just enjoy themselves. And in general I find your work to be more "tastefully erotic" than lewd. Porn and Hentai are almost constantly pushing the boundaries of how extreme they can be. And while I can see the appeal I have always preferred your style of depicting these things.

RoninDude

I appreciate that, Joshua. It makes a lot of sense too, especially that bit about how a little hint of backstory can add some charm to the erotic images in the set. I do try to be tasteful, because that's my thing. Not really into the more extreme stuff, personally... Not against it either, just not what I want to draw, at the moment. Though, what count's as extreme may vary from person to person, I suppose. Thanks again for the feedback, I appreciate it!