Our First Community Event!

Tl;dr

The short of it is this - from March 25th through the end of the month, we're holding an event. We'll be releasing a new drawing prompt each day, and those that participate will have the opportunity to earn prizes - from avatars, to achievements, to double credits in April.

Why? Because my TAs and I need a break from critiquing, in order to recharge our batteries and as we take our much needed rest, we wanted to take the opportunity to give you guys something fun to do while you also take a break from your lesson work (so we don't get hammered with a mountain of work when we return).

Taking a break is... complicated

As my TAs and I get ever closer to a point of burnout, something needs to be done - but with a crowdfunded project like Drawabox, we can't shut off the lights and leave on vacation so easily. There are other problems to consider:

• Students, given nothing else to do, will keep hammering away at their homework, and so when we return, we'll just be met with an insurmountable wall of critiques - rather than giving ourselves a vacation, we'll really just be delaying things, and that work will still need to get done.

• We also can't ask students to pause their own work (and basically take a vacation with us). While many of our patrons are subscribed simply to support the project and keep the price of reliable feedback affordable (for which we are eternally grateful), those who for budgetary reasons, need to maximize the use of all their credits cannot be expected to let credits expire just because we're exhausted.

So, how's about it? Have some fun, knock out some of that 50% rule debt you've no doubt accumulated, win some awesome new avatars, and maybe even some extra credits, and help your friendly neighbourhood educators avoid an untimely demise due to overwork by setting your Drawabox lessons aside for a week.

Frequently asked questions

Some of you will no doubt have questions - let's get the big ones out of the way.

I have credits that are going to expire on April 1st! What happens to them?

Worry not - any credit that expires between March 24th and April 3rd will receive a 10 day extension. Even if your "cookie jar" is full (that is, if you've reached the maximum number of credits your tier can hold) once April swings around, these "extended" credits will not contribute to that limit.

Can I still submit work for official critique during the event?

Technically yes - submissions will not be closed, but we will not be doing any critiquing during that time. We would really appreciate it if you avoid submitting new lesson work or revisions during that time, and more than that, we would greatly appreciate it if you simply hit the brakes on your Drawabox work altogether (aside from keeping up with your warmups, to avoid getting rusty).

Ideally we'd like to avoid coming back to a mountain of work - that's something we're quite worried about, and whether or not that happens determines whether we can really afford to give ourselves a break in the future. For this, we need the community's cooperation and compassion.

If I'm able to get an achievement, when will my additional credits be delivered? Will it be immediate?

The delivery of the additional credits will occur between April 8th and April 21st. This is to spread things out so we don't get hit with a ton of new submissions all at once. While you won't know which date your credits will arrive during that period, you can rest assured that if you've received any of the event achievements (whether bronze, silver, or gold), you will receive credits.

Are the unique avatars exclusive to the event?

For now, yes. I would like to keep them exclusive to participation, with each event giving a new set of avatars, but I want to avoid making promises. For now, you can trust that they'll remain exclusive to this event for the next 6 months, but will in all likelihood remain that way.

I'm not on the official critique track or a member of the Patreon (and have no intentions of joining) - does this event have anything to offer me?

While this event is, in a sense, intended to lay down cover-fire so we can take some time off without necessarily coming back to a mountain of critiques to get through, it is open to everyone. Along with the unique avatars, the achievements (which everyone is welcome to earn), the event is also designed to give students an opportunity to let loose, draw for the hell of it, and dive into the 50% rule head-first as a community. We'll have a Discord channel open for the event as well, so everyone can anticipate the new prompt drops. share their WIPs, and have a good time.

Remember - you guys only have 24 hours to submit your work, so we're not expecting masterpieces. Sketch, explore, and push yourself beyond the boundary of your comfort zone.

Timezones are a thing - when do the "windows" start and end?

The submission page will include an active countdown to the end of each event day that you can refer to, but for those of you with multiple clocks on your wall, set to different timezones, set your alarms for 12:00AM PT (07:00 UTC).

Do I have to use ink, or apply the concepts from Drawabox?

Nope - just like the rest of the 50% rule, you can work in whatever medium you please, and totally ignore the principles of Drawabox if you like. Just focus on exploring, playing, and pushing your boundaries.

Do my submissions have to be done to a certain level of completion or quality? Do they have to be full colour?

NOPE! You are welcome to submit whatever you have by the end of the day, and it'll still count towards your completion for that day. Anything from rough exploratory sketches to fully completed illustrations are welcome. Relax - the point here is to encourage you to participate and have a good time.