Ive Returned With More Doodles (click On The Images To See Them Better-)

I’ve returned with more doodles 👍 (click on the images to see them better-)

Headcanon time :D

So Basil is a big simp and he likes doing things for Dorian (his love language is acts of service 💅). Sometimes that means buying him flowers while it’s pouring rain outside and delivering them to his house. He buys Dorian flowers at least once or three times a week (depends on his money flow) and switches up what kinds of flowers he buys based on the weather (haha), Dorian’s mood, and his own mood. But all of the flowers he buys are always Dorian’s favorites…and Dorian has tons of favorites. Basil dances right on the lower class line and his money dwindles every now and then. He doesn’t make enough money from commissions to support himself, an art studio, and the rent for his crappy apartment that he’s renting from some people he knows. Dorian, someone who has money and who knows how to finance it better, always tries to help Basil with increasing his prices, evenly spacing out his money for things, and he even tries to convince Basil to let him financially support him (or even move in), the whole shabang. Basil doesn’t accept that help because he’s Mr. “I’ll do it by myself.” Basil’s stubbornness and extreme independence definitely frustrates Dorian from time to time, but he understands why Basil is that way. Basil’s always had to make it on his own even from his early days; it’s all he knows, and he just likes doing things himself. He feels that it’s more fulfilling. But, he definitely does not ration his money correctly. No, he doesn’t spend it all on random stuff or all in one place. He just spends too much of it on his studio and uses whatever’s left to sustain himself and pay rent…and it’s usually never enough for both. Dorian and Lord Henry have tried lending him money. He refuses both. I could go deeper into why Basil’s the way he is but that’s for another time. But all I’ll say is that Dorian just loves him a lot and wants the best for him, and doesn’t want him catching a cold from running around in the rain 🫢. He appreciates Basil’s independence, but he wants Basil to know that it’s okay to ask for help sometimes or to loan money…and that he doesn’t have to buy Dorian flowers every single week (even though Dorian does love the flowers and little notes Basil writes him) 😌. They’re both learning together :)

I’m back with more Basil and Dorian doodles! I managed to complete a full page of doodles in one night which I haven’t done in a while. Felt good lol. It was super late when I was drawing all of these so 🫢

Okay PLEASE don’t look too close at Lord Henry.. I haven’t drawn him in a very long time and I’m still trying to develop a look for him.

But anyway- so I like to imagine that Lord Henry takes on the role of Cupid between Basil and Dorian, doing anything in his power to get these two together. They like each other and they try to show it, but the other doesn’t pick up on anything, so Harry stepped in to help. (They’re so oblivious it pisses Harry off). He leaves them alone in rooms, he helps one or the other build up enough courage to ask the other out, the whole nine yards. In result, I imagine Basil and Dorian tell him EVERYTHING that happens, and sometimes they get a little too personal 😶 but it’s because they’re excited and have no filter when they’re excited (I included a little funny at the end)

Harry is doing the lord’s work for these two I guess🤷‍♀️

Basil Death Part 1

Midnight writing

Bro. If Edgar Allan Poe wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray 😩. I’m not sure if he’d do it better but…TPoDG is classified as gothic literature and in seeing the gothic sense of that novel versus the gothic sense of Poe’s work, I feel like Poe would put his own twist on it. It’d just be different. The time eras in which both Poe and Wilde wrote were different and definitely influenced their gothic literature as a whole. But as someone who loves Poe just as much as they love Wilde ✋, it would be so cool to see a Poe-ified TPoDG.

I might want to draw something based on all of this 😶

Someone please go back in time and give this idea to Poe he'd do it so much better

This right here ☝️☝️

Surviving High School English- A Guide

We've all been there: It's the night before your essay is due and you haven't even cracked open the book. You are staring down at a blank word document.

English can be a very hard subject, particularly if you are taking it at advanced levels such as IB or AP. English happens to be my favourite subject, so I thought I share a secret:

99% of English is bullshit.

So, I suppose this post is simply a guide to bullshitting effectively. I am going to focus on English, but it can be applied to other humanities subjects like history as well.

Sparknotes and LitCharts are your best friends.

I get it. Reading is hard. I personally love to read, and always try my best to reads the books for class, but I get that that is sometimes not possible. So just jump onto Sparknotes or LitCharts. Both have full summaries of most classic books, and a lot of popular contemporary books that are used in schools. The page for each book also has chapter-by-chapter summaries, character breakdowns, analyses of major themes and motifs, and even essay ideas.

Seriously. Use them.

2. Audiobooks

I love audiobooks. I get at least half my reading done through them. I like using Audible the best (no affiliate link. I just love it!). You can get your first audiobook free, and they have a whole catalogue of books that are included if you are a member. Seriously, normalise audiobooks. They have saved my ass so many times when I have had to read a big book in a short amount of time. The best thing about them is that you can listen to them while you do other things. Doing chores, driving, making dinner, even going for a run. And if you have dyslexia, it will be a lifesaver for you.

3. Know a few things, but know them well

Do a close reading of a few chapters. Know examples of one motif by heart. Having vague knowledge is no good to anyone, least of all yourself. Hone in on a few key points, and know them inside and out. You can afford to do this in English. Again, Sparknotes and Litcharts are great for this. Choose one theme, and read their page on it. It's as simple as that!

4. If your text was set in/ published in a different time era, do some very basic research on that period

For example, Of Mice and Men (a great book, btw) was both published and set in the 1930's. It is set in California. This is important because many of the story's main themes and motifs are based around this. The themes of the American Dream and minority rights are very prevalent throughout the book. Steinbeck was trying to make a statemnt. And if we didn't know the social context of the time, we would not be able to analyse it. So do your research, even if it is very basic

5. If you are not sure, it is probably a reference to the Bible, or Shakespeare, or Greek Mythology

Literally. Give me any classic book, and I could point out a hundred references to these three. Your English teacher will certainly give you extra points for picking up any allusions of this sort. Once again, on both Sparknotes and Litcharts, most books have a page dedicated to the literary allusions present in them. Use. This.

6. Utilize Tumblr

It sounds silly, but you are much more likely to remember what happened/major themes if you read them from shitposts. Engage people with discussions! Talk about your thoughts on the book, ask them for theirs! There is a very good chance that practically every book has been fandomised on this hellsite. I recently had an incredibly interesting and insightful discussion about the phenomenon of Sherlock Holmes and its effect on modern fan culture. Wouldn't that make a great essay?

7. If you can find any evidence whatsoever, then to your English teacher it is good enough.

If you can successfully argue a point, then you will do well on your essay! Anyone seen that post about the person who wrote an essay that Hamlet was partially blind, and they ended up getting a really high mark for it? That is what I am talking about! Argue that Jay Gatsby was gay, that Sherlock Holmes was autistic and that Dorian Gray had ADHD. Write a whole essay proving that George was in love with Lennie or that Heathcliff is a werewolf. Claim that everyone in Pride and Prejudice is an alien. I don't care (although I would love to read the alien one!). Seriously, I have talked to my English teacher about this: as long as you can find evidence and defend your claim, it is true in the eyes of your teacher.

8. Actually listen in class

I may just be lucky, but every English teacher I've ever had has supplied the class with a lot of the information above, such as the historical context of the story.

9. Start early and over-outline

If your essay is an assignment and not an exam, my advice is to start as soon as you know what the task is! Even if you write the title, and start mulling it over in your head. Write down any ideas you have immediately, take quotes from the book, the author and even others. Once you have your ideas, outline, outline, outline! This is my greatest advice for any subject you need to write an essay for! Don't make the outline rigid, but put down all your ideas. Be silly with it, using abbreviations and swear words and memes. Just get your points down. This fights procrastination too, becuase you think you are only outlining. Once you have everything out in a rough order, all you have to do is open up a blank document and put it into formal and pretentious language. I usually find that if my outline is a bit less than half my word count, then I will be good to go once I have typed it all up. The ratio might be different for you. See what works.

And there you go! You have just written yourself a world-class essay with all of your knowledge of the book! I'm so proud of you!

I hope this has been helpful. These are the ways I personally work. If I think of anything else I will add it on.

Happy reading! (Or Sparknote-ing lol)