FAQ Sections, Updated March 2008

ø  Basics

ø  Artwork FAQ

ø  Site FAQ

ø  Online Novel FAQ

ø  Other Useless Blather





Basics

Age: 27

Email: engineerjess AT yahoo DOT com

Country: Finland

What/Where the heck is Finland? We aarh Viking barbarians RAAAH. :P Finland is situated in the Northern Europe, between Sweden and Russia. Famous Finnish 'trademarks' are Lordi, Nokia, Tarja Halonen, sauna, HIM, Sonata Arctica, fur-clad hairy barbarians running about in snow, mämmi, northern lights, and a weird minority language that nobody understands.

Do you have polar bears/penguins/Yetis/Wampas in Finland? Yes, the two first can be found in a local zoo, and the latter duo in a movie merchandise bric-a-brac store, though I think they're made of plastic.

Languages: Mother tongue is Finnish, second language Swedish, third English, fourth German. I also studied French for three years, but I've forgotten a lot of it. Basing on the linguistic similarities, I understand Estonian and somewhat Danish, Norwegian, and Old English.

Occupation/Degrees: Currently I'm a postgraduate student in a doctoral/licentiate program at my home university, concentrating on IT security. I graduated with a Master of Science in Technology degree during the summer of 2007 with Eximia Cum Laude in Communication Systems (major), Information Technology, and Bioinformatics (minors).

Hobbies: Drawing, writing, reading, mythology, programming, hiking, computer building, science, comics... you name it. I have way too many interests.

Programming? Java, SQL, XHTML, CSS, Matlab, R, C, Perl. And of course our dear pseudocode and UML.

Software knowledge? Besides image processing apps (see further), I've worked f.ex. with Maple, Matlab, NeuroSolutions, various site survey tools used in the optimization of WLAN networks, and several CAD and circuit design tools on Unix/Solaris/Win. Regarding your basic web programming and scripting, I prefer simple Notepad-like text editors, where you can get your hands fully on the code. Most WYSIWYGs generate such garbled crap, that the mere good thing you can do with it is to print it out and use as toilet paper.

1337 5p33k? 3i|\|5+3i|\| r0Xx0rz j00 b0x0rz.

Psychology type: Borderline INTP/INTJ.

Insert a useless anti-fact here: Pink fawns have five legs.

Are bats cute? Yes. And little robots.

What is The Matrix? 42. Duh.



Artwork FAQ

Where did you learn to draw? I didn't. Besides the obligatory art lessons back at high school, I'm a self-learned artist with no art schools looming ominously in the dark, shadowy mysteries of the past. Just a lot of practise with strong coffee and swearing.

Whoa, I thought you were a guy! Yesno, I'm not a guy. This question crops up at least ten times a month, and it's a bit frustrating, to be frank. My drawing style may be angular and themes contain tech and weapons, but not every lass doodles pink kitties and happy flowers all the time. So, please don't call me dude. ;-)

Drawing tools? As I presently draw and paint for the most part only fully digital works, I use my Wacom Intuos3. The preferred software are OpenCanvas 3 and Paint Shop Pro 9-10.

Do you use references for poses and suchlike? Yes. I however photograph my own stocks. Many professional-level artists do this too, so there's really no taboo to it. Mirror is a great aid when it comes to drawing expressions.

Why don't you draw animu waaaa kawaiii =^____________^= kekekeke? Er... How about no?

Why does your 'realistic' Snape look like Rasputin? Well, he just does, without any further deep allegorisms interwoven. That's how I picture him if I don't draw him as the 5-inch-nosed cartoonbat.

How do you draw hands? They're so difficult! I keep a small mirror propped on the table when I draw, twist my hands in front of it into different positions, and take direct model from that. There isn't really any knottier magic trick behind it.

Have you done any drawing/coloring tutorials? No. Haven't really had time for those.

Do you take requests? No.

Do you do commissions? Yes. See my commission info.

Why do you draw bearded men? I like facial hair. Makes 'em blokes more manly.

Ewwww, but that's like soooo iffy!!!!!111onetyzillion!! And all those muscles your men have!!!!! YEEECCCH!!!exclamationmark!!! Right. If you think you might get mad cow disease from manly men, maybe you should stay ten thousand miles away from my gallery. There are myriads of other, prettier galleries to look at elsewhere.

Why do you draw such bulky men anyway? I grew up with cartoons like He-Man and Bravestarr which were all about big biceps and barbarian heroes. Certain ideals probably got stuck permanently into the deeeeep, daaark abysses of the subconscious. I also find detailed anatomy more interesting to draw than flawless, smooth skin with little figure. It's the same with older faces. Lines and whatnot in my opinion add more to the personality of the character and give some extra challenge to the drawing process.

Why do you put in so much detail? I guess my brain just despises white spaces. :P

Why haven't you drawn character X from video game Z? I don't play video games, and I'm not interested in them either, unless it's a paid project for concept art or suchkin.

Why don't you draw more of character X from fandom Z? I have a lot of interests and fandoms, not just one particular character.

Can I give critique? Sure! I'm constantly trying to improve in the time and resource limits I have. However, keep it constructive and reasonable. "H0mg dei l00k soooo werid and Harys lokking teh ghey and whuts wif teh odd armor =^______^=!" sounds as if a lobotomized manatee in crack wrote it.



Site FAQ

Wait... where did Tracy go? Or are you her under a new nickname? I'm not Tracy, or Neverwench. I used to have a smaller subdomain site here for years, but was recently given the 'front page'. You can reach Tracy at her current main site Catena Manor.

Is this place associated with [insert ideology here]? No. This site is both politically and religiously neutral.

What's in the domain name and layout? I hear that with the previous owners the site's name used to be a pun of some sort, but now it simply coincides with what I mostly draw and am interested in: warriors, giants, fantasy heroes, etc. The layout consists mostly of repeats of the brothers Väinämöinen and Lemminkäinen, some of the most famous characters of Finnish mythology. They're known in the Norse sagas as Aegir and Utgard-Loki, respectively, and are both Jotun giants. My original fantasy character Lord Khran-Av'ees scowls on a few pages.



Online Novel FAQ

What's the elven language? Is it something you made up? No. It's mangled Finnish (specifically, a pathetic attempt to parodize Tolkien's Quenya which was partly based on Finnish). However, I do have a certain systematic approach to the twists, and it has some of its own grammatic rules. The language of the kings is more complex, as it's built into the ancient Finnish poetic meter known as kalevalanmitta or nelipolvinen trokee. For example, King Lhietd gabbles on with it on several occasions.

How do you come up with the weird names? Some have been more or less spontaneously caught from the thin air whilst writing, some have a wee bit of planning behind them. But basically they pursue the mangled Finnish pattern mentioned above, even though sometimes there are also bits of Swedish and Estonian sprinkled in. G'Uhageid, for instance, comes from the word kuhakeitto (zander soup) and Lhietd-Lhem'meeschz is twisted from Lieto-Lemmes, bynames of the Finnish mythological warrior-hero Lemminkäinen. On occasion there are some utterly pitiful wordplays, like with Mr. Y. Rmy. Yrmy means 'grumpy' in Finnish.

What's with this whole Khran/Hiid? Isn't he, like, a meter taller than her? And... It's a parody couple, as is the nature of most things in the novel. :P

The elves have odd proportions. Yup, as they have their inspirational roots more in the Finnish mythology than in the sparkly bishie elves of today, and their body structures do not exactly follow the standard human anatomy. They have inherently thicker bones, barrel chests, etc.

Why do some characters look so similar to one another? Maybe it's because they're related? ;-) The G'Uhageids tend to spawn like mushrooms after rain.

How can their heads sustain all that hair? Shouldn't Khran get his scalp ripped off by the sheer weight of it? They're elves, i.e. inherently magical beings. Everything doesn't need to make cold, rational, logical sense in a fantasy universe, especially when it's about parody. Think of, err... Discworld and the quantum weather butterfly or the Shadowing Lemma (exists in two dimensions and eats mathematicians). Or something.



Other Useless Blather

Favorites »» Music: Classical, symphonic and Viking metal are my main branches. Favorite bands and composers: Apocalyptica, Battlelore, Blind Guardian, Danny Elfman, Eluveitie, Ensiferum, Equilibrium, Hans Zimmer, Howard Shore, Jean Sibelius, Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, Korpiklaani, Lordi, Luca Turilli, Maija Vilkkumaa, Manowar, Metsatöll, Moonsorrow, Nightwish, Patric Doyle, Rhapsody of Fire, Svartsot, Teräsbetoni, Thyrfing, TYR, Turisas, Viikate, Värttinä, Windir, Wintersun.

Favorites »» Movies: Star Wars, Indiana Jones Trilogy, Toy Story II, Lord of The Rings Trilogy, Pirates of the Caribbean I-II, Batman I-II.

Favorites »» Cartoon shows: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Batman: TAS, Bravestarr, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, Danny Phantom, DuckTales, Fantastic Four (2006), Freakazoid, Gankutsuou, Gargoyles, GI Joe, Justice League, Hellsing, Kim Possible, Masters of the Universe (2002), Mighty Max.

Favorites »» Pigeon color: Don't ask. All pigeons are evil.

Favorites »» Fictional characters: Buzz Lightyear, Emperor Zurg, Warp Darkmatter, Dr. Drakken, Keldor|Skeletor, Evil-Lyn, Count Marzo, Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck, Jessie from TSII, Darth Vader, General Grievous, Count Dooku, Cobra Commander, Death of Discworld, Susan Sto Helit, Granny Weatherwax, Mustrum Ridcully, Lord Vetinari, Gandalf, Saruman, Vlad Masters, Clockwork, Fright Knight, Technus, Skulker, Goliath, Elisa Maza, Xanatos, Macbeth, Demona, Lexington, Iroh, Zuko, King Bumi, Lobo, Batman, Norman, Skullmaster, Dr. Doom, Ronan the Accuser, Alucard, Integra, Walter Dornez.

Favorites »» Authors: JRR Tolkien, Terry Pratchett, Lemony Snicket, Neil Gaiman, Victor Hugo, Charles Dickens, F. M. Dostoyevsky, Mika Waltari, Douglas Adams, George R. R. Martin, Ursula LeGuin, Jonathan Straud.

Dislikes: Bad grammar and spelling, blatant misuse of punctuation, radioactive mutant pigeons that stare you with their bulging mad eyes, bishib0is, the color pink, lame bubblegum pop music with lyrics like 'ooh baby baby baby ooh yeah', Mary Sues, Weeabooism, chibis, overpurple prose, generic cheap animu, Internet Explorer, the weird greenish goo found in the back of the fridge right where you thought you placed a bunch of carrots two months ago.

Self-created physical theorem: Time is not a dimension, but only a real quantity to measure the rate of change of entropy in a frame of reference. This would make time travel very invalid, since you would have to do work against entropy in an irreversible process.

Technobabble? Yes please! The more, the merrier!

Do you have a Life™? No. My ultimate goal in life is to remain a supreme overgeek.

Do you have your own moon with a laser? Yes indeed. I hereby shall call it [fingerquotes] The Death Star [/fingerquotes]. All of Eternia shall be mine!! Muahahaaa!