Free Choice Blog

Selected for an Amazing Contest

The assignment said that I was able to read anything for the free choice blog and I just have to say it because I am super pumped about this so sorry if it isn’t a chapter of a book or an article of anything. If it doesn’t meet expectations please let me know and I’ll do another one.

            So, this past weekend I was non stop working on this fan art of these characters from a company called Voctro Labs, and I found out that they were having a contest looking for artists to design their new Spanish VOCALOID (Vocaloid is a singing synthesizer application originally developed by the Yamaha Corporation that enables users to synthesize singing by typing in words into the system and it will sing! There are now over 50 different voices ranging mostly in Japanese to Chinese, Korean, English, and Spanish). I submitted an email saying I was more than interested in designing their new VOCALOID and also sent some previous artworks I have done. (I didn’t realize until the day after it was due that I was late in submitting my entry) So the next day I got an e-mail from Voctro Labs saying that I was one of the selected artists to design the new Spanish VOCALOID! To sum the e-mail up, it said that after taking a loo at my work (among others who had submitted) that they thought that I would be a good candidate to design the VOCALOID. It said that I could design it freely with some restrictions with it being female, age 15-30, pop-diva style, drawn anime/manga style and had to be an original design. If my design is picked I have to give them all the rights to it but will be given a lot of credit. Demos of the voice were provided to give us an idea of the design and we have to complete it be the 15^th.

            My reaction to reading this ecstatic! I was so happy and surprised and couldn’t believe that they actually selected me! I was jumping up and down and just had to tell my friends and family. My mom made me call my dad at work just to tell him. Now, though, I don’t know what to do for her design and I haven’t started yet! I’m going to ask my best friend for help so hopefully (and I’m crossing my fingers for this) that I win. If my design gets chosen, my heart would literally skip a beat!

            The authors intent was obviously to inform the reader of the e-mail that we were chosen for this amazing and huge contest. They gave us details for the design and a deadline. And it bet it made everyone who read excited and ready to start working on this design as best as they could. (Now saying this makes me less confident knowing that there are most likely better artists but I guess I am still really good to be able to be in this group selected by Voctro Labs! Patterns of organization I observed are Order of Importance. The e-mail gave the more important information first saying that I was a candidate and then on to what they expect all the way to the deadline.

Here’s a link to the fan art of their previous Spanish VOCALOID’s that I did:

http://icetree13.deviantart.com/art/Bruno-and-Clara-384186803

Click the picture to enlarge

Free Choice Blog

Fruits Basket Chapter 1

          Fruits Basket is a manga series (japanese comic).

          The first chapter of the amazing series centers around a girl named Tohru Honda. After her mother past away and her grandfathers house having to be remodeled, Tohru decides to live on her own and pay for her own expenses all while living in a tent (without realizing she was on Sohma property). A student from her school and the man he's living with come upon her tent and welcome her to their home, and after he tent gets destroyed she ends up living with them until her fathers house is finished remodeled. While staying at the Sohma house, she comes upon a terrible secret. They turn into animals of the chinese zodiac when they are hugged by the opposite gender.

         I read this story twice since I love it so much, but even in the second read (which I just finished reading the chapter last nigh) it still made me laugh aloud and choose one male character over the other. The first time I ever read this story though was completely diferent. Reading this book was also my fisrt timereading a manga book, esecially reading from right to left. I thought the story was very strange and awkward. There were funny parts and some parts that I didnt understand but after reading it, I got hooked into the story and couldnt stop reading. This series was the start of my love for anime and manga! It literally changed my life!

         The pattern of organization I saw in this was chronological since when you read the story, you read as the events happen in order. There were some Order of Importance  for the impotant information first so you know what is happening in the story and the reason for why things are they way they are.

          If you are at all intersted in manga and/or not have yet read any, this would be the best series to start reading!