First off, just going to post this up on the eve before the long Memorial Day weekend. We have five days remaining until the end of the May Lineart Contest! Details below.
Secondly.
All you handsome dudes and fabulous femmes! Just a real quick reminder, and this is really super-duper important. Lineart that you see in the #
color-me-club gallery and contests
are free to color. You do not need to get permission before coloring anything you see within our confines.
However!
This does not mean
any lineart you see is fair game for coloring.
Remember to always take a moment and ask permission before coloring anothers' work. Sure, you might want to surprise them with your talent, or you're just a humble fellow practicing their craft. Buuuuuut...notice the lotsa u's there? That means something important's a rollin' in...BUUUUUUT, never ever ever do that. Remember that a lot of lineart, particularly the good stuff, is submitted to deviantArt with a lot of legal stuff tied to it.
A lot of times, high-end lineart are commissions, and the line artist only has permission to post a small resolution version of the piece simply for promotional purposes. Unfortunately, if a colorist were to jump on that promotional work to build their own repertoire, and fails to ask permission first, they
could create quite a ripple of trouble. The line artist could lose work as such an illegitimate distribution of his work hinders his reputation. What if another colorist was already paid to handle the colors, and you (being the amazing talented bloke you are) did a better job than them? For free? Guess what, the color artist runs the risk now of being told to stop what they're doing, and the color artist then loses the job.
All in all, it's only a matter of time before you end up stepping on some toes by failing to ask permission first. So many negative things can happen when artwork is sampled without permission. So remember to always, always,
always ask the line artist via note (never by comment, as those can be hard to see). Most line artists, even the popular ones, will respond to notes. Especially if the note contains a legitimate inquiry, and the inquiry can be address with a simple "yes/no" answer. It's literally no shavings off their pencil to write you back with coloring inquiries.
Yet in the off chance they do not respond to your note, don't accept that as permission either. Just move on. Not everyone checks dA regularly; some will be away for months at a time when their professional work schedules ramp up. So it's best not to risk it, and if you really need something to color right this moment...well...that's why
we exist. Artists who contribute their work to the #
color-me-club automatically give others permission to color it and post it to their dA pages, so with us, you get the luxury of skipping the writing/waiting/hoping phase with getting permission.
But that's why it's a
luxury. It's something you ordinarily have to do...pretty much any other time.
Don't sweat it if you get turned down, either. Even if they decline your offer to color their work, they'll still be grateful to you for having the initiative to ask, first.
The 
Presents---==
THE MAY LINEART CONTEST ==---
ZODIAC / SEVEN DEADLY SINS
This month, the running was close in a
Poll choosing this month's theme (where 'Friendship' came in dead last, you horrible antisocial monsters). So, as is usual protocol, we're taking the top two, putting all gurgling conflicts to bed, and throwin' y'all a big ol' bone of a deal with the opportunity to pick one of the top two themes: Zodiac or Seven Deadly Sins.
For suggesting these themes, not only do =
graceyanneiseki and =
Blaknite get this sparkling plot on our own monthly smathering of astrological hootnanny:
"Lusty Gemini!" 
...But have also won 500 dA points.
PRIZE LISTING
2,000 points by the #
color-me-club (see donation poll on
to contribute)
1,000 points by `
vestI'M DONE! HOW DO I SUBMIT TO THE CONTEST?
Submit your finished lines to your dA gallery, then send a note to the #
color-me-club or `
vest.
Entitle the note "May Lineart Submission." Inside of the note, include a [link] to your lineart. That's it. That's all you need to do to submit your entry to the lineart contest.
ANY SPECIAL RULES?
A few.
By contributing your lineart to this contest, you automatically agree to the rules listed herein, and give permission to the #
color-me-club to showcase your artwork in the #
color-me-club journal.
Only one entry per deviant.
Entries must be dated no earlier than May 1st, 2012.
Entries should be received by June 1st. While we still accept entries through voting, you understand that late entries will be uploaded when the club is updated, and the artist will lose potential votes with a late entry.
The lineart must be your own. Ripped or "sampled" lineart will be disqualified. This includes tracing. This does not include "referenced" images, you may use any image for reference. As long as you don't trace an existing image directly, you're free to use any image for reference to help you create your work.
Winners of previous contests ARE allowed to participate. There are no restraints for how often members can contribute. The game here isn't about winning. It's about creating.
You do not have to be a #
color-me-club member to participate. This is open to the whole dA community!
Lastly, have only one artist submit the image. Collaborative efforts are encouraged. However, ensure the other collaborator knows the image will be submitted to the contest, and determine who will be representing the image.
Best of luck, everybody!
`
vest
---==
Past Contest Winners: [link] ==---
Sta.sh
Countdown to The End of the May Lineart Contest
- If it's a question that an administrator needs to handle, send a note. Those are more direct means of contacting us, and will get your inquiry handled much more quickly.
