I have been using the pen name Zilvmay for about… FIFTEEN YEARS!? That name meant so many things to me for so long and was even a shared name with one of my characters. It was oftentimes my only connection to art while I pushed through working full time and living alone and struggling for 8 years. I am grateful for what it has done for me and how that character’s story has shaped the way I create, but it is time to move on.
I am steadily entering a new chapter in my life (at the end of a weird interlude) and it is time for a new name and a new identity, in terms of art and creativity. My life has changed so much in the last three years, and though it hasn’t always been smooth, I am beyond grateful for where I’ve ended up.
I no longer struggle on my own just to get by and I get to live with my best friend and have regular ‘adventures’. I was able to go back to college and study graphic design, discover I kinda love building websites, but most importantly, I was able to reconnect with art, my stories (kinda), and my creativity as a whole.
I feel like I have found myself again by just letting myself sit and draw a little bit every day!
It had been closer to five or six years since I had just sunk into my art, rather than just drawing for a few days and forgetting about it for a month.
It was a difficult task to rebrand myself. Largely because Its hard to clearly say what it is that I can really be summed up to. I also had some difficulty feeling as if I was allowed to use the name Mystic Bat.
Was I really cool enough to evoke a mystical bat??
It can be hard to allow ourselves the grace to just, be who we feel like. Realizing this what was holding me back, I decided to buy that domain name, get those handles for Instagram and Facebook, and set up the new youtube channel. I often hear that I am confident or brave, and really, I sense my fear and just don’t let myself tell me no. I’m panicking the whole time, but I won’t let it stop me!
Annywaaaaay…
I want to thank all of you, personally, for even being here to read this and support me in any real way at all. I am so excited to see what I can do with Mystic Bat Studio, and to hopefully share all of it with you!