Edited once more! This person's new dA account can be found at ~Riymessess. Her new website is (for the moment--I reported it) here. Keep a sharp eye on her, as she's still using art she traced from mine.

Now I go ram my head into a hard surface.

Seriously, does she think this is some sort of joke? STOP STEALING MY ARTWORK. I DON'T CARE HOW BAD THOSE TRACES ARE; YOU USED MY ARTWORK TO MAKE THEM.

Edited again: My art is on this person's website. I've contacted her through SheezyArt, as I cannot contact her through dA, but if you find another way of letting her know she needs to take those works down immediately, please tell me or do it yourself. I'm absolutely horrified that she's still passing my work off as her own.

Edited to say: Over 170 items. 170. Some of them I had only posted in my LiveJournal and not yet put on dA. One character sheet from an uncoming NaNo I'm going to share with all of you next month. Chapter art from Dans la Lune. Illustrations from Adage. From Act II. From AUs. All of these things were traced. This person made up stories about where she got her references, and told her watchers they could color the lines (and some people did).

Because this person has posted some of the work on Deviant Art (there are still a few lingering things in her scraps as of 10AM this morning, including this; my original here), and because she's hidden comments and apparently prematurely banned me from being able to contact her, I'm letting you all know that if you see any work by *KayStreet on dA or her SheezyArt account of the same name, it's possibly traced. (She seems to have hidden, not deleted, most of her SheezyArt submissions. This still includes my pieces.)

She's even stolen one of my pieces and called it her own. No tracing. No nothing. As she's been claiming my art as her own for so many months and for so many pieces and clearly didn't want me saying anything about it, I'm posting this to warn everyone that she might do this again. Please don't let her. I have to reorganize and hide artwork and watermark over 400 pieces because of her. It isn't funny and it isn't fair to take half of my pieces, sometimes within DAYS after I drew them, and say you did all the work. And it's even more disgusting to tell people they can use the lineart for their own work.

Completely disgusting. I've never been so offended by someone's behavior. I share my work because I love my stories and love my characters and the characters of the friends with whom I write. I love them enough to want to see if other people will love them, too. They are not yours to play with unless you ask permission. And you must ask permission and then be granted it, or you will be reported. Maybe not by me, but by someone else who catches you.

I never like to post people's journals on my dA unless they've really pushed my buttons, and being stolen from over a hundred times by one person, a person who has the gall to block me so that I don't comment and tell her, has pushed all of them.

My characters are my characters. The effort I put into my art is my own. How dare you try to tell people anything otherwise.



NOT TO LOWER THE TONE (and the previous post with links and an actual layout will return when I have time and am not irritated), but please don't take my art and trace it. You know that I allow people to use my art for their own personal references and improvement, but that should only be private. So if you must share it, please don't take credit for it. And don't say that you got the refs from Google or Dance.net (because even if you find a reference I used, I still know my own art and lines and know you copied my work, and not the ref). And don't let people use the work as references. Or let people color your line art.

Because that line art is mine. The work that went into it is mine.

And moreover, the characters I draw are mine, and you are taking them and giving them new coloring and names and stories. You're taking this from my stories. Five and a half years of development and love with close friends. And you've stolen from those close friends, too, because I don't just draw my personal characters; I draw theirs, as well.

I'm not going to name names. I'm not going to point people at the person. I was notified today by a couple of people from a different website. They expressed concern that I was being traced and are taking care of the situation. And I reported all of the traced work I found here on dA. It's possible that this person has traced other people's work, but as that's mere speculation, I'm not going to send people after them. I'll let dA do what it does with my reports, and see what happens after.

Oh, and if you're going to trace my work, please do not restrict me from commenting on your page before I even know about it. That just makes me go straight to reporting things rather than trying to strike up a conversation and give warning. I tend to like to give people second chances and time to give credit or delete on their own, but if you're clearly trying to hide, you only have yourself to blame. Every major issue with art thieves has come down to this: hiding my comments or arguing with me.

Remember that I never find this work. I don't active look for theft. I know there has to be more out there, but I tend to like to close my eyes and pretend everyone is being fair. So when I find out, it's not because I found it on my own. People show it to me. I don't send my dA watchers after anyone. Some of my close friends might find the work and leave comments, but it isn't because I came to my dA and cracked a whip and told my thousand watchers to do something. I wouldn't unless it became a serious issue. I really don't enjoy this; in fact, I get severely angry and tense and can't focus. Right now I have a massive headache.

In conclusion, tracing dozens and dozens (AND DOZENS) of my pieces and stealing one without tracing it is just not okay. At all. I shouldn't have to say that. So from now on, there's going to be a watermark. If this continues, I'll be doing a lot more locking things down, which is something I never wanted to do. I have to protect my work; I want to see this shit published one day (well, you know, refined work--BUT SAME CHARACTERS AND STORIES) and I really don't want it all compromised.

And can I say this again and loudly: DO NOT GIVE OUT THE LINEART YOU TRACED. INNOCENT PEOPLE WILL GET HURT BECAUSE THEY'RE COLORING THE LINES YOU STOLE. IT'S NOT OKAY TO TELL PEOPLE THEY CAN COLOR THE WORK YOU TOOK FROM SOMEONE ELSE.