#WarriorNunInktober Series Part 1
October was a very hard month for the #WarriorNun fandom but for many of us going back to the basics was a great coping method. When the fan art started appearing on the timeline it was a reminder of how vital our fandom artists are and how much joy they bring to each of us. This week we celebrate those that participated in #WarriorNunInktober and helped remind each of us why we love Warrior Nun.
The focus of part one is on the “impulsive idea” by Skye for #WarriorNunInktober and the amazing work shared throughout the month.
OCS: Name/Twitter Handle: @e_l_skye and elskye
OCS: A little about yourself
I’m Skye, or purplesky24 on AO3. I’m a storyteller, and I do that mainly through my writing. I like drawing and painting too, though I don’t do nearly enough of these.
OCS: How did you discover Warrior Nun?
The kiss scene started popping up on my twitter timeline around the time S2 was released, and my interest was piqued. When I saw the personal space meme, I was sold. I was hooked right from episode 1.
OCS: What made you want to fight to save the show?
It’s such a special show for so many reasons. Two of the biggest ones for me: One, the mostly female, all-badasses ensemble cast. Many shows have one or two badass female characters, but I haven’t seen another where there are so many, and all of them are special and complex in their own right. Their relationships with each other are also multi-layered and beautiful.
Two, Beatrice’s coming out story really resonated with me. I haven’t heard anyone else speak about it as plainly as, “what you love, what should make you happy, only brings you pain”. It really spoke to me as someone who struggles to associate the word “pride” with this part of my identity, because it caused so much pain in my life (I’m better now, though it’s an ongoing process). And to see Beatrice’s journey alongside Ava (who has such a beautiful story of her own) is beautiful and life-affirming.
There are so many more reasons (including Avatrice of course). But to me, it’s a show that deserves so much more time and space to flesh out the stories that have touched the hearts of so many.
OCS: What is WarriorNunInktober and some of the rules?
WarriorNunInktober is a custom take on Inktober, which is a very big online challenge that has been going on for many years. The idea is simple - one drawing a day for every day in October. There is usually a prompt list to guide the process. It started out as a challenge for pen and ink artists, hence “Inktober”, but over the years many people make their own spin in terms of themes or mediums or styles.
WarriorNunInktober is the same - there is a Warrior Nun-themed prompt for every day in October, and folks are encouraged to draw something for it. I also didn’t want to make it so strict that it was stressful - if folks wanted to do only a few of the prompts or if they missed a few days, that’s totally fine. It’s really about having fun.
OCS: What inspired the idea of WarriorNunInktober?
The WN fandom has so many great artists whose art I’ve enjoyed. I’ve been inspired by them to create my own fanart. I’m more of a writer than an artist though, and I needed more structure. I’ve participated in Inktober once before, and since October was coming up and I wanted to draw only WN art, I figured, why not come up with a WN prompt list? And it would be amazing to get other fans to do the challenge with me.
OCS: How did you come up with the prompts?
Good question! I came up with a random list of WN-related words at first, and then I refined it to make sure I have a good distribution across types and characters, and I spaced them out across the month. I also made some arbitrary selections, like having a Beatrice-focused prompt (Aikido) on National Coming Out Day to honor her, and also to end with the WN symbol for celebration - the Lemon Drop :)
People have taken their own spins on each of the prompts so it’s not always a match with my original intention, and it’s always a pleasant surprise when an artist takes things in a different direction!
Here is a screenshot of my gsheet if there’s interest (and these are very loose categorizations, mind you, don’t fight me I did them very quickly):
OCS: Were you surprised with how many artists contributed?
Yes! I was a little worried at first because of how Twitter seems like it’s falling apart and it might be hard to get the word out. Huge thanks to the SaveWarriorNun substack that featured my tweet, and also admins who keep up the servers that I’ve posted the prompt list in! There are new works every day, and I’ve even seen contributions from artists I haven’t seen before, so it was great! There are works across Bluesky and Instagram too, so check those out!
There are also a few writers who wrote fics based on the prompts, and that was a pleasant surprise that was very much welcome too!
OCS: Do you have a favorite day prompt?
Not really, I think WN is a great show on so many layers, and there are so many things to create art off of that I honestly don’t have a favorite. All of them are exciting to me!
OCS: Favorite drawing?
This is too hard a question, there are so many :)
OCS: How did you find inspiration for some of the drawings?
It’s perhaps easier for me – I suck at original composition but I can copy scenes. So I mostly tried to pick a scene that spoke to the prompt.
OCS: On average how long does one drawing take?
I tried to keep it between 45-60 min. On days when I was busy or really tired, I picked a simpler scene (e.g. the OCS cross was a quick one) to draw, which could cut it to 20-30 min.
OCS: How many hours do you think you spent drawing for the WarriorNunInktober event?
Maybe 25-32 hours (there were a handful that took longer than 1 hour)
OCS: What was your favorite day prompt?
Too hard to say
OCS: What was the hardest prompt or drawing?
The 23rd prompt - Cane. I attempted the scene after Ava revived Mother Superion in S2 and they were hugging and laughing on the floor. It was so hard to get Mother Superion’s expression right. It took a long time and I’m still not really happy with it, but in the end I had to call it a day and move on.
OCS: What is your favorite drawing you submitted?
This is so hard :( I’d say some of my favorites (in no particular order): #2 Angel (Shannon), #17 Habit (Lilith in S1), #31 Lemon Drop (Avatrice), #7 Sisters (Mary and Lilith in S1E9), #19 Only one bed (Avatrice), #21 Sword (Ava)... yes I’ll shut up now.
OCS: Any positive message you would like to send to the fandom?
I know it’s been a long and hard fight and things look uncertain right now. There are days where I hold on to hope and days where I’m just exhausted and sad. Honestly, art keeps me sane – fanfics, fanarts, all the projects and campaigns that are going on.
To me, art is about connection. Warrior Nun told a story that resonated with so many of us and brought us together, and I think the best way to honor it as we keep fighting for it is to keep making art of our own, to keep telling our own stories and keep creating beautiful things. And by these I don’t just mean fanfics and fanarts, but also the memes, the projects, all the fun stuff we do. These are things that no one would be able to take from us.