June Updates (2025): My plan to improve my newsletter (+ More)

Sharing my plan to improve my newsletter, updates on the manga project, kitties, and more!

Jun 30, 2025

Hello!

Welcome to a bonus article for you guys this month!

—Which I'm writing because I don't want to miss this chance to share some important things that happened this month or are currently happening.

I have a lot of cool things to share about, so let's keep this straight to the point and get started!

Manga Updates:

As I'm currently working on chapter 2, I haven't gotten any faster than last month. But I can see that my art looks way better than how it was 6 months ago!

So we're still on the right path, and I'm focusing on ways I can make faster progress.

For example, my sketching process is pretty time-consuming. So I'm cutting corners in that part of the process since none of the sketch layers are going to appear in the final pages.

I'll write a separate article about my plan to draw more in less time. (I’m sure the technique I have to share will help you too).

Now, moving on!

Newsletter updates:

I was thinking a lot about how to improve my newsletter, and I thought about how much it has changed since I first started.

My writing has changed a lot. I'm not sure if it has changed for the better, but it has changed to be more… me. And not a persona I created at the beginning because I'm nervous to enter a new community, and wanted to fit in.

My self-exploration journey in this newsletter helped me to express myself and be more me.

Have I improved? Statistics-wise, no. The growth has actually slowed down a lot and has been staying this way for months.

At this point, the old me would've worried. But not the current me, now that I have a clear idea of what to do. (On second thought, I don't have a clear idea of what to do, but I thought of some good ideas, though!)

After a year and a half of writing on Subtack, I finally found more ways to make use of my articles! (And it's not by purchasing and following a Substack writing course).

I thought of a new way to make use of my articles, other than just letting them sit there in my newsletter, waiting for people to open and read.

You know the online club I made for artists and aspiring manga artists on Discord? (Don’t leave— this isn't another self-promo, this aligns with my Substack goals).

There are currently 30 members in the club. And all, if not most of them, are passionate artists who want to learn, grow, and improve their art. (Although, I suspect some of them are bots).

My Substack newsletter is also where I share free art tips, tutorials, and guides. (Like the Beginners Manga Guide I posted yesterday). So it would make the perfect place to create and store art tutorials and resources for the members, if only— I have more art tutorials to share with them.

I'm going to revive the Art Journal series, and I'm going to teach a lot of things to both my Substack and Discord buddies!

In the title, I referred to this as my plan to improve my newsletter. And it is, because I'm continuously making a lot of changes and creating things behind the scenes, (like drawing manga, making resources, building my art portfolio, connecting with artists, etc). How does this help my newsletter? I’m eventually going to link these pages in my newsletter whenever they’re needed. Connecting things up, one helpful article leading to another helpful article.

But to be honest, you guys won't see many drastic changes from your perspective, other than I'm just— going to make more art tutorials.

—I’m saving that idea too, for right after I complete this Beginner's Clip Studio Paint course I'm making on the side.

Oh, wait! I didn't tell you guys about it, right? I'm making a course to teach the basics of Clip Studio Paint for beginners!

It might take a while to finish, so I'll share more about it in a future article. Stay tuned if you're looking to learn the software!

Updates on other things I want to share:

I really like my new home and our new neighbours I became friends with. There are two kids and their family next door. The kids and their mom often check on how my mom and I are doing. They give us snacks sometimes, and the kids will call me to come and play. I also get to move around more, so it's fun!

(My mom likes our neighbours but doesn't like our new apartment, though. I hope we get to stay here longer, despite the fact that Mom is already planning to move somewhere else).

The Art Class I was teaching two kids is on hold. Because they have exams coming up, and have to study. We will continue the art class once their exams are over.

Maylie, the cat, still comes to our house very often. She stopped holding back— she doesn't hesitate to go into our rooms even if we block her way, lol. (The white kitty you saw in my last Monthly Updates has stopped coming to our house, though. I don't know where to find him).

I've already shared about it in a few notes, but Maylie has two cute and playful kittens! Just look at the three of them!:

I tried to convince my mom to let me adopt them, but I couldn't. She says it's too much responsibility and we can't spend that much on cats.

Since I don't get an allowance very often, I’m planning to make crafts to sell on the side. Here's a good product idea I have: Resin keychains! I made some sample pieces to see how it goes. (Although I still have to attach chains to make them keychains):

(These are pretty bland, I have to make them more colourful ones to sell).

Our neighbour is really kind, she said she will let me know when there's a good craft stall, so that I can make a lot of resin crafts and sell them at the stall. So a huge thanks and shout out to her!

Until then, I'll use my free time to plant my seeds! (Aka, work on my manga, and improving the club, newsletter, and other stuff).

Thank you for reading! I hope you liked reading this article, and I hope it was helpful. Come again next week on Friday for a ✨new post✨

- Harshini

Harshini writes

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