So, usually if someone wants a sig they will browse artists and then when they find one they like they submit a request in that artists post. However, I am finding it increasingly difficult to find one that can make me a sig in less then a months time. Could we have some sort of different way to do this? Perhaps making a separate post requesting a signature and then artists who indeed do have the time, can post and let the person know they are available?
The problem with doing a randomly assigned sig list is that each artists style is very different so to get one you like it's best to ask the sig maker of your choice directly. I usually try to guesstimate how long it will take to finish but the requester can also look through the waiting list that most of us post on our first message, or just ask "how many have you got to work on ahead of mine?" Communication is the key. Do your part as well, if asked for more information and/or screenshots do you best to get them as quickly as you can so you don't hold up the rest of those waiting.
Yeah I see what you are saying, just sometimes sig makers go MIA for a while (RL happens.. and of course they too play the game! lol) so was just trying to come up with a better way.
RL is the killer here, unfortunately. For instance, there have been times when I would get a request and finish it the same day, usually within hours...and then there are times like now, when there are a lot of other things that need my attention and it takes me months to find enough time to hammer out one request. It really, really sucks -- I hate making people wait as much as they hate waiting -- but you can never predict how many pressing matters will impose themselves and when. All that being said, if we all brainstorm and manage to come up with a better way to handle requests, I'd be happy to volunteer my website design and/or code skills, if needed.
The most important thing to remember, Sidora, is that the signature artists here are providing this service for FREE and on OUR own spare time. If we were getting paid for our work (and getting paid enough to cover our bills), then most certainly, you would see a better response time. However, we are not, and we must pay our bills somehow... especially our internet, EQ2, and software bills for the plug-ins we like to purchase so much. We siggy artists have lives of our own too: jobs, families, friends, and the desire to play the game we love so much. I'm not saying that to make anyone feel guilty, just to point out that RL will always always come first, and sometimes that means people will have to wait for their sig orders. Generally, when I know that I will be busy and will take a long time to finish an order, I place a notice on my thread that I have requests on hold and, sometimes, what the expected turnaround time is for me (typically a week). For example, I had a period of 3 or 4 months where all requests were on hold. Now I'm open to limited requests, but I'm not opening a waiting list. I will also let requesters know when there are orders in front of them. "Thanks for the order, Johnny Q. I'd love to make your sig, but I have two orders in front of you, and turnaround is usually a week. Do you mind waiting a few weeks for your sig to be done?" I also expect communication from the people requesting, which I prefer to handle via email. It might be days or even weeks before I check my SOE forum PMs or even my sig thread. It's always best to send me email and then to follow up after a few days. "Hey, Sapph. What's the progress on my sig?" I have learned from experience who the most reliable sig artists on the forums are. They may not be fastest <coughs> like my slow-poke self <coughs> but they will get the sig done and have it looking beautiful to boot. If you can think of a better system, you're welcome to share with us, but until then, it's up to the artist to notify potential requesters when they're request lists are getting full... just like it's up to the requester to understand that artists have things they need to take care of too.
I do understand that sig artists are making these sigs for free. Not once did I expect anyone to jump when I clapped and do things on my time and not theirs. While its our job to get everything a sig artist needs in a timely manner, its also proper for the sig artist to let the person know an estimated time frame as well as communicate to the person if they can no longer meet the time frame or in the worse cast scenario - no longer finish the sig. I dont know of a better system, I was just asking to see if we could come up with something. After all, it is disheartening for someone to request a sig from a sig maker who says they have the time to do it and then a month later still nothing. I was hoping we could put our brains together and come up with a neat system for both artists and requesters.
