Make a Character
A character is one illustrated figure from a novel on DawnScribe. Readers collect them, tap them to hear them talk, and build affection with them over time.
Art standards: please read before you submit
- We only accept high-quality, anime-style digital art. Every character is reviewed by hand, and we turn down work that doesn't meet the standard.
- What we look for: clean, confident linework; fully coloured and shaded (cel-shaded or painted both work); consistent anatomy and proportions; a finished look with no stray sketch lines or empty areas, and a design that reads clearly even at small sizes.
- Not accepted: semi-realistic or realistic styles, even with anime features.
- Not accepted: traditional art (pencil, ink, paint or marker on paper), including scans or photos of it. Digital work only.
- Not accepted: plain line art, flat uncoloured sketches, or unfinished pieces.
- A rejection isn't a verdict on you. It means this piece isn't ready yet. You'll get a note on what held it back. Use it, keep practising, and submit again. Plenty of great artists were turned down before they got in.
Donate first, then sell
- Your first character goes into the free randomizer. Readers can win it with Embers, forever. Donating one unlocks selling characters and taking character commissions. A donated banner doesn't count — each kind needs its own donation.
- After that, set a price between 50 and 5,000 Quills (100 Quills is about $1).
- From your own novel: you keep 75% of every sale.
- From someone else's novel: its author approves it first, then you keep 55% and the author gets 20%. DawnScribe keeps 25% either way.
- Buyers keep a character forever — it's never retired from their collection.
The art you'll need
- Full figure: 1200 × 1800 px (2:3), transparent PNG, feet at the bottom.
- Portrait crop: 512 × 512 px, head centred so it still reads inside a small circle. This is what shows in comments and lists.
- Four faces: neutral, pleased, annoyed and surprised, each 512 × 512. The head must not move between them — same eye line, size and position — or it visibly jumps when the character talks.
- Your own original work only — no AI-generated, traced or borrowed art. No explicit or sexual content.