This was a big issue when I lived in Texas. Texas has a ton of positions that are elected, so our ballots are long with lots of minor races. Many candidates don't have websites. The only way to get info on them is from local papers that are paywalled. You have to pay to make an informed vote

It seems the new rules wouldn't stop parents naming their kid Pikachu. They could still name their kid ピカチュウ or ぴかちゅう or choose 当て字. They just couldn't create new readings for kanji. Imo this feels more like an attempt to preserve the linguistic "purity" of kanji readings than protecting kids

I see that argument, but how common are kids named Pikachu really? Is this a legit problem or a couple of niche cases that have gone viral? Virtually all the kids I met with キラキラ names when I was an ALT had relatively normal names, just with slightly unconventional kanji (ie 輝星 as りゅうせい)

Whatever you feel is completely valid, but at the same time, I like your art. I even made a Patreon account purely because I wanted to support your art. I think it's normal in any creative practice to have ebbs and flows in your confidence. I have faith that you'll find that spark again eventually