Update - September 16

[ShadowsMyst]

I meant to do this earlier in the month, but Che and I were still feeling things out.

So, many of you are wondering what's going on. I can't say I blame you. I'll just lay it out here.

In November of last year, I was asked to help with a convention. It started with just organizing a small artist alley (about 15-20 people). By December it had progressed to organizing the Vendors, managing the website, and doing all the graphic design for this convention. (there were 2 other designers, but they buggered off.). Eventually because the Artist alley people couldn't get their stuff together, I ended up shadow managing that too, as well as later dealing with industry tables as well. Eventually I was managing well over 100 vendors of various sorts.

The convention was combined effort between three groups. However, the largest of these three groups were EXTREMELY difficult and toxic to work with. They couldn't get their shit together, and they didn't seem to know the meaning of deadlines and made it clear at every turn that they did not want to be team players.

From January until the very end of June, I was consumed by running this convention. Half the time I felt like I was one of the very few bits of string that was holding this thing together. I got the money when they needed it. I got the advertising material and branding program together, got their website done, got everything done on time and under budget despite EVERY curve ball they threw me, and at the end of it all spent basically 72 hours running around like a chicken with my head cut off, with 4 hour sleep breaks, very little food and getting yelled at and putting out fires.

Needless to day, after all that, i was extremely burnt out. Not just creatively, but completely and utterly exhausted.

I managed to find a lull enough to get a page done in May. I was hoping I could find more time, but I couldn't. And when the con was over, I literally collapsed into a heap. Every bit of energy I had was sapped from my pores. I couldn't even think of working on ANYTHING. I needed to recharge. I'm not a student, I'm not a youngin anymore. I have a full time job. I did take some vacation in there (which got usurped to move people), but it wasn't enough. Its taken nearly 10 weeks to start feeling something like relaxed and vaguely creative.

Che, meanwhile, has moved into her second year of college in Commercial Animation. She's doing amazing things with her artwork, but the second year is pretty intense. She's up to her eyeballs in homework every night, and might, maybe, have enough time on the weekends between commissions (she needs to pay for things first) and homework to get ONE page of Shifters colored in a month.

I know you guys don't want one page a month. (Although I'm sure you guys will probably say you'll take what you can get at this point.)

I have been working on line art in the last little while. I've got a couple of pages done. I want to finish issue 3 and then kind of release it in rapid succession. My problem is, coloring adds a lot of time for me (i'm very slow at it) without Che's help. The pages, designed to be colored, are very... boring? as just line art. I also just personally hate putting out a sub par, half finished product, which has kind of left me in a quandary as to how to proceed. The other difficult part is that this is the end of a fight scene with some very difficult angles, and I'm having trouble with making it look right/understandable.

And then we can add on top of all this I got the new Mangastudio which is like a completely different program. I'm trying to learn it, but its very different. Right now I'm working on the actual comic in the old program, but I'm trying to find if there is a way in the new one that I could color faster.

I know we still owe some rewards to Chepretiation people. We haven't forgotten, we just suck. I'm working on my art debts right now as well, which includes some outstanding art commissions, and stuff like the Chepretiation rewards. I'm trying to clear all obligations so I can feel.. lighter? I don't feel burdened by outstanding things. It does help me feel more motivated and relaxed, which is what I need to feel creative. I have been considering a Patreon to help pay for Che's time to color. If I could pay her, I could get more of her time, but I can't promise much in terms of rewards at the moment. That may change, I don't know. If you would be interested in contributing to that, let me know.

TL:DR - Che's busy with school, I'm just recovering from burnout. I'm working on stuff. It will come in some form here, hopefully soon. But it might not be as pretty as you are used to. Please feel free to ask me questions.

[Gorble]

Thanks for the update. I know I've been somewhat away, though checking in from time to time.

My goodness sounds like quite the load to finally have off your shoulders. Real life has that habit of sucking some times as well as there not being enough hours in a day to get things done.

I'm one of those happy with whatever save of course if you announced you were calling the whole thing off then I might be a tish miffed. Of course that doesn't seem likely, but I do worry. Even so I realize you're only human and that as much as it sucks you have things like a job and such that sorta help that not starving or living on the streets problem. Do what you can when you can and maybe things will work out.

As for the Chepretiation, you guys don't suck. It took me how long to remember you mentioning something about a reward? After seeing what a busy and draining time you've had of late I'd rather let you rest and recharge instead of cracking the proverbial whip.

[Jon]

"I know you guys don't want one page a month. (Although I'm sure you guys will probably say you'll take what you can get at this point.)"

As the saying goes, You hit the nail on the head.

As long as the comic does not die I'm happy ^^. Don't let people work you into the ground. Its your life and your time, do with it as you will.

Sounds like you could use help but sadly I have no idea who you would ask for that in the colouring department. Though I have to agree better a finished page that takes 1-3 months then only line art.

Either way great to hear from you and Good Luck!

[Che]

-Gurgles-

What is life, even.

Just to give you all a heads up, I am two weeks into classes in my 3rd semester, which is often referred to as the hardest semester of my program. I have done enough work in these two weeks, to match up with how much work i did in a month last year.

It is

intense, to say the least.

What's worse is I'm behind right now, in terms of doing my homework last minute. But that's because I haven't gone in on the weekend yet. So, going to go in on the weekend. I'm going to try and give myself a day off each week, but I have no idea how that's going to work.

I'm gonna try, friends. I'm gonna try.