The Long and the Short of It

Nobody panic, but Surviving Mars is going on a bit of a long hiatus. I say don't panic because Surviving Mars isn't over. Let me 'splain.

Over the last year or so, I've felt really distracted. The fact I started Super Heroes in Bars and Bigsby the Killer Rabbit and ended both within a few months because I didn't have time to draw two comics at once should have told me something. What I'm realizing is that I'm not the kind of artist that can stay with one story for years at a time. Writing is different, I can write a series for a very long time, and have with Fur Will Fly. Doing both, I tend to feel like writing isn't easier, but drawing is just more time consuming. And when you're both writing and drawing something you put all the more of yourself into it. And I like doing Surviving Mars, I do. But I have dozens of unrelated comic ideas swimming around in my head, and it gets me drifting away, so to speak.

So I've started to think about the nature of webcomics. The majority are serialized, update on a predetermined schedule, nearly indefinitely. It's almost like starting a webcomic is like getting married. If I'm thinking about so many other projects, am I really ready to marry one, yet?

So that got me to thinking about how story telling works in other mediums, movies in particular. Movies, even those with sequels, are centralized stories. They have a specific story to tell and they get it done within a certain amount of time. And you don't release five minutes of the film at a time until the whole things is finished, you make it, polish it, and then release it to the public.

So that's how I've decided to start handling my drawing-projects, now. Plot out a finite story and start posting it once it's finished, not as I'm creating it. What I'm describing is virtually the same concept as a graphic novel, something that's not the most accepted format for webcomics, I know, but I think it's a manner of creating that's going to suit me better.

What does this mean for Surviving Mars? It means I'm taking a break from it for awhile, hopefully no more than 9 months. When I do get back to it, it's going to be a graphic novel that's a sequel to the current series, and will be posted online and for free(Who loves you? That's right.). Much like how Firefly continued on in the film Serenity. Fret not, I'm not cutting it short like I did Saga of the Ram(My Graphic Smash project that came before SM.). Surviving Mars will get a conclusion before the hiatus, but it'll be a "to be continued."

Speaking of Saga of the Ram...

Gah, you know, it's killed me to be tight lipped about this lately, especially when people started talking about the series in unrelated forums, wondering what ever happened to it. Suffice to say, a series of unfortunate events took it off the web, in all it's "leave ya hanging" glory. It especially killed me when people started e-mailing me and asking if I had any future plans for it. It killed me because... yeah, I do.

You're hearing it here first: my first graphic novel project after Surviving Mars concludes is going to be based on The Ram. Just warning everyone who's a fan, it's not going to be the same character in every way, shape, or form. He's getting re imagined in a way that's drastic visually and changes the original premise, but leaves a lot of his history intact. I'm hoping it'll be good for both new readers and the ones who knew the character in his original incarnation.

Well, that was a lot to get out. Hope you'll all bear with me as this gets rolling.

Latest Comic

For anyone who bothered to scroll down, here's the latest update. My ISP is down and I had to update at the library, which wouldn't let me into my WCN account. Heavy sigh.

Ch-ch-changes

Well guys, the break is over, but things are going to be changing for the comic. Taking the break made me realize I’ve been in a rut. And I realize the real problem is my lifelong dream has been a career in comics, and since I’ve left college I’ve done little to really pursue that dream. It’s been almost two years, and I’ve done little besides just WANTING it. What this means for Surviving Mars is that I’m reducing the update schedule to once a week, on Monday. This will allow me to use more of my time to work on a project that will hopefully get me a little closer to my dream. The Monday updates will be Sunday-strip sized so there’ll be more to love.

Okay, I've been a Dick

My Public Apologies List:

1) Ryan North- I told you to fuck off, and in retrospect, that was wrong of me. I don’t agree with you on a lot of points, and I doubt I’ll ever be a Dinosaur comics supporter, but it’s time for me to admit I was the dick in this situation, not you. So I apologize for my public and vehement criticism of your comic, and the way I treated you yourself.

2) T Campbell- Since I left Graphic Smash, our friendship hit the skids, and it did so because of my own efforts. I took the decision you made regarding that project I was going to draw for you too personally. What you had to do couldn’t be helped, but my actions were deliberate, and to that end I see now that they were unwarranted. I know I’ve already apologized for this before, but I wouldn’t be the level of creator I am now if not for your advice and influence, so that end I can’t apologize enough.

3) The collective force behind Comixpedia- I doubt I’ll ever agree with the points made in your review of my now ended work on Saga of the Ram. It did cut me deep, and I convinced myself because I’d been a contributor to your publication, that this was a betrayal. But the truth is, I knew all along you were just doing what a publication like this supposed to do- review and assess creative works for their readers. I know not everyone is going to like my comics, that’s just not how human nature works. But I was angry at the time, and I’m the kind of person that let’s my anger get the better of me. I just want to say you’re a good group of people, and I really do respect what your publication is trying to do for webcomics as a whole.

So, why am I doing this publically? Because these were all mistakes I’d made publically. I don’t expect forgiveness, or really even want it. Over the last year I’ve made a lot of mistakes and stepped on a lot toes that didn’t deserve stepping on. In these particular instances, I was just being a big dick, and it’s time I owned up to that. Starting crap with people and holding grudges, and I speak from the experience of a rather miserable several months, it’s just not a good way to live. It’s certainly not the kind of person I wanted to be or wish to be in the future.

Surviving Mars has been Tangented

Well, it has. http://tangent.panel2panel.com/tan-ch-0175.html

My Interview on The Pulse

My first interview!

http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=36;t=004148

That was a good ego boost

Where Your Vote Will Actually Count

As of right now, the best way you, the readers, can help Surviving Mars is to vote for it in the Buzz Comix Top 100. All you have to do is click on the voting button on the Surviving Mars main page once a day and confirm your vote. It's that simple, and the higher the strip is on the listing, the more attention it will gain.