April newsletter (Patreon)

Hi.

March.... was a thing. 

Also I wrote this whole newsletter and when I pressed publish, Patreon went down and I lost it! So now I'm rewriting it, but tired from writing the first draft, so this one might be weird. LOL HAPPY APRIL FOOLS

anyway...

• Calendar attached!
• Click here (Advanced Access+) for the 14 LIVE credits survey 

Thumbs for 14 LIVE are done!

It's 25 pages currently and has some good moments like: Sybil teasing Diana about her "type" and Freddi being a tall shy bird.

2X HEAT coming end of April

HEAT is the first full chapter that will be produced with assistance from Rogue in her position as production assistant... and it is SO COOL to have help. I can't really explain it, and I look forward to her assistance improving the overall quality and schedule of the comic!

2022 schedule...

So, I had originally hoped to get to the finale of Act 2 on the 2022 Familiarversary, but I am not sure it's going to happen. The finale, I think, will be chapter 15. But, since this is a big deal, I am going to prioritize narrative pacing over a cool date. At this time, assuming I remain on schedule, I foresee chapter 14 dropping at the end of August. This could conceivably mean, with Rogue's help and if I bust ass, I could get another chapter squeezed in in time for an end of September drop. However, if that jeopardizes the quality, or if the chapter just doesn't pan out the way I plan it to, I will be pushing back into the autumn.

That all said, I still think we will see Rosemary and Diana (and Jack and Freddi) smooching by the end of the year :) Thanks for sticking with me.

and some personal stuff...

In March I received some tragic news about someone within my friends and creative colleagues circle. This has been haunting me since I learned about it. Not only because I'm still dealing with grief, but also because my friend was an incredible creative who struggled to find a place where his life's work could exist - and also support him in our materialist and capitalist nightmare hellscape. 

I still don't know where my work fits into the pantheon of the great creative library, but the fact that you all are here sustaining me financially in exchange for this comic... is really huge for me. It is hard to do art and also make money, because it's personal, and takes a lot out of the creator, and especially with how everything is just "content" on the internet, it can often feel like it's not only meaningless spiritually, but also unable to generate the income necessary to be alive.

So this is my usual thank you and expression of gratitude, but also, with a little additional thought and context. In March, we saw the second highest growth since the Patreon launched in 2019. There are a lot of reasons I think this happened, but all those reasons boil down to the simple fact that you all are here supporting me and Familiar, and sharing it with those you think it will matter to, and ON TOP OF THAT, you are contributing financially so that I can buy food and pay my mortgage, so that I can make this content. 

I really can't say how important it is to me. To not only be able to have financial stability, but to have it in exchange for creating work that is important to me. Making important art is often an experience characterized by loneliness and like you're shouting into the void, which can quickly spiral into much darker and painful places. 

So, I just wanted to express my gratitude with this dimension in focus. And also, if you are ever feeling yourself slip into that spiral yourself, PLEASE reach out. We have to be here for each other. 

J