October Recap and Behind-the-Scenes

Hello, all! October is traditionally a very busy month for me, and this year didn’t disappoint! There were a lot of ups and downs, but overall I’m really excited with everything that has happened since my last monthly update.

Firstly, I’d love to welcome all the new patrons this month. Over 20 people joined in October, making it the biggest month of growth since launch the page! Thank you and welcome to our little crew.

This is another monster of an update, so I’ll just jump into it:

October Recap:

Vampupper shirts

I started the month running customer support on shop orders for the vampupper shirt. This was my first time shipping shirts myself (they’re typically fulfilled through Printful) so there was a definite learning curve regarding proper shipping and fulfillment. I learned a lot and would be willing to try something similar in the future so long as I gave myself more time to prep and pack. The deadline to get shirts to people was really tight, which I think added unnecessary stress. However, it was an amazing feeling seeing people sport their shirts once they got them:

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Inktober

For the first time in five years, I decided to participate in Inktober. For those who might not know, Inktober is a challenge for artists to create one drawing a day using traditional ink. I joined my friends Enzo and Jane, and we decided to buck tradition by sticking to digital art, as it fit best with all of our busy schedules. I ended up creating 16 drawings during the challenge, which is better than I managed in previous years. Given the other projects I was working on, I’m very proud of how much I accomplished! Most years I don’t even bother attempting because I always have major deadlines in October.

I stuck to the theme of drawing the DnD classes as dogs, then began drawing the zodiac signs as dogs. I didn’t complete the set of zodiac drawings, but I’d like to continue that series at some point in the future. In case you missed it, here are a couple of my favorites:

Warlock

Virgo

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October Patron Livedraw

This month’s livedraw was crazy! We had quite a few patrons show up, and the beloved mascot, Clive the Rock, also made an appearance. Several viewers and patrons ended up donating money during the stream, which was completely unexpected and incredibly generous. 

Some of my favorite doodles from the stream were: 

Clive the Rockstar

Super Saiyan Doodle

Clive fixes the printer

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Postcards

During the second half of October I wanted to celebrate patrons by doing something extra special. I offered to send each of you a postcards with a handwritten thank you. 

The postcards were shipped off two Mondays ago, and are making their way to their new homes. Many patrons in the US have already received theirs, and some international patrons have received theirs already. If you haven't received your postcard by the end of this month, please let me know and I'll send you another one.

Regarding the cards, I’d like to make a brief apology. This was my first time experimenting with sending postcards, and though I was expecting some wear and tear on the cards in the mail, I wasn’t expecting the level of damage some patrons reported. This could be due to the material of the cards, exposure to poor weather, or just a crummy delivery person. Regardless, I’m truly sorry to the patrons that received cards in poor condition, because I wanted it to be a fun and special moment, and I feel like for some it may have been a bit of a let down. I’m going to do my best to make it up to you! 

Overall, I really enjoyed getting to know more about each of you through this, and I feel a bit closer to you all because of it. Thank you for your patience and support.

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Dr. Dog comics and Merch

Perhaps the thing I’m most happy with last month, is the completion of the Dr. Dog mini series! I originally planned 10 comics for Dr. Dog, but because books are printed with page counts in increments of 4, I realized I needed to make another two comics in order to finish the zine. I somehow managed to create an additional two comics in the same week I was planning to send the zine off to the printer, which was some kind of small miracle. 

I printed the zines, which turned out wonderfully! I like to think that the practice I’m getting with putting together these smaller collections will be massively helpful when it comes time to put together a full-length book. Also, making a published version of the comics feels like a really nice way to wrap up each character’s story arc.

In between inktober drawings, normal comics, and con prep, I slowly put together a couple of other merch designs that have been buzzing around my brain for awhile. One of the main goals I set for myself this year was to work on merch more, and I'm happy to say I've succeeded at that goal so far this year. These designs are taking a small step toward being stand alone designs that don’t really need a comic for context. Eventually I’d love to start developing the shop into its own sort of ‘brand’ that people could recognize without being readers of my work.

Here’s a sneak peek of one of the shirts: 

A long awaited cat drawing! Don't worry, there's also a dog version

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Alamo City Comic Con

The remaining part of October was spent preparing for my final show of the year, Alamo City Comic Con. Most of the shows I attended this year have been successful, but unfortunately ACCC was not one of them. Tabling at cons is a very complicated subject, mainly because of the massive amounts of money and time needed to attend. Not all artists are able or willing to pay the upfront costs needed for a con, because it can be quite a risky financial move. Cons are something I personally like to do because I like the change of pace and the challenge, but I also take on the risk every time I sign up for one. There are a lot of factors that can make or break a con, and it’s impossible to know whether a show will be successful until you’re actually on the floor peddling your wares. 

I’d heard good things about this convention and I love San Antonio, so I went all out with prepping, including investing heavily in new merch. Unfortunately, as with all business dealings, you have some good times and some bad times. At ACCC this year, many people didn’t do well in terms of sales, including myself. 

When I encounter a bummer situation, I try to focus on the positive aspects and to take away tidbits of knowledge to help me improve and grow in the future. With that being said, my favorite things from the ACCC weekend include:

• I tabled with my friend Pat, who I haven’t seen in person since Planet Comicon last year
• I met a lot of readers (and even a patron!) who remembered me from the first time I visited San Antonio for PAX South 
• I got to see a lot of cool parts of San Antonio I’ve never seen before, and eat some awesome food.
• I met up with a lot of local artists, and picked their brains for information on attending conventions

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Burnout

I’d like to be honest with you guys about times when I’m struggling, because I think it’s good to share and show that things aren’t always at 100% on my end. The very end of October had a few disappointing and stressful events occur back-to-back. I had issues with plumbing in my house, my second job, and other personal events. These, along with some work stuff I wasn’t happy with, left me feeling frustrated and disappointed with myself. 

I’ve learned to recognize that these feelings pop up when I’ve stretched myself too thin and need to rest and recharge. I also know these feelings are the first stages of a slippery slope toward burnout, which I’ve dealt with before and would do anything to keep from happening again.

Because of this, I decided to take things easy until I felt better, which is why I may have seemed rather quiet this month online. Things are going better, and I do apologize for how silent I've been online these past few weeks. I just like to keep you guys in the loop because I believe in being transparent with whatever's happening in my life, even the not great stuff. What’s important is to take care of ourselves and keep moving forward!

Coming up:

Right now I’m still recovering from how busy of a month October was, so I plan to keep things pretty low maintenance through the end of the year. I’ll be updating regularly, but I want to give myself permission to rest a bit too. I’m taking this week off from both jobs for the Thanksgiving holiday. I’ll be drinking hot chocolate and cuddling with the pups and hanging out with friends and family. After that, it’s back to work to finish the year on a strong note!

• Currently the shop is closed until after I get back from my mini break. I'm hoping to have it back right after Thanksgiving or in December.
• I’m working on finalizing the first two Tuff Fluff comics for the $3+ tier, which will be posted at the tail end of the month.
• I'm finishing up portraits for $20+ patrons and should also have those done by the end of this month.
• This month’s Patron livedraw for the $10+ tier is this Saturday, Nov 24 from 5-7pm cst. 

After that, I’m going to work on building a buffer for both my Webtoon and Dogs with Jobs comic series, so I can also enjoy some time off for the holidays in December.

That’s all for now! See you all again soon with new comics and art!