2024 Creator Year in Review 🥳
"I cry a lot but I am so productive... it's an art..."
It is said that the older we get, the more time flies. I have to agree more with a woman I overheard on a bus - “The weeks are long, but the year is short.” Or, I could just point to our trusty Stoics with their opinion on everything:
“It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it… Life is long if you know how to use it.” ― Seneca
2024 was a year of determined purpose. I got it in my head that no matter what happened, the most important thing I needed to do was complete my comic book work. I was tired of having EGORAVEN and TALL TAILS unfinished. I made it a mission to finally finish SOMETHING. And on August 18 (a benefit of posting to Facebook so I know exact dates) I completed all 16 issues of EGORAVEN: HEIR OF THE FIRST UNICORN.
Granted, It’s finished in terms of pencils and lettering, but it’s DONE. All I have to do is ink and color, which is much easier now that I don’t have to fuss with layouts.
My next goal was to complete issues 7 and 8 of TALL TAILS: TEARS OF THE MOTHER, which would complete the story arc. However, I got completely distracted by learning to color in Clip Studio Paint, which led me to finish EGORAVEN #9 on December 28.
It took longer than I expected because this issue had complicated scenes with too many characters and elements, but at least it’s done. I’m getting ready to send the final file to the printer for my proofs, and I plan to launch the campaign for it in January. Speaking of which, It’s on prelaunch now:
🦄 Egoraven: Heir of the First Unicorn #9🦄Mature Fantasy Drama: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/daphnelage/egoraven-heir-of-the-first-unicorn-9mature-fantasy-drama
So now that leaves TALL TAILS, which I will be working on starting January. I’m going to draw through the two issues as I ink and color EGORAVEN #10. Whichever book gets completed first will get the next Kickstarter slot.
Because of how much time the comics were taking, I didn’t think I got a lot of regular pieces done, but when I was making the Art v Artist graphic at the top, I realized I made a lot more pieces than I remembered (anything outside of comic pages was a blur).
Here’s a few highlights
I created a cosplay Egoraven series as a joke, but now I’m going to expand on it seriously because it is fun to do…
Commissions for the HAUS OF BOB Kickstarter…
Creating a HAUS OF BOB style pinup series around a fraternity of wolf and unicorn characters…
More artwork for Rob Multari’s NIGHT WOLF and SNOW PAW series:
Did another Kickstarter collaboration with Fleur De Villainy on SECRETS OF THORNS—the second book in her Vandeleur Trilogy series…
This project led me further into the romantasy novels rabbit hole I will get deeper into in 2025. This leads me to remember that I am currently halfway through the EGORAVEN novelization, which you can read the first eight chapters here:
There is so much still to do, and I expect 2025 to be just as busy as 2024, if not more so. There will be lots of experimenting, but I’m confident about what I’ve started on. I’ll be sure to post more details as things unfold.
Thank you all for following me, and I hope you all have a great new year. 🥳
Production Schedule
EGORAVEN: HEIR OF THE FIRST UNICORN #9: Launching January 2025
EGORAVEN: HEIR OF THE FIRST UNICORN #10 (out of 16) Coloring: In queue
TALL TAILS: TEARS OF THE MOTHER #7 (out of 8): In queue
TALL TAILS: TEARS OF THE MOTHER #8 (out of 8): In queue
EGORAVEN: HEIR OF THE FIRST UNICORN - The Novelization Chapter 11 (out of 16): In progress
EGORAVEN: CULT OF THE WOLF WITCH (novel sequel): In progress.
EGORAVEN: WHISPERS TO EROS (erotic short story collection): In progress.
It's only once we look back that we see how much we've actually accomplished, since in the middle of it, it can feel like we're getting nowhere! I think it's so cool you've gotten all of the pencils done for Egoraven. I'm working towards finishing one of my long running series next year, so seeing that you've accomplished such a big milestone helps me to keep moving forward too! Looking forward to the next issue of Egoraven in January. Happy New Year!