It feels a bit strange writing this post, just a week after posting about reaching my 50th comic strip with Run of the House, but, alas, reality has intervened as it sometimes does. While I love producing the strip, and plan to continue doing it, I now have a much better idea of how much time it takes — which means how much time it’s also taking from other things. Unfortunately, while I thought I could maintain the balance of writing/university work/family/cartooning without anything really suffering, it turns out there really are only 24 hours in a day, and something had to give. Lately, that turned out to be the writing, as much as I tried to deny it to myself. My weekly word counts don’t lie, since I’ve always been a big believer in tracking them so I’m honest with myself about my productivity, and they’re down considerably in the last few months.
And since I have two kids going to college before long, and the writing is (ahem) quite a bit more profitable (and equally enjoyable), I’ve got to continue to prioritize it. I knew when I was starting to use my morning writing time for the cartoon strip that I was going to have to make some hard decisions . . . So I’m dropping back to a once-a-week, Wednesday publishing schedule for Run of the House, starting next week (August 28).
But I’m not quitting! If anything, I’m more motivated than ever to get better as an artist and cartoonist, just as I’m equally motivated to get better as a writer. I’ve learned a ton about cartooning the last few months, both the craft and the business side of things, and I have some ideas on how to evolve the strip in the months ahead and how to keep getting better overall. This really is primarily about time. Well, yes, paying college tuition, too, but primarily time.
Finally, I’ve paused the Patreon donations. It doesn’t feel right to take your contributions when I’ve cut my publication schedule. I was tempted to just close my account for now, which I may still do, but then I saw that Patreon has a “pause” alternative that preserves some options for me. They’ve changed their membership plans since I started, so if I completely close it I’m forced onto the new plan.
So, to recap: Going forward, you’ll be able to read all the weekly strips over at http://wwwRunofthehouse.net, and you won’t be charged by Patreon if you were one of my early backers. Thanks again for your support!
