It’s been a long time since I used this blog. Even last year, when the Kickstarter campaign for THE STANDARD was running, we mainly promoted it through the webcomic page we had set up. Maybe I’ve put off coming back here, because really there’s only one more post to make. And that’s a post saying goodbye.
The domain for thestandardcomic.com is about to expire, and then the site will revert to thestandardcomic.wordpress.com. It will still be accessible for anyone interested in reading up on THE STANDARD and the history behind its creation, as well as the world-building stuff we had early on in the blog. But as an active entity, THE STANDARD has now come to the end of its lifespan. We’ve gone through creation, taking self-printed books to local conventions, publication through ComixTribe, and finally the release of the trade, and it’s been a hell of a journey – nearly 5 years for this blog, close to 7 years of my life – but THE STANDARD can now enjoy its retirement as a completed project in my back catalogue. That means, short of any huge, unforeseen update, there is no reason to keep this blog actively running with new content.
I’ve done my rounds of thanks before, but one more time, I would like to thank everyone who helped or encouraged me with THE STANDARD along the way. Thanks to Tyler James and all the folks at ComixTribe for giving the book a worldwide audience, for holding my hand through the Kickstarter process, and for being my long-running convention compatriots. Thank you Steven Forbes, editor and project manager of THE STANDARD, for being my first comics mentor, and helping to shape THE STANDARD from an idea into a comic. Thank you letterer Kel Nuttall, and colourist Mike Gagnon, as well as the other colourists and flatters involved with the project through its run – Ray Dillon, Gulliver Vianei, Mo James – for helping the comic look as slick and professional as anything else on the stands. Thanks to Will Robson for coming in near the end and helping us in a pinch with art assists, fitting seamlessly into our ensemble A huge thank you to Jonathan Rector, series artist, for bringing my creations to vivid, dynamic life – you were the first artist I worked with to such an extensive degree, and you made my dream come true by turning my writing into a comic, for which I’ll always be grateful. Thanks to any journalists or critics who helped showcase THE STANDARD along the way. A big thank you to all my friends and family who gave me encouragement and advice as the comic was being developed, or just patiently listened to my ramblings. And the biggest thanks of all to you, the readers, because without you there would be no point in doing any of this.
I specifically wrote “Auf Wiedersehen” instead of goodbye, as in German it means, “Until we meet again.” And I hope this isn’t goodbye, that I do meet you again. That may be for future projects, and I and the others in the creative team have more lined up to be sure. Or maybe, just maybe, when the time is right… The Standard will return!
