July Highlights

Life Goes On, Just Keep Living

This July has been a thing of accomplishments, plans, anxieties, setbacks, existential episodes, and more.

Why Disruption Can Be A Good Thing

Because of maintenance, I’ve had to go back to my Gutternaut blog to make changes. Especially in the necessary space that I should’ve done years ago. Like my Underrated Comics link page since some of the indie publisher links were expired. Plus, I got to reexamine and make words less clunky on certain posts. Starting with:

• Comic Book Preservation: How 5 Tools Make Comics Valuable (Fixing Links Because Affiliates Change)

• Marvel Civil War: Most Liberal Things Ive Ever Seen (AKA SEO Can Look Really Stupid)

• For The Man Who Has Everything: Alan Moore’s Favorite (SEO doesn’t mean everything)

• Cancelled Comics: The Truth Behind 3 Big Reasons (But it can makes some posts look better)

• Filipino Komiks: Value To Shatter Stops (Just Changed This Headline)

• Bancho Manga: A Perspective on Delinquent Myths and Life (Need To Make Posts More Visible)

• James Stokoe: Mammoth Sized, Jaw-Dropping Years (Even if they look like they’re overcompensating)

• Doctor Doom: A Heart Mired in Envy and Pride (I wonder if this will still be lost in all the search results)

• Kuch Kuch Hota Hai: The Best Indian Archie (Don’t even wanna bother trying to compete with Indian newspapers or streaming services)

• Kamen America: Soar To Overcome Social Sway (Gotta get ahead of growing popularity)

Does this mean I’m going to rework all of them? I’m leaning towards most but not all. Because I have hundreds of posts on there that I don’t remember making and just won’t enjoy trying to rework. Most of them will probably be reviews that I’ll be reworking if I feel that they’re worth it. Might even be remade into this post’s format:

I’ll probably have to revisit the posts I did this month.

• Gatchaman: Galactor – Survival of the Fittest (I hope this is worth keeping)

• Best Coffin Lady Death Comics: Reflective Roots (Might need a better headline)

Because I only did one post with this new status quo:

• Jeff Smith’s Bone: Thorn’s Irresistibly Better Draft

Mainly for being too busy trying to fix links and give keywords to the checklists. That is the Underrated Marvel Comics and the hub page full of expired links.

When Can I Restart Everything Else?

One way or another, my life is changing in September this year. I’ve managed to finish a college-level course in a field to take a bigger test for a certification that will help greatly in my new/old state of North Carolina.

Not only that but the royalties from the Wire Fence are finally supposed to arrive that month. A fair amount I plan on spending on a commission from that one-shot’s artist.

I plan on something tributing one of two indie comics Halloween Man or Worthy Chaos Chronicles.

As for that followup to the Wire Fence I kept promising. Once I finish getting that certification, I can devote all of my time to it. Gotta get a steady job before going back into writing more comics. Then find a job in my new Red State.

Should I Keep Doing Comics?

When I went back into doing that Underrated Comics link page on Gutternaut, I remembered how many independent or alternative publishers couldn’t keep themselves going. Or still exist but haven’t really done anything new. Because the money was too high, keeping a store going in the cheapest avenue possible, finding or starting new publishers, going into more profitable ventures like podcasts, or emergencies like a publisher needing to rely on a crowdfunder both to sell his comics and pay for the repercussions of his wife’s chemotherapy.

Even stuff related to comics like affiliates in Comic Distro have stagnated. A service I used to advertise for called Multiverse Comic Box aborted its affiliate program because the ads just weren’t getting buyers. Not to mention the Uncanny! in the closest mall to me shut down. Do I even need to bring up Omnibus?

Makes me wonder what these guys digital option will be.

…

But! One of my newest followers

Lloyd Smith

’s publication in Blue Moon Comics features fun characters and scenarios that were conceived decades ago but never published. Some of them aren’t even first drafts.

Next I found out about a comic dealer who created his own comic book called The Addiction. Even using Ethereum backed digital collectibles for carbon neutrality for digital versions.

Besides despite how many indie creators gripe about how GlobalComix doesn’t often come with big payments, it still managed to outlast other services like it.

Even if your glory days or peaks are long behind you, finding something to keep living for is always welcome.

I still plan to be a comic writer, I just need to consider where to cultivate the biggest audience. While keeping my head above water in different ways.

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Ugh…Feel So Old…

I was going to go over the best plan of action to go in the comics mediums and to ignore what worked in the past. But I think I’m better off saving that for somewhere else. At least it came with some meditation on what’s working right now in entertainment. But more importantly looking towards the future without investing effort like its already happened.

My biggest hope to get out of all of this is that I don’t let my anxieties get the better of me. Not again. I found the resources to do things that could help along the way. Not even necessarily comics but storytelling. Something new without feeling like I’m the smallest fish in the pond.

Doesn’t Have To Be A Bad Thing

Living in the moment while planning ahead can be a real pain but some things are necessary. And right now I’m still planning. But I am finished waiting for the right moment. It’s high time I finish things that I started. Starting with that 2nd World Comics post. No more excuses.

Gutternaut website posts will be slow but screw it, I’m finishing this. Along with other preparations.