Today marks seventeen years since I posted the first Bardsworth strip. Every once in a great while I like to try to redraw the first strip to show what I’ve learned since the early days. So here you go!
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Update as of 9/26/21 – There have been some sporadic updates since the below announcement. Please be sure to check things to make sure you haven’t missed anything, and be sure to follow me on social media for possible further updates.
It is with a heavy heart that I make this announcement, but as of today, Bardsworth will no longer be updating. While I don’t want to say that it’s for good, I have no intentions of returning to it in the forseeable future. This was not a decision that was made lightly, but rather something that has been brewing for a long time now.
Bardsworth was always intended to one day be my full-time job. Sure, it was absolutely a creative outlet for me and one that I enjoyed, but from the very beginning my dream was to make enough money from it so that I wouldn’t have to work any other jobs. Nearly twelve years later that still hasn’t happened, and I’m working two part-time jobs while being a stay-at-home father for two children. I’ve been stressed out trying to get updates out, as well trying to keep up with Patreon rewards that people are paying to get. And, unfortunately, I can’t do it all. So something needed to get put to rest, and I made the very difficult decision that it needed to be Bardsworth.
While Bardsworth will lay fallow for an indeterminate amount of time, I do want to assure everyone that I don’t plan on abandoning it completely. I won’t tease you and say that I’ll continue the webomic because, frankly, I don’t know if I will. I need to spend some time away from it. But I do want to continue writing the Bardsworth novels. I feel like the story can be better told in prose than in a webcomic.
Now, I have been on the other side of this. I’ve been reading webcomics for much longer than I’ve been making them, and I always hated when a creator would stop updating in the middle of a story without any kind of closure. I owe you guys more than just a full stop, so I’m giving you that closure. I put together an outline of major plot points from the point that I’m leaving off of the comic all the way to the ending. Keep in mind two things before reading it, though.
1.) Nothing is 100% canon. These are all things that I wanted to do, but in the course of writing the actual scenes, things might have ended up differently, or they might not have ended up in the story at all. I’ve had quite a few “deleted scenes” and ideas never fully used in the past, and it probably would have continued happening.
2.) Since I do intend on continuing to write Bardsworth as a series of novels, I have to warn you that if you plan on reading them, you will possibly encounter spoilers for future stories.
Those points being made, if you want to download the PDF and read it, get it here.
Lastly, I wanted to say thank you to each and every one of you. Some of you have been here from the beginning, some are new. Some of you have given me support in the form of money, some of you have given me support in the form of encouraging words. And I treasure each one of you. Bardsworth never would have made it this far without you. So thank you so, so much for everything.
To the next great adventure! The plate might be empty for a moment, but who knows what kinds of cookies will be on it in the future.
In Bloom: Bardsworth University Book 2 – eBooks and Paperback PREORDER
on October 24, 2021
The second Bardsworth novel is here and ready to be read! You can read the digital versions right away by purchasing them at Smashwords or Amazon. Or, if you have more patience, you can preorder a paperback copy here (preorders closed as of 11/7/21). Preorders will get you a signed copy of the book, and if I get at least 10 preorders all who preordered a copy will be invited to an exclusive “virtual book release party” with a Q&A session and a chapter reading by yours truly.
And if you like the book, please remember to give it a good review!
Wallpaper: Advice from Francis
on April 6, 2020
Just a little something to brighten up your days. So many people aren’t listening to the simple, commonsense advice during these times. Maybe Francis can convince them. Click the picture below to download a desktop wallpaper.
The Results of Isolation
on March 30, 2020
With the world gradually turning into a post-apocalyptic landscape of face masks and no toilet paper, many of us find ourselves trapped with nothing to do. Not me, of course – I always have things to do, whether I want to do them or not. However, I have found myself with a modicum of free time for creative work and I wanted to contribute a little something to help keep people in good spirits.
This is not a return of Bardsworth. I want to make that very clear right off the bat. As much as I would love to make a full return to my beloved world, I am still not in a place where I can comfortably do so. I’m closer than I was two years ago, but still working on it. However, I wanted to at least wrap up the storyline that I left off on, and maybe get a few extra pages in if I can. I’m shooting for once a week, with no set day in mind (currently trying for Mondays, since that’s when I’m having the first one go up). I will post on Twitter and Facebook when an update goes up.
I know it’s not much compared to what others are contributing, but if I can put a smile on your face for at least thirty seconds a day, then I feel like I’ve done some good.
Stay safe, wash your hands, and have a cookie.
PS – I apologize for the lines of PHP at the tops of some of the pages. This occurred after the last WordPress update and I haven’t been able to fix it as of yet. If any of you know how to, please let me know. Otherwise, I’ll get to when I get to it.
