New Semester, New Stories, New Wallpaper (soon)
Just a quick post to let you all know that we’re jumping back into the school year finally! It’s taken us 830 strips to get to the second semester of the sophomore year. I shudder to think how long it’ll take to get us to graduation. But let’s not contemplate that right now. We’ll have a handful of “intro” strips to get us back into the swing of things, and then I’ll be starting up a pretty epic storyline. This is a story that I’ve been planning for a long time and it’s going to be a little dark, but it’ll be good. I promise.
In addition, although I’ve been bad about updating the wallpapers for donors, I’ve never skimped on a Halloween wallpaper. I’m happy to say that I have on in the early stages of drawing, and that it should hopefully be done by next week. Or should I say, “they” will be done. That’s right, you’ll have two to download! So if you haven’t gotten the Calvin and Hobbes style wallpaper that’s been available for a while, donate to Bardsworth now and grab it before it’s gone!
I’ll hopefully be posting some more blog entries soon, too. I’ve jumped back onto the graphic novel train again, and I’ve got a lot to talk about and share. In the meantime, if you have Netflix Instant Watch, they’ve just added Comic Book Men season 3 and I’ve been cruising through that for my geek culture fix. Although I’ve never been a “comic book guy”, I love comic books and pop culture in general, and watching the stuff that pops up in that show is a hoot.
Keep your stick on the ice!
I’ve been a Bardsworth reader for a long time (for a while way back when I was convinced Kris was Raynor’s brother), but have only just been financially able to give a donation. I’m looking forward to the shop being up and running again! I’d love the chance to get me some hardcopy books.
I think the thing which sets Bardsworth apart is that there is genuinely no ‘good/evil’ dynamic here; it’s more ‘order/chaos’, neither of which is bad in themselves. Even the antagonists feel like people with their own motives and beliefs, and it just so happens that those beliefs are rejected by the empowered social order–which makes Raynor an amazing foil to his father. It’s a wonderful comparison to see things like Mike interacting with faeries in ways that horrify born-and-bred magic-users like Kris, exactly *because* the differing uses of magic obviously aren’t ‘wrong’ when used properly (let’s be honest, some of the uses of magic with ‘rules’ are dangerous too), but because of how each character has been raised to perceive those different magics.
If anything all that makes the theory of the trimagus more interesting; it seems almost literally a seek for balance, but is naturally more dangerous than other magical paths because, well, how often are order and chaos properly managed together?
I’m hoping to see many more strips in the future, regardless of how quickly they come!
Hey, I know this response is a little late, but I wanted to respond nonetheless. Thanks for the kinds words as well as the donation! Reading your thoughts on the strip is not only an inspiration for the comic, but I’ve been bulldozing my way through the novelization of Bardsworth and you’ve given me some uplift on that as well! I love hearing from readers because while I’m doing this for myself, I’m also doing it for people who enjoy it as much as I do. 🙂
As for the store, that’s kind of on the back burner at the moment (although it shouldn’t be), but hopefully I’ll have it up sooner than later.
Thanks again!