The End
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.
Well damn, sorry to hear about this. I wish you luck in your future endeavours, and hope you’ll have the time and drive to come back to this one day.
It’s been a fun run. Sorry it has to end, but I wish you the best of luck in whatever you work on from here.
So sorry to hear this! I will dearly miss Mike and the gang, and of course all the cookies. Best of luck, Pete, and I’ll be watching for future novels!
That’s definitely understandable. You’ve got to take care of yourself and your family first and foremost.
Thank you for being willing to open up and share your plot outline! I hope that one day you’re able to return to Bardsworth and finish the story to your satisfaction.
Good luck with your life. Whether you return or not I wish you the best and hope you do well. ^_^
And thanks for the outline! ^_~
I joined on the ride about 10 years ago when I was 13, and I’m glad that I followed this journey. I’m also really glad that you shared your plans and finished them off for some closure, it’s been a great time letting you pile up on content and then binging through it here and there. You’ve evolved a lot over the years, and seeing your story grow has been a fantastic experience. If you do ever write more and want more proofreading done again, count me in! Part of me is sad that I’ll probably never get to see what I just read drawn out, but I can live with that. I hope the best for you and your family, and I thank you for putting in so much effort into this for so long.
Heh. heh….heh, just get back to work.
You sir are so much better then most who abandon and or quit the web comic thing. you make sure that we know were the story is going to at least make sure we are satisfied. safe travels and may you one day come back to this
I don’t know if you’ll remember me, it’s been a while, but I’ve still been checking in every few days since I started reading nine or ten years ago. It can be really hard to leave something like this behind, but you made the right decision and did it in a way that shows how much you care about your audience. If you end up turning this into a novel series, I’ll definitely be picking them up. Good luck!
Of course I remember you! You were one of the first “super fans” I ever met in person. Even Katie remembers you. 🙂
Thanks for all of your years of loyal reading and please stay in touch! (I hope your voiceover career is going well!)
The Belfry WebComic Index lists Bardsworth as completed. It is not completed, it is lost and should be listed as lost, just like Generation 17.
I have no control over that… I don’t even think I was the one who listed it there, to be honest.
So long, and thanks for all the
fishcookies.Been here since the first arc and I’m so sorry to learn this news.
Nontheless I completely understand were this is coming from and wish you the best luck in any project you embark in the future.
I’ll miss this guys as they’ve been a part of my life for so long but I’m sure they’ll all get their happy endings.
Thank you for all the years of magic.
Though I have become enthralled with your work, I can fully understand. Wish you fortune in your future endeavors! Keep eating the cookies!
If possible keep me on the list for anything in the future 🙂
Be Well and Happy
damn man am going to miss this webcomic but i get what you saying doing all that cant be easy i hope it get better soon. thank you for drawing a amazing and wonder full webcomic i truly enjoined this past 12 years of bardwoths it was worth it. i love the story the charterers the would, everything about it i will miss it , here to you man, everyone raise u cookie to the man who gave us bardswoth, A cookie toast
It’s always painful to lose a good comic. This is the best closure I’ve seen. Have some cookies!
I’ve enjoyed reading your comic for quite a while now. Thanks for all the good entertainment. I hope you are able to find a path that works for you.
Thank you for the most enjoyable story and characters ! Thank you for sharing them with us all !
Thanks very much for posting the outline of the rest of the story. It’s nice to know where this story was going.