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Happy 20th Anniversary, Slightly Damned!
a year ago
On March 14, 2004, I posted the very first page of Slightly Damned online on my personal website. I built the site myself from notepad and updated it manually for years. Every page of the comic was a separate .html file, and it as inefficient as heck! I remember getting emails from folks telling me their internet speeds couldn't handle the high quality JPEGs I initially put up. Those could exceed 500kb EACH! So I decided to replace them with lower quality ones that were under 200kb for a while...
Wait, where was I? Oh, excuse this old fart for reminiscing. With the current state of the modern internet, I can't help but feel wistful for the world wide web as it was when I first started Slightly Damned.
Slightly Damned is 20 years old now! I never imagined I would keep up with it for this long. When I first started, I was just an ambitious teenager with no real thoughts about the future. I didn't even think about collecting the comic into books. I assumed no one would want one.
So much of this comic was made under the belief that I would one day be forced to drop it. That day never came, but it sure tried. I've thought about quitting several times. Through the darkest times, I thought about quitting more than just the comic. But still, despite everything, I pressed on. I loved working on Slightly Damned too much to stop. I gave up a lot and risked a lot to keep going. I closed doors that I still think about to this day. No regrets, though.
Over the years, several kind people have told me that reading Slightly Damned helped them through hard times. That alone makes the effort worthwhile. It's easy for me to get fixated what I haven't achieved and feel frustrated and down on myself. But in the end, it fills me with a great sense of fulfillment knowing that my art can make people happy. Making Slightly Damned helps me through hard times, too.
I think we are past halfway through Slightly Damned's story. I can picture the conclusion, and I want to reach it within my lifetime. But if I fixate on the fact that I have 10-20 more years to go before I can conclude Rhea, Buwaro, and Kieri's tale in a way that satisfies me, I'll be overwhelmed by existential dread.
So I will continue as I always have: I'll take things one step at a time. I will not deliberately stall, but I will also not rush just for the sake of concluding things sooner rather than later. I'm in a position that allows my serialized story to come out at a slow and steady pace; a pace that would make most publishers turn inside out. It's not a privilege I want to take lightly.
I am dedicated to seeing Slightly Damned's story through to its natural conclusion. At this point, it has proven to be my life's work. I love this world and its characters. I'm as passionate as ever to keep heading towards the finish line for the story for as long as I am capable.
Thank you to everyone who ever gave me words of encouragement, supported my business, was patient with me, spread the word about the comic, attended my streams, made fan art, and otherwise lent a hand, even if just for one moment. I can't say it enough: I would not be able to keep being an artist if it wasn't for your help. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart!
Love,
Chu
P.S. I'm planning to give the Slightly Damned website some love soon, starting this year. The info pages about world history and the different races are long overdue for some new art and new lore. It's going to be a huge undertaking, so I don't know how long it will take. But it's something I've been needing to do for a long, long time. Please look forward to it!
P.P.S.
"But when's the comic going to start updating again?!" Oh, yeah! I am a bit behind schedule because I was sick for a week following my vacation to Japan (which was otherwise fantastic). The anniversary poster also ended up being much more labor intensive than I planned, but I think it was well worth the trouble. New Slightly Damned pages are literally the next thing on my work queue as I write this, so rest assured, they are coming as soon as possible. Thanks for being patient as always!
(this message was copied from sdamned.com)
===
Upcoming In-Person Events:
Anthro Weekend Utah
Layton, UT // July 19 - 21
Megaplex
Orlando, FL // August 30 - September 1
===
Online stores:
http://chu.storenvy.com/
https://hivemill.com/collections/slightly-damned
===
You can find me streaming my artwork on Twitch on Tuesdays & Thursdays.
On Sundays I do first time playthroughs of JRPGs.
No microphone when I draw. Video game streams are captioned.
http://twitch.tv/hyenachu
===
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sdamned
Patreon: http://patreon.com/raizap
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/chu63425
Art mirrors: deviantArt: http://raizy.deviantart.com & Tumblr: http://hyenafu.tumblr.com
Telegram announcement channel: https://t.me/raizap
===
Slightly Damned (ongoing webcomic): http://sdamned.com
The Junk Hyenas Diner (webcomic on indefinite hiatus): http://junkhyenas.com
Main Website: http://raizap.com
Commission info: http://raizap.com/commissions
Wait, where was I? Oh, excuse this old fart for reminiscing. With the current state of the modern internet, I can't help but feel wistful for the world wide web as it was when I first started Slightly Damned.
Slightly Damned is 20 years old now! I never imagined I would keep up with it for this long. When I first started, I was just an ambitious teenager with no real thoughts about the future. I didn't even think about collecting the comic into books. I assumed no one would want one.
So much of this comic was made under the belief that I would one day be forced to drop it. That day never came, but it sure tried. I've thought about quitting several times. Through the darkest times, I thought about quitting more than just the comic. But still, despite everything, I pressed on. I loved working on Slightly Damned too much to stop. I gave up a lot and risked a lot to keep going. I closed doors that I still think about to this day. No regrets, though.
Over the years, several kind people have told me that reading Slightly Damned helped them through hard times. That alone makes the effort worthwhile. It's easy for me to get fixated what I haven't achieved and feel frustrated and down on myself. But in the end, it fills me with a great sense of fulfillment knowing that my art can make people happy. Making Slightly Damned helps me through hard times, too.
I think we are past halfway through Slightly Damned's story. I can picture the conclusion, and I want to reach it within my lifetime. But if I fixate on the fact that I have 10-20 more years to go before I can conclude Rhea, Buwaro, and Kieri's tale in a way that satisfies me, I'll be overwhelmed by existential dread.
So I will continue as I always have: I'll take things one step at a time. I will not deliberately stall, but I will also not rush just for the sake of concluding things sooner rather than later. I'm in a position that allows my serialized story to come out at a slow and steady pace; a pace that would make most publishers turn inside out. It's not a privilege I want to take lightly.
I am dedicated to seeing Slightly Damned's story through to its natural conclusion. At this point, it has proven to be my life's work. I love this world and its characters. I'm as passionate as ever to keep heading towards the finish line for the story for as long as I am capable.
Thank you to everyone who ever gave me words of encouragement, supported my business, was patient with me, spread the word about the comic, attended my streams, made fan art, and otherwise lent a hand, even if just for one moment. I can't say it enough: I would not be able to keep being an artist if it wasn't for your help. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart!
Love,
Chu
P.S. I'm planning to give the Slightly Damned website some love soon, starting this year. The info pages about world history and the different races are long overdue for some new art and new lore. It's going to be a huge undertaking, so I don't know how long it will take. But it's something I've been needing to do for a long, long time. Please look forward to it!
P.P.S.
"But when's the comic going to start updating again?!" Oh, yeah! I am a bit behind schedule because I was sick for a week following my vacation to Japan (which was otherwise fantastic). The anniversary poster also ended up being much more labor intensive than I planned, but I think it was well worth the trouble. New Slightly Damned pages are literally the next thing on my work queue as I write this, so rest assured, they are coming as soon as possible. Thanks for being patient as always!
(this message was copied from sdamned.com)
===
Upcoming In-Person Events:
Anthro Weekend Utah
Layton, UT // July 19 - 21
Megaplex
Orlando, FL // August 30 - September 1
===
Online stores:
http://chu.storenvy.com/
https://hivemill.com/collections/slightly-damned
===
You can find me streaming my artwork on Twitch on Tuesdays & Thursdays.
On Sundays I do first time playthroughs of JRPGs.
No microphone when I draw. Video game streams are captioned.
http://twitch.tv/hyenachu
===
Twitter: http://twitter.com/sdamned
Patreon: http://patreon.com/raizap
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/chu63425
Art mirrors: deviantArt: http://raizy.deviantart.com & Tumblr: http://hyenafu.tumblr.com
Telegram announcement channel: https://t.me/raizap
===
Slightly Damned (ongoing webcomic): http://sdamned.com
The Junk Hyenas Diner (webcomic on indefinite hiatus): http://junkhyenas.com
Main Website: http://raizap.com
Commission info: http://raizap.com/commissions
happy (late) anniversary! here's to many many more.
I still cherish the little doodle of Buwaro you did on the package of buttons I ordered back in the day. The buttons have all gone a bit rusty with wear but I still wear my Helpers Guild pin when I do Cosplay Repair at conventions.
You've got to be one of the most dedicated artists on the internet, the amount of love you pour into each page may slow it down compared to other works, but it's a testament to your desire to conclude this naturally and on your terms.
Here's hoping as many years as needed to finish this thing, and that the journey along the way is fun and fulfilling 💙💙💙💙
It's exciting to see where things go with the story, I'm glad to have been able to support you in getting each of the books so far and at MFF when we both happened to be there haha!<3
I hope you can do the same! There's nothing wrong with changing your mind. Even I have an abandoned comic or two at this point. Sometimes wells of inspiration dry up. It's fine to move on to whatever feels more creatively fulfilling. Besides, we can always go back to old ideas if we really wanted to :P
Anyway, thanks for all your kind words and support, Artie! It gives me a boost of confidence knowing you're cheering for me. I hope I can do the same for you, too!
Honestly context matters a lot when it comes to such personal decisions- for me, I was panicked about making a living as an artist and building an audience as college was coming to an end, realizing the comic I'd been working on would have needed another 4-5 years even if I worked on it full time as I was; so I just stepped away. The comic wasn't something I was like, mega HELL YEAH about because it was a pokemon fan comic, and I knew I needed something original of my own making. So I felt it was best to stop, and made summaries of how the rest of the comic would go for the readers and moved on. For SD, I think you had such a love for your story that you also fully owned the rights of, that you wanted to see done, and already saw quite a bit of support built up for, that probably kept you going in spite of the worries.
Ever since though, I've just been bereft of drive or that compelling feeling I may have once had for making and sharing a story in that format. I think stopping did let me build an audience of people who support me as quickly as I needed it, so I'm glad, but now I kinda find myself on a hamster wheel without as great a guiding star in the form of a project in the long term to pursue. I dunno if it will be a comic, or a life mission or, whatever, I'm pretty open to what my brain will eventually give me! I am glad I've managed to concept out some ideas to possibly go back to as well if it turns out I should go back to comicking.
I've kept screenshots of the kind words you've given me, Chu. You're awesome and I am thankful we have each other to root for. x)