Humble Beginnings to the Epic End: Legacy Genesis part 1
We as people find inspiration in many ways. A chain of events found through my determined hunt for collaboration let me to Cornerstone Creative Studios.
I spoke with artists and writers, braved the print on demand indie publish community, and went through contact lists like it was my job even though the pay sucked (non existent even). I dove into the Digital Webbing community, a site owned by Ed Dukeshire that at one time was social media for comic creators/talent when social media was not even a thing. I found an add there posting submission offers for artists from CCS by Jesse “Cadre” Hansen. Primarily a writer, I knew that I was ineligible, but in that split second I decided to see what these guys over in Ormond Beach were up to. I had finished my self imposed work day, so why not unwind with some web browsing? This seemingly insignificant decision has changed my life.
I perused the site that belonged to this humble art studio, and was captivated. I commented on art, my true feelings I had on the spot when I experienced each piece, and unlike the rest of social media up to this point, I got replies and responses. I remember feeling incredible, something as simple as acknowledgement that I genuinely liked the work, and the appreciation the members had for a fan that had no comic experience whatsoever.
It was a week or so, and the admin of the site began to get involved in the interactions, and we started talking about the original creations on the page. Jesse Hansen was decent and genuinely excited about his work and the talented people who he created/worked with. After another week of random chatting, we had a conversation about what I had been working on and I mentioned looking to collaborate on an adaptation of my newly released novel, “Age of Armageddon“. I told him then that I found the advertisement for artists and followed it even though it was for artists only, which at the time, I was far from being eligible for. I then ended with “I was curious and loved the artwork, don’t worry Cadre, I am not going to beg you for a writing job lol!”. Jesse actually offered me up a submission opportunity with email and instructions. It was a 3 part submission, with a few short free writing assignments, and eventually ending with conversion of a short story into comic script. I was given a short list of heroes that were untouched by the studio, and got to pick an image and give him an origin. After, Daniel Horowitz and Jesse “Cadre” Hansen offered me a mentorship, where I would work with staff and create to earn a slot as a full fledged member. This was a beautiful moment, to work with an art staff as a writer, and see your imagination realized visually was something that I was unable to achieve up to this point in my career. It was a satisfaction that was beyond words, because it was my first creative trade collaboration.
I approached the opportunity as I had approached my day jobs professionally my whole life. Work ethic, and deliver on my commitments, and be honest in my creative opinions. It has been a winning formula as we build our Cornerverse. I spoke with talent as Jesse referred me. I had questions and he either had the answer or knew someone who did. My hunger to polish my craft was fed, with no hesitation, and encouraged every step of the way. The gratitude I feel for this, is a dear feeling that I keep close to me whenever I do a public event, or work on a new project, and I owe this to Jesse Hansen and his dedication to his studio and its members.
I say all of this, as today I will be talking with Monty Stikkmann, a talented artist/writer who created the hero shown in the studio image above. 5entry was the first image that inspired me when I came to the studio official page, and was what inspired my first short story I turned in to the studio. If not for Monty, maybe I would not be here. His vision, and Jesse’s vision, their collaboration, in turn led me to dig into the CCS universe and led to a conversation with CEO Cadre and changed my life. My second story was a short story about a college student named Ian Olson, who wanted to bump his grade point average, and ended up becoming a powerhouse of uncontrollable energy under the mantle Power Block. I continued on and was given the title Kur of the Nexus then completed the planned 4 issue origin arc. I earned the opportunity to search in house for a team to create a group title for our collective cause, the adaptation of my scifi/fantasy/post apocalyptic story that I named Hayvard Saint’s 8: Federal Offensive Responders U.S. and a female lead title scifi called Meteor Marlee & the Astronerds!
I tend to come off as egotistical, and pretentious, I have experienced it and know what it is, but my attitude should not be misinterpreted, as it is something much more beautiful. It is genuine enthusiasm to create, and a love for our culture, and love for my fellow members at Cornerstone Creative Studios, and I put a dash of unorthodox humor in for good measure occasionally 
