Scaling The Dream A Plan For Storytelling Into The Future
[image error]Over the last five years I have seen my website AltWorld Studios grow and change, along the way I set lofty targets of getting multiple books published, and pretty much failed to met each and every one of them. Thankfully I’ve been very lucky that I have been supported in my indie publishing goal by my family. And a lot of the technical skills needed in publishing, such as web design, graphic design, illustration and the ability to write, are skills I have on various levels of competence. It is time though, to scale back and focus my efforts.
From the beginning AltWorld Studios was a place to tell my stories, and I branched out from traditional novel-writing, to illustrated stories, and then to full comic books. To make this happen I scraped together what pennies I could spare, ran Kickstarters, and tabled at conventions with one goal in mind, to fund the these stories. I can proudly say that all the artists I’ve worked with have been well-compensated for their work and every penny I ever raised went into my books. In many ways that has been my greatest success; in all my published work, I kept to my promise that the creative talent is always compensated.
Scaling The Dream
The last three years I posted a wish list of work I wanted to publish that year, each one ambitious, but scaled I hoped at the time to something I could make happen. Sadly with every wish list I released, I failed to get a third of the books done. It might be good to post ambitious lists, but I always over extended and made statements that I could not back up on the shoe-string budget. It is time to be a little more realistic, lean on my skills and scale the dream accordingly.
End Of The Beginning
Do not worry, it isn’t the end of work I started here, it is merely a pivot. Stories will still be told, just at a very different pace, and now I feel confident enough with my art, it is time to spread my wings and illustrate my own work. I still have plans to continue the Awakenings Saga, and complete a Mr Button mini-series; it will just be at a lot slowly pace, as and when funds are available to pay the artists that work on the stories.
[image error]I am also scaling back my convention tabling, (I know how can I scale it back more?), I don’t really have anything new and I’ve settled to sit this year out, and work on something new and exciting to bring next year. When I first started in Artist Alley it was to sell my stories, not mashup artwork based off other people’s work. While the convention attendance has pretty much turned into an old friends reunion, I cannot justify the expense – even though my family (the wife) said she would move heaven and earth to get me there, with her illness it is fundamentally unfair.
Support after all goes both ways.
Not The Beginning Of The End
This is not the end of things, and I am aware I’ve already said that – the Out Of The Attic Saga with Tristan & The Cuddly Defenders has been completed and I am tying up the last of story loose ends from that body of work.
[image error]
The Teddy Bear Action Comics will continue under my own hand. I am in the middle of drawing the next Hero Ted Story to add to this fun Webtoon series, Unconditional Hugs has been re-introduced, and will be drawn at a six-strip quarterly release – along the way I hope to add to Awakenings and Mr. Button, (but, they are not a high priority).
[image error]This newly dubbed Teddyverse will continue to grow, with new characters and adventures, albeit much slower than I would like, but in a more sustainable way – after all I am not a publishing house, I am just trying to fake it until I make it and doing my own thing.
Also this is going to happen.
[image error]
Dee & Duo are new characters for the Teddyverse, and will be the adventure story I am writing (and drawing) throughout 2018, I am very excited to tell their story and I hope when I release it you will be excited to read it too.
Onwards
As you’ve been reading changes are coming to AltWorld Studios, my mostly one donkey show is going to keep telling stories that I hope you want to read, and to bring you the wonders that I have seen. Let me know your thoughts below.
Adventure ahead!
