One Year Later…

Yesterday marked the anniversary of my last day at my day job and my transition to a full-time writer. I've learned a lot in the last year, and I'm still making new discoveries every day. My pal Brian Hurtt asked me how I feel now that the first year is behind me. My answer? I feel about the same as I did on Day 1… namely scared, anxious, like I'm not getting enough work done, like there aren't enough hours in the day, like I've made a big mistake…

…And pretty awesome.

I'm supposed to be scared. I'm supposed to be anxious. I'm supposed to constantly be looking at what's on the horizon and how I give myself a little more longevity as a writer. When I stop feeling that way… when I'm no longer hungry… I stop moving forward.

If I had waited until the perfect time to leave my day job, I wouldn't have left. I know there are many people out there who hope to one day leave the confines of a job that doesn't light their pants on fire and embark on some endeavor that is their dream. I'm not suggesting that you tell your boss to "take this job and shove it" this afternoon or anything. You have to make sure it is the right thing to do… at the right time… for you. Right, not perfect. I let fear guide my decisions for 15 years, as that will always be one of my biggest regrets in life.

In the next year, I'm going to focus on diversification. I'm tackling some new comic book projects. I'm dipping my toes back into prose. I'm working on some screenplays. It's going to be a busy, exciting time that will probably fly by even more quickly than the last year.