Have you ever made a graphic novel?
I have.
I can do anything.
ANYTHING.
I don't say it to be pompous. I say it because after all the blood sweat and tears I realize that making a graphic novel is amazingly difficult. It's like scaling the Matterhorn or swimming across the English Channel.
205 pages of text and full page art. FULL COLOR ART.
AND I did a huge bulk of it myself (with editor and art director notes of course and a handful of some friends who helped block in colors in the end of it all) but I did it. I wrote it. I colored it. I made a graphic novel.
I can do anything.
You want a 32 page picture book manuscript illustrated in THREE MONTHS? PSHAW! I colored over 20 pages of my graphic novel EVERY WEEK for OVER THREE MONTHS. The final sketches took TWO MONTHS. I estimate I've been working on the art in some stage be it sketch or final for this story for over ONE WHOLE YEAR.
I signed for this contract way back in 2002! It was part of a two book deal. The first book was "The Guild of Geniuses" which came out in 2004 and I haven't authored anything since. The second contract was for a story called "The Domesticated Six" The manuscript was unwritten, the format was open, and there was no deadline.
It would just be ready when it was ready.
Since then I made excuses to do everything else BUT complete the second book. I got married. I started a family. I had a TV show. I bought a house. I had a second child. I worked on four video game titles. I've owned two laptops and two desktops. I've moved twice. I've illustrated over 20 middle grade and chapter books. I've illustrated seven other picture books authored by other people.
You have no idea what a huge step this is for me. I felt as if my life was in a stand still because I've been sitting under this huge project. In reference to Moby Dick, my friends and I referred to this project as my whale.
It's June. It's done. (Of course there will be fixes and tweaks here and there for the next few weeks) but it's done.I've learned lots from this whole experience.
I climbed the mountain. I swam the channel.
I can do anything.
