Hello everyone!
First of all, I apologize for the long silence and I appreciate everyone's patience so, so much!
Here's finally a status update from me and why the comic has been standing still.
In 2019 I was already struggling with keeping up with work and life. Then in August 2019 my father got terminally ill with cancer. I decided to put a lot of things in my life, including the comic on hold. I didn't have the heart to explain the reasons here or on any of my channels online since he would read it. Of course, him getting sick was not the only reason for the hiatus back then, I just didn't want to worry him in any way.
There was a chance he'd live with the cancer for some years if the treatments were successful. Regardless, me and my brothers decided to spend as much time with him as possible. I still struggled to keep up with everything happening, so thanks to friends, coworkers and my boss I was put on a part time sick-leave in December 2019 due to burn-out.
My father unfortunately got worse in March 2020, just as the pandemic hit. From being worried about not being able to see him due to a mere cold threatening his treatments, it got more stressful and harder to visit and help since me and my brothers live 5-15 hours away. In June 2020 he passed away in isolation with his wife, me and my brothers. My father dedicated his life taking care of others, he always put others first and was loved by many. Seeing him fade and go in a time like this right before his retirement was painful and so unfair.
I have been weighing if I should get personal here, but for those who have read the comic this far know that the comic has a reoccuring theme of fatherhood or characters' relationships with their fathers. It doesn't help The Din revolves around a global pandemic, people suffering from injustice as a result of it and airplanes missing from the skies.
The story I have been passionate about telling for so long got a bit too close to home and it's just been so heavy to pick up again.
I am now 100% back to work (theoretically) since last year, but I can't create as much as I used to. Most of my energy is dedicated to my health, my family and my day job. I am thankful I have a job through this pandemic, a job that keeps me onboard even when I am not in top notch shape. I know I will bounce back to creating my own stuff again, but it takes time. I have accepted that and embraced it with patience. :) With that said, my heart feels much lighter today compared to a year ago.
Long story short: The Din is still on hiatus. I don't know when I will be able to work on the comic again due to life changing events. I am sorry I haven't told you sooner, but I have simply not had any energy. I will give you a heads up once I start working on anything The Din-related again!
You can always comment or e-mail me if you have questions.
QUESTIONS:
How come you didn't tell us sooner?
I have simply not had the energy. Just creating this animated splash page took me 7 months and finding energy and courage to write this took me another 3 months. I appreciate your patience, and I am sorry. Sometimes people hit a wall unfortunately.
I saw you post art on twitter last year. Why didn't you post here or work on The Din instead?
If I post something that is not The Din related on my channels, it is simply part of my path to returning to art and comics again. Like I mentioned before, picking up The Din is particularly heavy for various reasons. Both emotionally and it's such a big comic project to dive back into.
Will you ever return to The Din again?
To answer this truthfully: I don't know. I hope I will!
But like I have mentioned in my previous posts: the next chapter will probably be drawn 80%-100% before I start posting anything, to prevent the stress from juggling a day job and this comic. Unless I take time off work to work fulltime on comics for a while, then I might post pages as I make them. If there is any progress at all, I will let you know here on the website. And I will also most likely tweet about it!
Will you ever wrap up The Din?
The Din means a lot to me, so of course it's my intention to finish it some day. The length and form might change a bit from my original idea, but it will still include the main story. I am happy to have Hiveworks as editorial help in continuing creating and wrapping up the comic.
If you feel like you wasted your time reading and now waiting, I am sorry. I sure have enjoyed the ride creating this comic this far, interacting with you all and learning from putting it online. I hope you have enjoyed sharing the ride with me this far as well and I hope you will join me on my future endeavours; be it the next chapter of The Din or other creative things. :)
Enough about me!
How have all of you been doing this past year?
I hope you are all safe and that you and your families have made it through the pandemic this far.
My thoughts are with everyone who struggle out there.
Take care, until I post again!
If you comment, I will do my best replying as fast as I can!
Much love,
Karin.
While the comic is on a mid-chapter break, I will post some other things here in the blog! Now that I have ran out of watercolor pieces from the Kickstarter Campaign , as previously posted, I'll now post some new watercolor doodles. :) Here's a Denilou watercolor sketch!
Normal comic page updates will resume on monday! Stay tuned! :3
Denilou