Posted April 23, 2011 at 8:10 am
To keep Danielle from learning of my evil plot to propose marriage, I have been unable to let you guys know that this has been my plan for some time (before the Bieber project was dreamed up). So this may seem sudden to you guys, but it's been in the works for a while. Today, Danielle and I drove out to the patch of land that her parents have owned since she was a little girl. It was on this land that I first went camping with her... and her husband.  You see, I fell madly in love with Danielle the first time she joined my D&D game, but I was too chicken to tell her. Then she met some dude and moved away to New Mexico and got married (it was not a good marriage). I was crunched into a little ball of self pity. Then she moved back to Canada... with her husband. That was when they invited me and some other friends to go camping on her parents' land. I really shouldn't have gone on that trip. Y'know... being in love with her and everything. Like an angsty goof, I carved "I love Danielle" into a dead tree at the end of a far off path. No one saw me do that, of course. The next year, Danielle and her husband got a divorce. I'll spare you all the unpleasant details, but I later blurted out that I loved her and had been in love with her for the past six years or so. I was a dummy for not tell her this BEFORE she got married. I know this because she told me so. Apparently, she had been in love with me too, but wrote me off as "too cool to be interested in her". Her answer was to marry some other guy and move away. To like... New Mexico. Eventually, Danielle and I went camping again on her parents' land, this time as a couple. That was the year she found my angsty "I love Danielle" carving. ... Awkward. Anyways, we've been camping in that same spot in the woods every summer. It's become a very special place for us. You see, during that very first camping trip (with her husband), her and I woke up before the others and sat by the early morning campfire and talked. It was the first time we'd ever been alone together. Then we both went off and secretly swooned, wondering why we could never be together and each thinking we were the only member of the duo wondering this. It was all incredibly cliche. So it was at this special spot that I proposed marriage. I lied to Danielle and told her that I just wanted to drive out there to roast some smokies for the hell of it and then drive back home. So we took the dog with us and headed out. So there I was, down on one knee with my family ring... incidentally, that ring is a VERY expensive ring of evil lies. You see, my wealthy, great grandmother in England, bought it for herself to make the men around her think that she was married (children with no husband? Scandalous!).  Then she gave it to my grandmother (I call my grandmother Nana, and she's going to be very happy to hear that my small rock kills your enchanted bunny. Game over, Moonpie.) on the promise that it would never be given to anyone else. Of course, my Nana gave it to my mother on the promise that it never be given to anyone else. Later my Mother gave it to me, provided that I never tell the tale of my great grandmother and her original reason for buying the ring. Oops. See? It's a ring of evil lies! I can't decide if that makes it cooler or not. So I was down on one knee. I said "Danielle, will you marry..." Then I was tackled by a VERY excited lady. Yes, my 70 lbs dog Ember had taken my one knee stance to mean "It's time to play" and jumped on top of me. I quickly regained my composure and re-asked my question. By this point, Danielle was already crying. But she said "yes". Danielle, you are my best friend and the source of my strength. Thank you for agreeing to be my wife. I can't wait to continue making you smile, waking you up with kisses and playing the "stand on my feet as we walk around the room" game. To quote a page from my comic that has not yet been drawn, "I see you". ~Tarol Hunt
Posted April 17, 2011 at 4:17 am
When I first started Goblins as a webcomic, I asked a lot of people a lot of questions. I had no idea what I was doing and wasn't sure what to expect. I was given advice on everything from site hosting to merchandising. However, there was one very important aspect of being a webcomic author that no one offered advice on, and that was fans. I'm incredibly lucky to have fans and I've learned that they're a powerful force indeed. Through ad revenue, book purchases and even donations, my fans have granted me the ability to make Goblins my profession. They've clothed my children and put food on my table. They've inflated my ego with a thousand compliments and kept me grounded and humble with ten thousand criticisms. My fans have forced me up the ladder of self improvement and led me down the path of encouragement. Through my webcam, my fans have kept me company all night while I've battled deadlines. They've been an unending field of ears to vent to or whine at. I've felt for years now, that Goblins belongs not just to me, but to everyone who's ever invested any emotion toward the comic. If you've felt sad about a character's death or triumphant during a character's victory, then you've helped in its creation. The more value that you as fans place in Goblins, the more value I feel toward it as well. And the more value I feel toward it, the more of myself I pour into it and the better it is. You are the dictators of the comic's creation. I've become shocked at how little advice there is for aspiring artists when it comes to fans. So here is my advice on what anyone who may gain a fanbase can expect. Your fans will be your unseen, yet very involved family. They'll be your friends. They'll be your employers. They'll be your hecklers and your teachers. They'll stress you out with demands and make you feel great with amazing compliments. Most of all, they'll be the reason that you do what you do. Don't ever take your fans for granted and always understand that you're forever in their debt. And from time to time, thank them. Thanks for honouring me with your fanship and supporting my work, folks. Now let's see where the rest of the comic takes us. ~Thunt