So those of you paying attention to the chat box have heard that Boom is going on a break from the comic. Let me go throw the basic of what happened and what is going to happen.
Item 1
We have been loosing money. The readership for this comic is down by 2000 unique viewer from last year at the same time and the revenues have been cut in half. This means that where Exiern was once enough for Boom to cover all of his expenses it’s not not making end meet for him.
Item 2
I am burned out. Managing the comic has been taking up more and more of my time and the reward for all my effort is that the comic has been collapsing. Not to mention real life has been getting more demanding. After 4 year I was let go from a job I hated. This job was awful with one exception, I didn’t have much to do so I could waste my time writing scripts. Now I am doing contract work where people expect results. It is more enjoyable but I have less time for the comic in general. All of this has been sapping my creative energies and killing my passion for the comic.
Item 3
To alleviate the management problem (in that I am doing a shoddy job of management). I brought on Thom Khatt of 910cmx fame to manage Exiern. He was put in charge of the comic and tasked with stopping the loss of readership and money and get things back on track. The idea was that he is supposed to take care of the administrative things so I can be free to write once again.
Item 4
Thom decided that the first thing Exiern needed was a regular schedule of at least 1.5 pages per week to get a regular schedule and build up a buffer. After a talk with Boom it was agreed that Boom could not do this at this time with the low amount of money that Exiern was currently paying. Boom was rotated to the roll of Donation Comic artist and a search for a new artist was started who could meet a schedule of 1.5 up to 3 pages per week if revenues improve.
Item 5
A new artist was contract and has started work on the current Exiern script. The pages will be ready by Wednesday of next week.
Item 6
Thom suggested I put up a filler for this week. However on this point I over ruled him. We are right in the middle of a story and instead of interrupting it with more filler material I figured it would better just to wait one week and keep the story in one piece. After all there is a 6 page members comic coming out this week so I can afford to let one week pass by without a normal update.
Item 7
We are still in trouble. All these changes are a desperate bid to get the comic back on track. I don’t currently have a steady job and I am spending more that I am taking in on this comic. This simply can not continue. Exiern has been on a steady downward trend for about a year now. 9/6/2010 will be the 5 year anniversary of Exiern. If by that time one of 2 things doesn’t happen I will have to simply cut my losses. Either:
a) Exiern has to start making a profit again
b) I have to get a steady job that pays me a surpluss of money to invest in this hobby.
Item 8
What can you do to help? Well the primary thing is to tell people about the comic. If you think we are doing something cool here let other know. Forum post, fan art, fan fics, heck even slash fics all help the comic immeasurably. Let me know where you are posting so I can link to it on the site and get involved in the conversation. You guy have always been very loyal but you have also been a bit of a reclusive lot. Now it the time to speak out and let yourself be heard.
The other thing is to tell me and Thom what we can do to make the comic better? Do you want forum space? Facebook page? Podcasts? Something else? Let us know what we can do.
Or conversely if you know anyone who is looking to hire a professional computer trainer with a number of certification drop me a line.
Email: Drowemos@yahoo.com
Item 9 (That’s all folks)
That’s about it. That’s what is going on here. I want to thank you guys for hanging in there and I hope that I can continue to entertain you for years to come. If not. Well we had an amazing run doing far better than we had any right to do. I had a lot of fun and was able to help out a bunch of people the funds from this comic. The money from Exiern:
- Launched Knit Princess.
- Donated to flood victims in in the Philippines
- Donated to the victims of Katrina.
- We help Boom pay for the tuition of his girls in school
- Help a good friend avoid financial collapse.
It was fun.
Item 10 (It ain’t that bad)
Ok I need to ad an addendum here. It seem that the tone of this post left people with the impression that everything is falling apart here. Not the case. We are in a period of transition. I fully believe that changes we are implementing; Regular updates on twice a week schedule; New management; Focus on delivering a quality story with out interruptions, will turn things around by this fall. I am not begging for money. Granted if you want to give money cool. But only do so if the comic deserves it not because I wrote a sad post.
What I am saying is that because this is a period of transition this is a unique opportunity for you to have an effect on the course of this comic. I want your input and ideas. I want you to tell others about the comic. I only want your money if we have earned it.
