I’m not sure if I should start these off with some kind of standard greeting or just go right into whatever it is I’m going to say. That said, I guess I’ll go with a traditional greeting for now and we’ll play it by ear in the future. So…

Heya, guys!

I want to talk about a few things in this post, actually. The two are kind of tied together, so I’ll start in chronological order. A few weeks ago, I was sitting at work pouring over a random art blog that I’d found on one of my inspiration-sparking tours of the internet’s abundant art galleries. I do this often; more so when I want to write a short story–which is how I met Markus, actually–and don’t have anything particular in mind to write. Something happened this time, though, and it was something very profound on a personal level. As I was sitting there going through yet another wonderful and underappreciated webcomic, I slowly began to realize that I didn’t have my own art style.

For years I’ve been trying to learn from my favorite artists, trying to dissect how they do what they do, and it dawned on me that all I had been doing was imitating their style. Whenever I wanted to do drawing, I would inevitably–and often unknowingly–pick the artist that best fit with whatever my subject or the overall tone I wanted and just draw it like they would draw it. Now, that’s not to say I found a drawing they had done similar to the one I wanted and just copied it; I have almost always drawn my own stuff, with the exception of those drawings I did for my friends in grade school where I meticulously recreated their favorite images. However, I would emulate their style wherever possible. This realization was something of an epiphany in that it gave me a completely different view of my art and a new motivation to do something about it.

So, I decided it was time I stop sitting around talking about how great it would be to reach a professional level of art and focus on honing my skills. I don’t intend to be a “great” artist–I just don’t think I have that much talent in that level of my creativity–but I do intend to be my own artist. I want people to look at something I’ve done and–their opinions on its quality aside–be able to know it was me that drew it. That it, really. As I said, I’m not looking to make a career out of my art, just make my art recognizable to those who enjoy it.

However, what I do want to make a career out of is my writing; which brings me to my next point.

For years I’ve been the guy who always talks about when. “When I publish a book…” “When I write a comic…” But never have I actually tried. Well, now it’s time for me to change that. I’ll never know what I can do if I don’t put a manuscript–be it novel or comic script–into a potential publisher’s hands. But, in order to do that, I need to finish one first, and that’s the part that has held me up the most.

Now, if you know me, you know that my work schedule is something of a pain in the ass, especially with the amount of overtime I–and everyone that works with me–has had to suffer through for the last 3-plus years. Because I spend so much time here–and given the nature of my job–I had long-ago decided to write only while at work. This would free up my off time to do other things I love, like gaming; and boy did I game. I figure, in an average two-week period, I probably spent a full quarter of my time with a controller or keyboard and mouse in my hands; with the remaining three quarters divided unevenly between work and other things. This is not a productive way to spend my time. Sure, I was enjoying myself–if you don’t count cheap boss fights or ridiculously difficult levels–but I wasn’t getting anywhere. And the shitty thing is, while working my way through wonderful story after wonderful story, I would be sitting there telling myself I could be writing stories like this. I could create a world that others could enjoy.

If only I had the time…

Well, I am formally announcing to all those who visit this site–and the one or two of you who haven’t been told already–that, as of August 1^st, I will be giving up gaming in an attempt to spend that time focusing on creating something others can sit on their couch and enjoy. No, I’m not making a video game; though that would be fantastic! What I am doing, though, is dividing my energy on my creative projects. Starting with the a new focus on maintaining a schedule for Only a Geek and working to improve the strip’s quality in both writing and art. The second big project is the writing of a short comic book series for submission to Dark Horse; the first issue of which is officially in second draft. I will reveal more about this project in the coming weeks, but, for now, I’m playing it pretty close to my chest. And, of course, my final project is Fyreball and the relaunch of that comic and a potential weekly-release of pages as an ongoing webcomic.  There’s a chance I may take another go at NaNoWriMo this year, but that’ll depend on how much I can give to it.

As to gaming, my goal is to go an entire year without playing a single game, with two strict exceptions, and I say strict because my decision to make these two allowances have very specific parameters. The first is Star Wars: The Old Republic and the second is Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. With SW:TOR, my reasons are two-fold:

1.  I am restricting myself to only playing with Tim (who you will come to know a bit more soon enough) and his schedule only allows for him to be logged in one or two days a week for a few hours at a time and, generally, these days do not line up with my off time, and…
2.  It is my hope that allowing myself this small, naturally restricted exception will scratch the itch I will inevitably feel–and, thus far, it has.

With Skyward Sword, my reasoning is inarguable: I play with my son. Yes, I know Zelda games are single-player, but Logan and I bond when he watches me play and–though I get annoyed as a life-long gamer–he relishes in the fact that he can “help” me from time to time.

I feel confident that I can do this and that good things will come out of it over the next twelve months. I am keenly aware that there will come times where my will is tested–the release of Halo 4 and Assassin’s Creed 3, just to name two off the top of my head–but I haven’t even officially started yet and already I’m getting more things accomplished than I have in the few years before. I’m committed and I truly believe it will be worth it in the end.

So, that’s that…

Look for these Wednesday posts to be a showcase for my journey to find my own style and a way for me to vent any frustrations I feel or to gush over my perceived improvements.  Also, though I won’t be gaming actively, I will still be giving my reviews on movies, comics, or books I’m reading, as well as perhaps reviewing games I’ve played that I feel weren’t given the right attention.

Hope you guys stick around!

Till Friday…

–Ray