Spring blog: Haven and Novae~ (Patreon)

Hello Friends and Starlights, ✨💕

Kaiju reporting in with a long over due blog post! After our massive deadline with Haven, it felt like all our braincells spilled out. It’s about time we picked them up from the floor like jelly beans.

First things first! Thank you all so much for being so patient and kind while we were on deadline! We really missed responding to your comments. Part of why we really love working on Novae is because of the dialogue we’re able to have with all of you!  Your comments have been so encouraging and fun and really kept us going through the tough times these past few months. So, even though we weren’t able to respond, know that we read every single word with a grateful heart. We think about you all, all the time while we work on Novae and we hope you all are doing well. <3

Thank you for all the warmhearted congratulations on finishing Haven book one! Haven was truly a test of everything: Skill, planning, endurance, and knowing when to ask for help. It pushed us to the limit of our abilities. 

It was our first time working with a publisher, and the comic-making process is so different from what we’re used to. We went through our script several times, trying to cut the story down while maintaining coherency. Themes and settings had to be established, world building needed to be solid, and each character had to have a concise character arc within the span of the first volume. Solving one narrative problem, often times, brought about another in other parts of the story. We think we really squeezed our brains dry trying solve all the plot holes, haha. It made us look at storytelling in brand new ways and we’ve learned a lot, including how to ink a page without super tight pencils and how to let go of imperfections.

We are so proud of this book and It makes our hearts swell to have all of you cheering us on through this long journey. Haven Book 1 won’t come out just yet~ we need to make more progress on the sequel first. (Whisper, whisper, we just handed in the second draft of the script today ´･3･` ). It will be a quite a while but we can’t wait for you all to get the chance to read it.

Although finishing book one and working on book two is very exciting, we tend to get a little down after finishing a big project. We wonder if anyone else here feels the same way? We were expecting this big bubble of joy, but instead it’s just a little bubble? Why does it come with a little anxiety bubble too? Is it because Haven is out of our hands now, into the uncertain world where we have little control of what happens next? It’s hard to say, but in times like these we’re truly grateful we have a webcomic to keep us occupied.

Especially now, after the completion of Novae Chapter 13 (which will finish soon for Star and Twin Star patrons).  The next chapter, Chapter 14, marks the beginning of the end of the first arc of Novae. If you were to look at the arc as a curve, we are almost at the climax! This part has lived in our heads, rent free, since the very beginning. 

I (Jen) tweeted that I was afraid of looking at catacombs haha. I know the prospect of them will be in my stars soon, and it’s not just the complexity that scares me. I’ve always been terrified of mummies and dead people in general and had nightmares for a long time after watching The Mummy in theaters. Although I’m fine now, and even enjoy those movies, it’s always been a pretty prevalent phobia for much of my life. Anyways, I don’t wanna spoil too much, I’m just bracing myself for all the reference pictures I’ll have to look at (laughs into the distance).

The next chapter has also gone through a lot of changes and ohhh, it’s taking all I have not to spoil, but we’re really emotional about where the story is headed. Maybe many of you already have your own theories? We are excited to say the least.

I hope we haven’t rambled too much, but it’s good to connect with you all again. Is there anything special you do for spring? We’ve been taking walks and looking at all the flowering trees. I want to plant a small flower garden, but in Colorado, you always have to wait till after Mother’s day, or the snow could ruin them!

Much love to you all. Thank you so much for being our patrons! We hope we can make your experience here as fun as possible. 💖✨

Warmly,

Kate and Jen 💕