Nuclear Delight • Time Well Spent

Here I am. Here it is. The comic you`ve probably stopped waiting for.

Yet again, I have to apologize for a lack of updates. It`s been a whole year since the last comic, and I regret not having better communication skills regarding the state of Nuclear Delight. But there`s no time like the present!

I`ll cut to the chase first and offer a brief explanation second. I don`t foresee regular ND updates in the future--but I don`t necessarily foresee ceasing production entirely, either. So, pretty much status quo, but now it won`t be accidental anymore.

I`ll try to keep this relatively brief, because I know that I tend to get a little long-winded with stuff like this. Ultimately, this decision is driven by the fact that regular production of ND takes more effort than I care to put into it at this particular point in my life. Between life and work, creating ND strips would occupy a chunk of my time that I simply don`t feel enthusiastic about. At some point my free time transforms into something that becomes increasingly indistinguishable from work, and I`m left with precious little time to pursue non-ND activities, interests, and projects. ND has become something that I create out of obligation rather than passion, and that`s the worst reason to continue pursuing creative work.

Rest assured that I`m not going anywhere, and--despite everything I`ve written so far--neither is ND. This isn`t a decision that fills me with joy, but looking back on the past few years it`s the most pragmatic announcement I could possibly make. The only real thing that`s changing is that I won`t feel the need to post "sorry this took so long" with each update anymore. This isn`t so much me stopping ND; it`s more me saying not to hold your breath for new strips--though I definitely want to avoid any more year-long hiatuses in the future. I`ll continue to let you guys know when new comics are posted via Facebook and Twitter, but I wouldn`t recommend checking back here too often beyond that unless you have a serious penchant for disappointment. I mostly just want to make ND what it started as: a side project. There are a few other things in the pipelines that I`m planning on working on, and if you follow me on Twitter, I promise to do my best to keep you informed regarding those things.

Speaking of which, I have to extend my sincerest apologies for my lack of communication. I know my fanbase is small, but I also know that it`s there. Thank you so much for reading the comic and reaching out to me. The fact that things I`ve put on the internet have prompted strangers to contact me and say "what you`ve made here is really great" is still such a surreal concept to me. In general I haven`t utilized social networking outlets regularly in quite some time (I just don`t have the fervor for them that some people seem to), but my silence is also in no small part due to the fact that actually addressing a fanbase and saying "I`m not sure I really feel like doing this so much you guys," is more than a little daunting. I don`t feel good about doing this. It makes me feel guilty, like I`m letting people down. But I realize that not saying anything is even worse, and I absolutely lament not doing it until now. I really would love to communicate more, but in order for me to be able to bring myself to do that, it needs to be in a world where I`m not dodging peoples` expectations and the "where is the next comic" question. I feel like with this I might be able to finally do that now, and it`s honestly a huge relief.

So yes, there will more than likely be new ND strips, at some point. I don`t know when new comics will arrive or what they`ll look like when they do or how frequently they`ll show up. But with any luck they will be filled with the fun and passion that made me start doing them in the first place. And even if you find this news to be upsetting, I hope that you can at least understand where I`m coming from. This might feel like goodbye, but I assure you that it isn`t.

In the immediate future, I`ll be participating in this year`s Extra Life event this weekend. You can read about that and donate to the cause here--100% of any donations I receive are going straight to the Children`s Hospital of Wisconsin in order to help kids who need it. While I may not be at my computer the entire time (I`ll be having guests over and will probably be playing some local multiplayer games at some point), I do intend to stream as much as possible during the 24 hours beginning on the morning of Saturday, November 5th. I`ll put up a link through Twitter when the time comes, so feel free to pop in, watch me be terrible at video games as I get progressively sleepier, and have a chat.

I was also recently a guest on Merely Gamers, a new podcast hosted by two friends of mine, and while the episode I`m in won`t be available until sometime later in the month, they`ve got a few episodes up already that I`d encourage you to check out if you like games.

Until next time, feel free to hit me up and/or follow me on Twitter (and I`ll see if I can`t get myself to be more active over there), and thank you again for all of your support--past, present, and future.