What Happened to âTo The Wilderseaâ?
Well, where to start? First off, I am so sorry I disappeared. I thought about coming back here so many times to explain but the past six years have been hard. And explaining why I was giving up something that was so important to me for so longâŚit hurt. Admitting defeat is never easy.
Around the time of the last post, in the midst of trying to juggle a new full time job and this project, my computer died. I had planned to come back, or at least I kept telling myself that, once I had a working computer. Then my mother got sick. In the midst of her illness, my father got sick too. But we didnât know about it until a few months before he passed away. I had a couple years with my mother. Until she joined my father. Like I said, itâs been a hard few years.
In the middle of all of that, I transitioned. There were themes in this story that are pretty clear in hindsight, but I couldnât see them as I was drawing them. But all the same, this story was my way to process being transgender. It took a few major tragedies for me to actually see myself, but I got there in the end. Iâm thankful I did. Despite everything, Iâm happier now than I have been for a long time.
So, will I be going back âTo the Wilderseaâ? The answer is no. I will be keeping this up for as long as I am able, as Iâm proud of the work I did, but Iâve kinda moved on from the person who made this. Truth be told, I was never quite sure where this story was going. I had a rough idea but I never had all of the pieces. I wish I hadnât left it on such a cliffhanger (I had always intended for Fie to be rescued and in the end for her to finally be the woman she always wanted to be. I am a little sad I never brought that to fruition)
Iâm actually in the middle of a new story. I took the broken pieces from the Wildersea and the lessons I learned from breaking them, and put them into something new. A story Iâm really proud of. Iâve grown as both an artist and a writer in the time between there and here. Another process piece about being trans, of sorts, but one in which I have all the pieces. Itâs called âAlong the River Phoriaâ and while it has nothing to do with the Wildersea, or its world, itâs a sister story of sorts. A very similar flavor. Not animated, but thatâs probably a good thing for my hand, lol. If youâre interested, you can read it here
To those who followed this, I donât expect you to follow along with that one. I know I kinda did this story dirty. I canât promise I wonât give up the ghost on that story either. Webcomics are brutal work, however satisfying it may be. But I did want to come back, if only to explain. I am sorry. But Iâm so grateful for those of you that followed along and commented. You all made it worth it. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Safe travels.
Love,
Ava