Yet Another First Chapter

Hey, I’ll just pop in like it hasn’t been a year. 🙂

So, funny story, I worked on Chapter 2 of Battle Cat Nap until I got burnt out and decided to take a break by writing a 146,000 word novel. Heh…

Anyway, I’m back and I’ve been in the same old crisis mode regarding this poor project as I have the past half decade. The way it goes is I realize my story is way too ambitious and try to find some clever way to cut it down. I change the medium, the plot, the character roles, the art style… But inevitably I rediscover that this story, by nature, demands more than I can give. I love these characters and their world so much, it feels like I’m letting them down. They deserve better.

I've always been driven to complete things and I don't take on many projects at once because of it. I don't want to work on something if I don't plan to get it done. So I’m troubled by the reality that I can’t finish Battle Cat Nap myself, lengthy and elaborate as I’ve imagined it. I’m not even sure I’ll even manage to finish the first arc.

But I did make a new Chapter One. Within 20 days, which is a little encouraging. I like this one better in that it introduces my main characters from the very start and keeps things simpler. The art style is looser and I’m not even using my 3D renders for the backgrounds anymore. Don’t tell past me who spent a year modeling it all. I just decided it’s nicer not having to sit at the computer and set up dozens upon dozens of camera angles.

Even though I got this chapter done, I don’t know how much time I’ll have to work on the rest moving forward. I need to get a stable job and I’ve been thinking of a book series that feels more promising than my dear BaCaNap. I appreciate being able to listen to audiobooks and friends while drawing web comic panels, but knowing me I’ll probably end up prioritizing the books almost exclusively when I start them. But we’ll see.

For now, I hope people can get an idea of what I’m going for with this project. My old chapter and the beginning of the next can still be accessed here: