Zub Tales

For the past 14 years I’ve been putting together a ‘Year In Review‘ post on my website as a way to summarize my thoughts and feelings on the year that was. It’s nice to measure highs and lows, and help jog my memory as things carry forward.

No pressure of course, but if you’re curious about what I was thinking in late December each year, here’s a complete link archive:

2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023.

2024 was an adventurous year on almost every front, but also one of the more balanced years I’ve had in terms of the personal and the creative. I got a lot done, but didn’t run myself ragged like I have in the past. A big part of that balance came at the end of April when I finally took the teaching sabbatical I was originally supposed to take back in 2020 before the world spun off its axis, we were plunged into lockdown, and classes moved online. After two years of online teaching and two more of things lurching back toward in-person classes and events, I finally felt ready to take an extended break from teaching. Having one career instead of two felt really strange at first, but with more time for myself it was also a much-needed exhale.

I know Stacy was worried that my workaholic nature would kick in and I’d fill every schedule gap with writing work but, to her surprise, I didn’t write more this year. The pace I’m at now is right where I want to be – tackling projects I’m passionate about and giving each one the concentration it deserves while also leaving myself downtime so I don’t careen into burn out like I was rocketing toward by the end of 2019.

Don’t get me wrong, I still did a lot and traveled a lot – Seattle, Lake Geneva, Calgary, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Dallas, Cross Plains, San Diego, Chicago, Indianapolis, Madison, London, Nottingham, Newcastle, and Edinburgh – but having the Comic Sketch Art team handling most of the event prep and not having teaching responsibilities to juggle while I hopped time zones meant that I could lean into each trip more fully and actually enjoy the ride.

Finally getting back to Japan was glorious. Celebrating 50 years of Dungeons & Dragons in Lake Geneva with friends and fellow creators was incredible. Being part of D&D in a Castle and the Dungeon Master University program in northern England was amazing and surreal.

There were setbacks, of course, but not being overloaded meant I could handle those challenges more effectively as well. Even when potential projects crumbled, the publishing industry shook, or Stacy and I caught Covid again as Gen Con was starting, we were able to pull together and persevere.

On the creative front, this was the first time in a decade that I didn’t have a new comic release from Marvel or DC, but that break from superheroes certainly didn’t keep me off the board – As almost all of you already know, the new Conan the Barbarian publishing plan is roaring along and the Hyborian Age was my focal point in 2024. Every single release I had this year was sword & sorcery-related and 21 out of the 26 books I released were Conan-centric. To say that I was ‘on-brand’ is an understatement.

Not to say that I don’t want to write superheroes anymore. I’m certainly interested in mixing things up in 2025 with different projects, but having a laser focus in ’24 was also nice, showing myself and everyone else that I could put out a strong monthly title and build an event in my wheelhouse. Note to Publishers – Give me a bit of room to cook and I might just surprise you. 🙂

Speaking of Conan, in July we announced that I signed a long term contract commitment to the Hyborian Age with at least two more years of monthly Conan comics and events, which is the kind of consistency that feels all-too fleeting in comics nowadays. It’s a non-exclusive deal, so I can do work for other companies, but also a promise to carry through on big mythic plans we have bubbling away.

In my previous Year in Review post I said “How do you catch second struck lightning in a bottle? I don’t know, but I’m holding this one as tight as I can and using its energy and inspiration like a lantern to light my way as we head into an uncertain future” – Thankfully, that lantern is still shining bright as we head into the great unknown that will be 2025.

This newsletter has been a crucial outlet for me. I’m so glad I kicked it off last year and kept it almost-weekly through 2024. It’s been a really useful way to jot down things as they happen, point people toward creators, articles, and recipes on my radar, and mark each milestone on the big journey. Social media platforms are less reliable than ever and every platform has shown that it can change for the worse or be wiped away very quickly, so I’m extra-thankful I have my own website online, literally 25 years worth of blogposts and tutorials that aren’t under someone else’s umbrella and can’t be shunted away by algorithms.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for your kind messages and support.

Here’s my writing output for 2024:

Wishing you and your loved ones an enjoyable new year filled with grand possibilities.
Jim