Gentle reader,

Here I am again with a new page of my wildly popular comic, The Darkest Hour. Universally acclaimed on Twitter (1 like), Facebook (2 likes), Tumblr (8 likes) and Instagram (7 likes), this epic, crafted with much sweat, tears, but even more love is bound to assure me a careless old age living off the profits.

...I realised that the last time I posted here, I was on page 86, so - that's a few pages ago! I'll just link you back to The Darkest Hour p. 87 in case you were waiting for that - and which just happens to be baby Arthur being born!

Page 102, incidentally, used to be page 85. The comic has expanded quite a bit in the redrawing, but I hope I'm done now and can just continue to the end with the pages as they were planned.

This year, I didn't have any holidays around Christmas and New Year, and I felt it! I rarely manage to look at and comment on all hoggywartyxmas entries before the reveals, but this year it was worse than ever. I didn't even manage to finish my gift knitting on time (that's another story). So today is January 12 and I still have ... half? ... of this year's entries to read and comment on.

Of the gifts I have perused so far, these are my particular favourites:

Endings and Beginnings by delphipsmith
Characters:Severus Snape, Hermione Granger, Augusta Longbottom, Madam Pince, Portrait!Dobby, OC's
Wordcount: 9000
Rating: Gen
Summary: An ancient mystery and a modern one: do they hold one another's answers?

I particularly love how this tale tackles the thorny questions surrounding House Elves and their serfdom. It's interesting, clever, fairytale-like and, to top it all off, fun to read. Headcanon fully accepted!

Only Technically Dead by themightyflynn
Characters: Severus, Minerva, Rosmerta, Kingsley, Filius
Wordcount: 6368
Rating: PG
Summary: A mishap with the Ministry filing system may turn into something more than just an annoyance for Severus. Especially if Minerva has anything to say about it.

Okay - the starting point of this story is absolutely brilliant, and the story lives up to the thing something wonderful. It has a great Snape (with many racing thoughts), a truly redoubtable Minerva and a delightful Kingsley Shacklebolt. I don't know how often I laughed out loud while reading this, but when I wasn't laughing, I was grinning.

The Headmaster's Closet by cabepfir
Characters: Severus Snape, Albus Dumbledore, Wispy
Art
Wordcount: 342
Rating: G
Summary: Professor Snape owns everything he needs.

MY GIIIIIIIIFT! I adore it 1000%! It ticks all my boxes!

I'm going to try and read some more tomorrow, and keep my fingers crossed that RL in the form of cats vomiting ALL OVER my bed (damage: washing, cleaning, having to take the duvet to a laundrette because it's too big to fit inside my machine) or my printer yielding up the ghost (damage: having to drag an MFC across the city by public transport, within remarkably restricted opening hours) stops interfering with my plans.

My own entry was this illustration in the aftermath of dreamy_dragon73's story The Longest Night - which happened to be my Hoggywarty gift last year!



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Hahaha everything went so wrong! I made a complete and utter mess of the watercolours on this piece, and that's after I had drawn another birthday picture that had a glaring mistake in the lettering! I had to try and save this one in Photoshop and ended up finishing it on January 10 -_-.

Ah well.



Happy birthday, Professor Snape! And who knows, maybe I'll get back to my Comic of Doom someday and explain all about Brynhild Bromley.

I'm working my way back in the direction of the comic... Morgana and Morgause are already looking forward to new pages, it seems ;).



I try to stay away from New Year's resolutions because they never amount to anything and that's just depressing, but this year I'd really like to establish a routine for working on my comic. Already I'm off on a bad start, but - let's just ignore that for a moment and not stay on the ground after stumbling over the first block.

If you were waiting for LJ updates to know when new pages are up, I should tell you that I did carry on for 9 more pages than were ever mentioned here... My last post ran until page 86, but I've made it to page 95 before everything went to hell in a handbasket. So, if you wanted to catch up: it's the birth of Arthur and its aftermath...

The Darkest Hour p. 87
The Darkest Hour p. 88
The Darkest Hour p. 89
The Darkest Hour p. 90
The Darkest Hour p. 91
The Darkest Hour p. 92
The Darkest Hour p. 93
The Darkest Hour p. 94
The Darkest Hour p. 95

Morgause and Morgana are serving as ambassadors for the next part, as it will spend a bit more time on these young ladies and their as yet undiscovered powers.

Okay, so - I'm posting this ten days later than last year, which means you already know my cards are going to be mighty late (I still have to get them printed! or in fact even drawn, but I'm thinking about cheating, I'm desperate XD!). So you will probably get a Hogwarts-themed card this year, but if I decide I'm willing to be Extremely Late I may throw a Gawain card into the envelope as well.

Anyway - if you want one, please don't hesitate to send me your address and a card will find its way to you.

I'm asking again who wants one because last year two or three cards were returned to me. So, don't be shy and let me know if you would like one! You can put your address in a comment (I'll screen them) or you can send an email to gawaincomic at gmail dot com. My cards travel all around the globe.

As per my annual tradition I will be participating in hoggywartyxmas and snapecase, so the Snapey Season is upon us (which reminds me I need to do a Snapey Birthday drawing soon as well, hah hah.)

Also, for those who might be interested, the comic is Not Dead but as you may be able to tell, I've been struggling with my planning a bit (... a bit?) and I've never quite got it on track since my burn-out last year. I have two pages ready to be posted but I'd like to have a few more before starting to post again... I'm working on it.

I have only just recently realised - I'm officially 40+ now, so it was about time - that I challenge myself constantly. I didn't really understand that before, but I push myself all the time. I'm a creature of habit and I'm not at all adventurous. But when it comes to skills, I always want to grow and get better. On the one hand, it means I put myself under pressure (which sometimes crosses over into stress, self-doubt and performance anxiety), but on the other hand, I get bored when things are too easy. It's my own modest version of "My mind rebels at stagnation" ;).

I tend to push myself for Hoggywarty. A Hoggywarty piece is always a gift for someone, and nobody wants to gift someone with a dud. It's also become, with snapecase, my Snapey Outing of the Year, so I have to make it count. I've also noticed that making fan things I feel freer somehow than when making, say, my Gawain comic. Fandom is less 'for real', if you like. It's playful because the thing you are making does not entirely belong to you. I dare to be more silly and more creative in fan art, I think. I take more risks. As a result, my Hoggywarty pieces are often things I am genuinely proud of (though I am invariably very worried that their recipient won't like them).

This year, because I was in an existential crisis, my first thought was to go easy on myself and do a pretty portrait or something. Or two portraits with a narrative link, because I didn't want to look like a slacker. But soon enough I realised that I didn't really want to go easy. I wanted to make a silly comic that would make people laugh after the awful year we've had. Of course, the trouble is that I'm notoriously slow, and comics, however simple they may look, are not easy to make. For one thing, you need a story, and then you need to figure out how to tell it, and how to render it. Fortunately, and idea presented itself in October. (Just the one! I don't seem to have head space for more than one idea at any given time?!)





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The Next Step?

Around this time last year, I mentioned a Secret Snape Project for 2020. Well, it didn't materialise for plenty of good reasons, most of which have to do with 2020 being what it was.

Here is what I'd planned to do: I wanted to make a sort of Snape Zine, bundling my Snape comics and some extra material. I feel less annoyed by not having made the zine in 2020 now that I've made another comic to add to it.

So, the zine would contain:

• Vengeance is Bitter (2004-2007)


• Great Balls of Snow (2016)


• Flight Plan (2018)


• The Gift (2020)

I don't know how much interest there would be in such a bundle, but I'll put some feelers out. If someone has any experience with producing actual books and selling and shipping them to people, and would be inclined to offer counsel or help, the undersigned, having no business sense, would be most grateful to hear from you :).

So! I don't think that a lot of us had a great 2020, most of us for obvious pandemic reasons. Personally, I ran into my own limitations (I still have the bruises) and I learnt a lot about myself. I haven't been in a good place, and not being able to meet people who are dear to me hasn't helped. It was therefore great to see at least one familiar event return in the shape of hoggywartyxmas - a fest that has been going on for 11 years now and is as much part of my Christmas traditions as the Christmas tree and what should have been the family dinner. I think that for many of us, the fest had even more significance this year and the sense of community was even stronger. My heartfelt thanks to therealsnape and kellychambliss for giving us this ♥.

I still have some catching-up to do, but here are a set of entries I much enjoyed and recommend:

By the Fireside by cabepfir
Rating: G
Characters and/or Pairings: Minerva/Severus
Summary: A quiet afternoon together
Warnings: None
(It's difficult not to rec a cabepfir piece, because her sense of colour and atmosphere are brilliant and she is the Queen of All Watercolour. Also: her Snape. Plus cutiepie cat.)

What Minerva Did Next by hiddenhibernian
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2,100
Characters and/or Pairings: Minerva McGonagall, Augusta Longbottom
Summary: Of magic, witches and whisky, and why there are no female Dark Lords (that you know of, anyway).
Warnings: None
(This was my gift, right up my alley - I find it almost philosophical :). Minerva's understanding of magic grows, and with it her dissatisfaction with the magical community as it is. She begins to consider taking action, and talks it over with Augusta Longbottom. Don't expect flashy action, but enjoy the musings of two sharp witches.)

To All a Good Night by delphipsmith
Rating: G
Word Count: ~5500
Characters and/or Pairings: Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape, Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank, Poppy Pomfrey, Pomona Sprout, Filius Flitwick, Madam Malkin; brief appearance by Hagrid and mention of Malfoys
Summary: Just when things seem dark as a crow's wing, life takes a lucky turn.
Warnings: None
(I'm going to let you discover Delphi's puns for yourself. This story made me laugh out loud every few lines. Basically this is "magical covid takes the Wizarding World". Having lived through this non-magical covid year, I wasn't sure that I would be able to laugh at it, but - I was. I hope you are too.)

Death and Love and Other Yuletide Mysteries: A Hogwarts Castle Story by milotzi
Rating: G
Word Count: 7244
Characters and/or Pairings: Minerva McGonagall and an assorted cast of Hogwarts staff and friends
Summary: Hogwarts Castle as Blandings meets snowbound country house mystery.
Warnings: It’s a Yuletide tale, yet you may discover an easter egg or two or three if you like reading crime mysteries.
(I have a weakness for pastiche. I couldn't write one to save my life, but I so enjoy it when other people prove they can. This was a good one, and I just adore this ironic, knowing 30s style of writing.)

Within a Forest Dark by squibstress
Rating: soft R
Word Count: 9,725
Characters and/or Pairings: Severus Snape/Minerva McGonagall
Summary: Severus expects his journey at Hogwarts to be dark and lonely. He’s right. Mostly.
Warnings: None.
(Squibstress promises 'snark' and 'bitching'. What else can one want from a Severus/Minerva story? ;P An excellent tale with great characterisation and strong dialogue to entertain you even if you don't ship SnacGonagall.)

The Unofficial Minutes of the Hogwarts Knitting Society by therealsnape
Rating: G
Word Count: 14K
Characters and/or Pairings: Irma Pince with a supporting cast of Hogwarts Staff Members. Also, the owner of a knitting shop.
Summary: When Gilderoy Lockhart announces his plan for motivational lectures that will bring the fun back into teaching, his colleagues have to do something. But who would have thought it would involve needles and yarn?
Warnings: None.
(I have two words for you: WITCHES and KNITTING. Truly a magical combination?! Well, it was for me. Minerva McGonagall sets up a knitting club that must save its members from attending lectures by Gilderoy Lockhart. This leads to Ravelry Revelations. Don't be scared of the word count: this story doesn't at all *feel* like 14K, it's that good a read.)

Season’s Greetings from Hogwarts! by mywitch
Rating: PG
Characters and/or Pairings: Pomona Sprout, Filius Flitwick, Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom and Irma Pince
Summary: The Hogwarts Faculty tries to keep it together for the annual Yule card photo.
Warnings: Tiny bit of full frontal nudity ;)
(mywitch is one of these people who can't hide their identity in an anonymous fest because they just ... are who they are? She is amazingly versatile and can, I think, do just about anything. But even though she uses a variety of styles and media, you can always tell it's her because of the unique combination of technical brilliance, creativity and mischief in her entries. Treat yourself to this animated postcard. Do not consume beverages while watching.)

Here endeth the reccing!

So, as we've had the reveal last Saturday, I can quite openly claim authorship of The Gift, a very silly 5-page comic:

The Gift
Rating: Ummm... PG for a word you don't want your child to repeat?
Word Count: 168
Characters and/or Pairings: Severus Snape, Minerva McGonagall, Albus Dumbledore
Summary: The year is 1993, and the presence of one Mr Remus Lupin at Hogwarts means that this isn't the Potions Master's favourite Christmas ever. Maybe, just maybe, Minerva McGonagall can lift his gloom.
Warnings: Rude language

I want to share some behind-the-scenes information about this little comic because it's special for me. If you're interested, I'd advise you to read the story first and then come back for the making-of, which I'll put in a separate entry.

In this house, we try not to let Professor’s Snape’s birthday pass without some new artwork, even if the artwork is often quicker and less accomplished than we would like.

Happy 61st birthday, Severus Snape!

(”Are you a bit obsessed with Snape’s flying skills, Sigune?” “What, why? Whatever gave you that idea?” *blushes*)

Oh! Important news: snapecase has just started!

I also need to post my Hoggywarty recs but nothing goes according to plan at the moment and I am behind on Practically Everything :/.

Would you like to receive an Arthurian Christmas card from me this year? Please let me know and send me your details! I've made the comments to this post private (...I think XD). You can also send an email to gawaincomic at gmail dot com.

Last year, a few cards came back to me, so clearly some people's addresses have changed. I'm making a new list this year, so - don't hesitate to let me know if you want to be on it :). My cards ship worldwide.



Oh - I'm participating in snapecase and hoggywartyxmas this year, as per usual, so there will be some Snapey stuff soonish.