Sunday, January 01, 2012

Welcome to 2012!

That's it. 2011 is over. If you've been following this blog for a while, you know what a bad 2010 I had. In contrast however, 2011 was a phenomenal year full of growth and opportunities. I went back and looked at my daily posts of the year and found that I had accomplished far more than I intended and experienced things I had never dreamed possible. Here's my 2011 year in review:

I started the year off with a broken computer. But thanks to my good friend Chris Brown who repaired it, it's still working today. The Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl. I updated Durkin's Dragons: Parodies and Tributes and created a whole new book, SCRAPS, both of which I sold at Megacon. I started the Blog Buttons you see on the right and participated in Toon Challenge over on Facebook. I lost my wallet and got it back two weeks later. I attended Star Wars Weekends several times and rode the new Star Tours over and over. I participated in the Threadless Muppet T-Shirt Design Challenge. I debuted Geeky Friday on the blog. I also began Muppet Monday. I started my new comic Durkin Droppings. I wrote and illustrated my story Dead Charlie and Zombie Bob for Dark Mischief. My aunt Theresa passed away. I went to Wisconsin to attend the Kenosha Festival of Cartooning. I turned forty. Three of my art pieces were displayed in my first art gallery show. I went to the screening of The Muppet Movie at the Orlando Puppet Festival and had the honor of meeting Heather Henson, one of the highlights of my year. I entered a design into the Mighty Fine Muppet t-shirt contest where I placed and had my design printed. I briefly attended the ISCA convention. The Muppets triumphantly returned to the big screen. I drew a LOT, created a LOT and had one of the most productive and artistic years of my life.

So I ended the year on a high note, but my journey is only beginning. There are already major plans in the works for 2012.

For starters, I am finishing up a piece for the Throwback Video Game Art Show in January and will have a piece for the Pee-Wee Herman Art Show in February. Also in February, I will be going to New York to draw at the Fierce Fun Toys booth at Toy Fair! It will be my first time to New York and I'm super excited!

That's about all I can tell you about right now, but when I'm able to share more, you'll be able to see it right here on this blog.

And speaking of the blog...

For over two years I have posted EVERY SINGLE DAY. It's been very fulfilling for me and has proven that if I commit to something and set my mind to it, I can do anything. But the popularity of blogs is declining and the new focus is on online networking sites like Facebook. I've been increasing my presence on Facebook for the last few months and I really enjoy the instant feedback and wide-ranging audience of friends, family and fans. It's an easier interface for people and makes me more accessible. My focus going forward is to continue posting more on Facebook, Twitter and other sites. 
That means that I will no longer be posting on this blog every single day. I will be posting as much as I can, and when times are busy it may in fact be every single day. So if you're on Facebook or Twitter and haven't linked up with me, you can click the links to the right and get up to the minute info from me that you may not get instantly right here.

Thanks to every one of you for a fantastic year. I look forward to 2012. It's going to be amazing!

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