Chapter: 2023

Ray’s Stay Awake Juice TM

If I knew how to make the TM symbol in the title field, I would definitely do that. But I don’t, so I didn’t. Speaking of things I know how to do, I have begun learning how to make video games in the Godot engine. So far I’ve done a beginner course and made a super simple “move your guy around and collect coins” game. Soon I shall have the power to conjure video games from the aether and make the dumb Hell, Inc. spreadsheet Tetris game I’ve mentioned off and on for like 4 years.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Ben Hamlin, host of Syndicated with Lesley and Ben (among other casted pods), is Employee of the Week, and I just made my fourth appearance on the show, this time discussing crime drama Better Call Saul! If you want to hear me talk about how artfully executed BCS is, then good news, you’ll have a great time listening to that podcast!

Patreon! It’s a predictable source of income, so if you like things that I do, check it out.

Also check out the newsletter, which is how to hear about what I’m up to without needing to subject yourself to things like Twitter.

You can also support Hell, Inc. for free by telling your friends about it, because that is infinitely better than any promotion I can do. Also voting on Top Webcomics by clicking the banner below is very helpful!

Next Week: Some real wizard van vibes. Read it early

Dougfinity

You know a drink is a healthy way to start your day when it makes you sweat profusely and see through time! This week’s Patreon preview features talk about digital lettering, and also you can see Patreon’s new, stupid logo. Whoever made that absolutely got paid more for it than I will make this year.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Robbie Dorman is Employee of the Week. He is co-host of The Simpsons Show, the only podcast about The Simpsons, and also the only podcast about The Simpsons that I have done a guest spot on. You should also check out his website to learn about his new novel releases. He writes that good good scary shit. Indie artists need your support now more than ever, so check out his stuff!

Also check out my Patreon, because if everyone who reads Hell, Inc. on a monthly basis kicked in $1, I’d be able to cut my freelancing schedule to nearly nil, and focus on the things you already like (Hell, Inc., and presumably other comics I make without bothering to consider whether they suit the publishing zeitgeist, such as the aforementioned project I want to pitch).

You can also support Hell, Inc. for free by telling your friends about it, because that is infinitely better than any promotion I can do. Also voting on Top Webcomics by clicking the banner below is very helpful!

Next Week: Going on a trip. Read it early on Patreon!

The Infinity of Helens

In this week’s Patreon preview, I wrote a whole big thing about how many drafts it took to get to Helen’s dialogue in the last panel, then it gets eaten by posting gremlins. So then I wrote another thing that’s mostly about coming up with props that add to the world of the comic, like the mugs with art on them.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Brien Aronov is Employee of the Week, and you can too! Get Employee of the Week shoutouts, read my next graphic novel as I draw it, or commission digital art! All of those things also help provide a level of predictability to my income that basically doesn’t exist otherwise, because freelancing is chaos.

If you want to keep up with what I’m working on, what my friends are doing, and (most importantly) see cute photos of my pets, sign up for my monthly(ish) newsletter!

You can also vote for Hell, Inc. on Top Webcomics, which is a helpful source of new readers! It’s early in the month, which means votes are more valuable as the rankings reset.

Next Week: The Infinity of Helens causes doubt about Ray’s patented Stay Awake Juice. Read it early on Patreon!

 

The Bee Tooth Rule

The bee tooth rule is a very good one, I think. If you’re doing anything and your teeth start to feel like they’re full of bees, you should probably stop doing that thing. That line is courtesy the time I forgot that I had already taken my ADHD medication, and the accidental doubling of the dosage made it feel like my teeth were vibrating. I don’t recommend it!

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Brien Aronov is Employee of the Week, and you can too! Get Employee of the Week shoutouts, read my next graphic novel as I draw it, or commission digital art! All of those things also help provide a level of predictability to my income that basically doesn’t exist otherwise, because freelancing is chaos.

If you want to keep up with what I’m working on, what my friends are doing, and (most importantly) see cute photos of my pets, sign up for my monthly(ish) newsletter!

You can also vote for Hell, Inc. on Top Webcomics, which is a helpful source of new readers! It’s early in the month, which means votes are more valuable as the rankings reset.

Next Week: Ray’s Stay Awake Juice. Read it early on Patreon!

Office Raccoons

Office Raccoons could also be a desperate 2000s attempt to reboot The Raccoons by capitalizing on the popularity of The Office. It could also be a genuinely very funny comic about a Toronto overrun by raccoons to the point where they have just replaced humans entirely, which I kind of want to make. Add another project to the list of roughly 200 that I think would be fun.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

You, if you stopped by my table at Edmonton Expo! It’s always wonderful to be reminded that the numbers in the stats dashboard are, in fact, actual people reading the comic and not just algorithmic errors. If YOU want to be shouted out specifically as Employee of the Week, and also help me keep making art you like instead of continuing to flail about in the chaos that is freelancing, go to Patreon! Supporting Hell, Inc./me on Patreon is an ideal way to ensure I can work on projects because they’re interesting instead of churning out pitches in hopes that one of the hundred or so people that can make the publishing industry pay me a livable amount of money do so.

You can also help Hell, Inc. by voting for it on Top Webcomics, which helps bring in new readers. Click on the banner below to vote daily!

Next Week: Ray’s corporate family recipes. Read it early on Patreon.

What IS New?

The preview post for this comic on Patreon talks at length about how my attitudes about my work processes have changed since I started making comics, and how that shows in the comics I make. You’re welcome, because the other option was going into way too much detail about how I did the receptionist’s speech balloon.

In other news, Edmonton Expo is this weekend, which really snuck up on me! I’ll be at table P09 on the Comic Creator wall of Hall H.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Cait is Employee of the Week, and will ALSO be at Edmonton Expo. Possibly at my table, but more likely with her sword fighting club. If YOU want to be Employee of the Week, and also help me keep making art you like instead of continuing to flail about in the chaos that is freelancing. Patreon is the most convenient way to do that, and you also get to see a bunch of cool art way before other people!

You can also help Hell, Inc. by voting for it on Top Webcomics, which helps bring in new readers. Click on the banner below to vote daily!

Next Week: Doris the greeter. Read it early on Patreon.

Floor People

This week’s Patreon preview involved discussion about how I handle compositions for actions that are repeated multiple times over the course of a series. I probably could have written an entire textbook on the subject if I had talked about HEAT, because that series involved drawing roughly 5000 lariats.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

“Game Time” Art Middleton is Employee of the Week! Follow him on Twitter or check out his Twitch streams, OR… do both of those things.  Also, head over to the Hell, Inc. Patreon, where you can support the continued existence of your favourite office demons and read new strips early (see above!). It turns out that humans, like demons, need money to live! Me, specifically.

In other news, social media’s slow collapse strengthens the case for Top Webcomics. The Old Internet becomes the New Internet! Click the banner below to vote daily.

Next Week: Maybe the office party was okay, after all? Read it early, and with author commentary, on Patreon!

The Worst Morning

We have reached the end of book 6! That’s the kind of thing I keep track of, but probably doesn’t come across or matter to you, the reader. The comic strip format of Hell, Inc. means that the story structure doesn’t have big dramatic splashes or cliffhangers that read as obviously being the end of an issue, like a print comic series does when it’s collected together. The story kind of flows along, with plot and jokes happening, and where a volume begins or ends is less important than what the main thrust of the book’s story is. I should write something about getting to the end of book 6, since that was originally supposed to be the end of the series.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Leonardo is Employee of the Week! They supported the creation of Hockeypocalypse: Slashers, and helped make that book possible! You can do that with my next graphic novel, which I will be serializing on Patreon as well. Backers at the $5/month and up tiers will get a copy mailed to them when it’s finished! You can also help me out for as little as $1 a month, because that really adds up when enough people get involved.

You can help out Hell, Inc. for free by clicking the banner below to vote on Top Webcomics, which you can do daily! It helps make the comic more visible to webcomic readers.

Next Week: Sara gains further insight into the hazards of floor-sleeping. Read it early on Patreon!

Hindsight

In the Patreon preview for this strip, I talk about the concept of joke density and my approach to incorporating it into Hell, Inc.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Shane Lees is Employee of the Week! He has a webcomic, Tales of Abuse, which you can check out at his website. You should also check out the Hell, Inc. Patreon, which is my predictable form of income. One of these days it will replace the need to freelance! Not a SOON day, but one day!

You can help out Hell, Inc. for free by clicking the banner below to vote on Top Webcomics, which you can do daily! It helps make the comic more visible to webcomic readers.

Next Week: The strip that ends this arc! To be followed by… another arc! Read it early on Patreon!

The Bus Waits for No Demon

This week’s comic made me hyper-aware that my buffer is down to two weeks, which means I need to get drawing again. My efforts lately have been focused on a new pitch packet (one of those will land, one of these days) and BURGERPunk stuff. There was a loooooot of BURGERPunk stuff to draw.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Sebastian is Employee of the Week, and you can, too! It’s how I have predictable money, which is both Cool and Good because we live in capitalist hell-world. If everyone who read the comic in a month chipped in $1, I’d be able to turn down most freelance work and focus on doing Hell, Inc. stuff and my own graphic novels! That would be preeeeetty cool.

You can help Hell, Inc. for free by voting for it on Top Webcomics, which has been a great way to draw in new readers. Click the banner below to vote daily!

Next Week: Getting Helen OFF the bus isn’t easy, either. Read it early on Patreon!