Character: Helen

Paper Towels

Next week’s Hell, Inc. comic is number FOUR HUNDRED. WILD. The patreon preview for this strip is mostly me complaining about the current hassles of trying to figure out if I can still mail books to the US and Europe.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Leonardo is Employee of the Week! They supported the creation of Hockeypocalypse: Slashers, and helped make that book possible! Which is good, because Hockeypocalypse continues to be my best seller at conventions.  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: Hell, Inc. number 400! Read it early on Patreon!

Crushed It

Helen might have crushed her presentation, but nobody is better at crushing excitement than Doris. I write about Doris’ characterization in the Patreon preview for this strip!

Other things that are crushed include my ability to ship books to large portions of the world, thanks to the GDPR shipping rules in the EU and whatever it is that the US thinks it’s doing. This is a huge problem for the Hell, Inc. Afterlife-time Employment collection, which I’ve been wanting to print for like two years now. Because it’s a horizontally formatted book in full colour, it’s expensive, so I need to print A LOT of them. It’s very rude of the United States to arbitrarily cut off a huge swathe of the audience from being able to order copies.

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!

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: So what’d I miss while I was gone, Helen asks. Read it early on Patreon!

Hi, Neighbour!

This week’s Patreon preview is about drawing action in a comic strip, and when it’s useful to shorthand things.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Barrie Deatcher is Employee of the Week, which means they are one of the folks helping support Hell, Inc. and my other non-freelance art endeavours! For example, I want to draw another wrestling comic.  Patreon can make that possible! Even $1 goes a long way, and adds up pretty fast when enough readers show their support.

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: Sara has many questions. Read it early on Patreon!

Cerberus Ate My Homework

I suppose Cerberus didn’t EAT the homework so much as demolish it, and a bunch of stuff around it. This week’s Patreon preview is a little bit about the construction of this Helen arc, but also about how much fun drawing action sequences in a comic strip is.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Cindy Gauthier is Employee of the Week, and you can read her comic on Webtoon! It’s called Posthumous, and is a comic about two friends (who are cool, weird cyborg-things) exploring space and how the things that are in space are often terrifying.

Patreon! It’s a predictable income that I would like to be bigger so I can do less freelance and more stuff that I want to do! You get early access to Hell, Inc. strips, my new ttrpg Big Robots, Big Feelings, and more!

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: Cerberus keeps going! Read it early on Patreon!

The Weight of Expectations

Based on how much Helen is sweating, apparently the weight of expectations is water weight. The Patreon preview for this strip was about drawing that.

In other news, I’m going to be drawing Hell, Inc. page FOUR HUNDRED this week. It feels like I haven’t been doing this strip for very long, but it’s been 7 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’ve made yet another guest appearance! This time, we talked about Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury! We talk about the Prologue, which is an insane rarity – a first episode that is also the best episode of the series. You also get to hear me say some absurd Gundam character names, which I could have done for MUCH longer. You can also hear me talk about a bunch of other shows, like Better Call Saul, Newsradio, Workaholics, and Ugly Americans!

You can also 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: Helen’s presentation continues… sort of. Read it early on Patreon!

 

Great Expectations

The Patreon preview for this one is mostly about how I arrived at the title.

I spent the past weekend at Gamecon Canada, which was a lot of fun. It’s always a bit strange to be at a convention and not be tabling. I was part of the Play On Tabletop narrative 40k event, bringing my Orks to serve as the spare player to ensure there weren’t any byes. I ended up playing in 3 out of the 4 rounds, which made me baffled by the people playing in the 40k Grand Tournament who had 6 or 8 games or something like that over the same time span. My brain would be leaking out of my ears after that many games in a weekend.

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!

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: The overheating photocopier becomes a bigger problem. Read it early on Patreon!

“I’m Screwed. Hello.”

The Patreon preview for this week is about the comic strip within a comic strip that almost existed in this comic strip. Comic strip.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Brien is Employee of the Week, and as a patron, can currently read ahead on my next webcomic/graphic novel, Dropkicks & Dragons! Patrons are going to be able to read a fair amount ahead of the general public when that one launches, and it kicks ass, so please check it out!

In other news, continue voting for Hell, Inc. on Top Webcomics. The Old Internet becomes the New Internet! Click the banner below to vote daily.

Next Week: The Satanic Baseball Simulator League continues! Read it early, and with author commentary, on Patreon!

Our Helen?

I’ve returned from Calgary Expo 2025, and I’d like to thank everyone who stopped by my booth and made it an incredible weekend. Nearly every title I had with me was sold out or nearly sold out, and I had four days of great conversations with interesting folks!

This week’s Patreon preview post was about a common cartooning tip and how it helps utilize the reader’s imagination to fill in blanks.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Trash the Stampede is Employee of the Week, and can be found on the internet at The Word Eater. Patreon is also a predictable source of income, which helps calm the increasingly rough waters of freelancing, so I very much appreciate the people who support me on it!

In other news, continue voting for Hell, Inc. on Top Webcomics. The Old Internet becomes the New Internet! Click the banner below to vote daily.

Next Week: We check in on Sara’s orientation. Read it early, and with author commentary, on Patreon!

“I’m Helen. Hello.”

The Patreon preview for this strip was about using action techniques for comedic emphasis! I should write more about that, because I think it’s a really interesting topic.

Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo is April 24-27, and I will once again be there, now in the remodeled BMO Centre. If you’re in town, stop by and check out some great books!

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Leonardo is Employee of the Week! They supported the creation of Hockeypocalypse: Slashers, and helped make that book possible! Which is good, because Hockeypocalypse continues to be my best seller at conventions like the aforementioned Calgary Expo.  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: Doug has no idea what’s going on. Read it early on Patreon!

Good Day

The Patreon preview for this strip was about the idea of a thing that is supposed to be fun causing you negative emotions. Doug provides a helpful perspective on the matter.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Leonardo is Employee of the Week! They supported the creation of Hockeypocalypse: Slashers, and helped make that book possible! Which is good, because Hockeypocalypse continues to be my best seller at conventions.  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: Doug starts concocting a plan to slack even harder. Read it early on Patreon!