Location: Real Break Room

Brain Wizard

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays/It is Monday, as appropriate! Now that it’s Christmas, we are about six months past the Christmas story arc. Naturally. If, somehow, Hell, Inc. ever becomes an animated show, I’ll have to make sure the Christmas party stuff doesn’t air anywhere near Christmas, just to keep up that tradition.

A Christmas Present for Patrons!

In lieu of an Employee of the Week, I’ve got a gift for my Patreon patrons (which can also include you, if you want!). I’ve been working on a video game side project for a bit, and patrons can now play my first finished game, Space Jerks! It’s an arcade shoot-em-up based on Space Invaders, but with hand-drawn art and sound effects that I foley’d myself! I’m excited to be able to share this with folks, so if you’re a patron, check it out, and if you’re not… well, you could be. Patrons at all levels will be able to download the game on an ongoing basis. Click on the image below to check it out!

As always, Top Webcomics is a helpful way to tell people about Hell, Inc.! You can vote daily by clicking on the banner below.

Next Week: Doug tries to be his own brain wizard. Read it early on Patreon!

 

The Sixth Dimension

The Patreon preview for this post is about the way comics have magical realism built into them as a medium, and the ways that can be used to the cartoonist’s advantage. It also lets you draw things that don’t need explanation for how they’re happening, like Doug waving a flaming sword atop a space pegasus.

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. Season 2 is underway!

Patreon! Go there. Do that. It is my most reliable source of income, and that is very helpful when living that freelance life. If everyone who read the comic last week chipped in $1/month, that would be enough to almost completely eliminate the need for freelancing. That would be rad!

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: We check in on the office’s Ambient Misery Index. Read it early on Patreon!

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!

Solid Sara

The third panel was really easy to write and quite a challenge to draw, which is generally the case whenever something is hard to draw.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Brien Aronov is Employee of the Week, and is reading Hockeypocalypse: Slashers as I write it! Will it be the best book I’ve ever produced? Probably! And by supporting me on Patreon at the $5/month and up levels you’ll get a print copy when it’s done. Supporting my art on Patreon means I can keep doing stuff like that instead of hunting for freelance jobs and trying to develop graphic novel pitches that agents/publishers will like (I have no idea what either of those groups like). Capitalism, it is a huge pain in the ass for someone like me who likes to make stuff but whose creative niche does not result in making hits.

You can help more people find Hell, Inc. by voting for on Top Webcomics! Click the banner below to vote daily, and also just tell some people you think would like it. Know people who read comics? Tell them about Hell, Inc. and send a link. Word of mouth is the only universally effective way to spread the word.

Next Week: There are no bad ideas, except that’s not true at all, there are absolutely bad ideas. Read it early on Patreon!

The Normalest

What, you don’t just stand around like that it in the kitchen? That’s NOT the normalest thing to do? Neither is saying “normalest?” Well now I just don’t know what to think about the world.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Cait is Employee of the Week at Hell, Inc. and also at her soap business, Soaps & Sorcery. You should go buy soap from her right now. I’ll wait here. Okay, you’re back? Cool, we’ll resume the newspost then. Have you thought about supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon? You should, because that’s how I have financial security outside of freelancing (incidentally, I have very little financial security outside of freelancing).

You can also help Hell, Inc. by voting for it on Top Webcomics, where the largest number of new readers come from. The rankings reset at the beginning of the month, which means that votes mean a lot more for determining placement. Vote daily by clicking the banner below!

Next Week: Hell, Inc. #200! That’s so many comics! I need a nap. Read it early on Patreon.

A Very Short Mystery

Truly I am the successor to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie with these kinds of mystery writing skills. Or at least the successor to the procedurals where it’s always the first suspect but they chase a bunch of others to pad the episode.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Anthony is Employee of the Week, and has jumped on board to read Hockeypocalypse: Slashers, which you should, too! The first 36 pages (which make up issue 14) are up, with issue 15 starting right away. You’ll be helping support the book’s existence, and also be getting the printed book when it’s ready!

You can help Hell, Inc. reach more readers by voting for it on Top Webcomics (also, y’know, tell your friends about it and send them links and shit)! Click on the banner below to vote daily!

Next Week: Everything is extremely normal, especially when you have to say it is extremely normal. Read it early on Patreon!

No Plan for Dying Inside

Is there really ever a plan for dying inside? I had a conversation yesterday that was tangentially about that, speculating that because I had been self-employed for so long I would struggle mightily to adjust if I had to go back to working for somebody in the standard, supervised way. I am absolutely certain that would be the case, because I need some level of personal investment in what I’m doing to do my best, and I also don’t like being told what to do. So… yeah, hopefully this “drawing cartoon pictures” biz continues to be viable enough that I don’t get booted out of the house.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Welcome new Employee of the Week “Game Time” Art Middleton! Follow him on Twitter or check out his Twitch streams, OR… do both of those things. Yes. Do that. Also, head over to the Hell, Inc. Patreon, where you can support the continued existence of your favourite office demons and also the creation of my new graphic novel, Hockeypocalypse: Slashers. I can say, without hesitation, it is the best book I have ever drawn.

You can also help Hell, Inc. by voting for it on Top Webcomics, which is extremely valuable early in the month, as we are now, because the rankings reset on the 1st and re-level the playing field. Vote daily by clicking the banner below!

Next Week: B.L. Zebub will make no promises, because he’s honest about being a liar. Read it early on Patreon!