Goats is twelve years old today. It's as old as the single malt I'm sipping while I write this. (If this post remains coherent all the way through I will be amazed.) My beverage was an infant in April of 1997, newly fermented and bottled, stored away in a dank warehouse next to the Ark of the Covenant and Jimmy Hoffa's remains, awaiting this day.
Goats has aged in much the same way a single malt does. It's more sophisticated now, more complex. It's an acquired taste -- not for everyone, but for those brave souls willing to go on a journey it can be rewarding. Consume too much, and it will mess with your mind. I know it has messed with mine.
But twelve years is a hiccup in the larger scheme of things. Peanuts ran for fifty years! Goats is a preteen in comparison, still afraid to talk to girls and dressing in Lee dungarees its parents bought on sale at Sears. I prefer to think of the last twelve years as merely a beginning, as prelude to whatever comes next. As practice.
I often wonder if I'll run out of ideas, if I'll lose the drive that has kept me coming back and pushing myself to improve and grow as an artist and writer. But every day it seems that more and more amazing and talented people start their own webcomics. Veterans continue to improve their game. Webcomics is entering its golden age right now, and professional jealousy is an amazing motivator. I've been lucky to be in a community of some truly incredible folks and I want to thank all of you -- you know who you are -- for all the inspiration and help and infuriatingly good comics. Specifically, I want to thank all the Dumbrella folks, without whom I would likely be living in a hut in the woods trying to convince squirrels of the futility of micropayments.
We're in year six of the current storyline. By my admittedly drunken calculations we've got about three or four years to go. I'm not sure what's going to come after that but I'm not too worried -- after all, it's the journey that matters, not the destination. I hope you all stick around for the rest of it.
I also hope you all buy the books coming out in three months (holy crap!) from the fine folks at Random House's Del Rey imprint. Please start saving your pennies now, I think it will be about fourteen dollars or so.
A little housekeeping, if you don't mind: we're still taking preorders for the new Code or Die and Never Forget shirts this week. I'll probably place the first order this weekend after I've returned from this interminable vacation, so please please please order one if you haven't already (especially the Never Forget shirt, which looks like it may be a single-run shirt. If a design is a favorite of mine it's almost always guaranteed to sell poorly).
And don't forget we're also still selling the last of our bella babydoll tees for only eight bucks a pop, which is totally insane. Even more insane is our $5 book sale, which is your last chance to own the original classic Goats books before the new ones come out. There's been some confusion about whether or not these books will be available again at some time in the future. Let me be clear: After June 23rd you will never be able to buy these books again. They will not be republished and any leftover stock will be pulped and fed to wolverines.
And finally, as my 12th birthday present to you there will be no hackneyed April Fools pranks on the site, this year or ever. You are welcome.
My fingers are tired and I have scotch to drink. Good night, and good luck.