How people think I get shit done VS How it actually is.

Some people may think that I have a lot of assistants and other artists creating my work for me, but the truth is, it's just plain hard work by yours truly!

That's not to say I don't get help, I do. I pay people to put my art on shirts, frame my works and print my comics. My family supports me financially from time to time, my friends and other artists support me either through moral support or by buying my comics and artworks. My girlfriend gives me good advice and inspires me to keep making wonderful works. And of course I pray to God.

But from creating and editing videos, painting artworks, making shirt designs and promotions, marketing them online, creating and managing websites and pages, drawing comic book pages, inking, editing, layout, proofreading and conceptualizing them, writing poems and short stories, I basically do it by myself.

There are a lot of us artists who aren't sponsored by companies or patreons, who have gone full time to fulfill their dream of creating art for a living. Artists who are independent and are just trying to make good shit even though life as an artist is tough shit most of the time.

But I say, after the struggle I believe we can break free from the shackles of obscurity and being misunderstood. All we have to do is to strive harder, support each other, appreciate great works, make room for improvement, learn new things, and be positive that it'll soon pay off. Most of all we have to have patience, there is no such thing as an overnight success. Nothing is really easy, but it's not impossible to succeed.

Marius Black
Manila
Dec. 2016