Having the #WynonnaEarp finale air on my birthday is bitter sweet. How has being an Earper changed my life, oh let me count the ways...

Making comics with @BeauSmithRanch was a dream come true. He gave me my first break into comics a decade before. I’d been rooting for #WynonnaEarp through years of development ups and downs. Now it was finally happening, and I got to be a part of that dream. Thank you, old man.

#WynonnaEarp came out at a time I was struggling in my comics career. I couldn’t take my own series to the next level, despite all my best efforts. I took a big risk with it, hoping it would pay off and it didn’t. I was out of options. I started having weekly panic attacks.

So having another series come out, pay some bills, and get fresh readers was well timed. I had just met @Rufio_420 at SDCC and he was a super cool dude. We bonded over webcomics and now he was going to be my @IDWPublishing editor! Spoiler: now he’s my friend.

I got invited to the @IDWEntertain premier in San Diego. @realtimrozon @MelanieScrofano and @DominiqueP_C were the loveliest of humans. I remember telling Melanie how much I loved drawing her nose. Weird? Probably. Definitely. But now I know she can handle weird.

I didn’t get to meet @emtothea that night and I was kind of bummed because I pretty much want to be her when I grow up but didn’t know how to cross the bridge between writing comics and writing TV. Little did I know there would be time...

I watched as @emtothea grew a fan base the way I’d grown my webcomic readership. Through authentic connection with, genuine interest in the people who love your stuff. She geeked out about her own show and played along in the fandom with everyone else. Genius and inspiring.

And then @realtimrozon who is a bigger comic book geek than me started loudly talking about how cool it was to be in a comic. Like taking photos of himself with the comics and sharing them online.

When a TV show gets adapted for a comic, the actors do not usually care. They don’t get the other cast members excited about it & certainly not their fans. But not @realtimrozon. His excitement made the Earpers rush to read our comics. No words for how much this has meant to me.

When I was working on the comics, my father in law was dying from pancreatic cancer. If you noticed that issue 3 and some odd pages of my run were drawn by @ChrisEvenhuis, it’s because he stepped in to take work off my hands during this time. I’ll always be grateful for this.

I drew the rest of my run from my in-laws house in between hospice visits. I had a makeshift office on their dining room table. The one thing you don’t get back is time. So grateful @BeauSmithRanch @Rufio_420 @ChrisEvenhuis worked it out so I could be with my family to the end.

My time on the series wrapped and @ChrisEvenhuis was crushing it as series artist on the second graphic novel. I took on variant covers for this run. I had a lot more freedom, and decided to do a set that mimicked #WynonnaEarp opening credits. People seem to like this one...

When the first @ClexaCon was happening, my college roommate & dear friend @TheBethy explained it was an important LGBTQ in media convention and because of #WayHaught some of the Earp cast would be there. She thought I should go and sell my comics and prints.

Hells yeah, I’m in! Let’s go to Vegas, Baby!

I couldn’t predict how many prints to make. I always sold more comics than posters at conventions but I thought I might do a few more here. 15? I asked Beth. She snorted. I said 50? She still thought that was low but I didn’t want tons of unsold prints at the end. So 50.

I decided since @ClexaCon was a special show I’d do a limited edition #WayHaught print. Just for this one special weekend. I’d never done an exclusive print. Hoped it would do ok... you crazy fools. I had no idea.

The #WayHaught prints sold out before the VIP line ended. I sold out of my other prints too and placed an overnight rush order for more. Sold out again on Saturday. Said fuck it and just enjoyed Vegas on Sunday. And oh yeah, I got to meet @emtothea at last. And @KatBarrell!!

This is getting long (and I have to get to work) so I won’t give you a play by play of every #WynonnaEarp con after that. But that first @ClexaCon was the start of several amazing things.

One. I kept making art and #Earpers kept going crazy for it. Honestly for an artist who was utterly broken, this has been a game changer. It gave me the confidence to try again and that courage kickstarted a career change into animation, my childhood dream!

Two. The #WynonnaEarp cast has been SO GRACIOUS to make time and stop lines to sign my banners so we can raffle them off for @Love146. I don’t know the total amount off hand but we’ve raised tens of thousands of dollars to fight child trafficking. THANK YOU!!! Always.

Three. Some of you nerds are as nerdy as me. I’ve treasured my workshops (as much as they stress me out because I want to make sure they’re worth the you spend to be there.) But I love the chance to talk about what I’m passionate about, and the mechanics of how they work.

Four. You crazy #Earpers are a gift in itself. You inspire me. You teach me. I cry with you. I laugh with you. I had an entire career in comics before I met you but you’re unlike anything else I’ve experienced. Every convention is like family. Every show a joy. I love you.

I’m out of tweets and time... so I’ll end with #WynonnaEarp changed my life. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. Proud to be an #Earper. #E4L