Thorn By My Side: The Test Comics

With me transitioning away from comics to prose regarding Cosmic Dash, I still have the itch to do a comic. Of course, I am still doing RGBots, and I think I’ve really hit a good pocket of material. But the desire to do more with comics is still there. I just can’t commit to a big sci-fi epic (Cosmic Dash), but I don’t want to work exclusively through templating (RGBots) either.

Last year, I produced a run of three strips for an anthology from the team behind the former Haunted MTL. Consider them a pilot. Since the book has been out a while, it feels like now is a good time to share the comics and make a little proposal.

Thorn By My Side: The Test Comics

So, let me pitch something, shall I? Here are the three comics. They were completed in January of last year.

Alright, so take a moment and see if you like them. While you do that, let me explain a little bit about the concept.

You’ve probably seen several drawings of Briar, who is one of the two leads of Thorn By My Side, especially if you’ve been following me on social media for a while. They are showing up n the sketchbook a lot. You may have also seen a decidedly spicier Briar drawing as well. You have also seen Thorn, the goblin, at least a couple of times. I’ve been noodling around with the characters and trying to find a style for them. Looking at these test comics, I already see some stuff I might change. But they exist as a thing you can look at now and that is important.

The Concept

The concept of the comic is a simple one: Briar is a girl-failure millennial who struggles with anxiety, work, and her not-so-social life. Her case is pronounced enough that she has been assigned a life coach in the form of an emotional-support cryptid named Thorn, the goblin. Thorn, however, is not very good at his job, nor does he want to be, and he just finds it more fun to enable Briar’s behavior, acting more like a roommate than anything. Of course, only Briar can see Thorn. Maybe it’s all in her addled millennial brain. Or maybe there is quite literally a council of cryptids who try to guide humans toward betterment. We’ll probably find out.

That’s it, that’s the concept. There are, of course, other things involved, some other cast, and some possible stories. The main thing is that this would not be a big story or anything, just a comic strip. The comic is a way for me to process experiences about my generation and explore culture, anxiety, and life through a couple of characters. Relatable gags about life are the key, but with some elements that lean into the overworked, undersexed, awkward Briar and the somewhat sociopathic enabler Thorn. Two neurodivergent folks living together probably make one another worse.

I’ve thought about different kinds of gimmicks and worldbuilding, such as some light lore about cryptids and their relationships to humans. I have also considered ideas like having the characters review things as comics that lean into their obsessions. Hell, I’ve even considered doing NSFW comics as well – the idea of Briar being a failed OnlyFans model has popped up a couple of times. Nothing is set in stone, but people do seem to like Briar, and I am a people pleaser.

Plus, goth girl, so…

Basically, I think there is a lot of opportunity for the comic, but the question is: is there a potential audience there?

So…

So, what do you think? Would you want to see more of this comic? Please comment and let me know what you think about it, and feel free to ask any questions you may have. I’m not committed, yet, but I wouldn’t mind hard questions if you have them.

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