Storycomic Weekly Newsletter: February 28th
ALWAYS POSTED A WEEK EARLIER ON PATREON
🎙️ Been Here. Still Awesome. Still Limited. 🎨📚🎲
For a while now, we’ve been offering a tried-and-true promotional opportunity through the Storycomic Patreon—and if you’re an independent creative, it’s still one of the best ways to sustainably share your work and grow your audience.
Here’s what our Patreon members have been benefiting from:
✅ Permanent Promotion
Your website or project link is featured in the show notes of all podcast episodes for as long as you're a patron. That’s long-term visibility across every platform where our show is streamed.
🏆 Founders Club Access
The Founders Club remains limited to just 15 spots. No expansions, no waiting list—once it’s full, that’s it. These early supporters have their names (and links) locked into the Storycomic platform.
📢 Monthly Promotion at the Super Club Level
At the Super Club tier, members receive a minimum of one promotional post per month—whether it's a new release, project update, or spotlight on their creative work.
Founders Club patrons include amazing creators like:
Michael Winn, Higgins802, Von Allan, Stephanie Nina Pitsirilos, Marek Bennett, Donna Carr Roberts, Andrew Gronosky, Simki Kuznick, and Matt & Therese.
Explore their work:
🎯 If you're a creator—author, game designer, comic artist—this is your signal. This system is working. Don't wait until the last spot is gone.
Let’s keep building the kind of community that lifts each other up
A Wizard, a Castle, and Night Flights of Kindness: Megan Carol Haas on The Adventures of the Wizard Aquarius
On this episode of Storycomic Presents, I talk with creator and social entrepreneur Megan Carol Haas about her debut middle grade collection, The Adventures of the Wizard Aquarius. Megan’s life has taken her through co-founding the Utilikilts Company, starting community-focused schools like Front Porch School and Madrona Village School, and building Kinnected.org, a global social health platform. Along the way, she began telling bedtime stories to her daughter about a young wizard named Aquarius.
In the book, Aquarius lives in a castle with his wizard parents. Each night after supper he climbs to the rooftop, transforms into a bird, and flies over the countryside, helping animals, children, and anyone in trouble. Across eight interlinked stories, magic is tied closely to nature, friendships grow between animals and humans, and readers are gently nudged toward becoming brave, emotionally resourceful adventurers.
We talk about weaving themes of grief, care, and hope into a fantasy world that still feels cozy and fun, how her work in community health and education shaped Aquarius’s compassion, and why she hopes kids (and their grown-ups) find both comfort and courage in these stories.
You can learn more about Megan’s projects and writing at MeganCarolHaas.com.
Project Update: Still Slow and Steady
Just a quick update on the project front — it’s still slow going on Appliance. I haven’t had big writing sessions lately, but I’m continuing to review sections, make notes, and keep the ideas fresh in my head.
Even in these quieter stretches, I’m staying connected to the project. Slow progress is still progress, and keeping it moving—even a little—matters.
Book Review: Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls – Cozy Chills and Clever Heroes
There’s something wonderfully nostalgic about cracking open a collection like Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls by George Jonsen, with illustrations by John O'Brien. It feels like stepping back into a time when storybooks were just a little mysterious, a little adventurous, and full of creatures lurking under bridges or deep in the woods.
This collection gathers classic-style folk tales featuring lumbering trolls, strange monsters, and brave (or sometimes just clever) young heroes who find themselves in tight spots. What I love most about these kinds of stories is that the monsters aren’t just there to scare—they’re obstacles to outwit. More often than not, brains beat brawn, and quick thinking saves the day.
The tone strikes that perfect childhood balance: a little spooky, but never overwhelming. Just enough suspense to make you lean in, but with the comfort of knowing things will work out in the end. It’s the kind of book that makes you want to dim the lights just a little and read one more story before bed.
John O’Brien’s illustrations add to the charm. The trolls and monsters have personality—sometimes goofy, sometimes grumpy—but always storybook in feel. They’re the kind of creatures that spark imagination rather than nightmares.
Reading Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls brings back that cozy feeling of discovering old fairy tales for the first time. It reminds you that a good story doesn’t need flashy effects—just a hero, a problem, and maybe a troll or two under a bridge. Classic, fun, and perfect for anyone who still enjoys a little adventure between the pages.
Personal Update: Thaws, Long Nights, and Hunkering Down
This week brought a brief tease of warmer weather—temps climbed above freezing for a stretch—but with it came some ceiling leaks from thawing ice. Nothing like a little mid-winter drip to keep things interesting. Winter in Vermont always finds a way to remind you who’s in charge.
It was also a long week in just about every sense. Two basketball games, podcast interviews, lodge meetings, board meetings, and my Outdoor Edge show all packed the schedule. Friday ended up being the only night I was home, which made it feel like a small luxury. These stretches happen, but they do make you appreciate the quiet evenings when you get them.
On the business side, we’re in that familiar slow season for advertising—the stretch between Christmas spending and tax refunds. It’s a predictable lull, but that doesn’t make it any less noticeable. For now, it’s about hunkering down, staying steady, and waiting for the days to get longer and warmer.
Busy, a bit leaky, and very much in the heart of winter—but still moving forward.
Of course he won. he made up the rules as we went along.
The Day after