In March of 2023, at the ripe age of 32, I decided that I’d pursue the craft of drawing comic art.

From a scrappy (unsuccessful) start with the book “How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way” to the gauntlet of YouTube tutorials, I did my best impression of penciling for about 10 months.

After watching David Finch host Michael Mattesi (DrawingForce.com) on his YouTube livestream in January 2024, I decided that I needed some formal help learning how to do this art thing well.

I did 3 intense things that month:

1. I took a 9-month sabbatical from my job - I was gonna need some space to learn.

2. I enrolled in a 1-1 mentorship with a Force Mentor - Shout out Mritunjay V - who I’ve been meeting with bi-weekly since February of 2024.

3. I enrolled in a 2D Design course and an Intro to Life Drawing course at the local college.

I’ve been humbled by how challenging learning to be a proficient artist really is, but I’ve also developed a true habit (…or maybe an addiction). I draw nearly every single day - and when I don’t - I feel uneasy.

I’m still a baby in art years, but I’m finally feeling the confidence to start showing my stuff to the world as I continue to progress. I have even dared to start calling myself an artist.

Two Recent Milestones:

• Sold my first prints in January 2026.

• I was accepted to Traverse City’s Cherry Capital Comic Con’s (C4) Artist Alley for May 2026.

Current Art Preferences:

• I prefer to work in physical, traditional mediums (pencil, ink, paper, board), although recently I’ve started adding digital flat colors to prints

• I’m doing a lot of pinups for shows and prints, but behind the scenes, I’ve started practicing sequential art (comics) and zines. My goal is to have a creator-owned story of some sort within the next year.

My favorite running comics right now:

• Absolute Batman

• Skinbreaker

• Absolute Martian Manhunter

All-time favorites:

• Berserk

• Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

• Saga

• Watchmen

• East of West