A little over a year ago, I put Storm Cat on hiatus. I told myself I needed some time away, fully intending to come back once life settled down a little.

Then I disappeared.

There wasn’t really a goodbye, and there definitely wasn’t much of an explanation. A few months into my hiatus, I had pretty much decided I wasn’t coming back at all. So, before anything else, I want to say I’m sorry to those of you who were here and suddenly found Storm Cat abandoned. I’m especially sorry to anyone who reached out and never heard back from me.

The simple explanation is that I wasn’t doing very well in the mental health department, but things are on the mend now, so it’s about time I come back!

✧ Where I Went

I’ve always tried to be fairly open about mental health, and I don’t want to pretend that I simply got busy or lost interest in making art. I was going through a difficult period in my life, my mental health took a pretty significant downturn, and eventually I became completely overwhelmed.

Storm Cat wasn’t the cause of that. In fact, it was just one of many things I stepped away from. I withdrew from hobbies, projects and people I cared about. I was burnt out, depressed and struggling to manage C-PTSD and frequent panic-attacks, which I hadn’t really learned how to manage yet.

I think a lot of people who have struggled with their mental health will understand how something you genuinely love can suddenly feel exhausting. Things that normally bring you joy start feeling like obligations, and eventually it can become easier to avoid them altogether.

That’s more or less what happened here.

Unfortunately, I also decided during this period that I hated everything I made. I didn’t like my art style anymore. I didn’t like my shop. I didn’t like what I was creating or where any of it was going. I scrapped a lot of what I’d been building and eventually stopped thinking about Storm Cat altogether.

For quite a while, I genuinely thought I was done with it.

✧ Things Got Better

Now, this story would be a little depressing if it ended there. Luckily it doesn’t!

A lot has changed in the last year. I took some much-needed time to work on myself, changed my environment, moved across the country to a brand new province, and slowly started building a life that feels much better suited to me. There have been plenty of ups and downs along the way, but somewhere in all of that, I started finding my way back to the things I enjoyed before, and more importantly, myself.

I’ve been spending more time outside. I’ve gotten back into some old hobbies and picked up entirely new ones. I even opened a little flower farm with my childhood friend this year, which certainly wasn’t on my bingo card when I put Storm Cat on hiatus.

And recently, I started GMing D&D again for the first time in a couple of years.

That opened a door I didn’t realize I’d closed.

Suddenly I was writing adventures again. I was drawing characters, making handouts, creating NPCs and coming up with far more lore than my players will ever reasonably discover. I was spending evenings happily working on completely unnecessary details because I wanted to.

I was creating again, and I was having fun.

✧ I Still Love My Silly Guys

Once I started drawing again, I went back and looked at some of my old Storm Cat work. I expected to have the same reaction I’d had before.

Instead, I realized I actually really like it.

My art is simple. It’s colourful and cute and sometimes a little silly. You’ll never find it in a museum, and it isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea, and I’ve spent a lot of time comparing it to artists who create very differently from me.

But those little adventurers look like my little adventurers.

I love them.

I love storytelling. I love creating strange creatures and tiny fantasy objects. I love making resources for games. I love sitting down with an idea that probably didn’t need to exist and thinking, well, now I have to make that.

Around the same time, I logged back into my old Storm Cat accounts and found messages waiting for me. Some were from people who had discovered Faithful Familiars, the book I Kickstarted a couple years ago, and had actually been using it in their games.

People were telling me about something I made becoming a tiny part of their own stories.

That was incredibly lovely to come back to.

It also helped me realize something I wish I’d understood sooner: My art isn’t for everyone. But it is for some people. And that’s enough for me.

There are people out there who like my weird little creatures just as much as I do.

That’s enough.

✧ Storm Cat, Take Two

So I’m starting again.

I’m also trying to learn from the first time around.

I work full-time, and I own part of a flower farm now. I have hobbies, friends, games to run and a life I’d like to participate in in a more present way. I don’t want Storm Cat to become something that requires me to constantly produce, post, package and keep up.

That means things are going to look a little different around here.

I’m planning to focus much more on digital downloads, artwork and TTRPG resources. I’ll still make the occasional physical thing when an idea grabs me, but I don’t need a catalogue of a million different stickers sitting in my house anymore.

I also want to write here again. Sometimes that might be about D&D or art. Sometimes it might be nature, creativity, mental health or whatever else I’m currently thinking about. Storm Cat has always been a little difficult to put neatly into a box, and I’ve decided I’m going to stop trying quite so hard to make it fit into one.

Most importantly, I’m taking it slowly.

There isn’t a huge launch planned. I don’t have an elaborate posting schedule. I’m rebuilding things piece by piece and seeing where they go.

✧ It’s Nice to Be Back

Coming back is a little scary. I disappeared for a long time, and there’s always that little voice wondering whether anyone is still interested or whether I should have simply left things where they were.

But mostly, I’m excited.

I’m drawing again. I’m writing again. I’m running games again. I’m making silly little fantasy creatures again.

And I’m happy doing it.

If you were here before, thank you for sticking around. If you sent me a kind message while I was gone, thank you even more. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to answer you then, but please know those messages have meant a great deal to me now.

And if you’ve somehow stumbled onto Storm Cat for the first time while I’m dragging the furniture back in and dusting everything off, welcome. Your timing is impeccable.

I’m not entirely sure what Storm Cat will become this time around, but I’m looking forward to finding out.

It’s good to be back!