** MeatShield – A Look Back and Forward **

I started publishing MeatShield on September 9, 2009, wanting to create a “sort of Dungeons & Dragons sitcom.” Since starting the strip I’ve moved four times, I’ve made a lot of good friends, published two books, and learned a lot about the life of a cartoonist.

However, for the past year, I have been running on fumes, from a creative standpoint. It has not been uncommon for me to be writing the next strip on the day it was due to run. Sometimes that’s a good challenge and I relish it, and other times it is just a challenge. The weeks where it has been a challenge and not a fun one have been more and more frequent of late. I need a break, folks.

There are other webcartoonists whose work I admire and several of them have taken long hiatuses, publishing their work in “seasons,” similar to how TV networks release their shows. As of this week, that is what I am going to do. MeatShield will be on hiatus until September 12, 2016. My Patreon campaign will be placed on hold as well until that time.

Over the next few months, I will be doing the following:
• Finishing all outstanding illustration commissions
• Letting my creative batteries recharge
• Writing the next season of MeatShield
• Taking care of myself, which I have not been very good at lately.

I will still be maintaining a social media presence via Facebook and Twitter, which will be the most effective way to get ahold of me. Thank you all for your understanding and your support over the years. I could not have come as far as I have without all of you.

Take care,

~Rob