The past 24 hours have been more than interesting to me. Lots of different things ended up happening, some good, some bad, all working out to God's greater glory in the end. Time for a story eh?There was once a person who shall remain nameless, we'll call him Jim. Jim had a project that was near and dear to his heart. He solicited help from many people to get this project done and completed, and the project which was originally a one-shot became a 3 issue series. Jim contacted me to do some pages, and well.....I volunteered to do the whole second book if certain conditions were met, free of charge.My conditions? #1) I needed at least 10 pages worth of script by June 30th. #2) I'm a professional, so treat me as one. Simple isn't it?I told Jim about three weeks ago to make sure I'd have at least 10 pages worth of script to begin work by June 30th. This past week I reminded him because I hadn't heard anything positive about the result of this condition. He responded to me saying that I'd have the ENTIRE script by June 30th.Okay, no problem there. The problem arose when, whether he was joking or not, he called me a whiner for making sure that the conditions were met. He crossed the line between friendship joking and straight out professionality. I don't care if I'm working for free, I'm still a professional. You don't call a professional a whiner when they're working for you for free. Specifically you don't call a professional a whiner when he wants to make sure that he'll be able to start on the project at a specified time, agreed upon nearly a month before.So I asked for an apology. The apology I received was, and joking or not you don't do this: "You're right, you don't whine as much as gripe and b**ch." That right there wasn't an apology, and added insult to injury damaging not only our professional arrangement, but our friendship as well.I went through and was ready to take it to the extreme: I quit the projects I was working on with him.I talked with another friend last night, Pastor Howard Kent whom I am publishing a series for. We discussed this individual and the resulting mess that remains. Howard agreed with me completely on my actions, and many others have as well.Was I justified in quitting the projects? Yes I was. Whether I am working for free, or working for a pay check I am a professional. I was willing to do Jim a service by drawing his book pro bono. Which, if I were paid even just $20 a page would rack up a $400+ bill for anyone else. I was also designing his website. I had to leave both projects.The moral of this part of the story is this: No matter what, you treat people you are working with professionally. You don't joke about them being whiner's when they're just checking on the status of the project and reminding you of conditions that were mutually agreed upon earlier. And you most certainly DO NOT add insult to injury when you are confronted on it.Jims final words to me were: "I think someone needs to grow up and he LIVES IN MICHIGAN."Business and friendship are two separate things. You can work with friends, as long as you keep taht part of the relationship professional. Howard, Tina Cheek, Kurt Lewis, and many others that I have worked with or will be working with in the future all understand this and we're able to keep the separation alive. With people like Jim, I have to quit to make a point.Okay. Other news.On the last page of artwork for my book LEGACY. This book has been a bear to get ready to go. I've dealt with more injuries and sickness during the production of this book than any other before. Massive headaches for two weeks dragged production to a standstill. My back going out in early may also put the kibosh on this book for a while. The flu was in there somewhere also. Just amazing what happens when you're trying to do such a book for the Lord.THE OVERCOMERS is nearly finished. That's the book by Pastor Howard Kent and Tina Cheek. A group of heroes who are normal except for powers........This'll be interesting. A long time ago I thought that Christian Super Heroes would never work. Now I think they will, but I'm willing to sit back and let Howard and Tina do the experimentation on their characters. Look out for a character named STEPHEN in the book, apparently he and I are a bit too much alike for comfort.Kurt Lewis has given me several updates on BARNSY. This children's graphic novel is coming along nicely, even in the midst of some family turmoil that Kurt and his wife are going through. Our prayers are with them, and as I said to Kurt before, we'll be here to publish it whenever it's finished.Liturgy, the book which you followed the development of on this very blog is now sidelined. I have to concentrate on Legacy for now, the six issue series of which the Lord has laid upon my heart. I'm working with Shatter the Darkness ministries on Legacy. I have access to several of their teachings, plus talk with Pastor Russ on a semi-regular basis through e-mail and phone in order to check certain facts as I finish Legacy's first issue. It's been an exciting and long ride, but oh so worth it.Well, I'll be back soon with more updates.
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