2015: By the Numbers

Welcome back to THC's occasional update of what's going on around the studios. It's December, and we're fast coming up on another click of Earth's odometer, so I thought I'd take a moment for retrospection before we slide into 2016.

2015 was a hell of a year. Let's do this by the numbers:

17: Number of conventions THC attended this year as artists/vendors. That's pretty far down from 2014's 38 - we'll be finding a happy medium between those two numbers for next year, I'm sure!

321: Number of posts on our Patreon page. MOST of those posts are patron-only exclusives, like works-in-progress pictures, full .psd files, high-res, watermark-free files, sneak-peeks, and Patron-exclusive stock art. We launched the Patreon officially on 1/15 of this year, and it's been a wild ride already!

63: Number of watercolors completed this year (that I have scans of - there were probably at least that amount that got discarded). Here's a collage of some of my favorites:

426: Number of pages in the final release of Into Dreams: A Gina Harwood novel, which was released on June 11, 2015. 

74: Number of commissioned paintings or drawings completed this year (not counting a few at conventions). Again with the collage, though this will probably be the last one, as they're surprisingly time-consuming. 

8: Stock Art pieces released to the Patrons after introducing the concept late 3rd Quarter. 

7: New Fan Art prints in the entirety of 2015 - Crowley, Charlie Bradbury, Arya Stark, Xena, Tyrion Lannister, Seven and Four. I've got one underway and I'm looking to expand this number a bit in 2016 - I wanted to cut back, not cut out fan art altogether! 

3: Other Milestones I couldn't figure out a way to fit into the "Numbers" theme. In addition to all of this, we also created and released Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings - our first (but not last) foray into officially licensed comics. We also created and released the Geocaching Pinup set and the MD Expansion of GoCache to commemorate GeoWoodstock XIII, held ten miles from where we live. :) 

2015 was the 4th year since Tortoise & Hare Creations took its first shaky breath, but it's been - by far - the busiest. THANK YOU for being here with us, and I hope you're just as excited as we are to see what Year 5 brings to THC!

It's Coming Right For Us!

I've decided I kind of like this bi-weekly bullet list of the current THC goings-on, so I think that'll become our standard! So, without further adieu, on to the big guns.

• RELEASE DATE: We're proud to announce that Into Dreams, the third novel in the Gina Harwood series is being released on June 11, 2015! Links to purchase will be posted that morning! 
• Synopsis: Picking up directly after Descending, the third novel in the series sees the Unit fragmented and fighting against an incomprehensible foe. Gina Harwood discovers that there are worlds beyond their own, and struggles to survive in the Dreamlands while tracking her fallen partner, Morgan. Charlie Parker leads the remaining agents on a chase to find a killer, only to find that perhaps something larger - and much, much darker - is pulling his strings. 
• GoodReads Giveaway!: The GoodReads Giveaway for Into Dreams is LIVE! Click HERE to enter, it's free through the fabulous GoodReads system.
• Cover: 
  
• GeoWoodstock Update! GW is being held in Boonsboro, MD on May 23-24,  2015, and we're excited to be bringing some new geocaching-specific items to the table there, like:
• GWXIII Maryland GoCache Expansion - A six-card expansion created specifically to celebrate what makes caching in Maryland so great! These will be debuted at GW, and they will be available for online purchase for a limited time after that. 
  
• Caching Pinups! Three of the four-piece set are now complete, and I'm working on the last girl now - they'll match up in a square with the colors matching the Geocaching logo. I have adored this project, I can't even tell you. Below is the newest completion, "Summer," who is currently available for purchase (11x17 only) at our Etsy store. 
  
• Trackable Aces are back in stock, meaning the full combo pack of GoCache is reactivated at our Etsy store. 
• Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings is back in stock (signed copies) at our Etsy store, also!
  
• Watercolor update! We're working on a tutorial (video, possibly) by request on making one's own pigment and paint from natural items - but the flowers are taking a lot longer than anticipated to fully dry (and they have to be FULLY dry... Wood ash, however, works wonderfully, and doesn't require any drying time at all). We've got a fancy new mortar and pestle, and will be getting on that request as soon as all the ingredients are ready to go. 
  

• And last but not least, Upcoming Convention Appearances! 'Tis the season:
• 5/15-5/17: SciFi in the Valley Con - Altoona, PA
• 5/22-5/23: GeoWoodstock - Boonsboro, MD
• 5/29-5/31: AwesomeCon - Washington, DC

We hope to see you! Get out there and enjoy Spring! 

April Showers & Growers

Alright, LOTS of things currently happening, so skipping right to the bullet list.

• Shroud of the Avatar: New Beginnings is NOW AVAILABLE to everyone! Head to IndyPlanet to pick up your unsigned print and/or digital copies, or we have signed copies available on our Etsy store ! Check out Portalarium's feature on us HERE! :D **UPDATE** We are currently sold out of the signed comics on our Etsy store - we have more on order, so once they arrive, we sign 'em and bag and board 'em, we'll renew the listing. Apologies for the delay!***
  
• Completed the first of four geocaching-themed pinups, "Autumn." Available for purchase at our Etsy store. 
  
• Next piece for the Dark Unknown Bestiary Project is done - meet the Ettin: 
  
• The GeoPunk broadcast is BACK! What is GeoPunk, I hear you ask? Listen and find out! If you enjoy geocaching, olde tyme radio(e) programmes, and general badassery, then definitely give it a shot. 
• 
• Thank you to our Patreon Supporters, who just pushed us over our first monthly milestone! Join up today! 
• GoCache Expansion! We will have a limited expansion of 6 Maryland-specific cards to celebrate this year's Maryland GeoWoodstock, they are done and in our hot little hands and ready to sell. They'll debut at GeoWoodstock, and we'll have a small number of them that we can sell online as well, for the collectors out there! (Not sure what GoCache is? Click here! Want to pick up a copy? Click here!) Here's the first of a few we'll share before GW: 
  
• Upcoming Convention Appearances:
• 4/17-4/19: 1d4Con - Martinsburg, WV
• 4/25: Creator Con - Silver Spring, MD
• 5/15-5/17: SciFi in the Valley Con - Altoona, PA
• 5/22-5/23: GeoWoodstock - Boonsboro, MD
• 5/29-5/31: AwesomeCon - Washington, DC
• Reminder! May is MUSHROOM MONTH! Keep an eye on this space for lots of Morel & morel (the heroine and the fungus) information. :)

That's it! We'll be setting up our Patreon hangout in the next week or so, it's likely to be a mid-week hangout this time.