By this point, Robot Friday was entering its fourth year in production. I had read countless stories about other cartoonists who had found huge success by year two, and I started to wonder: If Robot Friday hadn't taken off by now, would it ever? But, as with anything I do in life, I soldiered on - determined to make it big or go down with the ship!

The comic had already gone through several style and character changes in its first few years, but by year four, I was much more intentional about how I wanted to draw everything - from characters to props to backgrounds.

By this time, I had been drawing every single day for four years straight, and my art style had developed into something distinctly my own. It seemed like every month, I was redesigning characters on the fly, constantly refining their look. But it wasn't just the characters - I had also started putting serious effort into backgrounds, pushing myself farther with each strip.

The thing about artistic growth is that the more you improve, the more you see what still needs work. That's the cycle of getting better - but it can also drive an artist crazy!

At first, I kept backgrounds simple, relying on basic shapes. Then, I started linking background colors to the mood of the scene or the emotions of the characters. Next, I added small props to bring the world to life. But by year four, I had gone all in - creating fully detailed background scenes that, in the end, often took more time to draw than the comic itself.

At the same time, I softened my character designs and standardized the overall look of Robot Friday. To make things even more efficient, I finally created official character sheets - not just for the main cast, but even for props - so I could keep everything consistent and "on model" moving forward.

Looking back, year four was a turning point for Robot Friday. I had weathered a lot in the first three years, but now, I was truly coming into my own as both a cartoonist and a writer.

But that's a blog for another day.

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