Admittedly, that popular song by 90's rapper Ice Cube would fit nicely into this post.
All music discussion aside, today really has been a fairly good day for me so far. I was racking up some wins on Super Smash Bros online mode "For Glory" this morning, published the newest page of Chapter 4 of my little shoujo influenced slice of life webcomic Life of an Aspie a couple of hours ago, had two of my subs like all of Chapter 4 since I'm updating it page by page rather than clump them all together like I have done so in the past, and I've hit both 4k views for LoaA and 150 followers on my Instagram account.
You may be sitting here reading this going "Okay. Good for him.", but that is where this post takes a heartwarming turn that not only reminded me of why I started LoaA last year, but also may do the same for plenty of you boys and girls reading this thread. Not long after I posted the latest page of my comic, I get this nice drawing of my main OC, Susan Graham, from fellow Tapastic creator @scullpanda . As some of you may know, I've asked for fan-art before since I like seeing my OC's drawn in other people's styles, but also to have something to show to my readers as a "filler" of sorts from time to time. However, today's fan-art really touched me because its probably the first time I received fan-art without asking anybody for some.
As somebody who dreams of one day being able to do what i love for a living, It is much easier than you think to get caught up in the whole "Gotta get popular ASAP and make lots of money" mentality that plagues so many of us. Part of this happens because so often we see a webcomic that is just starting out before the staff picks it as the new hip comic that everybody should definitely be reading and I think that sub-consciously triggers both feelings of jealously as well as lights a fire under us to try and be the next staff pick only for us to fail at that and then feel even worse about ourselves and our craft. For a while now, I've stopped caring about that particular aspect of being a web cartoonist since it always stressed me out trying to think of ways to get more subs, more views, more money, etc. Anyway, the piece of fan-art scull sent me reminded me of why I really do what I do in the first place and its something I've picked up on both sub-consciously and from seeing people leave nice comments/reviews about my work.
I don't draw Life of an Aspie because I think it will be the next big hit on the internet nor because I think it will be the next staff pick here on Tapastic. (Both of those I gave up on a long time ago the latter especially). While the ad revenue is a nice incentive, I don't draw LoaA strictly because I want to profit from it. Hell, I don't even draw LoaA to get likes and pats on the back for doing a good job. "GASP, Aspie!?" You might say. "How do you function without a constant supply of positive affirmations from people in this day and age of social media?!"
Simple...
I don't give a damn!
What I do give a damn about however is drawing and writing Life of an Aspie for myself, not for other people and their expectations. I give a damn about the people who see value in my comic and can't wait for the next update. Finally, I give a damn about giving value to others often in the form of smiles and laughter through my craft. Back to the aforementioned piece of fan-art I received earlier today, it reminded me of the passion I have for my comic and the long hours I've put into it not for money, fame, or a harem full of gorgeous women (like that's ever going to happen. lol), but for the value it gives not only me, but to all the people who have checked it out most of which are also my subscribers. Even when I'm not providing value through LoaA, just participating here in the forums answering questions when I can or showing off my latest work, I'm still providing a sort of value to others.
tl;dr As web cartoonists, we often forget or perhaps don't even realize that through our actions here on Tapastic, LINE Webtoons, or where ever you publish your craft, we bring value to others whether its answering a simple question somebody has or helping somebody get through a rough patch in their lives by them being amused by our work, etc. Me receiving a piece of fan-art from somebody without even asking prior reminded me of that. 
