Dec 22, 20234 min read

2023 End of Year Write-Up

Something to Celebrate

I knew coming into Tanner and Casey's tenth year would call for something special. I didn't know that it would actually be multiple things.

I started drawing and publishing my strip regularly online back on December 30th, 2013. As shocking as it is to say, that was around a full decade ago. And here I sit, still at the same drawing board drawing Tanner and Casey and trying to be marginally funny; albeit the drawing process is a little different these days, what with the fancy drawing gadgets and computer programs and what have you.

Artist at work.

A lot of positive change has happened this year. After you've been drawing the same characters in the same template year after year, there comes a time when things need to be spruced up a little. Goodness gracious me, I had no idea!

Collect Call

At the start of the year we announced wherever we could that the first ever Tanner and Casey volume was in the works, collecting ten years worth of material and behind-the-scenes tidbits. 120 pages filled with fun, laughs, and self-deprecating humour. I hold a deep sense of pride with this book as it is the first and, so far, only print product I've had 100% control over, right down to the paper weight. Usually I only prepare all of the visuals, but no! This time I got deep in the bowels of the printing process. Er... sorry. Poor word choice.

The fancy-shmancy new book.

Finally, in August, we were able to accept pre-orders and started fulfilling them in October. If you missed out, we are selling copies here (but they are limited, with an eBook version en route). A big "thank you" to your dedicated readership over the years.

Present!

This year I really focused on giving Tanner and Casey a stronger presence on social media. For a long time I got stuck in the Facebook black hole. When a new strip came out in this site, I'd make a brief post about it on our page, and that was it.

No more!

No, if we're celebrating an entire decade, we're doing something right... for once.

I am proud to announce that over the course of the past year we have introduced the following new accounts:

Reddit: r/tannerandcaseycomics

TikTok: @tannerandcaseyofficial

And a revitalized YouTube!

Still no Instagram or X. I just don't like it, okay? I don't. Leave me alone.

Perhaps the most exciting thing that came out of this was the introduction of our little video skits produced for each new strip, which actually led to us removing the term 'comics' from our Facebook page. These started on YouTube Shorts, carried over to Facebook Reels, and are now going up on our brand new TikTok as well. These minute-or-less videos, which act out the comic and follow up with a related skit or story (the stupider, the better) have been responsible for a whole new following for the strip. And I don't need to say how it feels, but I will anyway because I do what I want. I feels SUPER EXCITING!

It was during this time that I realized the direction I was taking the strip was wrong and had been for a long time. The idea had always been that Tanner and Casey was a newspaper strip first that just happened to get posted online. Then a little voice in my head said, "Get with the times, old man!" At first I brushed this off. Get bent, I'm only 24! But when I saw two gray hairs upon looking in the mirror that evening, it dawned on me: The longer I kept the strip as a newspaper feature, the more I transformed into an elderly man who complains endlessly that those damn teenagers are in the Tim Horton's again playing their loud Taylor Smith records or whatever. So finally, I announced (to myself and to my fiancé, who barely looked up), "Digital first!" Thus, our new webcomic layout was born, which offers more room to stretch 'n sketch, and also fills screens a bit more nicely. And let me just say that it has been so freeing! I am no longer concerned over what a newspaper editor might say (yes, they have said things). And for the first time in a few years, I smiled, I laughed, and I felt energized while drawing Tanner and Casey.

Oh, and dad said I finally got a sense of humour, so the parental support was overwhelming.

By the Numbers

So here's where we sit. This year, we reached the following:

Well over 15, 000 video views across social media, plus now 110 likes and 114 followers on Facebook.

Again, thank you so much to everyone!

December Recap

I think the perfect way to wrap up this little write-up would be to leave you with a healthy dose of comics. I won't put every single one from 2023 here because it would take up way too much space and, let's face it, you don't have that kind of time. Plus, you'll need a breather from laughing so hard! So here, below, is the month of December in a nice, bite-sized sample.

We wish you the warmest of holiday greetings and all the very best for the new year. See you in the next comic!

Tanner F. Riche

December 16, 2023