The Long Road to The OS Trilogy
Some projects have a beginning and an end. This one apparently had other plans.
The Opposite Sex started life as a story I simply wanted to draw. At the time, I wasn’t thinking about trilogies, collected editions, websites, subscriber lists, or what the project might look like decades later. I had characters in my head, a strange idea involving a high school kid whose life changes overnight, and enough curiosity to see where it might go.
So I started drawing.
The original story eventually became a webcomic, and later, a printed graphic novel. That should have been the end of it. There was just one problem: I wasn’t quite finished with these characters.
The Story That Wouldn’t Leave
The first book told a complete story, but its ending left a door cracked open. I knew there were unanswered questions. More importantly, I knew there were parts of Michael’s story that I still wanted to explore.
Eventually, that became a sequel.
And because I apparently don’t know when to stop, the sequel grew large enough to become two books.
That’s how one graphic novel eventually became The OS Trilogy: The Opposite Sex, Opposite Again, and Opposite Still.
A Lot Happened Along the Way
Life didn’t exactly stand still while all this was happening.
I worked as a designer. I taught. I developed curriculum. I built websites. I took on client projects. I retired. Somewhere in the middle of all that, the OS characters waited patiently for me to get back to them.
The strange thing is, I never really considered the project abandoned. Delayed? Absolutely. Occasionally buried beneath real life? Definitely.
But abandoned? No.
I always knew I wanted to finish it properly.
Coming Back to an Older Project
Returning to work you created years ago is an interesting experience. You notice things you would do differently now, but you also rediscover choices that still make you smile.
I’m not interested in pretending I created these books yesterday. Their history is part of what they are.
They reflect different periods of my life as an artist, storyteller, designer, and probably as a person.
And now all three books finally get to sit beside one another.
That alone makes the long trip worth it.
