The Blues singer-songwriter and performer Robert Johnson is said to have sold his soul to the devil at a local crossroads in order to achieve musical success. And even though he died at the age of only 27 years -- like so many other musicians! -- his influence has continued from his recording dates from the late 1930s right through to the modern era. What price would you pay to be successful in your chosen field, and what price should I pay to be a successful comic-book publisher? Let me share a story with you that I don't often talk about....
Earlier this century, Carlene and I were living in Bendigo while I was completing my tertiary studies, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Nursing Science (in Mental Health). While I was only able to work every second weekend, Carlene had to work seven days a week as a community nurse to help support us. In doing this, she cared for a certain client with muscular dystrophy -- amazingly, someone she had known earlier in her teenage years when she was growing up in Bendigo! Despite requiring the use of a wheelchair and daily nursing care, Russell was never one to be defined by his 'disability' and was a prominent Bendigo businessman. (You can learn more about him by clicking here.)
Carlene's work day always finished by caring for Russell, and we ended up socialising with him regularly, initially with DVD 'movies' every Tuesday night. Just as Russell didn't see that his business dealings had to stop because he was in a wheelchair, Carlene was able to show him that his disability was not an impediment to him enjoying an even fuller life. We learnt how to help him into his automatic and modified car -- that he drove -- to AFL matches and other shows we shared in Melbourne (including Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band). We shared the highs and lows of his life. Looking back, it was an amazing time in our lives.

Carlene wasn't keen on my working on another comic project, especially in light of the fact that we still had boxes and boxes of the first volume of our first Air Hawk volumes unsold. She said, "I'd rather you put the magazine out there [in the marketplace] after you arrange a distributor." And the day the distribution deal came through was the day we had to return to Bendigo to attend Russell's funeral, making the day bitter-sweet....
