Posted by Ken Penders on July 11, 1999 I'd like to spend a few minutes here explaining a few things because it seems there's more than a bit of confusion going on here. Let's start with KNUCKLES. The book is NOT being cancelled. It COULD BE somewhere down the road, but it hasn't yet been. Archie's e-mail was deluged with notes from readers everywhere petitioning about KNUCKLES, but what more than a few of them said was they didn't like that Archie was cancelling the book. I hadn't checked my website during the past three or four days for a variety of reasons, but after seeing that bogus posting from someone claiming to be me, I began to understand why Archie may have received the messages they did. (Incidentally, the number of readers who did contact Archie would make any publisher jealous.) Since we implemented the new system, it is now more obvious to tell who the imposters are and deal with the problem, so I ask everyone once again to refrain from getting all worked up over bad news without first validating the source. Neither Bob or I will ever give you less than the straight scoop. Now onto the issue of how I regard fans, and why I don't link to other fans Sonic websites or display fan art or anything Sonic-specific, since the question has been thrown out for everyone to read. The answer is quite simple. This is NOT a Sonic-specific website. It never was intended as such. I had debated the question of whether to link with other Sonic fans websites long ago, and decided against that because I always ran the risk of leaving someone out or being accused of giving preferential treatment to some by having their links and not others. The same applies to the fan art. I have a finite amount of memory alloted to my websites, and for me to install a fan art page would mean I could only display a certain amount at any given time. Archie already has to wrestle with the problem of whose work is displayed within their books, that I didn't want to get into that here. If I did do a fan art page, it would be open to a wider variety of subjects, and not just Sonic. For example, I'd encourage people to submit samples of Star Trek art or other publishers' characters that come to mind. As it is, this message board was never meant to be Sonic-specific. I really intended it for discussions on topics related to this website. However, the Sonic fans have primarily taken over, but I haven't said anything because I'd rather people have a friendly environment where they can discuss common points of interests. I appreciate every reader who enjoys my work, whether they write and tell me or not. I'm grateful to have had the chance to work on something that's touched so many people in a positive manner. However, events of the past few weeks have opened my eyes to a number of realities that I must confront. For one thing, with all my workload, something had to suffer, and the main casualty of late has been my personal life, which I'm currently taking steps to correct. Sometimes the people you love the most end up being the first ones being taken for granted, so you have to work at maintaining the relationships. The second thing of major import is that since I have no ownershop or control of anything Sonic-related, I really can't afford to put all my eggs in one basket. That's why I'm doing THE LOST ONES. It may not be Sonic, or a simple-minded action series, but it's mine and I get to do all the things I've always wanted to. For those who enjoy my work on KNUCKLES, I've taken my stories to another level, where I can get even more personal and philosophical. Many of you who read this board are teenagers and younger, and consider the opportunity to work on SONIC and KNUCKLES the best ever in the world. I was in your shoes many years ago as a young STAR TREK fan. I grew up wanting to write and draw STAR TREK comics. Well, I been there, done that, and have had to move on. It happens when you grow up. I consider my experience working on SONIC and KNUCKLES one of the best times in my entire life. I'm now entering a new phase of growth and evolution, and my interests and what matters to me are changing just as you're experiencing to a different degree in your lives. I will be here to interact with those who choose to do so with me, but there's no way I can be all things to all people, so it's a lot easier if you choose to deal with me as I am, rather than how you would like me to be. In that respect, without seeming immodest, I'd like to think I'm a nice guy to deal with, when all is said and done.