Zub Tales

For the past 15 years I’ve put together a ‘Year In Review‘ post on my website as a way to summarize my thoughts and feelings on the year that was. It’s nice to measure highs and lows, and help jog my memory as things carry forward.

No pressure of course, but if you’re curious about what I was thinking in late December each year, here’s a complete link archive:

2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024.

For me, 2025 was both a year of massive change and also one of surprising stability.

In mid-January, as I headed toward the end of my teaching sabbatical that started in 2024, I decided to permanently step away from teaching at Seneca and return to full-time freelancing. I’d been at the school since 2004 (full-time since 2008) and was Coordinator of the Animation program for 14 years, so even though this was something I’d thought about and planned for, it was still a massive life-changing decision. Juggling two careers, teaching and writing, for so long was taking a toll on my personal life and health and I knew I had to pick one path forward at some point, but when the moment finally came it still really took me aback.

Having a more flexible schedule meant I could attend a lot of events I’d previously missed out on and I certainly took advantage of that in a way that was almost too good; 2025 was my most traveled year ever, with work trips to Orlando, Vancouver, Seattle (twice), Lake Geneva, Mumbai, Calgary, Annapolis, London, Madrid, Las Vegas (twice), Columbus, San Diego, Indianapolis, Atlanta, Chattanooga, New York, Madison, Newcastle, and Harrogate. Including local Toronto conventions where I didn’t need to travel, I attended 24 comic or gaming events. It was certainly fun and adventurous, but also became quite exhausting, so I need to strike a better balance around work travel in 2026.

The shift from two careers to one wasn’t perfectly smooth and I feel like it’s something I’m still finding my feet with. For almost my entire adult life my time had been measured in semesters and now I have a lot more freedom, but that means creating my own structure and clearer goals, day to day and week to week. Stacy and I both work from home now, which is amazing, but can turn into whole days disappearing without much accomplished if we’re not careful.

That said, when I wasn’t traveling, having more time at home has been wonderful. When I took the car in for seasonal service, our mechanic remarked on how ridiculously low our mileage was and the simple reason for that is that we rarely drive anymore. Even if we grab groceries, Stacy and I usually just take backpacks and go for a walk in the neighborhood, and that’s been good both in terms of getting us out of the house and getting more exercise.

Writing-wise, Conan the Barbarian is still at the core of my work schedule, and continues to be a real blessing. Knowing exactly what I’m working on, that it will stick around so we can build long-term stories, and having such an incredible team delivering their best, month after month, has been one of the most exciting and fulfilling creative projects I’ve ever been a part of. I’m signed on to continue writing the flagship Conan monthly series and events through 2026 and 2027, which is a level of dependability that is incredibly fleeting in publishing, especially comics. I’ve been working in this industry for over 20 years and know exactly how special this kind of stable run can be, so I certainly don’t take it for granted.

Beyond the Hyborian Age, I’m working on a new creator-owned comic series I hope to launch in 2026 and have a few other creative irons in the fire on potential projects, both in comics and other media, so fingers crossed for all that. Sword & sorcery is still my bread and butter, but I’m always game to show people other aspects of my creativity.

Stacy is writing up a storm as well. Beyond the D&D Young Adventurer’s Guides (which will continue with new volumes in development), Stacy has more writing work on the horizon than at any other point of her career, which is incredibly exciting. The highly anticipated D&D Crochet book arrives late March and I can’t wait for the other projects she has on deck to be announced so we can celebrate them with all of you.

Beyond our personal life, the world feels incredibly turbulent – culturally, economically, and politically. I feel good about the sturdy situation Stacy and I have built here at home, but worry about how all this upheaval affects our friends and colleagues as so many industries and places struggle. Many of our friends have had to move out of Toronto because of the skyrocketing cost of living and, even when we enjoy time together, there’s an undercurrent of fear about where things might be heading and the dissolving moral core of the people and systems we entrust to lead us. I can’t do anything about the largest ripples, but try to help family and friends ride out these fierce waves of the future.

When I was in Harrogate for the Thought Bubble comic festival, I saw an old industry friend and the first thing he said to me was “You’re aging well.” I honestly didn’t know how to react to that statement at the time but, in retrospect, I’ll take it as a compliment. Yes, I’m older and grayer, but also deeply thankful for love and life in general, and still plugging away as best I can.

Thank you for following along with these newsletter posts. Your support and encouragement means so much.

Here’s my writing output for 2025:

I hope you spent lots of time with your loved ones this holiday season and that your new year is looking bright.
Jim