Chapter 18, Scene 7
August 30th, 2019At long last, the final scene of Chapter 18, Scene 7. It’s been non-stop hurdles going up in the way of these pages. From Steph stepping down to Diana having emergency dental surgery this week. My thanks to Diana for helping me post these while still recovering. She’s a trooper!
Anyway Snow’s back! And she’s one step closer to completing her quest!
**UPDATE 7/16/2021**
I’m still intending on finishing this comic. I got swamped with the Mooonshaes storyline for Wizard’s D&D Organized Play. That wraps up fall 2021.
Also, my anti-spam service raised my rate to $50 a month. While I look for an alternative, I’m shutting down comments. You can follow me (and poke me to keep telling this story) on Twitter at @eric_menge!
I found the webcomic last month and just caught up to the last page. Here’s hoping that a new page is just around the corner.
I wasn’t sure about this at first but it got progressively more and more addicting with the additional characters and the deeper development of the three main characters.
*more please*
We’ll get it done! I’m wrapping up the Moonshae project for Wizards and will have time to start with the final act of the Snow by Night story!
Call me superstitious, but I will keep up the tradition of a comment per lunar cycle, reminding Myth that at least some of us are still waiting for her. Myth, come back to us!
Still waiting for you to come down off that mountain. Noximilian, got another story for us in the meantime?
Thank you all! The end is in sight for the Moonshaes! Then on to Snow by Night!
One a non-writing note, I’m taking over as the DM for the Velkyn Weave starting tonight! It’s a live-play D&D game (one of my loves). Please come check it out! Also, you can grumble at me in the chat about writing more Snow. ;-)
I am so glad to hear that things will start back up. I only recently found your webcomic and am slogging through it from the beginning. I’m currently into Chapter 6. So, I’m hoping that by the time I’m caught up you’ll be posting new pages. I love the story telling and the character development! I can hardly wait to see what plans you have for everyone.
\o/
Just reassuring you at least some if not most of us are still here looking forward to you resuming the tale. Wish you and yours the best through your trials.
Just wanted to let you know that I’m also a fan and checking Snow by Night regularly. Your story brings me great joy. Totally understand that life comes first and waiting is no problem :) A treat that you have to wait for is all the better when you finally get it. All the best.
March comes in like a lion, and goes out like a new update from the Snow by Night team? Hope hope!
I’m hoping too!
Life continues to be rough. My wife lost her uncle this week. It’s the 4th death this calendar year.
The kid is back in school. That’s a good start!
Also, I’m stepping down as Story Architect for the Moonshaes after the Rising Shadows storyline concludes. It wraps up this summer so my workload is going to diminish steadily over the next few months.
Then Snow by Night!
Yes!
Yey! looking forward to this :)
I am sorry your family has endured so many trials. That many dead in only three months takes a lot out of you. Thank you for keeping us in the loop. When you can catch your breath, we will be looking forward to more of this comic.
Just checking in, still looking forward to seeing this comic again. Life attacked us all, I get it.
SNOW IS COMING
(To the DC area. Hope your family gets to enjoy it!)
Happy New Years to you all! Hope you and your loved ones enjoy a healthy and happy 2021.
Myth, I was curious as to how the process of producing this comic works. Do you do everything from writing to drawing to publishing, or do different people work on different parts of the comic? What’s the “workflow” needed to produce a chapter like?
Glad to read that you still intend to continue this comic.
You of course don’t owe anyone anything.
But I really love this comic, so I hope to read more of it.
Thank you so much! I fully intend to get this story done. I just need to push the Moonshaes off my plate or get the kiddo back into in-person school. Either would free up enough time.
Thanks for the updates. It’s good to know that you still intend to continue work on this.
Just so you’ll know, people are still liking that tweet where you promised after MOON19-3, you’ll be picking up Snow By Night.
Hurray! I’m looking forward to picking it back up again too! The Moonshaes have been really intense.
Well, you know 2020 really didn’t exist, so it’s only like a 4-5 month haitus. :)
omg this year…
Hi,
Avid fan here, keeping tabs on this comics :) hope you’ll are ok
Hello Myth! I don’t think I ever commented on this amazing comic before (though I should have.) I just wanted to add my voice to the many people saying that they’re still here and prepared to wait however long it takes – I have a little girl myself, and though I’m luckily not from the United States, I can relate a little to how difficult it must be to manage this difficult situation.
You have created something amazing, and that takes both time and energy. I will just hope for better times for all of us, when creators can once again expend that time and energy. And I’ll continue to check in for updates every now and then.
That was short, but awesome. I have like writing short little tales mostly old school fables. Can I save yours and added to my collection? I will credit you.
I am glad that you like it and of course, you can add it to your collection, but the thing is, crediting me is kind of a superfluous thing to do :D
You see, I could’ve used my name, but instead, I stole it from a French cartoon.
I just wanted to write, that while I miss the comic I still completely understand the reasons for the hiatus, and I can still wait for it to continue. Halfway through the sentence inspiration hit me, and… well, that’s the result. It wasn’t meant to be something I should be credited for :D
Hey, I will still tag you as source in my save file since I don’t know the cartoon. I miss the comic too and completely understand the reasoning. Real Life and family come first. It was still a good little tale. It actually reminds of a Native American tale I heard out in AZ. Though that was more of Ghost stories that revolves around the Ghost Dance. Heard it up around the Grand Canyon at swap meet the tribes were having that I just happened to be in the right area for I was told it by an elder. That day was an awesome day. Hope you have a wonderful day as well.
The Wanderer was lost.
His journey took much longer than he anticipated. Now, he was without food, without water. Even his horse was so weak that she could not carry his weight. It seemed that the desert will claim his life, as it claimed so many others before him.
Then he saw it – it was like an outpost, an oasis. He shook his head. It was not the first time he had to be disappointed. He looked at his horse and said:
“What do you say, girl? We’ll check this one, and then it’s over. Let it come what must come.”
It seemed as it was near, but the evening was almost upon them when they finally reached the place. It wasn’t much, a house and a well. And, to the surprise of the Wanderer, there was water in the well. It tasted bad, but it was water.
“Hah! It seems we live for another day!”
The house was way too ruined, so the Wanderer spread his blanket outside, and went to sleep under the starlit sky.
And then, they heard whispers.
When he opened his eyes, he could see: ghostly figures gathered on the yard, tens, maybe hundreds, and they came from everywhere. They gathered around a campfire – or was it a ghost of a campfire? He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t even sure he was alive anymore.
“Come! Join us!” called him one of the ghosts.
“What … what is happening?” the Wanderer asked.
“We are waiting.”
“Waiting for what?”
“For the Great Spirit to come again.”
The Wanderer and all the ghosts looked at the one who spoke. He looked old.
“The Great Spirit told us a tale, but he never finished. So every week, we gather. We hope he will come again …” and then, he started. The spirit of the old men told a tale about manitous and thieves, about friendship, love, and betrayal … and then, suddenly, he stopped. “That’s how far the story goes.”
The Wanderer looked at the old spirit.
“This can’t be the end!”
“Oh, it isn’t. That’s why we come back. That’s why we always come back … but it seems he won’t come tonight.”
The Wanderer saw as the campfire went out, and the ghosts one by one left the yard.
“Good-by, wanderer.” said the old ghost. “Until we meet again.”
“Until we meet again.” answered the Wanderer.
The memory of the ghosts faded quickly the next morning when he woke up. Like a dream, it was gone – but he could remember the story he never heard.
He could leave the desert, he reached a city, and he started a new life.
But once a week, every week, his spirit leaves his body, flies to the campfire, and sings, and laughs with the others, and waits, just like the others, waits for the spirit of Myth to return and finish his story.
This is the best fan-story I have ever read.
“Hey, it’s been like forever since I checked this cool colonial comic I like ! Let’s see how are things !”, did I say to myself this evening.
Last update : August 30th, 2019
Sadly, as usual, “hiatus” stands for abandoned. When they stop working on it, artists move on other projects and invest themselves in new ideas, stories and concepts, enjoying the feeling of a new start, a fresher work. I don’t blame them for this, it’s human nature.
They keep telling themselves “One day, I’ll come back and finish this old work !”, once a week at the beginning… then twice a month… when a new season begins… and so on, until the day some hazard reminds them of it and they think “Hey, it’s been like forever since I thought about this old work !”.
If we ever see an end of SNB, I’m afraid it will be in some fan-fiction. As for me, I don’t think I’ll come back to check on this comics : it’s sadly dead.
I suggest you check Eric Menge’s Twitter feed. He has recently promised, unprompted, that his recent project has finished and he is turning his attention back to Snow-By-Night.
I can understand Ludovic’s complaint. This hiatus has gone on far longer than I anticipated. This is due to two reasons:
(1) The Moonshaes were a lot more work than I initially assessed. A LOT more. Fortunately, I’m nearing the end of that commitment. The final adventures are due in early November. After that, my work load starts decreasing.
(2) This pandemic. Omg, it’s thrown everything into the air. My special needs kid hasn’t had in-person school since March. Several hours of every day is spent making sure the kiddo is on task. She takes top priority and has bumped many other things. Which unfortunately means Snow by Night. However, they’re restarting in-person instruction for special-needs kiddos at the end of the month which will free up more time.
*As a fun aside, I had to break off from writing this post twice to help the kid with various things.*
I still maintain I’m coming back to this. And soon. I’ve already touched base with Julian and he’s up for drawing!
Oh my gosh, has online schooling been… well not always completely awful, but soul sucking is a good phrase. One of my 3 kids has adhd, and she was working on school every day until DINNERTIME, no joke. And then the other child can’t play on computer next to her because it would distract her even more from school, so then other child is bored out of their mind all day too… and we are one of the lucky families! I have friends who are trying to juggle multiple children’s online schedules where their districts have meetings happening all freaking day. At BEST it has meant I get nearly nothing done work-wise when I’m at home. And when I do have time to myself, I find myself so worn out that I don’t usually end up having the creative energy to do my creative stuff. Quite solidly stuck in the bottom tier of Maslow’s Heirarchy of Needs. I’m so over 2020 and the pandemic.
I feel ya! My daughter also had ADHD and it’s like a ride you can never get off. It goes 16 hours a day as you’re trying to focus her on school with all these distractions around her. She’s doing pretty well, but that’s because we’re riding herd on her a lot. Fortunately I can split duty with my wife, which means I can get half a day’s work in.
Just a quick check in to hope readers and writers alike are well in these crazy times.
Likewise wishing all the best to the SbN team and the rest of the reader community!
Waiting patiently. You take care of what you have to do.
Keep fighting the good fight! We’re here waiting for you!
Ditto!
July check in. I see that the Pandemic has set things WAY back for you. I don’t know what county you are in, but I do know for a fact that FFX has a ton of resources to help out parents, including parents of special needs kiddos. I bet you could make use of the websites, even if this is not your county.
Just know that we, the readership, are pulling for you and this great story. Take care of you and yours, do what you can, and we’ll catch you on the flip side.
Hey sunset–In the “colonial fantasy”genre, have you come across the classic Seventh Son series by Orson Scott Card or (even better) Bujold’s “Wide Green World” series (otherwise known as Sharing Knife books)? Both are excellent and very definitely not in a proto-European setting
I haven’t read them, but thanks for the recommendations! I’ll make sure to check them out!
This comic holds special place in my heart.
I began reading it four years ago, back when I was a wee lad who had just had his exposure to fantasy through Tolkien and GRRM. Those authors are skilled and their works are great, of course, but they follow the tradition of setting their works in a medieval European context. For a long time, that’s what I thought fantasy was about.
Then I came across this story, and my mind exploded. You’ve managed to merge Colonial America, Native American traditions, magic, intrigue, and mythology to create an incredible experience. I’m not joking when I say this story redefined what fantasy is for me, and made the genre more . I really do love this story and what it’s done to change how I see the world.
It’s crazy how time flies. I’m older now, and from time to time I indulge in writing short stories, which often fall into the ‘colonial fantasy’ category. I credit you and the rest of the people who worked on this story with that.
I see it’s been a long time since the story was updated, and that’s fine. If another update comes, I’ll be on it in a second. If not, I’ll still recommend this story to everyone I know. Finished or not, a comic this beautiful and a story this rich needs to be read by everyone.
Thank you so much for your comment! I greatly appreciate your kind words. I’m on hiatus while I try to get some other projects done, but I have a deep abiding love for this story and want to see it to its conclusion. I’m hoping to have pages ready later this summer.
You should also check out Wilde Life, which is a horror comic using a bunch of Native myths for inspiration.
Hello,
I’m not checking every week but I follow the RSS so I will be back when you post something.
I see that we could already have something if not for that !@#$ coronavirus … hope you are safe and healthy.
Hope you and your family as well as the those who make them comic are doing well during this crazy time. Just checking in is all. Have great day.
Checking in and saw the post. Homeschooling even for a non-special needs child can be a challenge. However, I know there are still a lot of online resources too. I hope you stay safe, and look forward to when the next installment comes out. Real life always comes first and is most important. I would rather wait a few months for a the next chapter than have you compromise your life and health. Hope you enjoy the Easter Holiday that is quickly approaching.
Just letting you know that I’m still following this page and looking forward to the next part.
Take your time. Take care of yourself.
I don’t mind waiting.
It’s more important that you and your loved ones are doing good.
And I greatly appreciate that! :-) It will be done. I’m just trying to adjust my life to this new reality and get all the pieces in there…
I hope you and yours are doing well and are healthy.
feeling like the israelites at the bottom of Mt. Sinai, just waiting …
I feel ya. Virginia now has a shelter in place order. I’m tryigI feel ya. Virginia now has a shelter in place order. I’m trying to run business from my kitchen table while balancing child care for a special needs girl who hasn’t had school for two weeks.
We’re trying to home school but home school is hard! And now they’ve canceled in-person instruction for the rest of the school year. They’re setting up some virtual classrooms but that won’t break for a bit.
Giddily anticipating. Managed to find a few extra bucks to throw at the Patreon, just because SbN is amazing.
Thank you, Eric! I’ve got the Patreon suspended until I get reliably produce content. Until then, please consider backing the IndigiPop X kickstarter! This is put on by my good friends over at Native Realities Press. They put together a good show!
Consider it done, mon ami!
March check in… we’re still hoping for some Snow this winter!
*Pull out notebook. Begins to write* “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” *scratches that out* “In a frozen lake in the far north, there lived a spirit…”
The script is back open today! Woo hoo! It feels good to be back with this story! Let’s make it snow.
YAY!! We look forward to seeing it when it is posted. Still check in once a week.
Checking in too :) hoping all is good on your side
We look forward to what is to come. You do what you need to support yourself and the comic. I look forward to the next chapter when it comes out. Until then weekly check ins , and thank your for the information you have told us it is sincerely appreciated.
Checking in.
Awww y’all are sweet. I just got done with Winter Fantasy for Wizards. That was a month of frantic scrambling. But most everything is in. I just need to tie up a few loose ends. That should take a few days. After that, it’s scripting time!
Just want to let you know that you still have fans who are checking in every week! If it’s not possible to finish this story in comic form, maybe consider writing the rest of it in prose at least, for people to buy if they want. A story this good deserves an ending.
Awwwww. Thank you! I fully intend to finish this as a graphic novel. It was conceived that way and I want to finish it that way. I’ve been working on the scripts for the upcoming chapters over the holidays. I’ve got some work things to push out then I want to buckle down and get this done.
As a treat/preview, here’s the tentative chapter titles for the rest of the story.
Chapter 19: The Duel
Chapter 20: The Way Across the Water
Chapter 21: The Siege
Chapter 22: Snowfall
Chapter 23: Shattered
Chapter 24: Together, We Will Make History
They all sound great. How many chapters was the story supposed to have if you don’t mind me asking??
That’s all of them. The story is 24 chapters long. Organized into 6 volumes of 4 chapters each. Each of the volumes is named for one of the six alchemical processes. The theme of that process is the theme of the volume. We will close out with Coagulation (which I might rename as Perfection) as the epilogue.
Oooooooh, sweet.
Very awesome. Look forward to seeing the rest. I still check in once a week.
Same here.
Weekly check-in.
Happy New Year to you and your staff!! Many wishes of a better year to come.
oh no. Its been 4 months and nothing. Its beginning to look like the creative passion for this project has gone out.
So many abandoned stories on the internet. I hope this doesnt become one of them. I’ve really enjoyed the ride.
The creative passion is still there; I’m running into time issues. There’s so many things I want to do and I have time for about half of them, For Christmas I’m asking Santa for four more hours a day!
…. would that be enough?
Have a good holiday to you are your crew. Hope the work on Moon 5 is going well for you, and look forward to your return. I still check in once a week.
Thank you! MOON5 is done and in the can. Now I’m juggling a bunch of other things, including drafting Ch19 of Snow by Night. Long dark snowy nights make great inspiration for this comic.
Real life always takes priority. Snowy nights aren’t so common where I dwell, but icy ones are frequent in the winter. Snow is pretty so long as I don’t have to shovel it. Look forward to seeing more Snow by Night and will continue to keep tabs. Hope everything gets sorted out for you. :)
Ok, so… uhm is this Comic still active?
We’re working on the backend to get the next chapter ready for you. I’ve had some major work projects which have been eating up my time, but we’re making progress!
Hope you and the group have a good and safe holiday!
Will the vote incentive be updated soon? Also will we get any information on when the next chapter will possibly be released? I understand you had issues and getting back no track is hard. One thing I always appreciated about this comic was good communication on your end, but since changing the updating format that communication has started to be irregular. I hope the comic is still going to go on as it a very well done one.
I’ll update it when I have something to share. I’ve been slammed with a bunch of D&D projects all at once. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel there. I’m hoping to have pages up in the next month. Until then, please enjoy another project I’m managing as the publisher. The Tattered World! It’s a virtual pet site and digital community. If you like Neopets or Flight Rising, you’ll like this.
Okay :) I understand. Thank your for answering. Good luck with the D&D projects I hope all goes smoothly for you. I look forward to seeing the new pages and will check back now and then. I hope you have a fantastic day.
I gotta get the MOON5 trilogy to the admins for review. MOON5-1 is finished. MOON5-2 just needs maps. Then I have one more to do. I’ll have it finished up next week. Then it’s Snow by Night time!
MOON5-2 is finished and in to layout. Just have MOON5-3 now.
And MOON5-3 is done! Time to get cracking on Chapter 19!
I am glad you are getting it done. :) It sounded like a big undertaking and I am glad you are making good progress. Commission work can be very daunting at times.
I’m so happy to see an update! This story is compelling and the art gorgeous and thank you, new creative team members, long may you reign!
Not made of snow any more then. Does that mean she is mortal now?
Woof woof.
Howl, even.
*rereads prophecy*
*smile and nod*
Snow is looking lovely with a little warmth to her cheeks. The upcoming showdown with Jassert is going to be intense…
He’s not her heart? … well, at least she will have some time, as if I remember correctly, when she finds her heart she’s gonna get timeout …
I’m very sorry for all the troubles your team is going through. As for me, the wait was worth it! I check this site every week for a new update.
Wow! Love Snow’s new look! So glad you’re still pushing through with telling the story. This is good stuff.
My compliments to your art team, you made the already stunning Snow look even better.
Further compliments to the writer(s?). I’ve been watching this story unfold for years now and every page is worth reading. Even the non-actiony bits remain interesting.
Wow Snow looks just magnificent!! Poor Blaise it wasn’t dream man, it was a true nightmare of the path your friend is going down. It is nice to see Snow on step closer to her goal.