By night I write and illustrate this comic strip and write fiction. By day I produce creative content (videos, graphics, websites) for local businesses in Sanford and Central Florida and offer common-sense business consulting to people just starting out. To say I'm biased towards creative would be a gross understatement. However, the amount of times I cross paths with people who FUNDAMENTALLY don't respect creative is flat-out nauseating. So when I put together my top five rules to build your business on, respect the goddamn creative easily ranked number 1.

Here’s the deal: you’re not going to run a business in 2015 without a website. And even in 2015, you still need a business card. Odds are HIGHLY likely that you’re going to advertise your business in some fashion or another. And, let’s face it, you’re REALLY likely to invest some iota of time into social media strategies and campaigns.

Creative is the backbone of all of those things, from a compelling business logo to a nationally-aired tv commercial (not that that’s a great idea, but more about that later). And whether you have the mojo to produce creative yourself or you hire someone like me to take care of it for you, it is vitally important to give creative the respect it deserves.

Creative tells a story. Not just in an overt, here’s-a-funny-story-for-a-commercial kind of way, but in a subtle, refined way that some people might not even notice. It tells the story of who you are as a business. It tells a story about what you value. It tells a story about where you're going and how you're getting there.

Your creative is your brand. It’s your identity. If you’re not sure how to respect creative, at least respect the identity of your business. Because when you respect the brand that you’re putting out into the world, you usually have to respect the creative behind the branding, and in the long run, your customers will respect you.

And that’s my point: this is YOUR business. It’s YOUR identity. You already want it to be successful, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading these words. So respect your goddamn creative because it'll make or break your business.

Hey, guess what? This whole comic-strip-a-week thing is working out pretty well. I committed to posting a new installment of Seminal Works every Wednesday (#webcomicwednesday) and not only have I maintaining that consistency all month, but I'm three weeks ahead! Well, two-and-a-half, as of today, but I'm still ahead! Whoo-hoo!

Okay, I'm a little overjoyed this morning. I just saw that I have an actual trickle of book sales happening, which COULD be attributed to the bang-up performance of Seminal Works and those kick-ass archives I finished earlier this month. Or it could be a total fluke, the trickle will soon stop, and I'll plunge back into the warm, welcoming arms of THE ABYSS (not the film).

Anyway, here's the last three strips -- in all their tiny houses, lesbian artist, and pansexual jamsauce-y glory. Catch up on the whole shebang over at SeminalComic.com.

After a couple of hours of diligent work, I finally got my webcomic archives up on the strip's new home. As of today, there's a little over 100 strips of Seminal Works are for Pornstars, and you can read them all from the nitty-gritty beginning right here. Tomorrow also starts the regular trend of new strips every Wednesday. Huzzah bananas!

If you've never read my comic about creativity and art, now's a good time to get started! The comic is purely a passion project and if you enjoy it, consider showing a little support by leaving a note on Facebook, buying one of my books, or even throw a dollar or two my way so I can refill the Keurig and get some new nibs for my drawing pen.