News
December 6, 2024
Season's greetings! I know it's been a loooong time since there have been any updates, and I apologize for the unexpectedly long hiatus. The short version is that my life has gone through some major upheavals over the past few months, BUT I am finally settled down in a new city (Atlanta!) and I've been beyond ready to get back in the swing of my creative pursuits.
First of all, in case you missed it elsewhere, True Colors Book One is now available! I'm genuinely so grateful to all of the Kickstarter backers who made it possible, and I'm super happy with the print quality. The easiest place to get a copy of your own is on the Tripp Gustin Creative Etsy store, but I am working on getting them into some physical bookstores around the Southeast and beyond. Once I do, I'll publish a running list of locations, so stay tuned for that.
Second, I am planning to resume True Colors updates on Tuesday, January 7th to kick off the new year. I'm currently building up a buffer with the intent to keep up a steady update pace for a while, because I am beyond ready to get through Chapter 3. Plus the pressure is now on to get Book Two made sooner rather than later!
Lastly, at the start of the year I am going to be starting a monthly newsletter as a round-up of comic updates, new artwork, and events I'll be vending at. If that interests you at all, you can sign up to receive those here!
Stay tuned for additional updates coming soon, and have a happy holiday season!
April 2, 2024
The True Colors Print Run Kickstarter is FULLY FUNDED! You still have a few days to back it if you'd like to get your own copy, but the first True Colors comic book is FINALLY going to be a reality. Those should be shipping out by June at the latest, and will be available on my Etsy store sometime after that! There will also be some brand new True Colors stickers and bookmarks to go with them.
In order to ensure that I get the book fully finished in a timely manner, I'm going to put the True Colors webcomic on a hiatus until it's finished, which should hopefully be mid May or so. Check back here or follow our social media for updates. I apologize for all the delays to the comic lately, but once this kickstarter is in the back window it should hopefully be smooth sailing for a while. Until next time!
March 6, 2024
The True Colors Kickstarter is LIVE! We're already over 50% of the way there (thank you!!!), but I need YOUR help to get it to the finish line. This campaign is to get Book One printed (formerly Volumes 1 and 2, now combined), which will cover the comic all the way up until the end of Interlude Kit. Pledge now to be sent the first ever printed True Colors books, as well as some all new stickers and a bookmark. Even if you can't back it at this time, spreading the word to people who might be interested helps a ton. Check out the first update post for more information!
February 7, 2024
We are finally BACK from hiatus! Kinda. Starting with today's True Colors update, for the next couple of months True Colors will update every OTHER Tuesday to give me time to work on a little something. Namely...
I am VERY excited to announce that on March 6th I will be launching a Kickstarter to print the first ever True Colors COMIC BOOKS! This has been a long-time goal of mine and I think I'm finally in a place to make it happen. The plan is to make two books in one go: Volume 1 (containing Chapter 1 and Interlude Iro) and Volume 2 (containing Chapter 2 and Interlude Kit), as well as some bonus content in each. As you can probably guess, the remaining 3 Volumes would follow in a similar pattern once I get past those parts of the story. I'll also be coming up with some brand new True Colors merch for some bonus backer rewards, and already have some fun ideas!
I'll still be making True Colors updates in the meantime, but the slower biweekly schedule should hopefully give me the time I'll need to put the campaign together. Stay tuned for more info, and I will be putting up a proper page for the Kickstarter campaign soon follow the campaign page to be notified on launch!
In other news, I also worked on Fighting Quest Frenzy a bit more during Global Game Jam 2024! Here is a new demo video of what's changed, although many things will be subject to change. The True Colors Kickstarter will obviously take priority for the next couple of months, but I'm gonna be doing my best to chip away at the game and try to get it done by the end of the year!
Until next time!
January 8, 2024
Happy New Year! I'm still working on some secret projects so no updates from me quite yet, but this week is the start of the The SpiderForest Webcomic Collective Comic of the Week 2024! This will continue for the next couple of months, so check back each week to see which new cool comics are being showcased below. For Trueniverse news, be sure to follow the RSS feed and the Trueniverse social media channels to stay updated when True Colors returns in February. Until next time!
December 12, 2023
Happy Holidays! Just a little announcement to let y'all know that True Colors (and the Trueniverse broadly) will be going on a hiatus for the holidays and new year, aiming to return in early February. That doesn't mean I won't be making comics though; I am primarily taking a pause because I need time to complete a brand new True Colors side story for an upcoming surprise project! Keep an eye out for more announcements related to that in the next few months. For a while the side story will be available exclusively to backers of the surprise project as well as Trueniverse Comics Patrons, but will eventually be publicly available in the True Colors extras section just like Fresh Fiction was. Stay tuned!
In the meantime, keep an eye out on this page for updates! The SpiderForest Webcomic Collective will be hosting a Comic of the Week promotion at the beginning of the new year, which I'll make a special little rotating section for so I don't have to keep making news posts every week when there's nothing new to say. Be sure to also follow the RSS feed and the Trueniverse social media channels to stay updated when True Colors returns in February. Until next time!
October 31, 2023
Happy Halloween! Just a quick update with one last Comicstripp to round out Comictober 2023, which I'd say was a moderate success. I didn't finish 31 comics, which in retrospect was a crazy goal even without some of the personal stuff that got in the way of it, but I did make 31 scripts, 7 comics, and 28 comic panels which imo is pretty solid! I think if I do this next year I'm just going to make my goal 8 comics, since 32 panels in a month feels a little more realistic and more in line with how Inktober/Drawtober is normally done.
We will now be going back to True Colors as the main Truesday update, with Comicstripps updating a little more sporadically. Keep an eye on this page for a quick glance at which comics have updated most recently, and be sure to follow all our social media profiles to get notified when new comics post. Until next time!
October 24, 2023
Hello! I hope your spooky season is going well. Just a quick update in case you're wondering what happened to the daily comics: obviously Comictober has fallen to the wayside a little. My bad! I figured there was a high chance of this happening, but the point was just to jumpstart some comics, and in that sense it was a success. I did WRITE 31 comics based on all the prompts, so maybe we'll just count that, and more of those will be coming in the future. There will probably be one more small Comicstripp drop, which will be next Tuesday, October 31. Oooooh, so scary! After that we will back to our regularly scheduled weekly programming with True Colors updates resuming on November 7th. Checking on Truesdays is just a good bet in general.
Also, I've got ONE last batch of promos for my fellow new SpiderForest members! This week is all about:
Future Worlds. Two comics about steam and solar punk worlds of technological wonder... and the mysteries hovering just under the surface of everything.
Key to the Future's Fate - The brilliant young Leon Candel has been brought to a solarpunk future with the expectation of making the world a paradise. But something's wrong... are the powers that be hiding something under this fragile utopia?
Steamgear, Inc. - Ax always dreamed of working alongside her brother and changing the world by becoming a Steamgear Defender - until she learns of his death. Now, Ax will stand up for what's right and change the world in a different way, even if she has to break through the world's greatest fighters to do it!
October 9, 2023
More promos of my fellow new SpiderForest members! This week is all about:
Chosen Ones and Dark Destinies. These stories explore people with extraordinary powers... but a dark path to walk.
Aster and the Fire - A failed Chosen One accidentally falls into the life of magic-fueled crime.
In This Darkened Land - Enter the Chosen One and his mortal enemy, bound together by a curse which makes them feel each other's pain.
October 1, 2023
It's time for Comicstober! For the next month I will be attempting one Comicstripp per day based on a single-word prompt. Go check 'em out! True Colors will be going on a short hiatus while I focus on that but will return in November.
Also, I've got more promos of my fellow new SpiderForest members! This week is all about:
The Bonds We Share. Whether familial, platonic or romantic, these new SpiderForest comics explore bonds that can't be broken, no matter the journey.
Patchwork and Lace - They escaped life alone. Now they’ll fight for life together.
Runaway Drakaina - Two best friends face a world of magic, freedom, and the troubles of attempting to understand both.
The Quest of Casey Tailor - For better or worse everything changes and nothing lasts forever. A story of magic, adventure and sibling bonds.
September 27, 2023
I ran into a slight delay but True Colors is back on schedule! It may not seem like it, but I am slowly finding some success with a healthier working schedule and refining my process to speed things up a bit. And that's great because it's just in time for...
Comictober! For the month of October, I will be attempting to make one simple Comicstripp per day using prompts that may or may not bear a resemblance to those from certain October ink-based drawing challenges. In case you missed it last week, Comicstripp is my new gag-a-day strip that will update sporadically as I get extra time or need some filler between TC updates. I've enjoyed participating in Drawtober/Inktober in the past, so I'd like to use that energy to kick the archive into gear, while also conditioning myself to produce them (and all my comics) a little more quickly. Check back here on 10/1 for more info on that.
Additionally, for the next few weeks I will be helping to promote the other new SpiderForest Webcomic Collective comic members! This week True Colors is actually one of the featured comics, so if you're checking us out for the first time, hello and welcome! True Colors is a subset of Trueniverse Comics, and you can read more of those in the Comics section. The theme this week is about being in a new school and learning things about yourself... with a twist. Our partner comic is The Nightmare Witch, so go check 'em out!
The Nightmare Witch - Five children struggle to find a future living day to day with a condition that causes them to create monsters.
Until next time!
September 19, 2023
No True Colors this week, but that's partly because Comicstripp is finally HERE! or BACK if you're someone who actually remembers when it used to be Laughterhouse a decade ago! I've been talking this up for a hot minute, but basically this will be a goofy little comedy strip as an outlet for all my dumb jokes. Comics by Tripp, comic strip, you get it. Don't expect the most amazing art in the world, because I want these to be quick low-pressure things that don't take up too much of my limited comic-making time, but maybe I'll get experimental with it on occasion. Shout out to the fancy Kraftone CMYK halftone brushes I got from True Grit Texture Supply, I highly recommend them if you like the classic comic look.
Comicstripp updates will be sporadic, at least for the time being. I think my main plan right now is to use them as a stand-in update on the weeks when I'm behind on True Colors, because these are much faster to crank out and I'm hoping to build up a small buffer during my downtime. Basically, just check here every Truesday and I'll hopefully have SOME kind of comic for you. When in doubt, just scroll down below to the "Recent Updates" panel to see what's newest. I also updated the Comics page to be a little more organized now that there are 4 whole comics on here. Let's see if I can move anything else to the "Completed" section in the next year or two. Also I made a Bluesky social account for Trueniverse Comics, which I still need to flesh out but it exists. If you're on there, go follow it and also me! Or hit me up for an invite code if you want one because I am lousy with them all of a sudden.
True Colors updates should resume next Tuesday! Thanks for your patience!
August 29, 2023
Hello! I hope you've been enjoying the story lurching back to life, I know I've enjoyed getting to finally show these Robo Rumpus scenes after planning them for so long. That being said...
I decided to do an impromptu two week hiatus starting today. Without getting too into personal stuff, it's just been a very busy and overwhelming past month or two, resulting in me continuously playing catchup, so I'm just gonna take the hint and let myself actually get caught up. The plan is to hopefully work on the next few pages in a batch so I can see if that's more efficient, and if it is maybe I'll get ahead? Barring unforeseen other delays, updates should resume on Truesday, September 12th! Thank you for your patience. And if you get the itch to read a bunch of webcomics in the meantime, check out the other stories in the Trueniverse or read some of our sibling comics at SpiderForest! I actually just started reading Sombulus by my friend Christina Major and I'm really enjoying it.
Until next time!
August 8, 2023
I am excited to announce that True Colors has been accepted to be part of the SpiderForest Webcomic Collective! This is a creative community and curated webcomics hub/webring that I have been a fan of for a while, and after a couple of application seasons I am finally officially a member! You'll probably see some rotating banners on the site, so go check out some of our sister comics! There's a lot of good stuff on there.
It's probably important to note that this isn't a publisher -- I still own all the rights to True Colors, the comic is staying where it is, Trueniverse Comics will still be the hub for all of my work, and my other comics aren't technically a part of it since SF is geared more towards traditional webcomic styles instead of the weird experimental shit I like to do. But this collective has already been a great source of support and inspiration and friendships, and I'm excited for the opportunities that it will bring!
Other than that news, I'm just chugging along making new comics. So far the weekly updates are feeling manageable, and I'm picking up a lot of techniques that should help me pump out pages faster, so I'm excited to finally make some headway on the story. Until next time!
August 1, 2023
WE. ARE. BACK! FOR REAL THIS TIME! True Colors updates officially resume TODAY for the first time in almost exactly a year, and boy have I missed it. At least for now, the plan is to aim for weekly updates every Truesday (yes I'm still making that dumb joke), so check back next week for more! As I refocus on comics and freelance, my hope is to really prioritize this nearly decade-old comic and power through to the end in the next year or two, finally giving these kids the story and conclusion they deserve. Strap in, because there's some wild stuff to come.
In case you missed it, a couple of weeks ago I wrote a news post which details some of the other stuff that's new or on the horizon. I won't reiterate all of that here, but if you like my comics remember that you can discuss it with us on the Discord, check out the new Trueniverse merch in the shop, follow all the socials and RSS feed for the most up to date information, and support me on Patreon to get exclusive bonus content and make it easier for me to make these comics a priority. Also, just let me know what you think! I love making these comics, but knowing my work resonates with even a few people is really what keeps me going.
Until next time!
July 20, 2023
WE'RE BACK! Almost. I wrote a very long public Patreon post detailing everything I've been up to and the plan for what's to come, so check that out if you want a more in-depth explanation of it all. Here's the shorter version:
• I'm officially done with my animation degree! I am now freelancing full time (hit me up) which I'm hoping will give me more flexibility to focus on all these comics properly. I've been itching to make some real progress on these stories!
• I revamped and relaunched my Etsy store, which now includes BUTTONS, most of which are Trueniverse Comics themed! Check it out and use code TGCREOPENING23 to save 10% on all orders until the end of July. Patrons are eligible for additional savings, on top of every other reason to help support my stuff.
• True Colors is tentatively returning Truesday, August 1, 2023. Check back then and I should have a better idea of what the update schedule will be like.
• Back in February I showed off the Fighting Quest Frenzy demo, the second Input Quest game. I'm keeping it on the backburner for now but am hoping to return to it once the True Colors update schedule is in a stable place, hopefully in the next month or two. Patrons will be invited to be beta testers again once it's closer to done, which I am HOPING will be late Fall/early Spring.
• I think I already announced Comicstripp here, my upcoming gag-a-day comic strip. I wrote a whole bunch of scripts for them, so that's coming as soon as I'm in a good place with other comics! The goal is for it to just be a fun sporadic side thing that DOESN'T take time away from the big stories I'm trying to actually finish someday.
I think that's it! Get some merch, tune in for True Colors in a couple of weeks, and get ready because I am VERY ready to kick all this shit into high gear. Until next time!
May 2, 2023
There's nothing really new to share except to update you that in around a month I will be completely DONE with animation school. To get a broader taste of what I've been working on for the past two years, you can check out my brand new demo reel! But more importantly it also means...
NEW
COMICS
COMING
SOON!!!
Get ready :)
February 25, 2023
Hey there! It's been a while. I don't have a new comic update quite yet, but I figured it was worth touching base in case you happen to be checking this page and wondering where I went.
I'm still working on this animation degree full time which takes up most of my comic-making availability, but I am on my LAST semester and should be finishing up in May! But even with me being busy, that doesn't mean no progress has been made. For starters, thanks to my participation in Global Game Jam earlier in the month, production has officially started on the next Input Quest Game, Fighting Quest Frenzy! This is going to be a top-down bullet hell dungeon crawler game (think Binding of Isaac or Enter the Gungeon) and will focus on Maya taking down waves of rowdy ruffians as she explores Bellico City's seedy underbelly. It may have roguelike elements, or it may just be a linear experience, TBD depending on what's feasible for me to program. You can see a demo of that here!
The other update is that I am soft-announcing a new comic, Comicstripp! You may be thinking "oh god why, please just finish the comics you already have going on" but this will be less of a competing story and more a bunch of lower-effort non-canon goofy gag strips that I'll make whenever I feel inspired to tell a dumb joke. If you've been following me for a while, I'm basically just bringing back a rebranded Laughterhouse in honor of its 10th anniversary! That will probably come this summer once I have a couple of new strips in the barrel, on top of the better Laughterhouse strips I already made a decade ago.
So to recap: I will graduate at the end of May. Shortly after that I will launch Comicstripp just to have it available, and then focus most of my energy on finishing Fighting Quest Frenzy as well as wrapping up File 2 of Input Quest. After that I will most likely redirect my focus to True Colors, or at least wrapping up Chapter 3 and seeing how I feel after that. And maybe a menagerie of other surprises to come...? We'll see!
Thank you very for your patience as I have taken this long two-year detour to pursue my dream of getting an animation degree. It's been a great experience, but I am excited to be able to focus on my passion projects again with a whole new arsenal of storytelling tools at my disposal!
August 16, 2022
Today's True Colors update is a little different--we're gonna take a small detour from the main story for a side story called FreshFiction! If you're a Patron you already got access to it a few weeks ago, but for everyone else it's new! It's focused on everyone's favorite R.A.s Kai and Carlos, explores part of why Carlos is so invested in the idea of freshman fun, and also kinda parodies True Colors itself. Only 4 pages, and then we'll get back to seeing what Ben's been up to. Fresh Fiction is in the main page rotation right now, but after it's over it will live in the newly-formed True Colors Extras page. The page is a little sparse now, so I guess I'll just have to come up with some new side stories and bonus content to flesh it out!
In other news, just as a heads up, a new school semester is starting for me tomorrow. I will do my best to keep working on True Colors in my spare time, buuut realistically updates will probably slow down again at some point. I'll do my best to keep it going for as long as possible though, and until then updates will continue to be biweekly. Until next time!
July 19, 2022
Oh dang it's an actual True Colors update! Sorry this one took, uhhh... almost an entire year. Y'all probably know by now that I've been busy with school but yeah. My bad! The good news is this should be the first of several updates! I have one more page to make in this scene (already in progress) and then I am going to spend a few weeks posting a 4 page True Colors bonus comic that was on the Patreon a few weeks back! I'm excited to finally get to share it with everyone while I work on getting a few more updates made. I'm gonna aim for biweekly updates for the time being (at least until the fall semester starts) so stay tuned.
June 2, 2022
Oh dang, another news post ALREADY? This one comes with a little bit of good news and bad news. The GOOD news is that Input Quest updated, and with it comes the reveal that the next update will be yet another in-browser minigame! This will be similar to Big Bucks Quest Adventure in File 1, but more of a 2D fighting game instead of a platformer. Funnily enough both game updates will be on page 60 within their respective story sections, which wasn't planned but just kinda worked out timing-wise. Symmetry! No promises about it working out that way in File 3, but we'll see.
The BAD news is that this does mean Input Quest updates will be paused for a little while so I can actually make the game, which takes time. I know that especially sucks since the comic literally just started updating again last week, but it should be worth the wait! Like last time, I will probably give Trueniverse patrons access to beta testing, so be sure to sign up to be a patron if you're interested! It also helps to support me, which very directly impacts my ability to focus on comics instead of freelance. If I got paid enough to just make comics and games all day that's all I'd do, so... something to consider!
Thanks for your patience, and be sure to follow the RSS feed and the various Trueniverse social media pages (and mine) for the most up to date information as it comes out. I am also still planning to get out a new True Colors update soon, so keep an eye out for that. Until next time!
May 26, 2022
We are BACK baby! I know it's been literally half a year since the last update (animation school is truly no joke) but it's my summer break now and I'm excited to get the ball rolling again for at least the next couple of months while I've got more free time. We're starting off with a new Input Quest update, and I'm hoping to actually get a new True Colors update out soon as well! Animation is fun but I've really missed making webcomics, so I'm hoping to maintain this creative momentum for as long as possible. I've still been making a bunch of other art in the meantime, which you can see on my Twitter and Instagram, but I know it's not quite the same when there's an actual story going. Thank you for your patience and stay tuned for more!
December 20, 2021
Hello and Happy Holidays! I actually finished a short Input Quest update, which I am hoping to continue sooner rather than later because there's some fun weird stuff going on. Keep an eye out for a True Colors update soon, maybe?
Sorry again for the continued long hiatus, it turns out animation school actually does take up a whole lot of time, BUT I am at least making a lot of cool stuff! As a reminder you can see those projects on my Twitter or Instagram. Some of it is Trueniverse-themed, such as my 3D modeling final which featured the TrueCorp lab from CorpSet! Check it out!
It's becoming clear that I can't promise that I will be able to get back to a super steady update pace while I'm in school, but I am hoping to get better about a regular workflow that will at least let me create them more frequently. Thank you very much for your patience as I work on learning new things and expanding what it's possible for me to do creatively. Until next time!
September 12, 2021
Hello! My last news post mentioned that the update schedule might slow down a bit while I'm in school, but I wasn't expecting it to take a month for me to find time to make a new update... sorry about that. I am settling a bit more into my routine so hopefully I can start getting into a more regular flow with it, but I appreciate your patience in the meantime. If nothing else, there should be some actual breaks in coming months when I should hopefully be able to work ahead a little.
School is going great though! I'm learning a lot of cool new stuff about animation and 3D modeling, and I've been able to incorporate Trueniverse characters into some of my projects. To see more of that kind of thing, follow me on Twitter or Instagram. Turns out I'm not half bad at it! I made an Avatar-inspired bending animation that blew up a little, that was cool. I'm also walking on an Iro walk cycle at the moment, so stay tuned.
Until next time!
August 10, 2021
So a quick update about my schedule! This week I start working on an animation degree, which I'm very excited about! The only downside to this is that between a full load of classes, homework, and work, it's realistically going to impact my ability to make comics a bit. I will still ATTEMPT to stick to the usual schedule, but I apologize in advance if a few updates are late. Thanks for your patience! I will keep y'all posted in case it becomes necessary to do a more formal hiatus, but I'd rather just keep making updates as I'm able, even if it's slowly.
The bright side of this is that I should be making a bunch of new pieces relating to animation and 3D modeling for my classes, so be sure to follow me on Twitter or Instagram to see more of that kind of work in the future! Probably at least some of it will be Trueniverse-related? Or will just look cool regardless.
Also go get vaccinated! Thanks!
July 20, 2021
A couple of quick updates!
1: I started a Twitch stream! I'm planning to use it for both playing video games and also doing some art stuff, so if you're interested in either of those things come check it out and hang out with me!
2: I finally made a Ko-Fi account! If you've ever wanted to support my work but don't want to commit to the monthly Patreon model, now you can just toss a few dollars my way as a one-off thing. I made all of these comics and games basically for free and hope to keep them available for anyone to read for free, so any support is greatly appreciated so I can spend more time creating. (That said, the Trueniverse Patreon does have a bunch of fun bonus content, so that's worth checking out too if you have the means. Just saying.)
Bonus: There's a new Input Quest update! So check that out.
Until next time!
July 6, 2021
Heyo! Not much new to report, but it's been nearly a month since the new site has been up and I hope you're enjoying it! Let me know if anything breaks, make sure to follow us on all the social media sites, and if you're enjoying reading these comics tell a friend or join the Discord to talk about 'em! The more the merrier.
I just finished making a 4 page True Colors bonus comic called "Freshfiction" about Carlos's creative writing pursuits, which will be available on the Patreon soon as well as through a Webcomic Underdogs anthology. Keep an eye out for those, it's real cute and fun! Working on that pushed back my update schedule just a bit but we should be back on track, including a new Input Quest update that just dropped today. Check it out! Until next time...
June 9, 2021
IT'S HERE! Welcome to the brand new Trueniverse Comics website, which I created to be a central hub for all of my webcomics, stories, games, and other creative work. My original comic site for True Colors was created in 2014, back when that was my only comic and I didn't know how to do much more than use a WYSIWYG website creator. In the past 7 years I learned a lot more about web design and the needs of comic hosting (plus Adobe Muse became obsolete), so finally I decided it'd be easier to just start fresh and code something myself. The new site should help things stay a bit more organized, be more mobile responsive, and make it easier to add new works over time. I've made pretty much all of it from scratch, so if you see anything wonky about the design or broken links or whatever, please feel free to let me know. I had to make about 650 individual comic pages, so I'm sure I missed something along the way. There also may be a few secrets here and there, so it's worth poking around anyway.
In addition to the new website, I have updated and/or created a bunch of new Trueniverse social media profiles, as well as a new RSS feed that will help keep these works organized too. You can find those icons to the right (or on the bottom of the screen on mobile). Give them a follow!
Along with the new site comes the return of the interactive improvised story Input Quest, with the start of a brand new character and quest in File 2, exactly one year since it originally started on June 9th, 2020. True Colors will continue to update every other Tuesday for the time being.
Thanks for coming on this journey along with me! On with the show.
