Just wanted to wish all JEFBOT readers, friends and family a Happy Thanksgiving. A couple of the biggest things I’m thankful for this year are (finally) getting JEFBOT up and for having an audience who comes to the site and reads the strip, which makes doing it so much more fun than if I were just drawing it for myself. Special thanks to those that have left a comment or emailed me with feedback letting me know what they thought about the strip or the website. I truly enjoy getting these responses and it gives me a little thrill whenever I see a new comment has been posted.

So thanks everybody! Eat lots of food and drink, hopefully with loved ones and family, and with any luck I’ll be here next year giving thanks for a whole 2008s worth of strips. I’m sure you all have lots to be thankful about this year, too. If nothing else, be thankful Hagryphus giganteus, the 75 million-year-old prehistoric turkey who stood 7 feet tall and could run over 25 mph, won’t be dining with you this year, as the turkey in that case would definitely be stuffed. With human. *insert scream here* Happy Thanksgiving!

Almost every year, I design a Christmas card my mom sends out to friends and family. Since I had half my family already designed for the webcomic, I decided to do a JEFBOT-themed card this year. A nice side effect was that I now have the rest of the family members comic-ready for future strips.

UPDATE: CONTEST IS OVER.
Thank you to everyone who submitted an entry!
–
UPDATE (01/23/08):
I’ve been getting quite a few emails inquiring about who won the contest, so here are the winners, as randomly picked by mombot and popbot (so you can be 99% sure there were no shenanigans involved):
• Bonnie Gillespie, Hollywood, CA
• Jeff P., Los Angeles, CA
• Kellee B., Northridge, CA

and the additional, JEFBOT Mailing-List-Peeps-only winner:
• Mary P.

Californians, all. So the no-shenanigan meter has been re-set to 89%. Congrats again to the winners!
–
UPDATE (01/16/08):
Congrats to the winners of the Free JEFBOT T-Shirt Contest! Three winners from the open contest and one from the JEFBOT mailing list only contest should be getting their t-shirts in the next week or two. Thanks to everyone who participated and made the contest such a success!
–
As I mentioned last Wednesday, I’ve been planning to commemorate the 25th JEFBOT strip by giving away some free JEFBOT t-shirts. Well, the planning’s done and here are the details:

1. In one of the strips in the JEFBOT Webcomic Archive, I’ve secretly replaced the number “6″ emblazoned on the shirt my character Jeff wears, with the number “25.” Find that strip.

2. Once you’ve found it, email me the date, title or number of the strip. Don’t reveal which one it is in the comments, just email it to me. Remember: the less people who know, the better your chances are to win the shirt.

3. The contest will run from now through next Sunday, January 13, after which I’ll throw all the names of the people who emailed me the correct answer into a hat and have someone trustworthy randomly pull out three lucky winners. I’ll announce those winners on January 16.

I think that about does it. I’m hoping this contest will introduce new readers to the first 25 JEFBOT strips in a fun way, and give longtime readers an excuse to re-read some of their favorites. Check out the shirt design below. Unless something at the factory goes wrong, winners will have a choice between the white or black. I’m personally loving the black right now.

Happy hunting!

Was interviewed about JEFBOT with the guys on the live Internet radio show, spaceoffice tonight. Stuff that gets mentioned includes, how the strip relates to my acting career, my inspirations, and a possible animated short for JEFBOT…? All props to my buddy Kurtis Bedford (one of the hosts) for inviting me on. I come on right around the 68 minute mark, but check out the entire show for some fun talk by clicking on the following link:

JEFBOT on spaceradio

UPDATE: CONTEST IS OVER.
Winners will be announced on Wednesday! Thank you to everyone who submitted an entry.
–
What better way to celebrate another 25 JEFBOT strips than to give away 3 free JEFBOT t-shirts away again!? Just like the contest back in January when we hit #25, the rules are simple:

1. In one of the strips in the JEFBOT Webcomic Archive, you’ll find a “50.” Believe me, you’ll know it when you see it. Find that strip.

2. Once you’ve found it, email me the date, title or number of the strip.

3. The contest will run from today through next Sunday, June 8, after which I’ll throw all the names of the people who emailed me the correct answer into a hat and have someone trustworthy randomly pull out three lucky winners. I’ll announce those winners on Wednesday, June 11.

That’s it, get to it! I’m hoping this contest will give new readers a fun incentive to read through the archives, and give longtime readers a refresher course before we continue on to the next 50.

You can check out the color and look of the t-shirt below. I’ve stuffed many favorite characters, moments and things from the past 25 strips into the design. It comes in white, forest green and dark chocolate, and if you win, you can choose the color you like best. Hope you like ‘em, and once again, Happy Hunting!!!

Yep, today JEFbot hit its one year anniversary!

I’ve been so busy lately the date just kind of snuck up on me a day ago. That’s when I checked the archives, just to be sure I still had a month or so until the anniversary, and there it was, the date of the first JEFbot strip, Axis Powers: August 6, 2007. Upon posting that first strip, little did I know that 364 days, 64 strips and hundreds of thousands of pageviews later, JEFbot would still be going strong and would become such a big part of my life.

I love writing and drawing this strip, I wish I could put one out every day (or at least 3 times a week) but JEFbot still has a long way to go before I can quit my day job. With any luck, by this time next year, I’ll have even more great readers, I’ll be posting more comics a week and I’ll have published my first JEFbot collection in book form. I’ll also accept being a regular in an acclaimed TV series or starring in an awesome movie, like TR2N or Akira (as Tetsuo, of course).

Not much else to report just yet. Like I said, this whole anniversary thing kind of snuck up on me so I haven’t done anything to prepare for it. I’d like to do something, though. Actually, maybe you, the readers, can help me out with some suggestions. A new shirt? An officially licenced JEFbot coffee mug? An original sketch giveaway? A videogame-themed party at a bar in Hollywood? Send me ideas or you’re getting the mug.

Seriously though, I want to get a bit mushy and say how much I’ve appreciated all the love and support of you readers. It warms the valves of my fusion-powered heart when I think about how you’ve embraced the strip and the characters in it (especially since most of them are friends or family). Also, a special thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment on the site or send me an email. That stuff really keeps me going when a deadline’s approaching, it’s 4:30 in the morning and I’m only on the second panel. Thanks for that.

So happy anniversary! I’m ready for cake.