Kate Beaton 'slows down' on 'Hark! A Vagrant'

Kate Beaton has announced that she will "slow down" on making her popular Hark! A Vagrant webcomic.

The cartoonist said that the already sporadic updates on her website will become less frequent in the near future while she focuses her attention on new projects.

"The success of the book and everything I've done so far has been just amazing, and because of this, I've been given opportunities for other work, different projects," Beaton wrote in a blog post.

"These range widely - anywhere from children's books to television work. I've been lucky. But I've been pacing the room about what decisions to make.

"This is a funny job," she continued. "Webcomics are often cited as the future of comics and the internet and I don't know what else, but the fact that no-one has retired from them yet means that I, at least, rest a little uneasy in these shoes sometimes if only for the lack of having a dependable compass by which to steer the ship.

"I just want to make the best decisions I can, so that I will be around longer, making drawings and comics and writing and other things that I hope people will enjoy. I'm not sure what will work out with these opportunities that have come my way, and I guess I can't really say much about them, but I think I'd be a fool if I didn't give them a try. So I am going to! Whatever I can let you know, I will.

"The website schedule for Hark has never been.. uh.. something to set your watch to, I know, and here's the news I am sad to give: it's going to slow down more. At least for now. So that I can give some other things a chance. It's a little scary, and who knows, maybe I'll fall on my butt right away and we will be back on track here next month. I don't know. But I'll keep you informed."

Hark! A Vagrant is best known for its pastiches of figures from literature, comics and other entertainment mediums.

It has seen Beaton honoured with various awards.