You Say it First, a webcomic by Terrence and Isabel Marks

You Say it First is re-running with directors' commentary!

Oct 26th, 2008 - [1306]The Troublesome Trouble of Kimberly Taylor-Adams (70 of 80)
Re-run for Feb 11th, 2026 Link

Original Commentary
I was... a bit out of it, for a large variety of reasons (at the time, it was just my grandmother who had recently passed away- my niece was only sick at the time), so my mind was a bit otherwise occupied when working on this and the next comic... I read the scripts and thought I understood it, but Terrence told me later I drew it wrong. In panels three and four it was Jane and Sandra at the Italian restaurant that was mentioned in the previous comic, with Patrick's line in panel four Sandra's. Honestly, I think my brain rejected the extra work of having to make the Italian restaurant's background and drawing Jane. It works, I think... -Isabel

Actually, it was my intention all along for lunch to be brought in, so that works out. Having Jane show up here was supposed to be "payoff" for the previous day's comic and kind of a reference to the original outline for this arc in which she played a larger role - Terrence

Modern Commentary
I no longer have a version of the script that mentions Jane. What we describe here is awful - new background, way too much action for four panels...

I liked the idea of bringing Jane on. I felt that her Secret Language of Coffee would translate well to describing and marketing aroma chemicals and it would have been fun having her work for Lemon Technology.

But also, I didn't have anything for her there. No plans for how she'd interact with Richard or Sinclair or Patrick. I thought I'd figure that out as we go, and I'm a bit sad that it didn't happen here, but I couldn't talk Isabel into it. All I had was "I don't know how it ends but trust me, it'll be awesome" and, well, that's how I talked her into doing this arc. I like how it ended, but it was a struggle to get it where it needed to go. - Terrence

Quick Links:

ND Unlimited - our comics hub
Namir Deiter - Isabel's comic
Wonder Kittens - Isabel's new comic
Spare Parts - our other comic, ended
Unlike Minerva - the prequel to this
Kevin & Kell - which we color
Archive Binge - to help you catch up
FBAO Blog - thought experiment in game design

Other comic usefulness:
The Belfry

ND Unlimited News

07.14.2022 - Terrence Marks:

Two awesome things!

First, You Say it First is going to be running with commentary starting July 18th - next Monday. Seven days a week. With original commentary AND new modern commentary that has the full benefit of hindsight! Be there!
Secondly, Panda Jenn did a video - Old Furry Websites I Used To Visit. In addition to being an look back at how the internet used to be - and it used to be different - one of those sites was Unlike Minerva, the prequel to You Say it First.

06.02.2021 - Terrence Marks:

Over the last month, Isabel participated in Mermay, a mermaid-themed drawing challenge. If you follow her on Twitter, you've probably seen it. Our friend Eric Pearson has compiled them into a video for one-stop viewing. If you haven't seen them, please check then out.

03.24.2021 - Terrence Marks:

So, we're less back than we wanted to be.

We really wanted to finish the Amoeba X-ing storyline and we're glad that we were able to. We were hoping that momentum would carry us forward. That was overly optimistic.

The pandemic is still on. We're kinda going crazy staying at home, but it's the safest option for us and those around us. Isabel's art anxiety has gotten worse. We're not ready to come back yet. Sooner than later, we hope. Not as long as last time. But not right now.

02.25.2021 - Terrence Marks:

We're back! Update schedule is, well, we'll see how things go. We thank you all for coming back.

06.25.2020 - Terrence Marks:

So how are we doing?

Well, main thing is comics are on hold until further notice.

Physically? We're ok. We're staying indoors. We work from home. Haven't left the house in months apart from vet appointments, and we know we're both lucky that we're able to do that. If you can stay home or socially distance or wear a mask, we really appreciate it and thank you for it. We want this whole pandemic thing to be over, because, like everybody else we're kinda tired of it by now. But still staying home.

Mentally? Kinda bad right now, to be honest. 2020 kinda sucks. Everything is just so much right now. It's hard to be creative.

Comics? On hold until further notice. I really don't know if or when we'll be back. I'm sorry. Some days it feels like we've been slowly running out of steam for a long while and these are not energizing times. If we come back, I'd rather we do it vigorously instead of in fits and starts as life wears us back down. I'd hate to say we're coming back, then we don't or we stop after a few updates.

Expiration is turned off for NamirDeiter.net accounts. If you supported us, we sincerely appreciate it and hope you enjoy the backlog of content we have up there.

Cats? Doing surprisingly well so far. Buttons' thyroid treatment was a success. She's put on at least two pounds, which is good since she was on the low side of four pounds before all this. Momo is still around. Her kidneys weren't in great shape at the start of all this and they're very unlikely to have improved. She's doing better than we expected, but we know that won't last forever. Every extra day we have with her is a blessing and we're grateful for it. Beowulf is doing good, to the best of our knowledge. He doesn't have any complaints as long as we feed him before we feed the other cats.

Previous News

You Say it First is © Terrence Marks and Isabel Marks, 2004-2013.
You Say it First has been on the web since February 2004 concluded in January 2013.