It’s here! Heart-Wired has landed! This is the long awaited project from myself, Rod Hannah, and Leanne Hannah my talented illustrator wife.

“Plenty of teenagers would kill for a chance to leave Earth behind and journey to Mars. But for Cal, that situation is pretty much reversed. One of only seven people ever born on the Red Planet, Cal dreams of returning to the homeland of his parents where, despite its many flaws, he can be free to live life his way. But Cal’s plan of getting back to Earth may have to be put on hold, as an unknown presence threatens the very existence of the boy, his family and everyone who now calls Mars their home.”

This project began as a novel I had been developing for over a year alongside many others. Science and science-fiction has always been one of my most enduring interests, especially trying to see the future in full knowledge I will never experience much of what we hope lies in store in the centuries to come.

When the opportunity to pitch something to Webtoon first arose, Leanne and I had an urban fantasy in mind. Our first pitch, and manga-style, received mixed feedback, so I decided to simply turn to Heart-Wired and adapt it into a graphic novel / webcomic. Leanne turned to her more American-Animation art style, which she has always been so good at and really fitted the project. Fortunately, Webtoon loved both the art and the idea, and away we went to start bringing the characters, world, and story to life visually.

My initial motivation to write the story was to address an important question about Mars colonization that is so often overlooked by fanatical enthusiasm; that is the notion that the first generation colonists are on Mars because they chose to be there, they had the drive and willpower, along with the physical hardships of being pioneers on a world largely toxic to human life. So why do we never have a conversation about what it would be like for most, if not all, of the second generation who are born on Mars and expected to grow up there and continue the legacy of colonization? In exploring this question, many other ideas evolved and the story began to take on a life of its own… through the characters– chief among them, Cal Mills, our protagonist.

I hope you will be curious enough to try out Hard-Wired and allow us to be a slow-burn, gentle build up into a story with great scope and plenty of heart… organic or synthetic. We won’t discriminate!

Please check out WebToon, where you get to experience Heart-Wired and Blue Milk Special, and other webcomics in vertical format.