So where to begin?

Why not start with the name. Ink is a play on the term Inc., which is short Incorporated. Ink is a reference to comic panel as they are inked for printing. It was my wife's idea. Unique and a lovely shade of weird. Now Barnsy is a whole yard of odd. The name is a combination of Barney and Fonzy. Barney as in 'Barney Rubble' from the cartoon, 'The Flintstones'. Fonzy is a character from 'Happy Days'. A simple light hearted guy and the king of cool respectfully. By the way, both shows lived in our house as reruns to be found everywhere once cable became a thing.

What is a Barnsy? He is a pelican with further inspiration of 'Charlie Chaplin'; 'The Mad Hatter'; 'Bugs Bunny' and a pelican I saw in the parking lot of a 'Long John Silver's' in Pennsylvania when I was about 2 years old. The fashion sense was Chaplin, thank my Grandfather for turning me onto black/white films mainly silent ones. The Mad Hatter also contributes to the visuals of course as  loved him in 'Alice of Wonderland'.

Most importantly Barnsy is me if I was a cartoon character 

Every character in this world is based somehow on a real person I know. I just might not mention who or how. As time went I forgot Barnsy until I was about 21 and was looking for an idea. My mom reminded me of him which brought Barnsy back as an idea. I was a aspiring illustrator and writer who really wanted to break into Comic Books as a creator, but harder than it looked. Had some success but a subjective field. Some will like what you do and others won't.

Did I stop trying? NO! Barnsy became the lynch pin of my world I was building. I have created toys of this guy. A functioning puppet that sits in my home. Wrote a graphic novel back in the early 2000's that lead me to meeting my now wife and has helped influence my daughter's desire to be a writer. 

2016, My dad got sick

This shook everyone in the family. Dad had stage 4 lung cancer and a tumor in his head. We would loose him in 2018. The guy who was always there was now gone. During his struggle I was not dealing well with it. 2017, I was not easy to live with. My wife told me I needed to deal with this anger. I was trying with prayer and talking it out, but it didn't work. Than she suggested I finally build that website I talked about for a while. That was the key to accepting what I could and could not change. I threw that rage into shaping something. Days I might work on one page for hours and that was because I needed to be mad at something productive.

An Evolution

I went through wix.com to make a website. Free unless you need to connect a domain to it. I had no background on how to build a website. Never did it before. Plenty of trial and error with a huge amount of studying other sites. Plenty adding and subtracting with going back and forward until finding the right spot. The right spot for time, at times. I would make the decision in 2020 to keep the site going by officially branding it, 'barnsyink.com. My world with my rules. No compromise. No backers feeling they can tell me what to do. If this falls, try again until it's time to walk another road. 

Over the nine years my website has be in a constant state of change. It has been a source of a clean slant to shape ideas. I do not want or need bursting bags of money. No intentions of becoming a rich man though it would be nice if it happened, but that is not the point of this little romp of creative endeavors. I want to share my ideas and talents that are borrowed from God. I want my life to mean something positive.. This is a passion project. I got a full time job so this is a complicated hobby which brings more than expected sometimes. 

Barnsyink is not a solo project

No, one can do anything on their own. That is a myth. Whether we are drawing from the power granted by God; inspiration; memory or the physical help of others, there is always a team. No matter who may take the credit for accomplishments in the history books. In my case I have God to directly thank for driving me to continue and for Him sending help in the form of my wife, Kelly, my daughter, Katy and a cast of many. Feedback is essential not to mention someone who can tell you honestly when you have the best you can. Or when you need that word saying keep trying.

Read some of our blogs. Read the daily comics. Buy a comic book. Or just join the forum. Be entertained. Laugh for a while here. That is what it really is about. Sharing a life together.