Hey Crew,

Quick one, a few good things packed in.

If you grabbed the keychain prelaunch reservation for the 2026 Sketchbook — here's your first look at the prototype. The finals are at the maker now and we are not-so-patiently refreshing our inbox waiting on them. Looks even better in person than we hoped.

Our Canadian printer is estimating books ship around July 8th. If a press spot opens up sooner, they'll bump us up — so think of that as a "no later than," not a "wait until." Your digital download is already in your hands to dig into while the physical copies make their way to you. Thanks for rolling with us — it means a lot.

About the cover (and a little gift). The final book now carries the Nexus cover instead of the "Sherlock Dave" piece — a call Steve made for the finished book. We didn't want that Dave art to disappear, so every softcover backer is getting a free print of the "Sherlock Dave" cover, on us. If your book was signed, your print will be too. Two pieces of art instead of one.

We're officially in prelaunch for the Nexus Encyclopedia — and Crew, this one's special. 45 years of Nexus in one place: history, articles, interviews, deep cuts, all in a massive 9x12 hardcover. The book longtime fans have been waiting decades for. Reservations are open now through the September launch.

We want the $5 reservation reward to be as cool as that keychain. Right now we're leaning toward an official Nexus 45th Anniversary enamel pin — built around the new anniversary logo, a true one-time collectible. But this is your studio too. Pin? Patch? Something else? Drop a comment and tell us what you'd actually want to own.

That's the news. Want to hang out and watch Steve work? We go LIVE every Saturday at 1:30 PM Arizona time on YouTube → youtube.com/steverudethedude. And the Crew that keeps this whole studio running lives on Patreon → patreon.com/steverude. Come pull up a chair.

Keep drawing. 🐾

Steve & Jaynelle Rude and The Rude Dude Crew