At their spotlight panel at New York Comic Con 2023, Rachel Smythe chatted with fans and also dropped a major bombshell: the Lore Olympus series is coming to an end. The beloved online comic series, which has been running since 2018, will have its last chapters published in 2024 after it returns from hiatus on November 12, 2023.
The series has gained big success after becoming WEBTOON's biggest webcomic with 1.5 billion views and counting, hitting #1 on the New York Times Bestselling list for their physical copies, and also winning multiple awards including becoming the first title to win an Eisner, Harvey, and Ringo Award in the same year for Best Webcomic/Digital Book of the Year. Smythe is actually adding to their trophy case with another Harvey win at NYCC this year.
In an exclusive interview with Cosmopolitan conducted prior to the panel, Rachel spoke out about ending the series for the first time noting that, "This feels like the authentic conclusion to me." And while fans might be surprised to hear that this is the end of the series, there is still a lot more to look forward to.
Cosmopolitan: I obviously have to start by asking "Why now?"
For me, I've always had like a picture of what the end will look like. And in terms of story beats, I'm like, This is what we have left. Naturally, I've reached the point where the story that I want to tell authentically is what I have left and anything beyond that wouldn't be for my own personal reasons. It would be more for the money part of it which is not really what I want to do as a storyteller.
There are parts of the story where I feel like I could possibly explore, but I think it gets to the point where I'm like, I love these supporting characters, but I don't know if that's what everyone wants to hear about. But in terms of the core story, this feels this feels like the authentic conclusion to me.
You have also been so honest about your physical and mental health right before this recent hiatus. Did that also contribute to your decision?
I don't want to be like, Oh, it's entirely because of this, but I feel like maybe it's 5% of it. I do think that making a WEBTOON is quite difficult in the sense that it is a lot of work to do. It's as not difficult as being like a nurse though. I think, physically, if I were to proceed to make more episodes or do another season, I would have to prioritize taking more breaks going forward. But I personally wanted to do it to a point where this is still fun for me and this is aligning with those values.
Some people might be surprised that you're making this announcement at NYCC. Why was that important to you to reveal it in person and in front of your fans?
I want to frame it as a celebration and less like a loss. I do feel like we all have stories that we love and we hate seeing them totally come to an end. But you know what people also hate? When stories keep going and get progressively worse. Also, not to be corny, but like I want to cherish these opportunities that I have as it's coming to an end. In a sense, it's very difficult, but also it's a very joyful thing to lay out this accomplishment and share it with other people.
Did you talk with anyone about this decision as you were making it?
I did talk to some folks because you have to take into account lots of little odds and sods. It was a hard decision to come to. Honestly, when I first started the story, I was like, Yeah, it'll take me two years.
Going back to the beginning of it all and seeing everything that has happened, what has all of this meant for you?
Lore Olympus has changed my life significantly in terms of what I thought was possible to do. Even when I look at the story itself, so many moments are woven into my life. There's a huge chunk of it—which was made during the pandemic—where I could read the chapters and know exactly what I was doing at the time. Or what podcast I was listening to or how I was feeling or some sort of event that was all tied into it.
It's so weird to say this, but like since I've been making it since 2017, I get this very weird existential feeling when I look at it because I feel like such an entirely different person from when I first started making it to now. But I'm still the same person, which is a weird thing to say, even if life is so different.
You're also coming off another Harvey win. Between the accolades and the fandom, do you feel a kind of pressure in how this will all end?
I feel a lot of pressure all the time. However, I've worked really hard on the ending. So basically, what that means is, love it or hate it—how people receive it—I know that I tried my best. I did everything that I could and I really, really put my heart and soul into it. I'm never gonna have a moment where I'm like, Do I regret doing A, B, and C? And I'll just be like, No, this is exactly how I planned it. Endings are really difficult.
Lore Olympus is kind of my first really long story. Starting a story is easier than the end because you have all the stuff that you need to resolve and it needs to be emotionally satisfying for people. You don't know until you put it out to the universe whether people are gonna like it or not. It's a complete mystery. So that is very stressful. I am personally very happy with the resolutions that are in store and I hope that people enjoy it. But, you know, people are going to feel the way they feel.
Although one can argue that Lore Olympus isn't coming to an end, especially with a passionate fandom and other projects like an animated TV series adaptation. There's definitely more to come!
And we still have the books coming out, plus many other projects that are coming out into the universe. So there'll still be things to do and interact on. So many people have been in the fandom for quite some time and I hope that even if they find some new things to explore that they'll all remain friends.
As you mentioned before, you want this to be a celebration. Anything you can share about what fans can expect?
I think it's hard to say at this point because I hate committing and then changing my mind. But I think it's something that I want to get as many people involved in it as possible. Obviously, there will be music tracks and stuff like that. I've got some people working on some animations and stuff to help enrich the experience that will go out on social media.
For the most part, it all has felt fairly organic. I get really antsy about sticking to plans and I prefer to just participate in things when the planets align.
Do you feel like this is really the end? Or that there could be more in the future?
Never say never. Nothing is set in stone.
Are you also working on any other projects?
I think for most writers and authors, there's a bunch of stories that they work on by nature. I'd love to continue to entertain an audience with my stories because that's such a fantastic thing to be able to do. So, yeah, I definitely got things that I'm working on.
Any final words for the fans?
Thank you so much for supporting me and it's been wonderful sharing this journey with everyone! It's been a real gift!
