Comic Dish Webcomics Hosting :: View topic - I am giving up on webcomics. I am going to do web comics.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 8:29 pm

Yes, you read that correctly. I'm no longer doing a webcomic. Instead, I am going to do a comic that is posted on the internet.

I've struggled with the webcomic model for years, and it's never really clicked. Perhaps I lack the discipline, or maybe I'm just not cut out for it. How do I justify my decision?

I am crafting a long-form, episodic narrative. The page-by-page update style of a webcomic is non-conducive to this. In many narratives, in order to enjoy a story, you must digest it in larger "chunks". I face the problem that a sequence in my story, or a scene, can go on for a number of pages, and this page by page system will break the flow, ultimately forcing me to make compromises, or confuse readers because pages do not end on a clear note.

Thus, I have decided that instead of a page-by-page comic, I will be drawing/writing full stories to post at once, in full chunks. What this means is that I won't update very often, but the updates will be large when present. Ideally, I am bringing an actual episodic and publication model to my stories, which I feel might work in my favor.

Am I going to have a popular site with a comic that is checked on daily? Likely not. Instead, I hope to have a tighter narrative in larger installments that I just happen to post online as a distribution model.

I think many more narrative comics can and should take advantage of this method. Instead of dragging stories out over time, just post and entire story or episode, rather than dragging these events and adventures over time. Non-narrative comics benefit more from a page-by-page structure. You wouldn't watch a TV show in one minute installments over a week, why do something similar with stories? Imagine if Novels were given to you, a page at a time, a couple times a week. Would you bother reading it?

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 8:40 pm

It sounds like a good method, I'll try that when I do my next web comic project.

The observation about people not reading books in page segments is particularly apt with comicbooks. Imagine getting only 8 pages of an issue each month. That's comparable to a webcomic's twice a week (fairly common) update schedule.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 8:50 pm

Stupid question is stupid: what's the difference?

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 9:03 pm

The difference is that with a webcomic, he makes a page a week and posts it. With a comic that is on the web, he works for a month, posts "Issue 1" which has many pages, then works for a month on issue 2.

It's like getting a comic from a comic shop, where it's released once a month, except that it's free. Smile

I like the idea and have been toying with the idea myself as of late.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 9:08 pm

IceFlame1019 wrote:

Stupid question is stupid: what's the difference?

I was going to be snippy and suggest you read the post, but I do understand it's a lot of text, and a lot of people don't like reading large posts.

Essentially, a webcomic is a page-by-page model of storytelling.

A web comic is a full comic story posted on the web in full, or larger parts.

I have opted with the web comic.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 9:13 pm

With my work schedule...Perhaps I should change to this model too.
(And because I'm not creative I never would have thought of this.)

Good luck and tell us how this method works out for you. Smile

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 9:15 pm

ooooohhhh
i read the first post but didn't get it ^^;;

sounds like something I should do @@

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 9:29 pm

I would do the story-posted Web Comic, but then I would never get it done. For me doing the day-by-day comic keeps me pushing out comic after comic.

But if you think you can do this, go for it! I'm rooting for you!

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 10:58 pm

I decided a long time ago that I would use this model for whatever comic I make after my current one. Good luck with the change.

Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2009 11:01 pm

Ultimately, I am kind of lazy, and would rather post a complete product, even if it takes a while, than force myself to adhere to any sort of schedule and do "progress reports". I can tell you that I am much less stressed out now. Even though I always say I do my comics for myself, trying to do the page-by-page method always struck me in the back of my mind as doing comics for others. This is a bit of a breath of fresh air for me, one I feel I needed.

The real problem now, however, is if Comicpress is the right solution for my posting needs. As of now, I am considering very low-tech specialty webpages for each story, decorated and designed to match the corresponding episode.

So my Egg MacGuffin story site would be decidedly low-tech as far as it's technical construction, such as simple html and hyperlinks between pages, but I have the opportunity to use the website itself to enhance the story.

This excites me actually. Instead of having a stock layout for all my stories, I can mix things up quite a bit. Each collection of pages for a storyline can be themed to reflect story content, or maybe even reflect the beats of a story. The site itself, potentially, can become part of the reading experience, as design and color cues can influence a reader's experience of the pages within.

It's exciting stuff to think about really. I won't sacrifice ease of navigation and readability, of course. However, perhaps the site itself should be an extension of the narrative experience.

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2009 12:23 am

You go to it hpkomic! Very Happy

Seriously though, I originally thought the only difference between webcomic and web comic was that spell check puts a nice dotted red line under the former.

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2009 1:40 am

Heh, I could be doing the same thing, I guess, but after each page, I go "okay, it's done. Now what? Might as well put it up."

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2009 1:50 am

I like the sound of that, it would be much nicer to wait a month or so and get a new story, than to check back in every day to see if it's developed.

Best of luck, keep us abreast of the happenings.

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2009 1:32 pm

hp - It works great for Platinum Grit. We waited over a year for the latest episode, but it was so worth it when it finally showed up. And it looks like the next episode is coming quite soon, which is terribly exciting.

I think the long-form works, and I look forward to your comic updates. Just let me know the link and I'll check it out.

Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2009 4:37 pm

I wish you luck with this new method of doing your comic. I can see how it would work in your favor. Reading only a page every week or so always bothers me. Often, I have to re-read the story anyway, just to remember what's going on. Many times I have purposely don't return to a comic for months, just so there's a chunk for me to read. I guess your only enemy now is time. If it takes you an entirety to release a story, you might loose all your readers. It's a gamble ^^ but it's good you're trying something new.