Webcomics

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Elf474

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Some of my favorite comics are or at least started out only available online. Looking for Group, Sinfest, Girl Genius, Sabrina Online, Chaos Life, How to tell when your cat is plotting to kill you, Misfile, Gunnerkrigg Court, and Megatokyo just to name a few.

Sadly while I can write and have a pretty good record I'm not much of n artist. Has anyone here worked on a webcomic?
 

Max Vaehling

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It's my main thing. See my signature for a link.

Webcomics are a great medium. You can use it to shape a story completely independent from what publishers think would sell, or you can choose to experiment and try some stuff that you're not sure yourself will fly. (That's what I do. My print editions are heavily edited, mostly because I put myself under a lot of time pressure.)
 

dpaterso

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Mmm, one or two.

As you probably already know, most comic boards have sub-forums where you can post a request thread for artists or writers (e.g. TWCL, Comic Fury, The Duck, to name but three).

-Derek
 

Bartholomew

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I do comics. It's all right. Nothing to write home about.
 

RemusShepherd

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Sadly while I can write and have a pretty good record I'm not much of n artist. Has anyone here worked on a webcomic?

I've done a few. They're great for immediate fan reaction, but they are a lot of work. Far, far more work than writing a novel, especially if you also draw the art. If it's not a labor of love then I wouldn't recommend it.
 

David L. Hickmon

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I am the artist and main writer of a webcomic.

I'm going to reiterate that, if you are looking for immediate dividends in cashy money or acclaim, it's not the way to go. That being said, it is an incredibly satisfying medium in that each finished page is a wonder.

Even if you don't consider yourself much of an artist, I say go ahead and make some pages. Your art will improve (since you get better at art the same way you get to Carnegie Hall: practice, practice, practice), and if you can draw a community to you, it's warm-fuzzies on tap seeing people comment on this thing you made.

BTW: if you are interested in community, I would highly recommend hosting on Comic Fury (or at least hitting up the forums there). The community is AMAZING!
 

Warp9

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I've done a few. They're great for immediate fan reaction, but they are a lot of work. Far, far more work than writing a novel, especially if you also draw the art.
It is definitely a slower process than doing a novel, at least for me. Probably the most frustrating thing for me is that it will take forever to get my story told.
 

Max Vaehling

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It is definitely a slower process than doing a novel, at least for me. Probably the most frustrating thing for me is that it will take forever to get my story told.

That's the key to good and thorough story editing. If you can edit it out before drawing, you're saving yourself a lot of work.
Of course, that's also why I mostly write shorts of up to 8-10 pages. I sometimes joke that my first graphic novel will probably have 12 pages, but those will be loaded with story...
 

Melanii

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I have not, but remember an artist/writer creating a webcomic said something like: "If you want to improve your art, experiment with making a webcomic."

It made sense to me because you'd have to draw things you normally wouldn't. As someone who likes to make up stories and draw, I seriously started to consider making one.

But... As usual, I'm very slow to start...
 

Super_Duper

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I'm the writer of a comic that's serialized in blocks of 6 pages in a bi-monthly genre mag called Fantasy Scroll Magazine. It's the only comic among fantasy/sci-fi/horror stories, essays, and interviews. I do a tie-in comic that's released periodically one page at a time on Tapastic, with a different artist/style. It's a good way to experiment with different types of storytelling methods and find new audiences.
 

Warp9

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That's the key to good and thorough story editing. If you can edit it out before drawing, you're saving yourself a lot of work.
Of course, that's also why I mostly write shorts of up to 8-10 pages. I sometimes joke that my first graphic novel will probably have 12 pages, but those will be loaded with story...
Yes, that aspect is something I probably need to work on. So far I'm pretty new to this stuff, and thinking how to use the medium most efficiently is something that will probably happen more as I get a bit more experience.
 

jaheath

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Webcomics are a great way to expand your creative thinking without having to conform to anyone else's standards. It's a great freedom to learn and grow. And if you feel that your art art skills are not that strong, I would invite you to check out xkcd or order of the stick. Good writing can carry minimalist art fairly easily.
 

Rasen

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In my opinion plot is more important than the art. If your art is not good but you are be able to explain a good story, if you can convey emotions and feelings, you can also get a successful webcomic.

I think that a good art es perfect to catch new readers, but a good plot it's necessary to keep them.
 

johnsolomon

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In my opinion plot is more important than the art. If your art is not good but you are be able to explain a good story, if you can convey emotions and feelings, you can also get a successful webcomic.

I think that a good art es perfect to catch new readers, but a good plot it's necessary to keep them.

I don't know, I'd say it's 50/50. You don't need mindblowing art but (unless it's at least a bit appealing) very few people will read it for long. Part of the joy of webcomics for me is just looking at the art, and there are some webcomics I've kept reading just because they're pretty. But yeah, I do agree that plot is what keeps people coming back.
 

Frankie007

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i remember reading a webcomic....and every once and a while he would bring back the Shirt Ninja. basically, it was a comic about the people in his life. i wish i could remember what it was called, i lost the link when i got a new computer.
 

Komic Brew

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I'm also a writer who couldn't draw. From my personal experience, here are two ways to make your webcomics dream reality:
1. you can hire an artist to draw them - this could be cheap if the style is simple and you don't have a lot of panels.
Say if you write a classical 3 or 4 panels webcomic, you can find artists for 10-30$ per episode.
2. write the webcomic and find an artist who will really love it. This is possible, but usually after some time the artist finds a paid job and will have to leave the project, so you'll be back on square one.
 

DrewSpence

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I don't know why it's one or the other.
You're an artist, do art. Share it across EVERY MEDIUM.

I see no point in waiting for anyone or anything...and you can change your mind, direction at any point.
Start the series online and switch to whatever...
Some online, certain ones- printed...- certain volumes printed....

Create and share and pitch...


Create 100 shorts and then bundle them together- whenever the moment hits you..
Make a book, comic, graphic novel. etc..make it exist in every format for every type of reader, on every platform...
 
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