A Word To Anyone Considering Webcomics
I titled this article because to be perfectly honest, I think you have to be a little crazy to start a webcomic. A lot of people take webcomics for granted, assuming they are a dime a dozen, and they are simple to put together. Well, that is both right and very, very wrong. It all sort of depends on how you look at it.
I want to emphasize right now that there'll be no sugar coating or fluffy frosting to hide the bitterness and truth of some of what I'm about to tell you. But the sweet parts will be super sweet, and the not-so-sweet parts will probably be like a lemon to the kisser. So brace yourself, kiddies.
Many people say I'm jaded, that my perception has tainted over the years in regard to the industry and its fan base. In a way, I won't argue with that. I always smile behind my table, and even if I'm tired and bitchy as hell, that is NEVER fake. I truly love what I do for a living, even though at times it seems to be completely impossible to get ahead. So there, my friends, is lesson 1, and if you plan on starting a webcomic, you must understand this above all else. Webcomics are a labor of love.
Years back, when the subject of starting a webcomic first started being tossed around between me and my husband, I truly didn’t want to do one. They are a huge time commitment and let’s face it, there are eight bajillion webcomics out there. I’m not even joking. The competition is fierce, and not everyone that produces one is as nice as the rest. Most are great, don't get me wrong. But I've met a few bad apples in my time. I'm not going to name names though, so deal. Sorry. Much as I enjoy a good bitch fit, I'm not in the habit of slandering people, and I have a tremendous amount of respect for anybody who has the cajones to do this stuff, because it's very difficult.
So if the competition is so fierce, why do one? Russel Lassau is a writer for DC comics that lives in the area I just moved away from. Last year at a local comic convention, Richard and I were asked as guests to attend the industry panel with several big name artists in the comic and animation field. We felt completely out of place, until Russel made a comment with several other high-profile panelists that the future of comics is on the web. I could go on as to the logistics, but it's boring. Let's just say the world is changing, and so is the way people are spending their money. Many artists are going the way of the web. Why is the net such a useful medium for this type of endeavor?
Because it's far more cost effective than having books printed, even if you're using a print-on-demand service like Ka-Blam! or Comixpress. I mean, let’s face it. You pay next to nothing for the domain name if you go through a site like Go Daddy! And server space is no big deal. You can even deal with free spots to publish your comic like Keenspot if you really want to. But I’ll talk more about that in a bit.
Now, this isn't to say you can't print your own book later. I know several awesome artists who have made 'ash can' comics, or small inexpensive $3 comics, to sell at cons. With our own comic, we didn't even want to make a book until requests started coming in. We paid a LOT of money to get our books done by a professional printing company. I don't regret it, but it was a real eye opener as to why the net is a much more cost effective method of getting the comic out there.
There are literally thousands of webcomics out there, and some of them are truly brilliant. A choice few have been spotlighted for major release, such as Megatokyo, Inverloch, or my personal favorite, Chugworth Academy. There’ve been way more than just those few, but you get my drift. Webcomics are a dime a dozen. That being said, you have to keep in mind that 99.9% of the time, these comics have to be running at least a year or two before your readership starts to grow. I've said this before, but it bears repeating: There is no such thing as instantaneous gratification. You have to work hard at your comic if you want it to succeed. Hell, I'm glad anyone reads it at all, let alone stays a devout reader and fan.
With that in mind I want to also state that if you want to do a webcomic, make sure you really want it. This is a huge time commitment that is going to suck up free time, and you won't be getting paid for it or making money off it right off the money. For the love of god, don't ever assume that after being up for two months that everyone at a con will know who you are, and will rush to buy the merchandise and what not with nothing but your characters on it. If that's the route you're going, you're probably in for a really unpleasant, heartbreaking surprise. It takes time to build fan base.
Also remember, and I do hate to say this, but the average webcomic reader is fickle. They want what they want, when they want it. They want regular updates, on time. They don’t want filler, and god forbid you do something with the characters that they don’t like. We actually have a comment section on our forum, and Richard (writer) doesn’t read them because if he does, he finds himself wanting to compromise his story lines. So make sure you can update regularly, and take the criticism before you begin.
You should also have a story in mind before you begin. It might sound like fun to just make stuff up from week to week, and hell, if that’s really what you want to do, go for it. But be aware that if you run from week to week, plot inconsistencies can strike when you least expect it. It also may sound ideal to get two months worth of strips done ahead of time so you have a 'cushion' but I don't know anyone who has managed to pull this off. Hell even I tried it, and I failed miserably. Then again I don't write it, so I can point at my writer on that one.
I'm sure there's more I can cover, so I'll make this a 2 part article.
If you have a question about webcomics or webcomicking in general, post it in a reply and I’ll make it part of another article later this week.
Till then, hope you're all well and happy!
~Roku
