Livejournal Thread 4: Can't kill what's already dead inside

[Mastermind]

And if you ever do get the "You suck!" kind of feedback don't respond

what about "NO U"? It never fails and instantly cheers me up every time.

[peterabnny]

And if you ever do get the "You suck!" kind of feedback don't respond

what about "NO U"? It never fails and instantly cheers me up every time.

Actually, for me if I respond back in a polite, calm, and non-confrontational way, nine times out of ten I never get a response back. It's like they're going after me expecting a huge flaming contest, and when they get cool, polite civility back, it's like they simply don't know how to respond, like I completely blew their mind into numbness or somepin. It's kinda fun!

[RobboAKAscooby]

Incidently, I read through your advice threads there. Good stuff! Thanks, Scooby!

Thank you, I've got another one on giving reviews coming soon and I'm looking at something more in depth on comic/character creation - I may not have all the ability but I've made enough mistakes to give some advice.


Also (and no offence to CG's few Anthro artists) furries generally aren't the best groups - though I'm sure the vast majority are just normal folk with a weird fetish - as they are more accepting/encouraging of behaviour that's inappropriate in general society (not just on a sexual level), making it not the healthiest environment for creative growth.

[McDuffies]

I guess of all the theories I tried why a just can't seem to get things to take off, that perhaps makes the most sense. I've been accused of playing things too safe, but then the question becomes, "Well, how can I hook readers without turning the strip into yet another typical, sex-drenched furry cartoon?" I've had one guy suggest that I "shake things up, rock my characters' worlds" which I'm trying to do now. But other than that, I dunno.

Two main draws for readers, from what I notice, are colour and sex*. Since I don't have time to colour my comics and sex campaigns are *yawn* sooo cliché, the best I can come up with is making a comic with scenes that are visually interesting on individual bases. Think along the lines of, if you were making a trailer, what scenes would be good for it? If a guy sees one page of your comic, is he more likely to want to read it all if the page contained just people talking, or if there was something visually engaging in it.

*In adds, anywhere. There doesn't have to be sex in actual comic - or in banners. You just have to kinda hint that there might possibly be sex somewhere in archives. Just think of EV+ - adds and pogs all have hint of sex, and it's a comic about freaking poker.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

I am so sad, my post got lost It was so nice and concise and helpful...

Well, let's see what I remember...

I recommend also getting reviews from varied sources, from not only people here but other communities, or looking up webcomic review blogs to see if they'll do you a kindness.

Getting varied reviews can help you because one person may like something about your comic that another person dislikes. I've had reviews int he past that have seemed to contradict each other. By comparing the two and thoroughly reading them, I can figure out why one person didn't like X but another person thought that it worked, and from there I can try to steer X in a more favorable direction. There is also the fact that not all reviewers have the best critical eye (or only think they do), and their words might not be as helpful.

When i write reviews I like to include qualifiers, such as "I'm not a fan of [blhwe] humor, but I know it appeals to many readers. Here is one way I think you can improve on it, anyway-" or "I'm not familiar with the typical themes of this genre, so this review is coming from somewhat of an outsider's perspective." However, not everyone adds these qualifiers. As the one being reviewed, you must read your reviews critically (and, if possible, read other reviews and works by your reviewer to get a grasp on their style and what they look for) and possibly open a dialogue with the reviewer if you feel something was unclear or are not sure how to go about repairing a problem in your work.

Some reviewers are better at pointing out artistic commentary, whereas others are better at writing, or pacing, or humor, or suspense, or character development, et cetera. Never fear reviews- the worst thing that happens is that one person decides they don't like your comic, and maybe their review will cause a few people to look at your comic in a train-wreck sort of fascination (though once they start reading it's entirely possible that their opinions won't be the same as that of the reviewer and they'll become continual readers or fans). As long as you are graceful about accepting reviews, there really isn't such a thing as bad publicity. At least in this medium, from what I've seen.

[Terotrous]

I think the best answer is to try not to care about what your readers may or may not think. If you're drawing the comic for your audience, even if it's a large one, it can get stressful. There's demands on you to get things done, and it rapidly moves away from being fun and more towards work. That was what killed my comics.

Since coming back, I've realized I don't care what people think. I doubt anyone reads my comic, but that just means I can miss all the deadlines I want and I'm kind of enjoying drawing it again. I think that's the key to a happy webcoming experience. It's 2012, we've long since realized webcomics aren't the key to striking it rich. Might as well try to enjoy it.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

I can't fall asleep

My mind keeps racing and it's really got bad timing because i'm very very tired...

Does anybody else ever have the problem where you can't fall asleep at night because you keep coming up with answers to arguments that nobody has even made yet?

semi-related, I hate how political I've become. I used to be able to not give a shit, but now I get really piping mad over people saying things that I very intensely disagree with. Especially if it's things being said by people who I like the grand majority of the time. I never wanted to be the type of person who wrote people off just after hearing their political orientation, but now I think I already am that way, and I don't want to be this judgmental person.

The obvious answer is to never talk politics with anyone, but as I get frustrated about certain issues it gets harder and harder to do that...


eurgh burdgeoning adulthood

[McDuffies]

I can't fall asleep

My mind keeps racing and it's really got bad timing because i'm very very tired...

Does anybody else ever have the problem where you can't fall asleep at night because you keep coming up with answers to arguments that nobody has even made yet?

Only all the time.

semi-related, I hate how political I've become. I used to be able to not give a shit, but now I get really piping mad over people saying things that I very intensely disagree with. Especially if it's things being said by people who I like the grand majority of the time. I never wanted to be the type of person who wrote people off just after hearing their political orientation, but now I think I already am that way, and I don't want to be this judgmental person.

Don't worry about that. Despite what common courtesy teaches us, people with certain political opinions really are stupid.

[peterabnny]

I think the best answer is to try not to care about what your readers may or may not think. If you're drawing the comic for your audience, even if it's a large one, it can get stressful. There's demands on you to get things done, and it rapidly moves away from being fun and more towards work. That was what killed my comics.

Since coming back, I've realized I don't care what people think. I doubt anyone reads my comic, but that just means I can miss all the deadlines I want and I'm kind of enjoying drawing it again. I think that's the key to a happy webcoming experience. It's 2012, we've long since realized webcomics aren't the key to striking it rich. Might as well try to enjoy it.

I think that's a lesson I REALLY need to learn...

Oh, and Duffies - I have my answer now.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

Don't worry about that. Despite what common courtesy teaches us, people with certain political opinions really are stupid.

The sad thing is that for some reason this is the most heartening thing I've read in a while.

[McDuffies]

Oh, and Duffies - I have my answer now.

Cheer up. One day you'll laugh at all that.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

I wish I could stop waking up with this terrible dizziness/nausea. This shit has been going on for far too long and every time I thik I figured out what causes it, and take away that variable, the same thing still happens. I know I need to go see a specialist but wtf, seriously, this is like one of those weird-ass things that only happens to people on Mystery Diagnosis and stuff like that.

[McDuffies]

Perhaps we shall soon see you on that documentary series called House.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

Perhaps we shall soon see you on that documentary series called House.

Oh crap!!! I am really close to Princeton...

[McDuffies]

New Jersey does seem like 1# american city for undiagnosable illnesses.

[VeryCuddlyCornpone]

New Jersey does seem like 1# american city for undiagnosable illnesses.

It's usually caused by the pollution, corruption, enormously imbalanced wealth distribution, crowdedness, and road rage. And fresh as well as leftover hairspray in the atmosphrere.

It helps that we are shaped like a cancer-ridden lung and/or kidney.

[Laemkral]

Life is what happens when you try to make plans. Natalie and I just broke up.

We didn't know when we'd be together again, and she just couldn't put herself through that and it was making her miserable. I couldn't bear the idea that I was (indirectly) making her miserable, and so we decided to end it.

Now if you'll excuse me I've a bottle of wine to drink.

[robotthepirate]

Sucks man.

Long distance relationships are hard. I know I couldn't do it.

[peterabnny]

Sucks man.

Long distance relationships are hard. I know I couldn't do it.

Indeed, they ARE hard! I know because I was in one, too, when I was courting Mrs. Bunny. She was 450 miles away, but it might as well have been 4500 as often as we were able to see each other. But we still had the telephone and IM (and one-handed typing, but that's something else altogether ), and we saw each other whenever we had enough saved up for a respective visit. The cost is high for LDRs, but if the love is there, the reward is sweeter, IMO, especially when you're able to see each other again.

Sorry to hear things didn't work out for ya, Laem.

[Phact0rri]

I had a few shots, before I went to this production meeting, thing last night. What I didn't know was the producer wanted to beer. And of course I drank more. I was still drunk when I came to work, but now the whole hang over is starting to set in. Now that I'm in my 30's I really should be a more responsible adult.