Check out my new comic

John Goldmoon · Post by **John Goldmoon** » Wed Jun 27, 2007 2:02 pm

Looking for feedback on my web comic

http://www.midevilgeeks.com/index.html

John Goldmoon

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Fri Jul 06, 2007 7:14 pm

Hey, John. First let me give you some friendly advice:
When posting a thread, try to give the title a catchy or interesting name. You're trying to attract people's attention, right? So you need to tell us more than just "Check out my new comic", because that's pretty un-descriptive, you know?
So, anyway, I checked out your site. I like the content, the comics seem pretty funny. Only thing I didn't like was how I had to scroll past the giant banner at the top of every page. I'd recommend making it a tiny bit smaller so a visitor can see the comic with more ease. All in all, though, you're doing well, so keep it up!

That guy · Post by **That guy** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 4:47 am

You seem pretty new to this, but already your images are fairly clean and crisp, your link buttons and general site design are dynamic, and you have a regular, routine update schedule. Some of your jokes are groaners, some are actually very funny, and some are a bit stretched and hard to get. Not a bad mix for a start-up... just keep using original work and learning what gets laughs and what doesn't. Kudos in general.

There are, however, a few glaring issuse you will want to adress.

1) SPELL-CHECK

The title is misspelled. Medieval is the proper spelling. If you would like to draw out a pun, you would have to make the misspelling look more apparent and intentional. ('MediEVIL', for instance.)

2) TITLE-BANNER

The title image & top navigation take up far too much space. Generally a reader wants to see the comic BAM! as soon as they hit the first page, not scroll down to find it. Keep the top title simple and, if necessary, put the navigation buttons below the comic.

3) NAVIGATION You NEED forward/backward buttons at least, if not also First/last buttons. You don't seem to be hosted here on ComicGen... if you WERE, you could make use of our very convenient update system which would generate those for you each time you updated.

4) CUT & PASTE

Until you are good enough that you can draw your characters EXACTLY the same way every time, you will never get away with cut & paste. And as long as you keep cutting & pasting, you will NEVER get good enough to draw your characters consistently the same way. Your characters and style WILL evolve, especially as you begin, and that's a GOOD thing. You MUST break down and actually redraw them for each comic. Cut & paste ONLY when an identical panel is essential to the joke. If that means cutting back updates to half as often, you will still improve ten times as quickly and THAT will draw audiences more than regularity of updates.

5) MERCH

Everyone wants their hard work to earn them $$, but it's tacky, especially right off the bat. Generally I would suggest getting your daily hits in the thousands before opening a store. Your priority should be improving your work and building your fan base before cashing in. If your people respect you, they will want to buy from you more, anyway (Calvin & Hobbes author Bill Watterson NEVER authorized merchandise because he respected his characters and he wanted everyone else to, also.).

All in all: you have great potential. If I were you I'd move to comicGen or another webcomic server (Drunk Duck's good, too) and get in on the free webspace with features DESIGNED for people doing exactly what you're doing, making comics. Then you could start fresh with the title spelling-error fixed and the site streamlined for efficient, attractive navigation. That done, it would be a lot easier for people to get into your work and enjoy themselves effortlessly (which is what we, the readers, want most.)

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 7:56 am

Huh, I had figured that "midevil" was some sort of pun with "evil" and "devil" imbedded in the word.

Post by **Mercury Hat** » Sat Jul 07, 2007 8:42 am

At least he's changing some of the characters so they're not blatantly traced off of other things now.

Or maybe they still are and I'm just not versed enough in comics and cartoons.

That guy · Post by **That guy** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 4:22 am

Ouch, come to mention it, Mercury Hat's got your number. I had noticed your Anubis was awfully snoopy-like, but several of your other characters are pretty obvious rips, also.

Practicing drawing other people's characters is an EXCELLENT way to learn how to draw, yourself. Tracing them is much less helpful, but can get you started. When you make a comic of your own, however, you MUST be original. You can not steal other people's images, jokes, etc... and the minor variations you've made aren't enough to hide what you did.

Rather than copying characters and then touching them up so you can pretend they're your own, start from scratch. Use what you've learned from artists you like and DESIGN a NEW character of your OWN. Do NOT model it directly after any other characters. Instead look at real-life peopleor animalsand go wild with exaggerations and simplifications. Try several. When eventually you find one that you like, keep it and make another. Over time this design will change and your characters will evolve. This is how real artists work, and you ARE a real artist - so step up and fill those shoes or you have already failed.

DOOM2099 · Post by **DOOM2099** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 3:51 pm

Yeah that's harsh criticism, but it's mostly true. You can fix all that with just a little practice. Keep drawing, you will get much, much better. You are already a far better colorist than me, and truthfully, if the writing rocks you can draw stick figures and people will love you.

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 4:47 pm

I'm impressed, ThatGuy. You really did your homework. Who is the blonde girl to the left? I don't recognize her.

I remember when I first began to draw I was so lacking in confidence that I traced characters at first. Team Rocket, mostly.

But then I looked up some drawing tutorials and they helped a lot.
John Goldmoon, if you are reading this, then I would suggest that you take advantage of some online drawing tutorials if you want to improve your drawing. You have a good starting base already, so just go for it, man!

That guy · Post by **That guy** » Sun Jul 08, 2007 7:51 pm

ff6comic wrote:I'm impressed, ThatGuy. You really did your homework. Who is the blonde girl to the left? I don't recognize her.

Luann - she's a regular in the Oregonian comics. Sarge from Beetle Baily and Snoopy are, also, though I expect they're far more widespread.

Kels · Post by **Kels** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 10:32 am

We used to get Luann in the paper in eastern Canada, so it's pretty widespread. Haven't read newspaper comics in years, though.

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 5:03 pm

Nope, apparently Luann has not come out to the Great Midwest yet. Though, the Chicago Tribune seems to change its comic lineup fairly frequently, so you never know when an "unknown" like that strip might come up. "Unknown" is in quotations because its unknown only to me.

I think being a syndicated comic artist would be a lot of fun, though I'd imagine the pressure of making "gag-a-day" strips would wear you down after a while.

Komiyan · Post by **Komiyan** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 8:43 pm

ff6comic wrote: I remember when I first began to draw I was so lacking in confidence that I traced characters at first. Team Rocket, mostly.

Wow, can we be embarassing start buddies? I drew them all the time too

K-Dawg · Post by **K-Dawg** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 3:41 am

Komiyan wrote:
ff6comic wrote: I remember when I first began to draw I was so lacking in confidence that I traced characters at first. Team Rocket, mostly.
Wow, can we be embarassing start buddies? I drew them all the time too

I used to draw Dragonball, can I be embarrassed with you guys? :3

Tarts · Post by **Tarts** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 7:20 am

Well, I for one used to draw South Park by hand. No shame there, I suppose?

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 5:41 pm

Komiyan wrote:
ff6comic wrote: I remember when I first began to draw I was so lacking in confidence that I traced characters at first. Team Rocket, mostly.
Wow, can we be embarassing start buddies? I drew them all the time too

Yes. Yes, we can. I remember I had a crush on James and drew him all the time. Worst part was that I was actually proud of it. *hangs head in shame*

Komiyan · Post by **Komiyan** » Wed Jul 11, 2007 6:27 pm

ff6comic wrote:
Komiyan wrote:
ff6comic wrote: I remember when I first began to draw I was so lacking in confidence that I traced characters at first. Team Rocket, mostly.
Wow, can we be embarassing start buddies? I drew them all the time too
Yes. Yes, we can. I remember I had a crush on James and drew him all the time. Worst part was that I was actually proud of it. *hangs head in shame*

..It's like looking in a mirror of shame

My nick on several forums is still Kojiro cause that was his name in Japanese...

Ff6comic · Post by **Ff6comic** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:32 am

Komiyan wrote:
ff6comic wrote:
Yes. Yes, we can. I remember I had a crush on James and drew him all the time. Worst part was that I was actually proud of it. *hangs head in shame*
..It's like looking in a mirror of shame My nick on several forums is still Kojiro cause that was his name in Japanese...

Yeah, my old AIM was Musashi-something-or-other. I was certain that peppering my speech with Japanese words made me super-cool.

I guess I haven't come too far, considering my current username here. I'm working on getting that changed.