Episodes
Update Schedules
Many webcomics work in a serialized fashion, updating with a page a week or batch of pages every so often, and this is something we probably borrowed from newspaper comics and issue format comics. With that, we wanted to talk about what it's like to keep up with our own schedules, expectations with retaining readership, and the process involved with sticking with something that works for you.
Video Platforms (with Star!)
Video has exploded in popularity online, and is rapidly becoming– if it hasn’t already– one of the most popular mediums for people to express themselves, chat, promote, and experiment online. Chances are good if you, the listener, are hanging out online in creative social spaces, you’re already watching video content, whether it be keeping up with a favourite streamer, putting on Youtube movie reviews in the background while you work, watching or interacting with the creative communities on tiktok… there’s a lot!
Patreon (with Bob!)
Joining us today is Special Guest Bob, the creator of Into the Smoke! Join us as we talk all about Patreon!
Patreon is a site where you can get your readers to financially support you on a subscription model. You make an account on patreon.com, send your readers over to give you any amount per month they want, and you can post bonus content for your readers that’s either free to access OR behind a paid tier. It can be a really nice way to put a little money in your pocket, but it’s also really easy to overwhelm yourself, too, so we’re going to talk about what we’ve learned about navigating it!
Jam Session! Banner Ads
We all know what banner ads are, we've seen them around, and sometimes they can be a little obnoxious. But they are an option for both monetizing your own comic, and cross promotion around other comic sites. So today we’re going to have a short jam to talk about what they look like, what they were, what they are, and what your options are.
Webcomic Collectives
Collective groups are a fun alternative to going it alone, and there are a few options around and new ones cropping up. They used to be a used to be a little more popular than they are today, but it’s still worth revisiting what they are and how they work, because they can be a source of support among artists, especially in situations where social media platforms might scatter your friends and colleagues to the four winds.
Jam Session! RSS Feeds
The acronym RSS comes around in webcomic circles, there have been people talking about it for years, and if you don’t know what it is, you might feel kind of out of the loop and scared about it as a creator. So we’re going to break it all down as simply as possible, because it’s actually really cool technology that you probably don’t have to worry about at all.
Crowdfunding Your Webcomic
Crowdfunding can be used by webcomic artists in a lot of ways, from bringing large scale projects to life, getting print runs together, which we talk about book printing in another episode, so check that out. But today we want to talk about the planning process. What should you do (or avoid) along the way to make it work as smoothly as possible, what kinds of things are attractive in a campaign for your readers, and what expectations should you have? Our hosts are here to share their tips and tricks for crowdfunding!
Printing Your Comic
You’ve been drawing your comic and publishing it online pretty regularly, and eventually it crosses your mind to make a printed version. Maybe your readers are asking, maybe you’re going to a comic convention, or maybe it’s just always been your dream to hold your comic in your hands. What does the process look like to get to that point, and what should you do (or avoid) along the way to make it work as smoothly as possible?
Purity Culture and Webcomics
Today we're going to be talking about a social direction that can be equal parts intimidating and confusing for people posting their comics around the internet.
Now, we’re all doing our best to be respectful of different groups out there. It is never okay to be a phobic jerk, and there’s all kinds of resources out there for making sure you’re not doing something harmful that you do not intend. But there’s also a lot of challenging topics out there that you might want to talk about in your webcomic, and a lot of reasons people might get mad about the fact that you’re addressing them. There’s a lot of nuance and we probably won’t be able to handle all of it, but we’re going to address that fear of backlash that we’re loosely calling “purity culture” in this context.
Death of Twitter
Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to mourn and/or celebrate the death of website formerly known as Twitter. Delphie and Krispy discuss the ups and downs of the social media landscape and the impact of Twitter on webcomic creators' lives and growth, as well as their thoughts on where we all go from here.
Social Media (with Jay!)
In this era of webcomics, Social Media is a powerful tool with so many uses. From advertising to community discussion, it can be a great resource for a creator. But as great as it is, it can be a bit overwhelming to figure out the most effective way to utilize it. And on top of that, it feels like the entirety of the social media landscape changes almost every couple years, making it difficult to keep up with. Especially when you’re already dedicating so much time making your webcomics! So lets dive into ways you can make your social media presence work for your comic in a sustainable, manageable way.
Managing Expectations
When you first start out in the world of webcomics, you might have ideas about how you want your launch and subsequent updates to go. You might look at the popular webcomics you follow, see their engagement, comments, and even fandoms and think to yourself “I want that too”, only to realize that your expectations don’t quite match what you’re receiving. The results can be disappointment, resentment and burn-out, so today we want to discuss how we manage our own expectations and find healthy ways to cope with setbacks!
Webcomic Web Design (with Alyssa!)
Today we're going to be talking about websites, and the logistics, coding, and design challenges– and benefits!-- that come with them.
Deadlines
If you’ve ever worked a formal job, you’re probably familiar with the concept of deadlines. Often a job will require you to complete X assignment by Y date, and this is agreed to via a formal contract of sorts. In the world of webcomics, these hard lines begin to get a bit fuzzy because the deadlines being imposed often come from yourself, outside events like Convention deadlines, or even your peers and readers. Today we’re going to discuss Deadlines and their role in the webcomic world!
The Intro "DO IT (feat. Shia LaBeouf)", and the Outro "It's Good To See You Again!!", both by Adrianwave, have been used and modified in good faith under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Licensed. Edits include: Fade IN/OUT, and a repeat added to the beginning of "It's Good To See You Again!!". For more information on this creative commons use, please reference https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/