[Drawing] How important is art in a webcomic?

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Robazoid

Hey guys, long-time lurker since the days before the split with PVP here to ask for some free advice.

I'm thinking seriously of starting my own webcomic, though mostly for my own pleasure since I'm about ten years too late to get a huge readership I'm guessing. However, I still want it to be something that other people could enjoy just on the off-chance anyone else gives a damn and reads it.

The problem is, I can't draw. Even on the rare occasion that I do stumble into something that's almost what I wanted, I can't duplicate it to save my life. So in the past when I made quick comics, I either spent five minutes creating something awful in Microsoft Paint or just used video game sprites. But neither is professional, and without going full on XKCD, I need to find a different route that doesn't involve putting a pen to paper.

My decision was to try my hand at creating my own 'sprites' in Paint. Six hours later, this is what I've got.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a126/Catatron/SHOWTOWN.png

(For the actual comic, I'd probably use the smaller set. But I doubled the size so you can see some detail. Also sorry, not sure how to link a picture so you don't have to click the link but there you go)

I realize that most people could do tons better, but my goal was to not look like crap and I think I met at least those low expectations. The comic would be set in space and mainly star those two robots. It would also be story-driven because I'm not very funny. Would you be able to stomach something with this art level or should I go back to writing books as my creative outlet?
 
Any webcomic can get a huge readership; it's just likely to be years from now if you were to start at this point. And there are comics that have been going for many, many years that still only have small readerships. Most of them will never be Scott Kurtz or Tim Buckley, able to make a living off their comic. Even the best of them, like Tom Siddell, still have to do their day jobs despite a huge following.

As for art vs writing, it depends if the art assists the writing properly. One or the other needs to be passing, but it depends on what you're doing. Stiff imagery is fine for a talk-heavy comic, but not really an action comic. I recommend doing a search for Joel Fagin's webcomic guides; his pages have a lot of good information, even if they haven't been updated in a while.

Pleasantly simple art is preferable to ugly art. People will forgive simplicity, but not eye-pain.
 

Dave

Staff member
Yeah, art is certainly secondary to content. 8 bit comics, Dinosaur Comics, Knights of the Dinner Table, XKCD, Panel Shots....need I go on?
 
To draw me in, art has to be pretty solid. I read XKCD, but none of the others people have listed. I doubt I am alone in that opinion. Someone can succeed without good art but it is probably much more difficult than with it.
 

ElJuski

Staff member
You can get away with a lot on the internet if you can apply yourself and offer something new and special. It being the internet though, you're going to be up to your neck in piss unless you have either that moxie or that "new / special". I find it doubtful that you'll have either, as most people who aren't pity-clicking will, so...as long as you know that, and you think you can deal with it, try it out. Who knows!
 

Zappit

Staff member
The art's gotta compliment the writing. It's why Diesel Sweeties works. But I'm with Juski - I need good - hand drawn - art too.
 
The art's gotta compliment the writing. It's why Diesel Sweeties works. But I'm with Juski - I need good - hand drawn - art too.
Complement. Sorry, it's become something of a pet peeve of mine.

Anyway, looking at your sample, I'd at least check out your webcomic. It's interesting enough to me to warrant a couple strips.
 
R

Robazoid

Thanks for the various opinions guys. The art likely wouldn't be static copy-paste, as I've done comics in MS Paint before and even just using video game sprites I was almost obsessed with editing Samus or Luigi into some new stance to better suit the story. No comic would be these two walking down a hall with the same image repeated four times. And I realize that hand-drawing would easily be preferable, but since I'm incapable of that I was hoping that spending actual time in Paint could be a weak replacement. Especially since I'm nowhere near the Dinosaur Comics guy who can pull a webcomic off with (more or less) writing alone.

And yes, I realize that most people wouldn't give me the time of day, especially when they saw my art methods. But my hope is that someday a few people might read it if I can keep it up, and then maybe word of mouth would get me to ten people who check once a month or something. I'm not looking to make this my job. I'm also too meek to think I could handle a fanbase of thousands.
 

ElJuski

Staff member
Good, because that's how it should be. You ain't shit til you're some shit, and even then. Dude, the point is, instead of sitting around here fussing about this shit, why don't you try and get something up, and see what people say then? Pussyfooting about it isn't going to get you anywhere except for people sympathizing and saying, "TRY IT OUT!"

Try it out and get back to us. Case closed.
 
IF you start making some web comics AND you keep solidly posting and updating your content no matter what happens in your life THEN when someone receptive stumbles over your work, you will have generated a sizeable archive of content to keep him hooked and that he can show to his (presumably similar-minded) friends.

If you quit or if you are too irregular in your updates without reasonable explanation, then any fans you get will abandon you and your content.

KEEP PLUGGING AT IT UNTIL YOU DROP. The fans will come later. Once you have enough backstory, the potential plot lines will start generating faster than you can commit them to pixels.

--Patrick
 
Would you be able to stomach something with this art level or should I go back to writing books as my creative outlet?
The single still image you've provided is perfectly fine.

You have to set your mind to learn on the job.

You have to be consistent in something good about your comic. If you are consistently funny, art can take a back seat. If you have consistently beautiful art the story/gag can take a back seat. If you have a moderately funny/enjoyable story and moderate art then you'd better update at least 3 times a week like clockwork and be consistently consistent.

People who prefer story, art, or consistent mediocrity will eventually gel around your strip and site. Yes, even poor comics that at least appear on time have a following.

If you are doing it for other people, then you will eventually hate it.

You should do it based on whether you want to do it or not, and then stick to your decision. As time goes on you'll change, the strip will change, and you will get better at those things you try to improve.

Don't worry about how bad it is or isn't. Don't pay attention to the critics - or fans. Do it for yourself first, the rest will take care of itself.
 
Simple art executed well is better than complex art executed badly. Chris Morrison of Polymer City Chronicles was a fantastic artist, with really detailed and magnificent character designs. But the glacial pace of storytelling and exceptionally static poses - 80% of all strips were two characters standing in place and talking - crippled the strip, as did the increasingly erratic update schedule. I liked the guy, but for all his talent - I wish I had a modicum of his talent - it just never worked out.
 

ElJuski

Staff member
seriously, the point is, any artist will tell you to do your thing and worry about what people think later. If you start panning to the masses you've already fucked yourself over.
Added at: 21:41
especially to the motherfuckin internet masses. Ugh
 
Thanks, Null. I was going to specifically mention Chris Morrison.* The art is good, the story is compelling, but when he stopped updating (in 2007!), the readers were left hanging without resolution. I can't hold the hiatus against him, though. Having to compromise pretty much everything in life in order to maintain a meal ticket is not how I'd like to spend my life, either. It's hard to stay focused on the story if your brain is too busy worrying about your real life problems.

--Patrick
*but I can't hotlink from an iPod.
 

GasBandit

Staff member
Content trumps drawing ability almost every time for me. It's nice to have well-drawn pictures, too, though. But in the words of Jay's grandma (Jason Mewes, not Sideshow Bob), "What's a pretty dish with nothin' on it?"

That said, I do think I'd rather have high resolution bad art than low resolution middling art. Big pixels in webcomics just make my head hurt.
 
R

Robazoid

Thanks again for all the comments guys, I'm definitely going to push onwards and create this, if only for myself. That said, don't expect any updates in that direction for awhile, because I still have tons of work to do before even creating one comic and I wouldn't make a website or anything until I had a buffer or 100 or so strips in addition to thirty to post right at the start to give early adopters something to look at.

Still, let's make this topic what it should have been from the start: a place where I show off what I made for comments (or not). That seems to be what all the other threads in this subforum are about.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a126/Catatron/SHOWTOWN2.png

Just spent three hours on the dude with wings. Still not happy with his legs or feet, but eh, there you go. Next up is either the final character or some backgrounds/the spaceship itself.
 
Thanks, Null. I was going to specifically mention Chris Morrison.* The art is good, the story is compelling, but when he stopped updating (in 2007!), the readers were left hanging without resolution. I can't hold the hiatus against him, though. Having to compromise pretty much everything in life in order to maintain a meal ticket is not how I'd like to spend my life, either. It's hard to stay focused on the story if your brain is too busy worrying about your real life problems.

--Patrick
*but I can't hotlink from an iPod.
And mind you, before that, he did three updates in the previous 3 years, or near enough to that.
 
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