Yeah, tricky, eh? I'm more aiming this at story comic rather the strip/gag comics. Although the question still applies.

Do you feel your readers read your comic for the art, do they read it for the story? Do you think the story is lost on them? Or the jokes? What do you feel are holding you and your comic back? What do you think you need to do to improove your comic?

I'm just wondering. I think about my comic constantly. And wish very hard that I could work on it more often, or maybe see what other people see. In my head, I know everything about my world, it is so hard to read your own comic and get the actual effect others do when they read it.

Just wanted to see what you guys think about your own work. =]

interesting questions...
actually, I'm really impressed with my readers' abilities to pick up really subtle self-referential jokes... for instance, more than 100 pages ago, Flipper the snake ate a cat in one frame... then on yesterday's page, Flipper was salivating and thinking about eating mice, and I threw in a picture of the cat, and one of my readers remembered the really old joke!! I felt special!!! I think my readers really 'get' what's going on in my comic... although my comic isn't hard to understand, and generally I spend most of my pages developing the characters rather than having action scenes.
I really don't know why they read my comic; if I could figure out what it is that makes people read my comic, well, I'd amp up whatever that was!!! sometimes I think that maybe they read it out of pity, because I get so happy when I get comments. (but that's just me being emo.)

I think that as far as improvement, my art STILL SUCKS ;_; BIG TIME! even though I'm working so hard, anime is like the alchemy of art!! IT'S NIGH IMPOSSIBLE!!
And although I'd hate to sound like a douche, I think I have a great storyline, though. It may not be apparent yet... but sometimes I just go around in a daze, and just re-enact what I have planned in my head... and it's pretty awesome. I think that's why I work on MisfAs so obsessively, because I just *can't wait* to get to the good stuff!!!
like, certain characters DYING! I can't wait to kill *will not say who*! It's gonna shock EVERYONE!!! I told one of my friends who reads my comic, and she got all upset. ^^ It's a really awesome death I have planned out, though.
I know my comic had a really... how shall I say... rocky start, but actually I may suck at art (;_;!!!!!) but I know I'm a good writer!!! It's just... I forgot to write the beginning well?

Most people read the story of my comics rather than looking at my artworks. I guess I probably have some unexpected skills in meddling some people's heartstring. Quite a number of my readers told me that they actually broke into laugher or tears after reading my comics. Some actually have obsession with my comics to the point that they keep coming back and scream for updates. I'm not saying I'm impressive in story telling or whatever, but it could be probably that some readers just get hooked easily onto any comics with a sad or happy story. o_O

Of course, I do encounter some readers who hate my comics before. >.>;

Go check out the readers' comments about my old webcomics Ghost Hunters that I haven't updated for ages. Seriously, that old comic of mine has got A LOT of art problems but I actually didn't expect to get such obsessive reaction from some readers:
http://ephanmy.freepolls.com/cgi-bin/pollresults/001/comments.html

Anyone reading mine must be for storyline. I'm still uploading my old pages, and my art then looks like a 6 year old drew it in crayon. I'm not an artist. I'm a writer expanding into foreign media. (I'm not so ashamed of my more recent work, but I won't be uploading it for quite a while.) My comic is a constant learning experience from the VERY beginning of me taking up the pencil and making my first attempts at drawing, say, an ear or a hand... Thanslating thoughts to pictures is much harder than translating them to words. :P

It takes a special person to like my storyline because it is all character-development with very little action. I get excited over my plans too, or actually, since I've already written 244 pages and uploaded only 88 so far, I get excited about my future uploads and so impatient to share "the good stuff." I'm probably about a million times more excited about my stuff than anyone else could possibly be. I'm okay with that. I like my stuff and if someone else wants to read it too, that's fine by me.

The biggest thing holding my story back, ironically, is the number of pages. I've already improved my style 10 fold, but my readers won't get to see that until this summer or later. And since I usually draw at least 2 pages a day but upload only one, we will literally never be "on the same page." (At least that means I always have some content to share, and my comic can be alive and moving for all of the forseeable future...)

Well, concerning HVH...

Someone
y'know I was kinda tenative to read this comic because the art is kind of a put-off, in all honesty, but it really does have good writing in it.
Five for MSpaint vindication

Actual comment. I was very proud of myself.

Kristen, I went and scoped out your comic, very cool and cute. And the little car floating near the ‘yum’ was also awesome. I’m glad to hear that your readers noticed. ^_^ I’m sure they read it because it’s awesome. =] An artist who doesn’t think their art need improvement is in trouble I’m afraid. They’ll stop trying. I think all of our comics have a bit of a rocky start. Anytime you start a new job, it is awkward at first, until you become comfortable with it. =]




Eunice P, that is very cool about your ghost hunters comic. I too find that it almost seems like the work that I do that people really like, is done almost on accident. I’ve done a painting, for fun, in 30 min, while waiting for my pizza to cook, and people love it. They bring it up years later even. Then I plan out this amazing piece, I do all the math, all my design skills, I spend an extra day inking and adding line weights, spend an entire week on a piece getting the perspective perfect, and like four people go ‘Meh, it’s alright.” =P I just wanna scream! ^_^




usedbooks, You sound just like me. I really enjoy writing more, but I spend so much time on the art I sometimes feel my story suffers. I very much wish I could just concentrate on the story. I agree, you can say, ‘He held up his hand and looked at it in shock.’ But in a comic, you’ve got a whole page of work to do now. I understand about the action issue, some people complain about my comic being too slow, but I’m so adamant about making sure that the characters feel real, I don’t want to just jump into senseless action. I’m never more than a page ahead of my updating, If I get ahead I get too excited and upload them all, putting myself behind again. ^_^ I hear ya. =]





LIZARD_B1TE, haha, mspaint ftw!

What the hell happened to my text? That's wild =P

Hyptosis
LIZARD_B1TE, haha, mspaint ftw!

Interestingly, Deus, my only hand-drawn comic, is gaining readership much faster than HVH. I find this odd, as Heaven vs Hell is a joke strip and Deus is serious. So I guess people do tend to favor pen and pencil comics to CG cut-paste ones, no matter how it's written.
Of course, I'm such a kickass writer, all of my comics are gold.
I'm kidding, I'm kidding...
But seriously. =P

If I had to guess, I'd say most people read my comic for the art. It's still young, and the story hasn't developed all that much yet, and I don't have nearly as much practice with writing as I do art..ing. I mean.. I don't think the story is LOST on people, it's pretty straightforward (so far! ohoho), and people definitely seem to "get" the jokes. (Hell, people have even found some jokes that I put in completely unintentionally. It's always fascinating when you find yourself laughing at a joke that you didn't even know you had put into the comic.)

What do I need to improve most? Writing, dialogue. I know it's my weak point and I'm struggling with it a lot, but I think I'm getting better. It's hard to know what's coming and not spill the beans to people when they ask questions, lol. There's also still things about my art that I'm trying to improve, but at this stage in my life I'm much happier with it than my writing.

I'm complimented on my story all the time. I'm certain thats why readers keep coming, and I'm happy about that. My art is sadly not at its best since I never get enough time to work on the comic but its still solid. However, the story I always find time to flesh out so it is the strength.

I just hope my readers get a chuckle and a warm happy feeling that cute little robots bring.

Then I will force them all to buy T-shirts.

Ultimately I hope they read for both. The pretty art is a mechanism for telling the story after all. If I didn't have a story to tell, I might as well be drawing pinups.

I think a lot of people are attracted to my comics at least initially by the art, and then once they get into the story and characters stick around for that.

My art for my comics has improved MASSIVELY over the years I've done my them as has my ability to write. Being that i'm an artist first and writer second, thats pretty significant to me. The compliments I get tend to be fairly even for both, so I'm happy with that.

I think my readers are insanely patient (or so they seem). I've yet to get any death threats over my notorious sabaticles.

I think my readers read Mildly Mundane for the humour. I always fret about that though, in case what I think is funny is drastically different or if my opinion changes and I don't like the joke any more.
I've had a couple of comments saying how cute it looks, which isn't really what I was aiming for but I reckon I may have drawn the comic a leeetle sweeter than it used to be because of that.

lol, good stuff guys =P

I have no idea honestly.
I think my art's pretty good and I'm pretty sure the readers like it...
I never really thought anyone but me was that interested in the story until recently. I'm surprised now that people actually seem to be following it... but I don't know anything about how they really feel about it :)

Yeah, I'm a comic strip guy so humor seems to be the most logical answer. Still I've learned over the years that the people that like my comics even when they're not funny. I'm not such a good drawer and I'm not even such a funny guy, but I've got this combination of drawing in my own "funny" little style and telling weird stories or happenings that people find highly amusing. The DD comic I now have is autobiographical for most of the time, but I don't think people really want to know about all that. I'm not so interesting ;) I think also a great part of people that see my comic on DD don't like it 'cause it's not a typical 'web-comic'. It could also be on paper.

So what do my readers feel? It's a lil' unique which makes it a fine comic, but they're looking for something to read that's more attractive to them.

Pity.

Right NOW, I think they want to kill me. ^^;

Let's see... I think my readers read my comics for the animals.

For The Planet Closest to Heaven sometimes I think people only read it for the mascot character Pepe. Most people online said they liked him best. If he even appears on a page my comments double and most of the comments are like Oh there's Pepe! He's soooo cute! Oh he's hiding in that panel! He's sooo cute!
LOL kidding. They probably read the comic for the characters if anything. Interesting enough, most of the people that read my comic in print told me they liked other characters than Pepe best.

Story and art is kinda off and on. Some complain if I update fast and my art is not that great and some complain if I don't update in a while. I just need to give more time to this comic...

Demon Eater. I think a lot of the younger audience is into this comic more. I think it's because Demon Eater has mostly animal-like characters that fight and eat each other and the story's more fast paced. Once again I want to update this comic more too...

On Billy Learns To Rock:

My art neither is amazing nor extrordinary. I think my fans tend to return for the story and waiting what will happen next but they enjoy seeing me apply new art approach like drawin perspectives and cool backgrounds. My female readers mostly say that my comic is cute and adorible and the male readers mostly are waiting for Billy to jam and get laid with Tanya. Sometimes, when I read some comments I just laugh at what they are thinking about my comic. I just stick to the plot and most of the readers react to it. Some are obsessive others just comment once and never returns. Still, I'm trying all the ways to make more readers to enter the world of this comic.

Electronic Revolutions The Burnhams:

It depressing me because I don't see so much readers as much as BLTR. Some readers were expecting a similar version of BLTR but I don't like repeating the same plotline but only change the title. Some complain it is too serious for their liking that's why I made the second issue a comedic then I get back to what I want to tell. I'm still struggling for this comic and I'm BEGGING for readers because later issues are gonna be interested and mixed with everything!

Why do people read my comic? Hmm, that's a rather hard question...

I took playwright classes in college so I hope it's for the story.

My comic started out as a humor comic. One page per joke and they were a little lewd, but oh well. That's the hook, I suppose, for the long time readers. It's like how all good movies start out with an action sequence instead of slow paced character introductions.

But once hooked I had to get off the gas pedal a little bit so I could get to the exposition of the actual story. Not too many readers were glad about that, but to tell my story it can't be all metaphorical explosions and whatnot.

With that in mind, if there are readers still out there for my comic it has to be for the story. All the others were kinda weeded out by the process.

I keep promising that the real story will blow people's minds once we get to the meat, but I pace the dialog at a playwright's pace, not a comic. I also hint at very subtle clues in my comic about very important events WAY in advance to see if anyone will notice it. So far no one really notices them, so it's kinda like I'm waving meat in the air above a dog that had it's nostrals sewn up.

At least just recently I just hit one of my big points that I had been building up to, but I don't think alot of people realized what happened...

As for my art, it has had a significant increase in quality, but I doubt that's why people read. But then again, I haven't seen another comic that looks anything like mine. There are alot out there that look like the same style, but with different characters, but I'm still searching for my twin out there.

Great stuff guys. Thanks for letting me into your heads for a moment there. I find myself asking these questions all the time, it’s neat to see some other people’s answers. =]

Rydel6
I keep promising that the real story will blow people's minds once we get to the meat, but I pace the dialog at a playwright's pace, not a comic. I also hint at very subtle clues in my comic about very important events WAY in advance to see if anyone will notice it. So far no one really notices them, so it's kinda like I'm waving meat in the air above a dog that had it's nostrals sewn up.

I know how you feel...

My readers are remarkably tight lipped. I hope they read for both art and story but every so often I get a comment that makes me think "did you even read it?"

I know how you feel, Rydel. I put a lot of work into my characters and plot only to have no one really notice.

Hmm. I don't know really. Some for the art, some for the characters. I'm not sure how it really spreads out. I get comments on both.

I would hope that readers read my comics for both story and art combined, considering I worked on both an equal amount. Digital Desire is inspired by many people i met playing online games along the way while Spirit of the Samurai started out as a novel that I wrote long time ago and people got stupidly addicted to. Its surprising that people take so well to violence, love triangles and blah blah blah. Turning it into visual goodies will be fun! I hope the readers enjoy the art and the story as well <3. It's what i'd like to hear as feedback as well as constructive criticism if theirs any to be said.

~*Lace*~

I think people read Lola for the characters and their stories/interactions. I get the feeling that some people are seriously emotionally invested in certain characters. Particularly, I've found that everyone loves Edwin, especially girls. I never thought he'd be so likeable.

For Jump, I guess people like the story, but it's so confusing and convoluted, I know not everyone is following what's going on. Sometimes I have a hard time keeping track of everything. The art was initially totally crappy, but now it's gotten ok, and it's in color, so I think people are down for that too.

I mean, one can get a good idea of what people are thinking through the comments, but it's not entirely certain....I'm just glad they read my comics at all.

I want them to feel like they just had hot joy injected into their eyes.

alejkhan
I think people read Lola for the characters and their stories/interactions. I get the feeling that some people are seriously emotionally invested in certain characters. Particularly, I've found that everyone loves Edwin, especially girls. I never thought he'd be so likeable.

well... edwin's amazing amazing amazing. I'm one of those squealy fangirls, mostly because he fits the criteria for AWESOMENESS:
1.) tragic past
2.) awesome hair (very important!!)
3.) plays instrument

there you go!
Lola is a cool comic because it has a very down-to-earth feel to it, and everyone in it is so loveable and realistic. There's something amazing about the style- it's very unique, and doesn't fall into the usual traps of b&w comics. oh, and another good thing about Lola is I was able to recommend it to my 12 year old brother without reservations. ^_^! Oh yeah, and I'm not much of a plot-person, so I like the general lack of plot. well... you know what I mean. None of those "gyaaah ten page mecha battle! explosions! whoa!" or even "gyaah ten pages of burly men punching each other!" it's more like, "gyaaah ten pages of cute awesome character development!"
~_~