Thread "Breaking DD's 'Glass Ceiling'" in forum "Comic Talk and General Discussion *"

Posted at 9:07AM, Jul. 4, 2007

here's what i like about comics and what keeps me reading. i try to do this in my comics.

1) interesting characters - you should try and make characters that are diverse enough so that people can relate to one of them. if all your characters are similar then you will limit who latches onto your comic because of characters.

2) hide stuff you like in the comics - i like to sneak in pop culture refrences into my comics from time to time to see if anyone notices. sometimes they do and sometimes they don't. it makes it fun for me to try and sneak stuff past my readers. i've already seen this kind of thing in superchum and he's only got 4 pages so far. it's also why i loved farscape so much.

3) running gags (if your comic is humerous) - running gags rule for this reason they are funny so new readers will laugh at them but long time fans will get the "in joke" In issue 26 of superteam rapid got gum on his shoe and wiped it on the sign post for the bus stop. i kept the gum there for the next issue (27) and the next time they used the bus (issue 51) it was still there. i have several other running gags planned but i need more pages to put them in. i also like to hide funny stuff in plain sight to see if people notice. on the computer screens i had descriptions of the villains that were small. they were just readable at the size i made them. they weren't needed to make the comic funny but were extra laughs for people that spotted them and squinted hard to read them. someone actually did.

4) put hard work and consistency in your comics. if your comic is supposed to be funny then try and make it funny. if it's supposed to have a serious story line then make sure you write it well. update on time and avoid hiatuses. putting a lot of filler pages in is a cop out. if you really have that much filler then start a second comic for the filler stuff and call it "filler for (insert name of comic)" a lot of pages does get you more page views if someone new spots your comic but i tend to stop reading comics that rely on filler to make deadlines or pad the page number.

5) visit this post
http://www.drunkduck.com/community/view_topic.php?tid=31200&cid=234
Say Something Critically Helpful About the Comic Belonging to the Person Above You

the guy that started this is a genious. read what people say about the comics there. it can provide insight on your own comic or if you're brave enough post your own for criticism.

6) have people read your comic as a test audience. i got 2 guys that read both the scripts when i write them and the comics as i make them. they often provide feedback that i like and i make changes to the comics based on their feedback. you dont have to take all their advice but let them know that before you have them start giving advice so they dont get pissed when you dont take it.

7) time - only time will tell if your comic will achieve the audience needed to be a big contender. good comics tend to spread by word of mouth and links emailed to friends. although ads will also help. ozone has ads for pinky TA and his page views went up. i saw them on webcomicslist.net and was like wow i read that comic. it's a great idea if you can afford it. if he gets 1000 hits from new readers and only 10% (probablly closer to 99%) like his comic enough to favorite it he just got 100 new readers. if you can't afford to buy ads then advertise for free. i often sign up for superhero message boards to post my comics in the fan art section with links to my site. there are tons of other ways to advertise for free. i fold up printed copies of my comics and mail them back to credit card companies when they send you those pre paid envelopes to sign up for new credit cards. i spam them back. :)

well, that's all i can think of right now. and maybe writing this post will get me more readers too. my comic rocks and everyone should read it :)