Thread "Is my comic from Mars or Venus?!" in forum "Comic Talk and General Discussion *"

Posted at 6:10AM, Oct. 26, 2016

Google analytics is telling me 89% of my readers are male!

And while this isn't what I reckon based on the people I know are reading my comic, it got me thinking..
When you are writing your comic, do you step back and wonder, "gee, there's no romance in this, the ladies aren't going to read this" or, "this is all drama and no action, how will I get any male readers". Should we be considering these things when writing?

As a side note, I know that the gender thing is way more complicated and nuanced than this, and I apologize in advanced for the Generalizations.

Posted at 8:10AM, Oct. 26, 2016

Do you have Google analytics on one site or several? It may just be a reflection of one particular site's demographic.

I'd say your readership would most likely reflect the view point and concerns you had when making the comic, so unless you're wanting to revise those, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If you can really be sure who's reading, is the gender profile of that readership more important than the story you want to tell?

Personally, I like mixed company irl and avoid any male only gatherings, so I'd be surprised to find my readership was mostly male, but I wouldn't want to try and influence that. How would you even go about it without indulging in the kind of gender stereotypical thinking you mentioned above?

Posted at 8:10AM, Oct. 26, 2016

I don't really have any intension personally in changing what I'm doing, and like you were saying, I wouldn't even know how without stereotyping and pandering. I was just kind of shocked at the findings. I have analytics hooked to two sites(I couldn't figure out how to do it on the Duck).
I expected a higher male following just because I am one, but 89%… that seemed ridiculous.

Posted at 9:10AM, Oct. 26, 2016

I have to honestly say I didn't give gender a single thought when writing the Godstain. No… no, I can't say that… I've had my main character treated rather brutality and sexually exploited and I sometimes had a fear some female readers might find it offputting… but I decided to charge ahead anyway… I guess I've had similar thinking with racial or LGTB issues, hoping I wouldn't offend… but… I decided my audience was smart enough to know the difference between how a character thinks vs. the author. So… it's crossed my mind but I believe the story remained unaffected… I think :)

Posted at 11:10AM, Oct. 26, 2016

I'm really reaching here, but are you using the same signature banner you use here on those sites? The comic has some strong female characters but the banner could give the impression that's not the case. It's a long shot, but it is something you could experiment with, without changing anything else. Sometimes little things like that can have a surprising effect.

Posted at 2:10PM, Oct. 26, 2016

I just write what I want to write. I don't think about audience. (Not gender anyway. I might consider age range some. My characters are in their 20s and 30s, so I think that group will be more relatable.) However, it is interesting to create for an audience. It brings to mind anime categories.

Posted at 9:10PM, Oct. 26, 2016

One can also think about it as the target demographics of American cable networks. Is your comic more Lifetime, Nickelodeon, Syfy, Turner Classic Movies or Starz/Spike TV?

I'm stuck doing Spike TV when I want to do Lifetime. The audience expects boobs and blood so that's what every story ends up being. I start out with War and Peace and end up with Spartacus: Blood and Sand.

Posted at 5:10PM, Oct. 27, 2016

@ Ironscarf:
good point.. I'll try to switch it up.. at some point..

Posted at 11:10AM, Oct. 30, 2016

I've never thought too carefully about whether my readers are male or female, I'm just happy to have anyone indulging my taste for silly space adventures. But I do take care that my characters are at least 50% female (actually, it leads more heavily female for the first few chapters, I think). Even as a girl, I find that it's hard not to be influenced by the long history of mostly male characters in books and films.