Let's Have a Serious Talk

Brian

Talk with Brad Guigar; he faced the same creative issues with Evil Inc. and transitioned to the longer format and a reboot. I think his readership is even larger now than before, and his stories are more complex (although his panel strips did a good job of being cohesive for a long time). Also, I think John Wigger of Zombie Roomie has also addressed the format change and is in the middle of implementing.

Jaycee Knight

Same characters, though they may differ slightly from the originals. Any thoughts on this?

Kingofthefarmyard

I think it’s a good idea, currently the current stories get very confusing to follow. Would you be using a new set of characters ?

IvyReed

I'd love to see what long form would bring to your stories, and ideas.

Jere

I'm seeing a lot or reboots these days from creators who want to breath new life into their creations, so, if you feel like it and you can see it going beyond a month , GO for IT

Timothy Crawford

Go for it!

A Man with Joe Name

I'm on board!

Marc Chevrier

Definitely go that route. I also read Brad’s comics and it’s gotten better when he made the change also.

I can only see this change as a positive one. It should result in a smoother narrative flow and allow more plot / character development in the expanded frame (pun intended) of more panels per page. I am not against a reboot either.

Jaycee Knight

Those compilations are already available on Gumroad. They're not selling like hotcakes, but they're doing fine. I don't know if Brad has released his After Dark stuff, but it's likely that it's available somewhere. But about the long form comic, those would intuitively make better, more sellable packages than what I currently have.

Jaycee Knight

Yes, there'd be a loose overall story, but not some mind-blowing plot. I'm going to stay close to my roots.

Warren Wheeler

Well, depending on how you approach the story line, you could follow the path some of the more mainstream comic creators have gone and release a "compilation" of the year's strips. Though I worry about being a niche comic about how mainstream publishing might respond. I don't believe even Brad Guigar has released a book of his patron stuff. (After Dark if I recall correctly)

Demian Buckle

It sounds like an interesting idea, I would enjoy a long-form comic format with each one an independent tale but part of the universe. Would there still be a larger overall plot which each story could build towards though? I do like that.

Jaycee Knight

Nah, no chance of that happening. I don't plan on changing (much) the way I write, just on writing something that's easier to pick up and read without a lot heavy pre-requisite reading.

Dalek Supreme

I would be up for it as long as the humour and tease is kept. I would drift away if it’s just futa, fast sex and huge boobs as thats just mainstream mass market and dull.

Jaycee Knight

The format I'm thinking of is single stories that last 3, 6, or 9 pages depending on the complexity of the story. It might even go to 12 pages for more complex ones. And it would follow an overall timeline, but it'd be less confusing than the current (and messy) bouncing around. I bet I'm losing lots of readers because of that.

Jaycee Knight

Bear in mind I'm not an artist, just the writer/producer of the comic. I've already checked and Wondollar (the artist) would be okay with the new format. As far as I'm concerned, I'm still enjoying the comic, but I'm struggling against the constraints of single-comic punchlines. The storyteller in me wants to come out. :)

Michael Butchin

I think it might be a good idea, and a lot of fun. I remember reading long ago, and then there was a long hiatus shortly after the big Spider incident, and I kind of got lost after the comics picked up again later. I'd like to see a long-term coherent story with these characters.

Michael Booth

As you said, the Newspaper style works best at Joke-a-day comics. Story comics do indeed need the extra room. The big question: Does this story still hold your interest? A Reboot is far better than a "I'll just fix the art in the first couple of chapters..." which never gets finished and the Artist moves on. Keeping the Artist engaged in the project is, IMO the most important point. That said, I would like to see the reboot.

Jaycee Knight

I'd be looking at making the change in January after finishing the current story arc. Strip #468 was the halfway mark so there are still several strips to go. I'll definitely conclude the Marie & Alberta story before moving on.

Jaycee Knight

That's a great idea!

I'd hope you'd wrap up the current story first. Too many web comics leave their viewers hanging when they stop or change and it's not conducive to attracting a bigger base. Other than that I'd say do it. Don't have so many plot lines this it makes it hard to follow. Maybe one or two ongoing stories and anything else is self-contained in that particular comic.

Tinwhisker

This sounds interesting and I'd love to see what it could be but there needs to be some occasional Easter eggs scattered around that reference the "old world".

Jaycee Knight

It certainly would make BF more "print-friendly," but the numbers for print need to be very high for that to be affordable. (Also, shipping and handling is VERY tricky and time consuming.) I don't think it's REALLY an option in the near future. I want to be upfront about that to avoid any misunderstandings.

GJT

I like the idea of a long form comic, and am not against a reboot either.

Bruxius

I'm willing to see where it goes. Let's try it out.

Erik-Anders Nielsen

Yes please! Would love to see longer form content, especially more of it- and hopefully this could lead to a print option!