marsoid
patreon
HOW I MAKE WEBCOMICS (part 3)
🕑 Added 2020-11-18 23:06:46 +0000 UTCDIRECTORY
PART 1 - intro, goals, when you should start, comic length
PART 2 - inspiration, ideas, research
PART 3 (here) - page sizes, hosting sites, patreon
PART 4 - characters, art references, promotional
PART 5 - outlining, scripting, thumbnailing
PART 6 - sketching, inking, coloring
PART 7 - updating, guest comics
PART 8 - merch, self-care, fandom and boundaries
page sizes
full disclosure i make my webcomics with the intention of printing them, so they're not in "mobile format" like you might see commonly on webtoon. i don't know how to format for mobile HAH so i can't give any advice there! you also don't HAVE to make webcomics to print one day, i just like having the option!
here's some links that explain standard comic page sizing and have templates
i also don't make my comics traditionally, so i won't be able to provide any tips for paper sizing!
for digital comics, start out with a new canvas in your program of choice (i use clip studio these days) at the size recommended for comic or manga pages. make sure your DPI/resolution is at LEAST 300 (NOT 72), though 400-600 is even better if your computer can handle the size. then, i'd copypaste one of the page templates onto another layer and set it on a low opacity to easily make sure you're not putting important things like text outside the guidelines!
when you're saving the page for web, shrink it down to a smaller size, but be sure to save the WORKING FILE (with layers, like a PSD) AND a fullsize flattened page (like PNG or JPEG) along with a smaller flattened page for posting on the web. there might be easier ways to do this, but this is what i do! then i save the PSDs, fullsize PNGs, and small PNGs in separate folders so i can find them easily
hosting sites
i'm going to admit right now that i have no idea how wordpress works! though it IS a very popular place to host webcomics. i use tumblr.com and tapas.io to host my comics. on tumblr, i bought a domain name (longexposurecomic.com) because it looks cleaner, especially when writing it on a business card! i bought my domain name from HOVER.com but there's lots of different places to buy a domain name.
i like using tumblr because people can follow the comic easily, and they can reblog pages to spread the word for me (thank you guys!!). i like tapas because it's a popular place to host comics, so there's lots of potential readers there! i've never used webtoon, so i can't speak on that unfortunately! these hosting sites aren't perfect, but they work for what i needed. look at some of your favorite webcomics and take note of where they're hosted!
patreon
OHH PATREON, you've been so good to me. patreon is great for comic projects when you want to offer behind the scenes stuff or early access to comic pages to your biggest fans! i have mine set to per month, and charge up front which takes away a lot of the stress for me.
here's some tips i have for setting up your patreon:
- don't bite off more than you can chew! don't promise to give a ton of content right off the bat, especially if you're working another job or don't have time to be drawing frequently
- remember to take advantage of "evergreen" content, which is content you can make once and distribute multiple times. things like wallpapers are great for this!
- put your most valuable stuff in higher tiers, but make sure there's still things people want in lower tiers too! you'll get most of your patrons in the low tiers, so make it enticing!
- get goals! goals make it easy to promise bigger content that might be more challenging to make only when you're making enough money/have a higher number of patrons
- get your patrons/followers feedback! ask them what kinds of things they'd like to see more of from you!
- patron participation is also great! if you've got the time and energy to do a monthly drawing or something like that, you can ask or poll for options!
- that's all i can think of off the top of my head HAHA but feel free to ask about more specific stuff!
PART 4
if you have any questions, ask away below and i'll do my best to answer when i can!
Comments
Max Kinne
Thank you for this series of tips they are very helpful! I like what you said about evergreen content. It's something I see offered a lot and seems like it requires minimal effort.
Miles
Oh okay thank you!
Mars
if you're a patron in december you will be charged for december. LE is over but i'll still be posting the other content i always have and test pages on patreon!
Mars
definitely some good tips!!
Miles
Will I be charged for the month of December since ROD is over
SpectrumsMirror
Your tips are incredibly useful, thank you so much!!! ❤️
Allan Meyer
Been a supporter on Patreon for 6 years plus and one of the biggest issues is burnout. We are all human and anyone can get burnout. The biggest difference in professionalism is to be totally upfront about burnout / family issues / having to move / changes in the day job. - Please - don’t ghost your Patreon account, or if you have to take a break, PLEASE pause charges for that amount of time, it’s only fair to everyone. I have seen creators who ghosted and kept charging. So big surprise when pledges dropped to $1, or vanished altogether.
