Get out your calendar and start circling dates. It’s time to do a little webcomic planning.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.
This episode examines a Bluesky thread where cartoonists self-reported their financial realities. While the original question was thoughtful — seeking insight into full-time and part-time comic careers — the resulting discussion revealed a common problem: an echo chamber of discouragement.
Brad and Dave emphasize that these threads often skew negative due to self-selection bias. Many successful creators don’t participate—either because they’re busy, uncomfortable sharing income, or wary of backlash. The result? A distorted picture where it appears that no one is succeeding, even though many are.
TODAY’S SHOW
Several software packages and websites offer to enable you to create a font based on your hand lettering. And it’s so simple! You just draw the individual letters in little boxes, upload them, and — whammo! — you have a digital font based on your unique lettering. Sounds great, right?
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.
I’ve been writing longform comics on the Web for ten years. Building and maintaining my audience requires a consistent posting schedule. But how can I take the necessary time to craft a compelling storyline and continue posting every week? It’s a bit of a juggling act, but I’ve developed a system that makes it manageable. I’m going to open up my sketchbook and show you how can plan your story ahead of time and continue writing while you’re producing pages.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.
It’s part of the comics lexicon familiar to manga and manhwa readers: an inverted word-balloon tail indicating that the speaker is off-panel. Should you use it in your comics?
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.Today’s show is sponsored by Huion, makers of the Huion Kamvas 22 (Gen 3) — go to https://comiclabshop.com and use the code COMICLAB5 to unlock an exclusive 5% discount! (Valid 4/6/2026 – 6/14/2026) The Kamvas 22 (Gen 3) is a really solid 21.5″ pen display with a crisp 2.5K screen and a smooth 90Hz refresh. It’s responsive, accurate, and just feels good to draw on — pro-level performance without the sticker shock.
On Today’s Show: Your comic is gaining traction — but now readers want answers faster than you can tell the story. Brad and Dave explain why that’s actually a great sign — and how to turn audience curiosity into a powerful engine that keeps readers hooked instead of overwhelming your narrative. PLUS — CONGRATULATIONS TO DAVE KELLETT FOR HIS HUGO AWARD NOMINATION!
TOPICS
A listener question leads into the episode’s central topic: what to do when a new project suddenly starts attracting attention and readers begin asking lore questions faster than the story can answer them. Brad and Dave frame this as the best possible problem for a storyteller to have — not a crisis, but proof that the story is working. Their advice is to resist the urge to dump exposition too early, and instead use reader curiosity as fuel to keep them engaged and coming back for more.
Another listener question asks how to make necessary exposition more entertaining in a history comic, and the hosts widen that into a general storytelling discussion. They explore how to handle “problem panels” — moments where important information must be conveyed, but the raw facts feel static or dull. Their answer is that exposition does not need to be delivered plainly: creators can change the point of view, alter the tone, insert found documents, frame facts through action, or even break into totally different storytelling modes if it makes the comic more engaging.
The episode also includes a couple of business updates for cartoonists. Brad shares good news about USPS fuel surcharges not applying to Media Mail, which matters for creators shipping books, while Dave warns that new tariffs may affect imported book shipments and advises cartoonists to build more buffer into Kickstarter budgets for 2026. It’s a practical reminder that making comics also means staying alert to the changing realities of fulfillment and production costs.
Last year, on ComicLab, Dave Kellett shared the real numbers from the Kickstarter campaign for his latest book, “Anatomy of Dinosaurs.” Some of those analytics reinforce long-held truths — for example, Kickstarter continues to dominate in using internal mechanisms to maximize backers through its platform. However, there was one big surprise: Bluesky outperformed Twitter, Instagram and Facebook in delivering pledges — by a jaw-dropping margin.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.
Plotting and pacing are crucial elements in creating a compelling comic. Plotting is simply deciding which story points are essential to include in your narrative — and which ones can be omitted. Pacing is about determining the rate at which those plot points are delivered. If you go too slow, you’ll bore your readers to tears. If you go too fast, you’ll confuse them.
Here are some things to keep in mind that will help you master these aspects:
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.
Since the very beginning, the newspaper comic strip followed a simple, practical rule: three to four panels arranged in a horizontal row. That format wasn’t an artistic preference so much as a logistical necessity. Newspapers were designed in columns, and comics had to fit neatly into that grid. A long, horizontal strip made perfect sense when your canvas was a broadsheet page spread across a kitchen table.
But that world is gone.
Today, your reader isn’t holding newsprint. They’re holding a phone.
And that changes everything.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.Today’s show is sponsored by Huion, makers of the Huion Kamvas 22 (Gen 3) — go to https://bit.ly/41pXyI7 or https://comiclabshop.com and use the code COMICLAB5 to unlock an exclusive 5% discount! (Valid 4/6/2026 – 6/14/2026)
The Kamvas 22 (Gen 3) is the New 22″ Benchmark. A powerful yet accessible 21.5” pen display featuring a 2.5K QHD 90Hz screen, PenTech 4.0, and Canvas Glass 2.0. Designed for smooth, precise, and true-to-life creation, it redefines what an entry-level display can deliver — professional performance without the premium price.
The platforms we trusted to grow our audience have pulled the rug out from under us, and it’s time to take that control back. Brad and Dave explore how creators are reclaiming their power by ditching platform dependence, rebuilding direct connections through newsletters, webrings, and other community tools.
TODAY’S SHOW
Loading ...