ComicLab Ep 365 — Maybe You’re Not Funny

ComicLab Ep 365 — Maybe You’re Not Funny

In this episode, Brad Guigar and Dave Kellett share insights on the creative process of writing humor, emphasizing that humor...
Read More
Something worth sharing

Something worth sharing

With Twitter going down the tubes, I decided to re-focus my efforts on social media. I wanted to see if...
Read More
Maximizing the potential of Bluesky Starter Packs

Maximizing the potential of Bluesky Starter Packs

If you're one of the millions of new users on Bluesky, you're probably becoming familiar with Starter Packs. This was...
Read More
Webcomics Confidential: What size should your webcomic be?

Webcomics Confidential: What size should your webcomic be?

Beginning cartoonists often ask what size they should make their comic. Many are looking for "standard" sizes. The answer is...
Read More
ComicLab Ep 346 — In Over My Head

ComicLab Ep 346 — In Over My Head

What happens when your story gets too big for you to handle? Are you the right person for the job?...
Read More
How many social-media posts per day?

How many social-media posts per day?

According to a Very Popular Influencer, one should post on social media six to eight times daily. I disagree, and...
Read More
Detritus — What it is and why your comic needs it

Detritus — What it is and why your comic needs it

Let's discuss one of those savvy touches that can help take your art to the next level. And ironically enough,...
Read More
Webcomics Confidential: T-shirt psychology

Webcomics Confidential: T-shirt psychology

Nobody wants to buy a T-shirt featuring your character or logo. It's not that your original character is terrible. Instead,...
Read More
ComicLab Ep 266 — A minor problem with a comics major

ComicLab Ep 266 — A minor problem with a comics major

Does an aspiring comics artist/writer need a college degree? And, if so, which degree is best? Next, a listener asks...
Read More
Webcomics Confidential: You’re wasting money on advertising

Webcomics Confidential: You’re wasting money on advertising

Unless you have a granular knowledge of advertising, demographics, and much more, you're probably wasting money on "plug-and-play" advertising like...
Read More

Six-month check-up

So, how is Webcomics.com doing after six months of operating on a subscription model?

Well…

If, when I started this exercise in January, you would have forced me to guess how many members we’d have by the end of the year, I would have given you a number that we surpassed long ago. It’s a big enough number for me to tell you that this site will continue for the foreseeable future as a subscription site. It’s a number big enough for organizations like Reed Exhibitions and Transcontinental to give Webcomics.com members significant discounts. And it’s a number that has risen every month since we launched.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 14, 2010
Posted In: Uncategorized
18 Comments

The Lagniappe

This post was kindly submitted by Tyler James.

Though the Louisiana French word may be unfamiliar, we’ve all experienced the lagniappe. The word refers to a small, unexpected gift given to a customer by a merchant at the time of purchase. It’s the proverbial 13th donut that comes with the baker’s dozen. And it is incredibly powerful.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 13, 2010
Posted In: Business
15 Comments

Webcomics.com at Comic Con International

Experience Webcomics.com live at Comic Con this year!

Scott Kurtz, Robert Khoo and I will be answering all of your webcomics questions in a no-holds-barred lightning-round session. Here are the details.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 12, 2010
Posted In: Uncategorized
1 Comment

Drawing warm-ups

Nobody really thinks about drawing as a physical activity… until they become injured.

As with anything physical, you’ll do your body some favors by taking a little time to warm up your muscles.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 8, 2010
Posted In: Art
20 Comments

Anatomy 101: Body Proportions

Drawing a human body in the right proportions is an incredibly challenging pursuit. Even is your style is more cartoon that comic book, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with proper proportions. The more you understand about how the body is built, the better you’ll be able to break the rules and design characters that distort these proportions for all the right reasons.

I think the best guide for figure drawing is Andrew Loomis’ “Figure Drawing for All It’s Worth.” They’re pretty difficult to find these days, but most of what I’m going to talk about is taken from that guide.

Please keep in mind that the following can be applied to “standard” figure drawing. If you’re drawing superheroes, for example, many of these measurements will be exaggerated.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 7, 2010
Posted In: Art
18 Comments

Merchant Services

A merchant services account is a method of accepting credit cards for business transactions. When considering which is right for you, be sure to consider the following:

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 6, 2010
Posted In: Business, Conventions
18 Comments

Letting Comedy Ferment

Writing comedy is a challange that is made even more daunting in the fact that humor itself is completely subjective and impossible to define.

In the “How To Make Webcomics” book, our chapter on writing outlined a few frameworks for comedy — tried-and-true constructs that can be used as a general funny-idea generator.

But, in looking at several webcomics by Webcomics.com members, I keep seeing the following mistake:

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 5, 2010
Posted In: Writing
18 Comments

July To-Do List

It’s July. Comic Con International is in three weeks. If you’re going, it’s time to triple check your prep, start getting ready to travel and brace yourself for the upcoming Nerd Prom.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on July 1, 2010
Posted In: Business, Conventions, Tech
1 Comment

Work for Hire

In the course of your work as a cartoonist, the chances are overwhelming that, sooner or later, you’re going to hear “Work For Hire.” It’s a very good idea to understand it.

A work made for hire is an exception to the general rule that the creator of the work has legal rights as the author of that work. Under a Work for Hire contract, the employer — not the creator — owns all of the rights to the work. In other words, a Work for Hire contract establishes the employer as the rightful creator of the work.

The content you are trying to access is only available to members.

by on June 30, 2010
Posted In: Business
10 Comments