// chicken smoothie's comic club // ver three - new -

[Spiritstar3]

USERNAME 〉
Spiritstar3
Have you read the rules?
Yes.
Do you have a comic?
I technically do, but I only did one page…
Would anyone want to see it though?
Do you have any ideas for events or comic games?
Not yet.
What is your favorite, if any CS Comic?
Scoinwolf’s, if there’s counts, but their comic is lesving CS.
How did you find us?
By going into the armies and clubs section.
your answer to question of the day
(Is this the seasonal question? I’m confused)

Hey! It's been quite a long time since this club has been active, but thank you for joining! I'm not sure how many of the old members are still making comics here on CS, but feel free to share your ideas or work if you'd like. It's cool to know that there's still interest.

Ooo gosh, I didn’t even check the date of when the last person posted.

XD here (like I said, it’s only one page and I probably won’t do more, but people seem to like that page)

Forum/viewtopic.php?t=4902651

I also ended up making Vega and another dog of mine mates, so here’s a little family tree if anyone wants to see it.

Forum/viewtopic.php?t=5050639

[Syla Delaney]

Its very cute! Did you have ideas as to where you wanted the story to go? It's also cool to see the family tree.

[Spiritstar3]

I actually did a second page but no one liked the second page for some reason…so I ended up deleting it.
I’m not sure why no one ended up liking the second page, but I’m honestly fine with just the one page.

I may continue it later.
It’s just disheartening if people like the first page but then suddenly no one likes the pages after.

[Syla Delaney]

I've run comics for a very long time and unfortunately that is often the case, and building up a following usually requires continuing to post even if you get no attention. (Or, without realizing you have people reading at all. I went on a long hiatus once with a project I assumed no one was reading only to get a comment about a year later asking why I stopped updating.) It can be very disheartening and lonely to feel like you're shouting into the void, but I think most people have to go through that stage in a serialized project until it clicks and people start to read and follow it. It's also a known phenomenon that pages often get fewer likes and views over time in a long serialized project, as readers drop off or fail to read subsequent pages. (My current project has been running offsite for about 5 years now and its difficult not to be distracted by the views and likes. But if you look at the numbers for even the most popular series, you can see that the first page or episode of any given project always has WAAAY more views than the last.)

So, rambling aside, if your comic is a project you like and have ideas for, I would absolutely encourage you to keep it going! Try not to be discouraged if you can. Once people get to know the characters better and have an idea of what sort of story you're trying to tell, you might start to find regular readers. It's difficult, but you can only get readers and a following if you keep going.

[Spiritstar3]

Thank you for the advice
(Thats actually the other thing, is I don’t often have ideas. I try, but I just can’t seem to really come up with anything.)

[Syla Delaney]

That's completely fair. What part of making comics appeals to you, then?

Do you really WANT to tell a story? If you're struggling to come up with ideas, it might be that this part of making comics isn't actually that interesting or fulfilling to you. You put a lot of work into coming up with your characters and even making a family tree for them, so you clearly care about them a lot! You might be able to make a different sort of project like a game with them instead. Alternately, you could find a writer to collaborate with.

If you're dead set on making a comic or story, it might be a good idea to figure out what part of it is most speaking to you. Maybe you'll be able to find your ideas there. For instance, is it because there are stories you're inspired by? What is it that you experienced in your favorite stories that you want other people to experience, too? Is there some aspect of your character that's really important to you or that you really want to share with people? Maybe you can try to find a way to share that with other people, too. Maybe there's a personal experience that you have or a life lesson that you learned that you want to share with people, and you can work backwards from that.

Do any of your characters have major flaws? Maybe hone in on that and figure out how that flaw would get them into trouble. Then, how do they get out of trouble? Now you've got a story!
There are a lot of other brainstorming and plotting techniques out there, too. You could try some random number generators or D&D roll tables for plot hooks. Some people even use things like tarot or other divination tools for inspiration. The Save the Cat method is one of the most popular and readily available, and if you can find a copy of the book at your local library it has a LOT of advice for a first-time story teller.

If you're not as fulfilled or driven by telling a specific story, it could be the need for recognition and community that you really want from making comics? There's nothing wrong with that and it can be very fulfilling even if its very difficult and lonely much of the time. If that's the case, though, you might want to find a medium that is easier and more exciting to work with. Basically, you will inevitably be making something for an audience of 1 most of the time. That 1 being yourself. Its disheartening to post something and get no views or likes, but its a lot easier to continue if you make it for you and would be happy with it even if you never posted. If you're making it only for the hopes that other people will like it, its VERY difficult to continue. It might be easier to find a pre-existing community where you can do something with your characters in that case, and talking about them with other people might be able to meet that need for you. (Sorry, this particular community used to be very active and vibrant and good for that but its been quite a long time since those days.)

Sorry, that rambling went all over the place and I'm not sure if you're looking for advice for brainstorming or something else, but I do hope that you figure out what will make you happiest with this!