The creation of comics – web-based or otherwise – is fundamentally a creative process. While the addition of the Internet offers certain advantages over the classic type, the overall process is essentially the same. In the process of comic creation, you need to keep in mind community guidelines as some comic themes can push the limits of age-appropriateness and other societal standards.
How can you do this effectively while still holding the interest of young people? Rest assured, there are ways. But you need to be systematic about following the basic guidelines. While it is great to be inspired, you need to keep yourself in check to make sure you don’t stray too far into the realm of the Dark Underworld. For some quick ideas, check out Honeytoon and the variety of themes that it offers.
How to create good webcomics
Let’s start out by taking a look at what it takes to create effective webcomics (or, as mentioned above, comics in general). If you start from this point, you can check your details as you go along and make sure you are adhering to community standards.
Get inspired
Every great work of art starts with inspiration. If you don’t have a compelling idea of what you want to do in terms of characters or storyline types, there is a fair chance that your idea will fall flat before too long. And while you don’t want to steal someone else’s theme, you can find ideas in the things around you.
If you don’t have a distinct source of inspiration yet, think about the kinds of things that you liked when you were most energetic in life. What kinds of things did you spend your time on when you were young? Were there other comics or art forms that you thought were super cool? Is there perhaps a real-life situation or event that you can see being put into comic form?
Create a storyboard for yourself
Having inspiration is great, but it is just a first step. All great comics have a storyboard to them. Comic experts recommend having an ending in mind before you start. And while this can come about during the process of storyboard creation, you should make sure you have one (although it can change if you get an even better idea!) before you start getting into details.
Your storyboard should take a clear, visible format. It is recommended to do this on paper, if possible, and even if you are working entirely online you should make sure you have a big monitor so that you can see each frame together and how the whole thing flows.
Work in collaboration if you can
If possible, it is a great idea to work together with other artists. This is one thing that will help keep you within community standards, first of all, and fellow artists can also be a big help to you in the creation process. More experienced people know what they have to do to create a successful and socially acceptable piece.
Other artists can provide valuable feedback, give you tips on both your storyline and the details of your work. And while you don’t have to accept all of their suggestions, you can pick and choose as you go along. If a fellow artist is honest enough to say, “I’ve had experience with this kind of idea, and unfortunately it didn’t fly,” that can be a very valuable piece of advice.
Add your own style
Every artist – comic and otherwise – is distinguishable by their individual style. This is where the addition of online tools can really come in handy. There are great things that you can do with graphic programs these days.
However, you don’t want to simply run wild and throw out whatever happens to look cool to you. This is another place where getting the opinions of fellow artists can be invaluable, and it would be worth your while to take a formal course in illustration. There are distinct color patterns, type lettering, etc that are considered to be aesthetically pleasing, and you should educate yourself in them. Then you can add your personal touch.
Adhering to guidelines
Once you’ve got your ideas together, you should review them and make sure you are working according to the guidelines of your target audience. In many respects, the world is our oyster for creative expression these days. With so many forms of social media, you can spread your ideas around all over the place. But there are basic principles you should keep in mind:
- Remember your target audience. If you have a hero who is transgender, for example, you should avoid targeting socially conservative circles in your marketing.
- There are some absolutes. You should avoid glorifying things like terrorism, rape, and other things that are universally accepted to be wrong.
- Remember that the Internet is open. Even if your target audience is a more mature one, you should remember that open forums can always be seen by minors, and you might run the risk of being criticized by parents or other people with privacy concerns.
If you’re not sure whether or not your themes push the envelope too much, ask for feedback. It’s always a good idea to gather feedback from both experts and regular people as they have different perspectives to offer. And you can look on community forums to assess the kinds of things that fans are saying.
You do you, but within reason
The bottom line is that most things are public these days. While technology offers us amazing tools to nurture our creative faculties with, we always have to remember that there is a big, wide world out there. And you don’t want to inadvertently expose your product to an audience that will use it in the wrong way. Keep soliciting feedback throughout the creation process, and you may well find your webcomic to be a smashing success!