I don't really see the problem with your opinion on the matter. People don't value your art when it stands alone, so you're forcing them into a situation where they'll notice and hopefully zero in on the aspects you value most. Your way of thinking is hardly any different from a person getting a job because they want money, not because that's where their heart is, or someone buying a car to show off as a bragging piece, not to get from point A to B.

So long as you're not trying to displace others' pieces and put them down maliciously, why does it matter WHY you made the story rather than WHAT you get out of it. If you meet your goal and don't have to tear down anyone along the way, I don't particularly see any issue.

For me:

I want to be noticed. I want people to see the ideas I have and commiserate or empathize with the scenarios I imagine or create. They aren't necessarily new, or amazing, but I would love to be noticed for my aptitude instead of being pushed aside because it's not mainstream.

You keep doing what you do.

If you think that much is fine, then go with it. Never doubt yourself unless pushing yourself ahead is hurting someone else as well. Even then, you have to think of the pros and cons that might go along with that, and whether it's actually worth it to burn all of those bridges.

i think why i make comics and why i choose to publish them are two different things.

If the genres and themes you like making the most are also genres and themes that are currently in-fashion and profitable, you need to understand that you're really, really lucky and if other creators of comparable skill are struggling, it's insensitive to sweep this under the rug and just tell them to work hard because that's the secret to their success. It's important to factor in things like luck, trends, charisma, marketing and privilege into "who gets to be a full-time professional comics creator," it's really not the case that success correlates directly to quality or effort. Some creators will always have to labour away on things they care about less to pay the bills because their works of passion won't, so if you're lucky enough to make your living on your dream comic, appreciate what you have, dammit!

i feel like this could tie into the concept of "selling out" too - idk how common a term that is within this community, but it certainly is elsewhere. people need to make money! if that means sponsorships/doing a job outside of their passion, then so be it! chase that paper, like. we live in a capitalistic hellscape

There are already too many of us.
I wish there were not

This grinds my gears esspecially. Between night shift and kids I'm barely getting any time at all to work and I would personally kill if I could work from home and spend more time with my kids. Sleeping like an actual human person wouldn't be bad either.

That to be a famous comic artist/creator you must go through the old "gatekeeping" channels of soliciting your comic to a mega-large distributor like Diamond...

No you dont. All you need is an audience that loves your work and want you to succeed- AND the internet. You can use POD companies to make your own books, and put yourself out there at conventions as well. You can also develop/use streaming platforms to showcase your work and build an even larger audience...

A different point of view...

My other art hustle, that pays the bills, has managed to start siphoning away too much of my time and creative energy. As a result, my efforts for the Oddly Vanilla collective have really been slow and we're updating so infrequently now. It's the end of the year and I feel creatively burnt out working on stuff for others...instead of investing more into the projects I care about.

It feels like I have stopped betting on me and am just accepting mercenary gigs that have NO chance of getting me to future goals.

I need to find a better balance in 2021.

Okay.

My hot take is
It's okay to not have a plan. It's okay to jump in with no experience. It's okay to start a big project first without any prior comics under your belt.

I don't like hearing "Make a small comic first or else you'll never make it and you'll burn out." Dagnabbit, all I want to do is make a huge comic, and then make smaller ones that tie into the big one. I'm aware it's going to take time, tears, and blood to make it work.

I actually really agree with your opinion here. Making a comic started as a way to force myself to stick to a weekly schedule and make art regularly so I could improve as an artist. I like being able to tell a story, but the art is more important to me than the narrative. There’s no way I’d have nearly as many people enjoying my art if it wasn’t packaged with that narrative though.

I personally think making comics it's not the best way to improve general art skills.
From my experience, by making comics you learn skills that are very specific to well...make comics.
You may learn how to color faster and cleaner, to make your characters more appealing, to do lettering, to find a proper pacing, to draw clear silhouettes, to do paneling right, etc. But basic things like anatomy or even lighting....not so much?
Some things are better to learn by carefully and slowly observing and analyzing and not by trying to tell stories (especially on a weekly basis).

I suppose so. I guess I have a fairly rare personality trait among my other creators. Because...man, I really don't see others using the same language I do in regards to being self-sufficient.

As I'm fond of saying: There's always an exception to the rule. I've got a long way to go before I even reach a modicum of success. But at least I've got my determination, which has brought me out of burn-outs and depression, so I know it's not just temporary.

I do understand that the common practice of working your way up through smaller projects is good advice for most creators. Just not for me.

(Or maybe it's just too late for me, and I'm too old to care to try it a new way. )

Honestly, my reason for making a comic kinda silly

I wrote my entire comic story into a book without publishing it, I first drew the characters in the story on index cards back when I was in high school and have drawn privately them since. I think I could have been okay never publishing it, but I started doing this webcomic because I wanted to prove to myself that I could. I just wanted to see if I was capable of committing and following through on such a big project. Getting attention for my art and story is nice and all, but mostly I wanted to push myself and have this on the "list of things I'm capable of doing" I think having a list like that helps with the artist self doubt, y'know? Plus, now I've been drawing at least a little every day, which is a cool bonus for improvement.

It's okay to not be fully serious on your first comic. If you are testing the waters with it to see how it goes and choose whether to continue it or drop it is fine; plus you can be serious about it later if you do continue it.

Art quality does not fully dictate your comic's success. ONE, the creator of One Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100, is one of the good examples of this; his web manga of both series are of bad quality, but still got popular enough to get both a manga and anime adaptation. I have seen comics on here that have a lot of subscribers, but decent or lower art quality. Besides, as time goes on, you'll improve

Oh, wait, I got another one:

Stories that go everywhere and nowhere are underrated!

This might sound weird but I think stories are more than just the plot.

This is my hot take:

Most comics creators are artists first, writers second, and it shows. I think that's where the whole "you don't actually have to be the best artist to succeed" thing comes from - because really great comics writing is rare, and so it stands out when you come across it, even if the art isn't as strong as what it feels like it should be for the level of popularity.

It's funny, because I think there's a bit of a paradox - drawing the panels takes WAY more time than coming up with/scripting the story. So it feels like making comics IS about the art, but when the writing is weak, the whole project can really suffer. I've read a lot of indie comics that I want to love, but they're bogged down by their writing, even though the visuals are beautiful.

I have a lot of friends who are artists and a lot of friends who are writers, and it's struck me that the only ones who ever seem to try their hands at making comics are the ones who are artists, even though you need both skill sets. Obviously, these are giant generalizations, but it's a trend I've seen. Overall, I think writing for comics is really, really hard, because you need to have that visual brained piece, but also the more analytical, language focused ability too, and those don't always match up in people.

So yeah. Kudos to all of you who are writing your comics! It is very hard to do well.

Honestly I don't know if it's unpopular but:

If you aren't attracted to the art of making comics like a drug addict then you probably shouldn't do it. You spend years of effort creating something in slow motion that most likely very few people will ever read. Comics, especially if you're doing it alone, are one of the most difficult artistic endeavors you can pursue. If you're alone you have to be a competent writer, be able to portray architecture, human anatomy, animals, etc (literally everything) at a reasonably high level, be versed in color most times, understand graphic design and layout principles for panelling, as well as understand storytelling, blocking and other visual media and film concepts. You're the director, crew, actors, make up artist, costume designer, graphic designer, advertising specialist, storyboarder, writer,... You are doing literally every job possible in visual media and because of that, if you're lucky and are able to make a living at it you're putting out maybe 2 or 3 pages a week working full time. It might take you a year or more to finish a single story arc at a snail's pace. The world blurs around you as you focus on your slow motion story obsessively.

I'm not saying I don't love doing it lol But it's a LOT when you really get down to it when you're trying to put out something at a higher level.

This does not apply to those who only want to create for fun.

If you are creating multiple series/projects and your least favorite one is way more popular than your more interesting ones take full advantage of the opportunity and focus on that one. Embracing "accidental wins" and surrendering to it is far more enjoyable (and likely to bring success) than trying to make your plan work.

You should eventually adopt these successes of course once they're ingrained,
but not prior to being adopted by them first.

Every writing rule has an exception......Writing conventions are not absolutes, just guidelines.....

What works for a story may not work for another. A good writer is the one that knows when is better to follow the rules and when is better to break them.