Does your family know you create comics?

erma 2017-04-27 00:23:34 UTC #1

Hi there! This is my first topic on these forums. I apologise if this is in the wrong place!!

I've always wondered: for comic artists and writers, have you told your family about your projects? If so, what did they think? Do their opinions influence your decisions?

I've been uploading my comic for around 10 months now and still haven't told anyone in my family! I'm concerned about them not approving of or questioning why I've included/will include some of the content in it (a crime/mystery theme, mild sexual content, mention of substance use, plus most of the main cast is LGBT in some way). I'm in college, still living at home, so it's much easier for them to figure out what I'm creating. I dunno, might just be worrying for no reason!

Have you guys ever been concerned about whether or not family members would want you to take out content they aren't a fan of?

demthorshie 2017-04-27 00:37:12 UTC #2

My family knows that I create a webcomic. They are aware that it contains some sexual content/violence, but I'm 30 years old and live on my own, they respect that I am a mature adult adult now. My older sister reads my comic from time to time also.

I guess it also helps that my household was very art oriented to begin with, since both of my parents were in to the arts since before I was even born.

AoDLegacy 2017-04-27 00:45:41 UTC #3

Huge amount of my family is supportive or at least can appreciate the fact I put a lot of work into my work, I've never been actively condemned or terribly worried about the vast majority of the work I've done being looked down onto.

Most of the family on my mom's side is art oriented, and the rest have always been very supportive. I can only really wish you luck. My family would probably also never hear the end of it if they tried to tell me to take something out of my works lol.

trinkettrancemusic 2017-04-27 00:57:06 UTC #4

Yes - my mother is very supportive and enjoys my sense of humour and my dad would if his mind wasn't getting..."loose", let's say. My brother would like it but I honestly don't know if he's bothered to check it out - he knows it exists but he's not the most supportive fellow despite sharing many common interests.

Kayke 2017-04-27 01:08:38 UTC #5

Everyone in my family is really supportive of my comics, even if the content isn't something that interests them. I think my mom is the only one who is actually committed to reading my webcomic when it updates, but my other family has read some of my shorter comics. At the very least they know I spend a lot of time writing/drawing and do what they can to be supportive in their own ways, from little things like bringing me lunch/tea to bigger things like coming to my art shows.

I went to art school and make comics professionally, so hiding my comic from my parents was never really a thought I had haha

phoenixrenaissance 2017-04-27 01:08:57 UTC #6

My parents know, to an extent. They know I work on one, but nothing more than that really. They're not at all art minded.
A couple of my sisters read though, so that's cool.

ratique 2017-04-27 01:18:10 UTC #7

It's understandable that you are concerned, especially since you still live at home. You don't have to talk to them about it if you choose not to, but I don't recommend lying if they ever bring up the topic. If they ask about what you are creating, tell them. If you are unsure about their reaction to certain content, let them know that you don't think they would enjoy it for those reasons. But if they want to see, let them and they might surprise you.

The younger you are, the more influence your parents have over your life and therefore also your art and storytelling - at least they should. So if you are a young creator it definitely makes sense to think about what your parents would approve of. The older you get, the less important your family's opinion is to you as an artist and as a person. If my mother disagrees with a decision I make, well, both her and I have to live with it. But I am also in my early 30s now.

NickRowler 2017-04-27 01:28:38 UTC #8

Yes and no.

So my parents know I do draw however I do not like showing my work to my parents. For the longest time, I tried to keep the fact that I was working on a comic a secret BUT one day my sister up and told them.

I think in some ways my parents love the "idea" of me creating something yet I feel if they actually read my work, they would hate it. My parents are really harsh about things they dislike. My parents are not really pro-LGBT, they tolerate it on TV but put face-to-face with it, they tend to be not that pleased. I don't want to take them head on with the issues because I hate arguing/debating especially with my parents (because you can not win and they wear you down so much that it drives you insane).

So I found it ultimately easier just to avoid showing anything to them all together. I'm an adult, I don't need their approval.

miesmud 2017-04-27 01:47:57 UTC #9

I think my brother has read a part of my comic, but he's very awkward about it so idk haha. My mom doesn't read or like my comic, but she remembered the name of one of my main characters and that made me really happy for some reason. And my dad and sister don't care at all.
But I'm okay with that.
They all have other hobbies, my dad and my bro like coding and nerd stuff(?), my mom likes dogs and books and my sister likes sports and baking. They all like stuffs I don't care about either, so it makes sense that they don't care about my comic : ) I don't blame them, and I won't bother them with my comic either, unless they ask about it.

My mom was a bit shocked about one of my pages being NSFW, but she reacted a lot cooler than I'd expected haha.

ahhvecadoes 2017-04-27 01:48:16 UTC #10

Yep, my family knows! I know for sure my brother and my dad have both read through Heart Hex. (My dad thinks it needs to be funnier/lighten up.)

It honestly doesn't impact any decisions I make plot-wise. My parents regularly watch shows and movies that touch on all the different subjects I portray (gore, occult, sexual content, etc.) and me and my brothers are very much so Not Straight so having LGBT characters isn't a huge deal. It's just another piece of media my family consumes that I happen to make.

I do agree that the younger you are, the more cautious you may be having your parents see the things you are creating. In middle/high school, I hid a lot of my comics and writing from my parents out of fear of their reactions. Now, as an adult who still writes and draws the same kind of content (only better), I'm not as weird about sharing it. It's still not a thing I'd push my parents to read, but I'm glad one does.

Alamino 2017-04-27 02:00:51 UTC #11

My Family knows... kinda.
They know I draw a comic and they know I have an 'anime style'
but they have no idea what my comic is called or where to find it. (Not for lack of trying)
I don't show it to them because I'm scared they will be critical of the themes and art >_>
Their opinions would greatly effect my decisions and effect how I view my comic so it's almost for protection reasons they don't know... But I do plan to show them my work once I'm more secure and confident haha ... ...

But I can totally get why you would worry. If they are actually interested in your art and story, they may look past the LGBT thing or anything they don't agree with to see the story and art for what it is. If they are just being snoopy and want to see whats up, then they could easily be critical of it. Over all only you would know the most likely reaction from your family so only you can judge when is a good time to let them see your comic, if ever.

LordVincent 2017-04-27 02:02:16 UTC #12

Lol my family and everyone I know is aware that I make a living drawing manga and gay erotica xD

ahhvecadoes 2017-04-27 02:03:36 UTC #13

Livin' the dream, tbh

joannekwan 2017-04-27 02:15:58 UTC #14

Yeah my parents know. They're happy with it as long as I'm happy.

In the past my dad read all my comics, and that made me really happy. But now he's working overseas so he doesn't have the time.
My mom reads my stuff on occasion I think, but we don't really talk about it. LOL we don't need to talk about how I draw sex scenes. She did help me proof-read one of my comics before I printed it, so I'm glad for that.

LordVincent 2017-04-27 02:19:14 UTC #15

Sex scenes are the reason my mum doesn't read my stuff lol.
My sis on the other hand is all for dat yaoi, man, so she's read partway through Bloodroot.

Shanny8 2017-04-27 03:08:43 UTC #16

It's no secret at all that I do comics in my fam. In fact, they encourage me coz they know I love doing it.

scarlet_wings_kaili 2017-04-27 03:12:00 UTC #17

My family totally knows I make comics but they don't really read anything :/ They mostly just look at the pictures and move on lol. I don't take it personally because comics aren't something they grew up with and are accustomed to.

AmysGames 2017-04-27 03:46:02 UTC #18

My parents are... sort of aware I make comics? They've definitely read some of them, but they don't really keep up with them and idk if they're fully aware of how often I do it, lol. My sister, meanwhile, is very aware and often gives me art/writing tips.

shazzbaa 2017-04-27 04:15:57 UTC #19

My dad knows I make comics but doesn't read them, which is probably for the best since I'm not sure he'd enjoy them. My brother has read a little bit but doesn't keep up -- I think he's more invested in my work because I'm the one who made it and because I'm really passionate about it, moreso than being interested in that sort of story himself. My mom used to read my autobio comic and was probably its biggest fan; I'm not sure if she would've liked my fantasy comic or not. It wasn't really Her Sort Of Thing but... heck, who knows! After listening to me talk about it a bunch, she said that she would really like to get the books and try it out and see if she liked it; unfortunately she never did get the chance. ;v; But she absolutely was supportive of everything I was doing.

I always was kinda secretive about my stories when I was small, so I think my family is sort of used to not really looking at my stuff unless I'm comfortable showing it to them. So for me to be quietly making comics and just kind of chatting about things I'm doing businesswise or how my readers are reacting to the story, without them necessarily reading it, wasn't weird for us. And like, back when I was living at home and doing two webcomics at the same time, it took up THE MAJORITY of my free time, and I was pretty protective of my comicking time (i.e., "I can't do that tonight because it's an update night, I'd be happy to hang out tomorrow though!") so it would've been pretty much impossible to keep it a secret, haha!

I did take my mom's advice on some things because I trusted her input. But my webcomics started after I got back from college, so, not really; I was old enough that whatever story I wanted to tell was sort of my decision to make.... I wasn't really drawing anything that I think they'd disagree with strongly, though.

ryoko 2017-04-27 04:25:33 UTC #20

My family knows and have seen what I've been working on from time to time over the years, but they haven't really been following it until I started posting it online. I never really 'hid' what I was drawing, but I also am very shy about showing it to them. They support me and understand that the reason I draw is for myself. I sometimes get embarrassed when they're reading the more romantic side of my comic because they're my parents ^_^'... My brother draws, too, and he gives me the most support out of everyone. LGBT themes have never been an issue, either.

I've never been concerned about them asking to take out content they find uncomfortable because I know they wouldn't do that. The only thing that sometimes causes a problem is my mom doesn't always understand the flow of a page and can get confused if she reads the wrong panel first.

I used to worry when I was younger in junior high and high school about what they thought and didn't share with them what I was doing very often. I think being unsure of yourself and worrying about being accepted is natural, but if drawing makes you feel good about yourself and happy, then that's the most important thing.