Have Webcomics changed?

[GrimRose]

Okay, maybe it's just me getting older, and the sudden increase in technology, programs and resources available to artists nowadays, but it just seems to me that the environment for comics and artists have shifted.
Both a huge younger audience and a slightly older audience are taking more interest in webcomics.

I remember 2-3 years ago, trying to mention webcomics, and most people would give me an odd look and ask me what they were. Now, classmates, even one or two people ive worked with are interested in webcomics, and even read/are interested in the same series. I'm talking about sites like Tapas and webtoon. Places where people host their comics.

It seems harder then ever to get your work noticed among long time creators, and talented young artists. While there are more resources at our advantage, there are also so many people looking to make a living/make something out of their art. It's intimidating to say the least.

I really want to know what you guys think. Maybe you can contribute more to this topic.

Are webcomics changing?
Is it a good thing?
A bad thing?
What do you think the future for webcomics will be like?

Share your thoughts.

[Wumbl]

Webcomics are becoming popular and that's a good thing - it means that more artists get to succeed, not just the lucky few that are able to get their lucky break. Sure, it means there's more comics out there but competition is healthy. It means when you do succeed you know it's because you've worked so hard rather than just because there aren't a lot of rivals.

Thanks to the internet getting better and better I'm honestly really happy to see how far comics have come, especially online. It's only intimidating if you're going in comparing yourself to others.

[GrimRose]

I like your outlook. Honestly Im glad that more people know about comics. It's amazing what the internet has given artists. The means to promote and share their work. It's exciting. It's mostly intimidating to the less experienced individuals (me) who are looking at other peoples work and comparing/marking our progress based on others. You truly are on the mark about that.

Well i do hope the best for comics! As im both an invested reader to comics as well! As i think most people who make comics are.

[plebisss]

Lol, maybe I hang out with the wrong group of people/ am too old, but no one (that I'm aware of) in my immediate circle is that knowledgable about webtoons / web comics.

It is kind of intimidating to see really awesome, new artists join the comic sphere; like you said it kind of gives a feeling of pressure/ competition.
But I like to think of this anxiety in another light: more artists attracted to these platforms means more people attracted to these platforms. The pie isn't the same size and you have to cut it up for more people, the pie has become bigger as well (if that makes sense lol I'm just rambling at this point).

All in all, like any other thing in life I see good and bad aspects with change, but overall it's interesting to see where this whole thing will go.

[jarzebiny]

I think comics in general being "cool" has kinda happened over the last few years, particularly with the emergence of Marvel movies and whatnot. I know that's more of a mainstream thing but it's no longer, like...Weird to the mainstream public to like nerdy stuff like superheroes, video games, tabletop games. Definitely have noticed that shift over the last 10 years or so. I remember being in high school and reading web comics and I doubt 99% of the people I knew even looked at that stuff online let alone knew it existed.

The internet is so much more accessible and mobile-friendly now...With such a vast index of sites dedicated to all these niche things...People are finally discovering this medium and other things they didn't know they could explore. The existence of social media is also helping it grow and there's suddenly all these great platforms to communicate about the things you enjoy, ways to crowd source, self-publish, etc. It's exciting!

[mariusthered]

there are also so many people looking to make a living/make something out of their art.

this is because so called progress has taken so many jobs away people are forced to try and make a living self employed and sadly we cannot all make video games.

I also think webcomics are becoming more interesting to people because the main stream comic are so busy trying to cover everything in their political correctness crap and spreading stories over comic titles people are looking for other things now.

[punkarsenic]

Are webcomics changing?

yes! all media are changing all the time, and online media extra rapidly. webcomics are a pretty new medium, so its inevitable that we'll go through some phases of development

Is it a good thing?

idk if i wanna assign good or bad to change overall, but i think this is good change. besides the fact that if we werent changing thatd be a sign of stagnation, the changes have lead to people being able to live off the money they make with webcomics, and wider innovation of the artform.

A bad thing?

well... sometimes i wonder if sites like webtoons and tapas, with their fixed layout, and the prescribed infinite scroll format (though not at all bad and in fact really interesting in itself) might be limiting the kind of innovation we saw in some early webcomics and things like homestuck, that used their digital nature as an embedded part of the work. but i wouldnt say its actually bad, just a potential downside

that said, i think the prominence of infinite scroll is a really cool development and holds a lot of formal potential

What do you think the future for webcomics will be like?

hmm... i think new sites like tapas and webtoons will emerge, and with them new business models - some of them bad, some of them even better than whats being offered today. part of me wonders if one of these sites will be bought by google and become like youtube and dominate, though i doubt it - i dont think webcomics will ever be popular and profitable enough on the english speaking internet to attract large companies like google.

[Shanny8]

I think with access to programs such as CSP, Krita, Medibang, and Sai, it's been easier to digitally make a webcomic- where as in the past you had to have access to a scanner to scan in traditional work. Also sites like Tapas and Webtoons have made it easier for creators to get their works to an audience that craves it. Readers can create accounts and keep up with their fave comics-which has helped the webcomics market even more.

Also webcomics have gotten better because there so many creators out there with different but great stories; the comics field as a whole doesnt have to tow the "superhero" genre to be noticed- fantasy, sci-fi, romance, LGBTQ, & many other tales can be told.

[punkarsenic]

this is because so called progress has taken so many jobs away people are forced to try and make a living self employed and sadly we cannot all make video games.

there has certainly been a lot of upheaval in the job market in the past decade, but i dont think people facing redundancy are becoming self employed artists for the most part. anecdone =/= evidence, but when my dad faced an impossible situation with the job centre when raising me and my sister solo on benefits, he did turn to self employment - but to gardening. and even that, even with undeniable work hours and just about enough clients to pass the bar into self employment, was still a massive struggle, and he kept looking for the stability of a job. there are still a great deal of self employable jobs that are more viable in the self employment system than the arts - webcomics are still very difficult to live on, and reliably getting the wages required to still be considered self employed under uk law is bloody hard.

certainly, people are seeing the flaws in the employment system and striking out for themselves, but i doubt 'no other option to make money' is the main driving force for webcomics specifically. although comic publishers being not up to snuff is defo a driving force. that said, i know youre self employed in the uk, so id love to hear more of your experience on this.

trying to cover everything in their political correctness crap

again, given that most prominent webcomic creators have been of a 'politically correct' persuasion, i doubt thats why print is less appealing. although publishing houses and especially marvel and dc definitely need to step up, and print comics will undergo massive changes in the coming years to remain relevant

[mariusthered]

i dont want to get too personal on an open forum. I am self employed and do make a small amount but it's not all from webcomics, I make most of my wage from caricatures. I don't know what flaws in the uk system you are referring too but i'm certainly not using them. I make what i can and get what i can afford.

[punkarsenic]

i... didnt refer to using any flaws in the system? i meant people are realising that being an employee, working for a boss, is a flawed setup, and people are striking out to be their own boss for that very reason. if you think i was insinuating youre some kind of fraud, im really sorry, that wasnt my intention for a second.

[adrienclifton]

I'm about to say some dorky shit, but here it goes anyway.
I think a big factor in webcomics becoming more popular and more common knowledge was the massive popularity of Homestuck. (God, when will Blaze ever stop bringing up Homestuck? The answer is approximately... never.)

It ran from 2009 to 2016, hitting its peak popularity in probably 2011/12. It also wildly expanded the medium, incorporating flash games and videos, as well as gifs.
If you were on tumblr or at any anime/comic convention at this time, you were probably bombarded with homestuck content and/or cosplayers, for better or for worse.
It broke several records and websites (Cascade broke Newgrounds when it was originally posted!) and it's finale video (Act 7) sits currently at 1.1M views.

This brings what was once an extremely niche website (formerly mspaintadventures.com, now homestuck.com) that hosted several (much less popular) webcomics to what it is today: a viz media property.

A lot of people who had never read a webcomic before read Homestuck and loved it, and now that it's over they're looking for something like it, or even better: they want to make something like it.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[MK_Wizard]

To be very honest, the only real change is our attitude towards webcomics. We're open to them now hence hosting sites and groups now. And I think it is a good change because not everyone can afford print.

[baasinsimple]

You have no idea how much joy it fills me to know that webcmomics are looked at as a viable job by more people. Sure... too much BL to sift through when I try to find a good story, but other than that, I love that

[MK_Wizard]

Actualy, the BL craze has tamed. Yes, it's still a popular genre, but it's not the dominant thing anymore. It's just that LGBT themes (which is not BL) have become more accepted in society so you see it more in today's webcomics. In other words, it's not really a them, but just people accepting it now.

[ghostmaya]

Every year webcomic is changing, as well as audience taste of genre. Even the business in webcomic is changing~ I think webcomic is very unpredictable base on my opinion.

[baasinsimple]

it was a joke but ok good to know

[dawgofdawgness]

I wouldn't be surprised if the word webcomic eventually is replaced by "Webtoon". Half my class assumed that I was a manga-ka /webtoon artist when I mentioned that I had a webcomic

[solhawthorne]

I think it may be another interesting change if "webcomic" as in, long-form comics, becomes "webtoon" because I feel like when I say the word "webcomic" people in real life assume the newspaper funnies but online (I work with generally much older people).

I also love the impact that webcomics had on the core of storytelling. There are things you can do and explore that simply wouldn't work in a book or movie and having more ways to experience stories is always an excellent thing. I feel like just seeing that Marvel is branching away from the standard spandex superhero in their media is something to celebrate

[bakasama25]

That might more common in the future for you since many of the webtoon portals in Japan are Korean owned and "webtoon" format seems to have become the default format for webmanga.

Its funny to see Japanese readers hate Rachel of Tower of God like the rest of the world.