How are novels working out for everyone?

[GoldenPlume]

Honestly I didn't even know you had released a novel and I'm subbed to you

We did a wall/profile post about launching the serialized novel but we really don't know how effective wall posts are. Since there are few, if any, replies to our wall posts either our subscriber base is dead or they're not seeing the notifications. But the core issue we think is that few of our subs are even interested in novels to begin with.

Tapas probably opened up novels expecting authors to bring readers with them like @daniolivers did. However if you have no existing readership it will be pretty hard to be found. Unfortunately there's no answer that we can think of to rectifying this because everything done for non-premium authors comes at the expense of premium series. Staff isn't going to trade away income for non-income. For example, if the daily snack remains at 5 per day, staff has to either drop a comic or a premium book to make room for a non-premium book, that frankly, probably will get very little interest. We seriously doubt that will happen. Tapas will lose income and some comic creators will rage about how they are getting short changed by novels.

Improvements to the books side will probably happen for the app like the addition of "Trending" and "Fresh". It's just going to take a while because due to having a small team it takes a while to get things coded in.

[daniolivers]

It would be really nice to see the Staff Picks, and / or Trending novels on the app. I'm a reader as well as a creator, and I do think there are a lot of lovely novels on the platform that deserve more attention than they're getting. I tweet about them when I can, and rec to Tumblr, but there does need to be visibility on the app.

[Devika]

We did a wall/profile post about launching the serialized novel but we really don't know how effective wall posts are.

Wall posts don't show up on the app at all, so that's probably why I (and perhaps others) missed it, as I mostly read on my tablet. It's a desktop only feature, just like reply notifications.

Unfortunately a lot of creators don't seem to know this, which also became apparent after the ToS debacle when a bunch of creators made wall posts about deleting their comic - that most readers simply didn't see and they consequently got very upset when the comics disappeared "without notice". It's too bad, because creators do need a way to communicate with their readers without having to make an episode for announcements.

[jordanthelass]

It's hard to say at this point because the novel section is still new to Tapas. I'm pretty sure the majority of people on the site/mobile apps want to read comics. But since the format of submitting chapters is relatively short, I can see potential in it.

For me, though, I'm just happy to be able to share my work without being toppled over by fan fiction.

[Rai]

There needs to be better organization in the novels, imo. I've dug through a good number and there are so many mediocre paid ones it's just turned me off to the category in general. I'm basically better off going to ao3 because I ain't paying for some low key kpop fan fiction.

That said, I hope it can improve in the coming months.

[daniolivers]

There's now a 'New and Noteworthy' section on the app for books, all of which are non-premium novels, which is nice - interestingly, they're not the same books as in the Staff Picks on the desktop site. I also noticed a non-premium book in the Daily Snack, yesterday, so it looks like things are moving along!

[GoldenPlume]

Today they picked The Boy Princess for the daily snack which is also a non-premium novel. And there hasn't been major outcry on the forums from comic creators. So it looks like non-premium authors are starting to get some love.

[AdrenalineShots]

That's great news congrats!

[T.S.Thorn]

H:3llo, I'm Ghost. Nice to meet you. I enjoy writing but I'm also trying to improve my art, so yea its going pretty well. There are so many great novels to read, so I'm never bored.

[Aura-Redwood]

I've been positing my writing here and even if there's not many views the community is so nice here. My likes per views are very much evidence of that

[daniolivers]

Yes, my novel The Boy Princess was picked for the Snack, and honestly I was overwhelmed by the love and the response - I checked my notifications and nearly fell over. But yes, it seems like the playing field is levelling out nicely, and it's going to be so much easier to find new authors and stories to read!

[lunaartemisasama]

Well considering that my novel is in Spanish and I don't have an audience at all...quite well. At least I got more than 10 views lol.

I am considering uploading it in Wattpad if I finish the first chapter.

[69Michi]

Well, considering that manga readers are usually not into novel (I know plenty of people just don't have the attention pan for it) I'm not surprised novels aren't doing as great as people expected it to be on Tapas. (Plus, I think Tapas readers in general are used to short updates of comic that manages to grab their attention for a short time. I even once was encouraged to not make long length update. I don't think short attention span like that would translate to reading novel chapter really well.)

But that is just my theory ¯_(ツ)_/¯

[GoldenPlume]

You're right. Tapas promotes a lot of gag-a-days which only take about 10 seconds to read and chuckle. Now readers are being asked to spend 2-3 minutes or even more reading text. Text is a horse and buggy compared to the Formula 1 race car that is graphics. Graphics are eye catching and sexy. Text is not. Which is why we actually abandoned all our novel projects and went into illustrated works (light novels and manga).

It appears that staff has decided they're "maxing out" in the webcomics industry so they've set their sights on getting a piece of the Wattpad pie which is massive. A lot of people don't read comic books but text only. Tapas wants to bring in that readership with hopes that they can convert some of those readers into premium/key comic consumers.

Everyone here wins the more readership Tapas brings to the table.

[ISNEKO]

Currently, I've noticed that I have a book on the New + Noteworthy section and two at the same time in the Staff Picks.

The book that has been in N+N has had a dramatic increase in views, whereas the one that is the Staff Picks has not.

So, maybe people looking for novels to read are hanging out more on the app, rather than the website?

[GoldenPlume]

Since "Staff Picks" can only be accessed from the desktop and most desktop users are comics only readers, that is why there is so little response.

"New and Noteworthy" can be seen on the app and that is where all the novel readers reside, hence the dramatic increase in views.

[ISNEKO]

Yes, that's why I made the suggestion that more readers may be using the app and not the website.

[GoldenPlume]

Since the desktop generates very little revenue (ads only) vs. the app which generates much more revenue (key sales> > > ads), staff's focus is to continue to move as many readers as possible to the app.

[ISNEKO]

Despite the fact that they have an area with which they can promote a book on the website but without synergy with the app.

[joevallen3]

Just started my Web Novel, "Unkillable Joe" about a comic creator's universe merging with the one he's created. I don't expect anything from Tapastic anymore as it doesn't seem to yield very much for how much work goes into it. That being said, I like the platform for several reasons, the primary being that I can constantly update and edit past episodes as I go.That's a huge benefit to me actually. This will get me "print ready" when I finish it.
As for making money or turning this into something, Tapastic doesn't seem to be the place for that.
Just a staging ground to get your book extra crispy before you get it into the hands that actually will pay you down the road.
My two beans anyway.