How did you guys get confident enough in your story to start it?

[chickknightgreenleaf]

I simply write it out first then review what I had just written logically, looking for plot hole, inconsistency, any illogical flaw in the story line, fix all the flaw you can spot, rewrite again, publish it, and... hope for the best.

[CarolRiverArt]

I start thimking about a story, then I made changes (i read over again in case it needs changes), you know, to get it better. Then I publish it without thinking it too much. You should lose the fear of critics, people do that anyway, and those things are even good for you!. When you read your story, and you share it with close friends and feel that is finished, you can publish it!, and then, you will learn in the way, with people comments, with other experiences.

But my recommendation is, publish it!!

[moonfixer]

I just end up putting myself out there because I got tired of everything being more important than what
I love to do. Also, the comic i have on tapas now is also there to help me get back in the habit of drawing regularly.

[joannekwan]

I think what boosted my confidence the most is to just ignore that there are other people out there. Do the thing you love for yourself. I get a lot of pride out of just seeing a project complete so that's what I'm always aiming to do, have another piece finished under my belt even if they're not masterpieces.

Don't burden yourself with what others would think, do it for you!

[Shanny8]

Never was an issue of "becoming confident"- just a matter of doing something that really interested me to the level of "I GOTTA do this!".

[DiegoPalacios]

While i was confident in my story because most people i showed it really enjoyed it , i wasn`t confident in my capability to post consistently. During that time i developed a habit to draw one page per week during 2 months (on average 9 pannels). This helped me to build up a buffer. After some encouragement from my mom, i got the courage to start uploading here on Tapas.

[CarolRiverArt]

That's my secret captain...
I´m never confident ORZ

[BobbyjoeX]

same here, but also i knew if i stayed in the planning stages i would never get out

[kybrehowe]

Great question, aqua03!

To be honest, I didn't have confidence at all when I first started publishing on Tapas. I kept telling myself "The story's not finished. I'm still unsure how it will all end. I need to work on the lore more."

And that was my problem -- I was so much of a perfectionist that I kept myself from the most crucial aspect of artistry, which was to take a dang step forward.

We live in a wonderful era for the arts, especially for writing and illustrating, because we can publish an amiable product. True art is like a living being: it always changes and is improved upon. So we have the freedom to go ahead and publish, even if we may not have all of our shit together. Having that support system of readers behind your back truly becomes your main drive as you push forward to finish your story.

So do I know how my story will end? I got an idea, but only time will tell. In the meantime, allow the readers to enjoy the ride along with you, because storytelling is all about the journey, anyhow. And if you ever need to go back and edit a page or two, go right on ahead! It will only make your storytelling that much stronger.

[fleohr]

I was having a lack of confidence when I started working on a comic for LW's contest. First, I tried to make a romance, then a thriller, and finally a horror + thriller. The reason I kept changing is because I always thought my ideas weren't good enough or someone already made something similar or even I'm overthinking about the plot

Recently, I realized that I don't always have to make something that is logical or makes sense. So I can let my creative side try to make something unusual, but cringe

There's a comic called "Tales of Unusual" the Beauty Water episode is the most non-logical I've read, but the story is pretty good and funny in some parts

TL;DR Since comics are fictions based on something we read/experienced, we can choose to change it and make a complete different story, even if it's non-logical and unlike to happen

[NickRowler]

I think I was just really really sad and I felt like was drawing. So I kept going and going until I made about 40 pages, I then took a break then came back and did another 40 pages. I was having a hard time telling people what was happening to me IRL, so I posted the comic as my cry for help.

I don't think my way is necessarily the best way but that is how I got used to posting.

[insomniascrawl]

I never did get confident, I just did it, cuz if you never do it... you just never do it.

[mrtoontastic]

Usually, especially when you're a writer and artist on comic strips and novels. The ideas for expansion is always a drive for me. Sometimes, the confidence to start a story often comes from the comic strips I've drawn and the characters or situations I shed some light on in the past, making them expansion-worthy when I started writing. Sometimes, its what you've done in the past which helps kick-start an idea for a story. Think of it as, "I have characters that can do A (save the world/fight monsters/cause trouble among themselves and others), and I have characters or settings that are B (villains/misunderstood outcasts/vindictive/domineering/otherworldly). What would happen if I take characters from A and put them in B?)" And then the rest kinda kicks off from there! Another thing that can help immensely is to read and watch some of your favorite movies and/or books. They often can graze on a topic you were thinking of, but can give you inspiration to either make it your own or expand upon ideas that were glossed over.

[Shihwi]

I am never confident enough in the stories I make. But if you don't make them and let others see it, I think you are hindering yourself from the opportunity of learning new things and progressing as an artist. So, I say, don't beat yourself too much towards perfection. You will get there.

Just do it. You'll improve along the way. And there is no other thing more satisfying than watching yourself from day one until now. You'll never know the results if you don't have anything to show to begin with

Hope this helped. Because it did when one of my friends said the same sentiment to me.

[zigmenthotep]

I just don't care and start anyway, the worst story written is still better than the best only dreamed of.

[Wumbl]

I basically get most of my confidence from internal satisfaction with my work, and if I need it, proofreading.

As far as I'm concerned once the script is at least 50-60% done you're ready to start drawing.

The only thing that might cause a slight lapse in confidence for me is that there might be small errors that I haven't noticed. That's why I mentioned proofreading! Having a co-writer or even just a friend to flip through your script and check for mistakes as well as give you some feedback can help you get into the zone.

[aqua03]

Thank you so much for all the advice and help guys! It really means a lot to me.

Also, one other problem I realized I have when it comes to starting is the fact I love coming up with ideas and fleshing them out, but when it comes to putting those ideas into an actually story, I get cold feet and can't flesh them out in an interesting manner for a full story. Do any of you guys struggle with that?

[eochoa92]

I like to handwrite my drafts.
I'll have several handwritten pages of edits with scribbles/doodles, notes on the sides, etc that I'll go through before deciding to type up a story.
That's sort of my process.
And each draft looks different. I can copy something from a previous draft, but stop middway because I thought of something better and follow through on that. It's stuff like that which makes me prefer handwriting to typing. It's a bit sloppy, yes, but seems to work for me.

[monotone_ink]

I started by creating a one-shot/focusing on shorter stories - when you do this, you have a better sense of what you're trying to aim for, and you'll find it easier to gauge what people find interesting in your work - it was only then that I really tackled the bigger project.

If you want confidence in your story before starting, one thing you should establish is the ending of your story - this way, you'll never get lost, as you'll always have some sort of destination for your story to go towards.

[LNRDink]

I think a lot of people have already hit the nail pretty much dead on the head but I don't think it's healthy to build confidence to release your stories. In fact, I believe you must reach such a point that you stop caring about what you write.

Like, no matter what you do, someone will find your writing/drawing and want to eviscerate it. Of course, you don't want that to happen while you're creating it but, once you finish it, you have to be okay tossing that baby to the wolves and just keep running.