If your comic was finished...?

[akitsukino]

A finished and complete webcomic nowadays seems kind of like a rarity. Most webcomics have been going on for years with faithful weekly updates, while some webcomics just stop updating all togeteher with no explanantion. Not to understimate the planning on the authors part, but it does seem like some authors are just making things as they go along. But what if this wasn't the case? What if more authors COMPLETELY FINISHED their entire webcomic story and then contemplated uploading things? What if you did this?

What if you're webcomic was already completely finshed off line and waiting to be uploaded? Would you ... ?

A) Uploaded everything in one go (to a hosting website or to your own)? Or...
B) Do what other webcomics are doing and just upload on a weekly schedule?

What do you think would be the benefits of uploading in one go? Do you think doing so would kill some of the hype regarding your series?

What do you think are some of the drawback or benefits of just uploading weekly? Do you think your audiene would have a little bit more faith in you if you told them the comic was already done? Would you even tell your audience that you had everything ready or just keep it to yourself?

I think its a pretty interesting topic regarding webcomics and scheduling. So tell me what you would do if your comic was finished. Would you do a speedrun upload, or would you keep things in a bit of suspense? Let me know below.

[Evan]

I would upload it weekly.

I'm not sure if there are benefits to uploading everything in one go. There are definately benefits if you plan everything at once, but uploading everything at once would probably cause reader burnout and give readers no reason to follow you and whatever story you write next.

I probably wouldn't tell my readers unless they asked as I don't see any reason to and it probably wouldn't give my readers any more faith than if I just uploaded weekly or at any consistient rate.

In conclusion, I personally don't see the point in uploading a completed series all at once.

[Zpreader]

Funny enough, I actually do have experience with this (very recently too)

I worked on a comic for about 10 months and finished final edits in May. The goal of the comic wasn't so much to get exposure as to get critique. Because of that I wanted to post the whole thing at once, for the sake of getting immediate critique as I prepared to jump into my next project. However I ended up changing the plan a little bit and released it over the course of a week because I figured getting just a little more exposure would lead to more critique and a week wasn't a long wait. It was nice because I had to really look at my work and figure out the best points to to stop each day to keep a reader interested, as well as thinking of all the ways to boost visibility that I hadn't thought of too much before.

If I had the chance to do it again, I would probably slow it down to just a few pages a week.

I would probably tell people that I was finished as well. It keeps people from expecting a high page rate if you end up releasing stories still in progress later on and it can potentially be used to create a revenue stream by posting the full version on patreon, gumroad, or other such platforms ahead the standard release.

[thekinginthesun]

In terms of planning, our webcomic is finished, yes. That's because we have a mystery in our hands and it's kinda mandatory to have the basic plot line planned ahead.

But if it was finished in all terms, we would probably post weekly, though with bigger updates. Maybe a full chapter every week. Damn, I would love that. (Right now we have a 2x week schedule, one-page-at-a-time)

Maybe we could finally afford to have a patreon. Right now we're lacking the time to make extra stuff.

I also don't think it would be a great idea to just shove all of it in one go, specially here on tapastic. You would have some time in the fresh section, maybe a few followers, but that's all.

[keii4ii]

For me, webcomics aren't as fun to follow after all the content has been posted. It's like arriving at a party after everyone has left. Let's say there's still plenty of food left, and it still tastes just as good somehow... but the party's over.

That does not apply if the comic has an active fandom. I can still discuss the work with other people without wondering, 'does anyone actually want to talk about this comic anymore?' I don't know if even the creator would want to talk about it, especially if they have a new project they'd rather get attention on.

Soooo I would NOT post the whole thing in one go! But I would probably post more content per week than I do now.

[Rueleer]

From my experience, the worst thing to do for webcomics is to publish too much at once! (Only parred with never updating at all but that's besides the point \DD)

While this dynamic might seem reasonable since that's how, say, novels are consumed, I feel like there is a fundamental difference between printed works and any internet content. I believe that online, it is much more beneficial to release in bite-sized pieces, all for the sake of generating one thing - relevance.

I relate this with another medium that tends to follow the same trends online; Anime. It's basically a running joke/unfortunate truth in the community that once a series finishes, nobody wants to talk about it anymore. The material for discussion has ceased to be provided, and thus so ceases discussion, and ergo interest.

I won't make a case for whether this is a practice we should try to prevent or endure, but I do believe in this; if you have the content, don't shoot yourself in the foot by presenting it wrong!! In regards to whether it's bad to keep it when you've already got it... Well, personally, I just wouldn't bother saying anything, since it doesn't achieve much but give readers the potential to guilt trip you.

If you really want a reassuring note though, here! :

I'm sure that the people who appreciate your work would much rather give you the time and room to grow so that others can appreciate your stuff too, rather than rushing and end up sabotaging your own success. Believe that your readers want the best for you too, and you'll be alright. >3<)<3

So, don't be afraid to set it on cruise control and release it weekly (or a few times a week if you're kind to your readers). In the meantime, you can either invest into a new project, or interact with your readers and build a nice community~ <3

[punkarsenic]

if my comic was finished, i think id upload in installments still to get the kind of reading-along excitement comics have been thriving off since the beginning (its also good for stats) but theyd be hearty installments. none of this two page a week anymore and ill die mellarky. entire scenes every week!

ig telling people the comic is already done definitely reassures people that, like, they will get their satisfying ending. but personally, if i like a comic, the prospect of 'what if they quit on it' never stops me from subscribing and enjoying it anyway. theyre less likely to quit if they know i love it, right?

id tell the audience if i had it all saved up somewhere else, like patreon. besides money stuff, itd be really heartening if anyone paid to see the whole thing, they loved it that much.

[heraclus]

I would uploaded in one go , and i think i may do it xd , yeah that's a realy good idea , thank you!

[Pandastrophic]

I think uploading in one go is a terrible idea, you'll miss out on all the theories and discussions that your readers would be coming up with, if everything is already there then what's the point of speculating on what's going to happen. Finishing your comic befor posting is actually good, you don't have to be stressed about deadlines as much, I don't think it has to be either upload in one go or weekly, they'll be able to upload a few times a week or even upload more than one page per update.