Is vertical really better?

[otterlyhuman]

I've noticed that the vast majority of comics here are vertical (panels stacked on top of each other). My comics are usually presented as a square/rectangle. Is there any downside to this? I've seen a few popular comedy series like Sarah's Scribbles are set up in a similar style to mine, but I was wondering if any more experienced creators might have some insight on this topic. Thanks!

Otterly Human | Tapas

[Kiweevil]

It tends to be done vertically to read easier on mobile, but you can certainly do boxes as long as they're easy enough to read!

[otterlyhuman]

I'm hoping mine are legible! No complaints from any readers yet at least haha. Thank you for the reply!

[Maps]

I also think it has to do with people’s preference. I’ve read from a lot of people who like it the way you’re doing it, but since I’ve always read vertical, it’s what I’m more used to and what I prefer.
But, yes, it’s generally easier to read on mobile.

[sekabead]

Do what you want

But aside from vertical comics being easier to read on mobile, some people have difficulty reading traditional comics format. They... are somewhat hesistant to guessing which panels should come next, although for the most time it's obvious.

Vertical comics also have their own limitation. For example, landscape. And another is conveying time without making super long panels.

Just my two cents

[rajillustration]

For a comic like yours where it's generally only a few panels, horizontal is just fine.

[otterlyhuman]

That makes sense to me, thanks!

[otterlyhuman]

That's a good point, I guess people who aren't avid comic readers might have a tougher time figuring it out.

[magnavarra]

80 percent readers use mobile phones yes, and it's more logical to read it vertical if you can scroll. Otherwise you add strange path of read order.

[Jenny-Toons]

The current model of most webcomics/webtoons is vertical scroll. That's not to say you have to change your comics to fit this model, but it is something you can experiment with to see how your own work is best represented with that medium.

Honestly, it was said best in this previous post:

I just want to add to what I said earlier and what a few others have said, while scrolling has weaknesses, like all media, I get tired of people saying you can't do this or that in scrolling. You can you just have to figure out how. And people have. Particularly, I get frustrated with people saying you can't experiment with paneling flow in the same way and similar, which just screams to me of people not being bothered to experiment and want something to easily put scrolling down with. You have…

It's all about being willing to learn how to work with vertical/traditional scrolls and how you can find benefits in both towards your story. I do a mixture of both for my comics, leaning more towards vertical scroll, and I personally say that both have helped me improve my comic. So I say it's good to try and use both here and there.

It's not about which is better, per se. It's about which one properly helps execute your comic (with practice), and how much you experiment with them.

[jcmraz]

Vertical isn't better necessarily. Not at all. But it IS easier to read on mobile and a lot of webcomics are read mobile these days. It's also generally easier to design in vertical than page format. You don't have to worry about the full page as a design of its own which is a whole extra level of design when it comes to page layout. With vertical all you have to do is focus on the flow. You can do some neat and creative things with it as well don't get me wrong. But when you look at a page you see it all as one. The flow is more complex and easier to mess up and you have to make it interesting while also considering the ease of reading the page.

[otterlyhuman]

Thanks for the reassurance haha. I guess I didn't consider that a lot of vertical comics have way more panels than mine.

[otterlyhuman]

Thanks, I appreciate the advice! 80% is a very high percentage.

[jensrichard77]

With vertical you can do something like this.

Blue Life :: Elevator | Tapas

[otterlyhuman]

Thanks, that was an interesting read. I'll have to talk to our artist about experimenting with different formats. I guess I'm just hesitant about switching up formats when the one we currently have is working well for us on Instagram and Twitter already.

[Jenny-Toons]

No probs! And honestly, I think it's great if it's aleady working well for you. Don't fix what isn't broken, after all. Just, it never hurts to try a little bit of experiementing here and there. And hey -- it's doesn't even have to be done with your current project. If you're trying to bring on more series, you can definitely experiement with those.

[otterlyhuman]

That's true, I'll have to ask our artist which style would be easier for her to make. I also worry that our comic won't get put in any of the trending sections (or whatever it's called on here) without a vertical format.

[jcmraz]

Honestly, it's less likely just because of the ease of the vertical read. It's kind of a hit I'm taking in doing my comic in page format. But I plan to have a separate upload after each chapter I finish to post a vertical version of the comic as well to bring in that crowd. But the episodes will be much more distant in upload speed

[otterlyhuman]

Haha I love that! Very clever use of the format.

[jensrichard77]

Thanks. There is a part 2 and later a part 3 also