Oh man. This has come up so many times and has been blind-sided just as many.
The staff has "answered" us creators that the genre system is simplified for our convenience, but that's not true.
The genre system here is just broken, end of story.
...Well, maybe not.
BEGIN RANT (And I apologize in advance. I'm just really angry, so I might lose all sense of hopefulness or positivity.)
Not only are there not enough genres, the fact that there are no subgenres or other helpful search features very much limits our personal reach for finding new readers and with our own search for new comics. Plus, the tag system has no use at all. True, every system will have its abusers (like in the multiple genre system), but isn't the "slice of life" category just as abused now? I know for certain that the majority of the readership goes into that category.
I personally make gag-day slice of life stuff myself. But that genre is so vague and overused that it's impossible to find anything I've made unless you're bored and have just stumbled upon it far down in that section, or maybe in the fresh section. Or maybe at the bottom of the trending section if I have a lucky day. Either way, my reach is practically unseeable unless I have thousands of subscribers.
And much like the genre section, the collection section is also severely underused. It's a section of the site that only takes a couple of seconds to access, and yet there are only so many comics there, and they're all the same hand-picked few, the elite of the elite (some even show up in more than one category). There are no qualifications on how that section works other than it's pre-set by the staff. Which makes it even harder to get in. Now, it's not hard to please the Staff, no. As long as you play by their rules rather than by your own merits.
Same with the daily snack and the Tapastic Picks. Since it's all done by the staff, everyone has to follow the likes and patterns in order to get noticed. Because the staff likes this genre or type of comic, it's best to sell out to those tropes or else you may never get noticed. "Want to be original? Well, leave your brains at the door and come back for it once you have lost all sense of dignity and have gained thousands through that process."
Unlike Youtube, where there are literally millions of types of videos, all easily searchable, Tapastic likes to be comfortable in their choices for promotion. You can see this through the design of the site where it suggests other content for you. On all fronts, everything under "what you should try reading next" is what Tapastic wants you to read next, not what you personally might want to based on your reading history or a random slot, no. What do you see that you should read next? Either its the same popular few (like on the web app) or it's the most recent Tapastic picks that you haven't subscribed to yet. In my opinion, that is not fair to anyone starting out on Tapastic.
The fact is, this site may seem to be catered to the creator and the reader on the front end, but in reality it's catered to only increasing viewership to the site by promoting the same things over and over that has a pre-existing audience. That means we'll keep seeing stuff that already has a big following or stuff that has the same ideas similar to what already has a following. That's why we see so much slice of life here on Tapastic. It's because it's what we're being fed and it's what everyone enjoys. But why would we want anything else if we haven't tasted anything else? Why should we even explore further into the site if there are only nine genres to explore and we're already subscribed to those on top? Why should anyone starting out on Tapastic stay unless they already have a following someplace else? Why should anyone continue if their comic may never get noticed by any chance other than pure luck and the staff's taste?
This business model is not healthy for many of us who have only so many subscribers. Yeah, we can be here for years, we can find improvement and eventually gain those subscribers, but when someone comes along and is instantaneously praised for doing something that's already been done a million times before, how does that make us feel? Like crap? Or like improving? I personally try to keep improving, but I have a whole year of experience under me that says I should just keep going. (also a mindset that not everyone has) But what about newcomers who just started out in the comic making business? Unless they had the same perseverance, they will most likely feel overwhelmed and quit.
So if you want to look at it, Tapastic will never do you any favors unless your content fits their taste, not the taste of the readers. They might say, "Hey, this series is getting some attention. Let's promote it!" as well, but that is well within their own tastes for the site.
Granted, this is the internet, but Tapastic, I thought you were better than that. I thought this was a place where you can be creative and find some audience if you keep trying. That if you uploaded consistently, worked hard at making original content, you can find your spot on the shelf. You can, but the site will not help you unless you're already on the way to victory or have the same face as the victor.
Hopefully once the new app is finished being worked on, the main site will find some new features or improvements to help out the creators more. We are the community that makes this work. Without us, you have no site. While the front end of the site is pretty nice looking, and the supporters here are great, I gotta say that the behind the scenes end of the site needs some major polishing.
RANT OVER
