Longform comics and the intimidating archive problem

[punkarsenic]

i tend to not care, but maybe that's because this never crossed my mind; as a reader i'll knuckle down and read a comic on one or two sittings if i want to subscribe. i cant imagine what solution would be viable, because the people who wouldnt want to read through it all likely wouldnt know to check for recap pages anyway (i sure wouldnt)

[agentfink]

I was experimenting with condensing on Webtoon to see if I would like this approach.

Webtoons audience is different (in terms that they prefer reading larger updates) but I liked presenting the pages with the natural breaks in the story that made for easy reading. I updated anywhere from 2-4 pages and my chapter 1 on Webtoons came out to 12 episodes, compared to 31 on Tapastic. Personally, I think it reads better on Webtoons but I don't have a large enough buffer to sustain multi-page updates like that.

We're just starting up chapter 2 and I find myself considering multi-page updates for chapter 3. It's not just that I don't want my readers to get lost with one page updates (I don't think they do) but also I just think the multi-page chapters read better (almost like mini issues).

I don't know... at the moment, I Don't Give A Damn... but I'm only 38 episodes in...

I haven't reached the 100 episode mark for any of my series yet, but maybe when I do I'll do a quick recap?

Ah! See this is why I think my mind set is changing in regards to multi-page episodes here. I'm considering doing a recap too, maybe at the start of new chapters? Some printed comics I read do this every issue. Most of the time I skip it, because I am binge reading, but I can imagine it being very helpful when reading it as a monthly.

I'm USED to plowing through 300+-page archives in single pages. I enjoy it, even. It feels like turning the pages in a print-comic.

That is comforting to hear!

[R.n.P]

I always have that thought in my mind that my comic has gone pretty far so subscribers that are new might not read em
As a creator I'm working on getting my early episodes to look very appealing in order to get subscribers that are new to read them, I'm still an amateur at the coloring though
THE LAST SAMURAI

[SynergyEclipse]

I'm used to reading one webcomic page at a time, and have binge-read some webcomics from the beginning if they interested me enough. Including supplemental material suited to new readers may be helpful, because if it's interesting enough, it could compel a new reader who'd otherwise be intimidated by the large archives, to binge-read through the comic.

My comic has a set length for chapters, but I can't preserve the chapter format here, but I break them down into small episodes. I haven't done recap pages, but I've done recaps in the comments of some episodes or pages.

[indagold]

Whelp i'm in the category of not giving a damn as I am currently updating a 600+ page comic I completed over the course of 5 years haha...

[Devika]

I can only comment as a reader, but I've never felt intimidated by having a lot to read... That's a bit weird to me, because I read something if I enjoy it, and if there's more to enjoy that's a good thing. If it's not good, I quit.

Okay, there's one thing that I'm intimidated by, and that's the marvel and dc universes. But that's because there's no one canon storyline, and it's been going on for decades and has had so many different writers doing their own thing. So yeah. I've only read a bit of Nightwing, that's it...

[maximumthemokona]

I wonder if I'm the only one who just starts reading from the latest updates... Haha. I'm aware that it's spoiling the story, but I can't help it (when I buy a new book the first thing I do is read the very last page). If I get really confused it usually motivates me enough to go back and read what I missed (I'm usually quite invested in the story by then), but I've never really had a problem picking up a new story from the middle.

Personally my favorite approach (which I'm not sure is very compatible with my own comic... but I'll try) is to make sure that each chapter has a definite beginning/middle/end arc and is enjoyable by itself, while still developing a horizontal plot. Kinda like how TV series do it (or used to do before Netflix and binge watching came along)... or like picking up a random comic issue at the store, without worrying too much about the underlying mythology.

[vongcw]

I've got an "About" page and a cast-page for new readers to poke around a bit in, read some descriptions and get an idea of what they're in for without trawling through all 150+ posted pages.

I really like that! I know once I'm a even a little invested into the characters I'll keep reading.

[UzukiCheverie]

When I post a new volume, I give a brief recap of what happened in the previous volume, with a small hint as to what's going to happen in the new volume. I also have cast pages which outline the main characters on one page and the characters that are prominent/playing a role in the volume on the other page. That's pretty much all I do lol If someone really likes my story they'll read it.

[keii4ii]

If someone really likes my story they'll read it.

I think that's the thing. Speaking only for myself, if I really like the story, I'll happy eat up the entire archive in one go. But if I see a comic that I'm only sort of interested in, that's where the archive size may be a factor.

I know I've dropped a few comics in the past because I was only sort of interested in them based on the first chapter or so, and they were updating very frequently (more than once a week)... So the amount I had to catch up just kept increasing.

[J.Z.Castillo]

I agree with some of the people here. I don't care. If people wanna read, they'll read, if they don't then they don't have to. It's that simple.

Personally, if I ever find a comic with a bunch of episodes, Like Heart of Keol, I will subscribe to it and just leave it in the back for a while, until the day I have enough time to catch up with everything at once. I enjoy doing that!! But if I find a comic that looks promising but has a bunch of episodes and either the art or the story didn't catch my attention I will give it a pass.

[ryoko]

I actually really like the 300+ page comics because I know I'll have stuff to read for a while, and that makes me happy ^_^ I usually subscribe to them. I also appreciate the tracking feature of Tapastic that remembers which page I read up to last.

As a creator with 200+ pages, I've done a one-page story summary and a character summary on a couple of occasions at the beginning of a new chapter. My story is fairly complicated as a whole, but reading from any chapter would give one a sense of the main storyline, but would probably be pretty confusing. Sometimes people will ask questions in the comments regarding past plot details or characters, so I'll use my reply as a sort of mini recap if needed.

[Alejandro_Cheetah]

I really like archive pages as a whole, so it's something I've taken a lot of time thinking about as well. For my comic (Time Cheetah, check it out, I love you!) I decided to use the Cover photo as a useful banner:

It states the name of the current story arc, and clicking the banner will take them DIRECTLY to the archive page on our website of that chapter. Now, this method implies a couple of things (having a separate website that formats well to mobile, having a good archive system) but it's a way use the resources tapastic DOES give us to make up for one of it's shortcomings.

If anyone else came up with some clever ideas (Page recaps strikes me as something that's very tapastic friendly, along with comment section Abouts) I'd love to hear them!

[jennula]

I tend to sign up to a lot of long-form comics I think look interesting, but it will probably take a while before I read 'em and get caught up. In one way, I guess catching up on a bunch of pages will give you a better understanding if you'll really enjoy the comic or not (because I usually think it's a bit unfair to judge a new comic by just a few pages), but yeah, as a reader you need to invest more time. It's kind of silly though as I myself do a long-form comic, but can be intimidated by long-form comics with a lot of pages already ^^;

But yeah, I dunno, I think people should just do their thing. Are their stories and characters good enough, people will most likely read 'em =)

[igneriss]

I'm on the 'not giving a damn' boat. I upload a page per episode, having 281 now, so I know it can be quite... overwhelming (and we haven't reached even half of the story yet ; v; ). I thought about doing a 'what happened so far' episode on extras serie, updated every chapter, though my readers said that the story is currently easy to follow and there's no need to do this. But maybe later, because why not.

[Shanny8]

I dont have a problem reading larger comics- in fact, I rather do that than come across a shorter series. I sometimes dont have time to read, so when I do have lots of time I try to make the most of it by reading a series that I can sink into.

[eleoza]

I take it slow :3 I will read the 1st chapter, if I like it I will sub, then every time I feel like it I will read another chapter. especailly if they update often. It means the artist really cares about their comic.

[Doubtcent]

Ahhhh reader burn. Always the difficulty.

Perhaps one could, if there are so many pages to worry about, create a season 1, season 2 scenario, to spread out the series a bit. Perhaps having maybe 10 chapters per season, create a new series for the next one.

I don't know. That's just what happens when a series is already long. I read One Piece, which not many others read unless they're super die hard fans or have just stayed along the ride for all these years. It's pretty random.

[Mikayi]

I don't need mind long stories I may take a bit to catch up on it being I am normally busy with everything else and have a bad habbit of being distracted easily. One issues I do have is the not so friendly mobile version of the sight.
I know it works well for some but the tiny little boxes are hard to use and it doesn't scroll
Like the desk version. And since most of the time I am normally reading via phone longer comics will take me a long time to read. And that can be problematic at some points .

As much as I love long comics it will take me longer to get caught up. Verses shorter ones that when updated I can read via phone

[smgorden]

This is a great question!

I think there are possible sources of inspiration outside of comics to help with it. Serial (episodic) entertainment has been around a long time. The best comics, television shows, novels, even movies, use the episode (or chapter, or scene) as a complete (if short) story in itself. I've read that Steven Spielberg uses his scenes this way when he directs movies... each scene having a beginning, middle and end.

Depending on format, it might be hard to achieve that on tapastic for each episode, but I think it's possible ,and a useful thought to guide the writing. Even if your 1-2 pages is just a conversation, it can have steps that give a satisfying pseudo-resolution or jumping-off point for the next comic.

I don't think we can do anything about the intimidation factor of seeing a huge archive of previous episodes, but if the latest episode has a solid arc to it, I think that'll be the best shot of helping a new reader overcome the intimidation. Spark the curiosity and get them involved in the story.