Page by page or chapter by chapter?

[DiscsNBeats]

Hey! What's up? I wanted to know whitch format do you prefer to use?

Right now i'm struggling with finding time to upload weekly or in a stablished routine, so i wanted to know your experiences or how do you guys do.

Also it can be a bit frustrating when you release a page and then find out something was wrong/ a mistake you didn't notice after you upload and it's already online. So what do you do?

Thanks!

[pammella]

I upload once or twice a week
Sometimes I ended up finding an error or two after I release an episode, but I already run to fix and update

[Evan]

As a reader, I prefer comics episode by episode. (Assuming the division goes page > episode > chapter)

Going page by page gets confusing as if you can't remember what last happened, one page doesn't give you enough content to remember what was going on.
Going entire chapters by chapter results in reader burnout and if you can't keep up, long hiatuses will be very detrimental.

A standard rule I use is to post around 8-12 panels in a story comic at a time, but it's only a guideline and in the end it comes down to how long it takes to convey the next part of your story.

[WasHNooB]

one page doesn't give you enough content to remember what was going on.

yup I agree with that. Also, as a creator haha, I prefer longer episodes so that dialogue flows! I find it hard to write to smooth dialogue if I break updates into pages. (like i don't remember what my characters even said so i cant imagine the readers XD)

.... if I find a mistake I usually try to edit before anyone sees it lol - WasH

[keii4ii]

I would say don't go any slower than every two weeks. Put as much content as you can/want into each update, as long as you're updating at or faster than that pace.

If it takes 3 months to complete a chapter, I as a reader might forget what happened in the story so far during those 3 months.

[phen]

Definitely agreeing with the creators here. Episodes of pages work really well in presenting scenes for easy comprehension on the light side. Chapters can be awesome if it's a one-shot or a fairly tidy longform that are already completed so readers know they can invest in a full comic that's written and drawn from start to finish.

Personally, I go page-by-page (twice a week, one page) and the feedback has been that it's very easy for readers to get confused/lost concerning details and crucial plot points. Longform is a delicate formula but if the format is a gag-a-day or fairly loose/organic toon-style work, page-by-page shouldn't pose any coherency issues.

[FlareyWorks]

I personally like a page at a time - but only if I'm confident it'll keep on coming, and if the time between posts isn't too bad! Posting once a month with one page won't work at all - I'll have to re-read the whole story every month. But a page a couple of times a week, consistently - beautiful, A+

[AlkseeyaKC]

I would like to go one page a week. I find I tend to stop reading comics that post more then 2 times a week. I don't have a lot of time to read so when there are a ton of pages to catch up on. I don't have the time to read it, so I hope to find time to read it some other day. Not all people are like me though. lol

Honistly I feel like you should do what feels right to you and what you can keep up with.

[UbePie]

I update an episode at a time. My episodes are pretty long, which i found out is not the norm on tapas. But like other mentions when i read comics myself, when it's just one page i find it's not enough. I think going by episode lets you get your point across and lets you tell the story in a good flow.

I only update three times a month, because i have longer episodes and a day job, i can't manage to update every week, though i would like too.

[enka923]

I update an episode a week. Ranging from 10 - 40 panel each episodes, depending on the story of that particular episode.
I also prefer an episode per updates, unless you updates quickly, like everyday or three times a week, I think a page a day is alright? Even though I think a four panel comics is more suitable for a page per updates.

[Aspie_Gamer]

Here on Tapastic, a page by page format three times a week i.e Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays seems to be the optimal path to building up your subscriber base and its something I would love to travel back in time for to inform past me of.

As for finding the time, here on Tapastic at least, you can schedule new pages days/weeks in advance and in my case, I always set my pages for my comic Life of an Aspie to upload at 4AM Pacific Time which for people living in Central or Eastern Time gives them time to read the new page as they get ready for school/work and for other time zones seems to work out fairly well for them.

[dsandoval3]

damn unfortunately for me im a neat freak

[Strontium]

As a reader I like getting a few pages in an episode at a time. It feels like I'm getting something "extra" even if I'm not technically getting more pages in less time than I would in a single page updating comic.

However as a creator, I post single pages twice a week. A large part of ch1 is in longer compilations but that's because I had already drawn and posted those pages before coming to this site. Since then it's all really one page at the time, with very few exceptions. I know my archive is SO big and can be frustrating to new readers, but I know the update schedule I have works for current readers and I have a pretty steady group of new subscribers, so it seems to be good enough.

[R.n.P]

I upload an episode of 15-27 pages each month, I enjoy doing it like that rather than page by page since I wanna try to imitate mangakas n all, plus its a whole less stressful than having to make a deadline almost everyday
THE LAST SAMURAI

[miesmud]

I upload per episode, my story is too slow for one page updates, so I bulk them up in batches of something between 2 and 15 pages. I upload those as soon as I finish them. I have very little free time, so getting 15 pages done takes ages. This means I can only update once or twice a month. Also more content per episode means less views, thus less ad-revenue and less chances to get on trending/ popular. So it has quite some cons compared to updating per page.

I still prefer drawing per episode, because as a reader I prefer comics to post only once in while. I find whole episodes/ chapters easier to read than having to go to the next page every time.

[Shanny8]

I'm good with uploading a page per week, and reading a page per week. Some comics that I read I dont mind if they update twice a week depending on the comic, but I like having a variety of stuff to read at the rate of once a week.

With me updating a page a week, I can stay consistent and keep my readers interested.

[mechafeedalert]

Am I really the only one here that despise these page by page schedule on long-form webcomics?

I mean it is a freaking LONG-FORM. Imagine reading a novel a short paragraph a week, if that. Translate to a comic page that's 2-3 sentences sometimes.
Imagine 1 minute into sex your partner say,"let's stop, we'll continue next Friday".

As an artist I understand the workloads behind the weekly pages. I use to do that (and contemplates on why the hell am I even doing this, then quitting the series altogether).

It takes an unrealistic timeframe for the reader to feel anything out of the story. Any excitement, mystery, tension built up already dissipates by the end of the week. Even a good cliffhanger gets boring if you do that week per week.

I don't get why most long-form webcomic have readers at all (outside from the creators-too crowd)

I wonder if webcomic could be seasonal like tv does. These days TV series have big if not even bigger following than big budgeted movies. TV is kinda the ultimate long-form storytelling medium.
12 episodes per season of the year, 8-12 pages per episode per week. So you could deliver an arc with proper 5 act per season/year. The story and art needs a great impression from the reader so that they would even care to watch the second season, and you need to spend on some advertising before the season premier but I think that makes a lot more sense than the current way.
The workloads would be easier to juggle then, since you could shift task more efficiently. 1-2 months writing, then thumb ailing, then art, then posting and promoting.
Total workload should be roughly the same amount as 1/2/3 pages per week currently.

That's maybe just me being silly. Feel free to ignore

[keii4ii]

I wonder if webcomic could be seasonal like tv does.

It doesn't work when you have to actively work behind the scenes for 2-3 years to get one season done. With a TV series, people get paid, but far too often a webcomic creator's biggest (or even only) "payment" is readership. I can't imagine slaving over my comic for 3 years in secret without any form of reader interaction. It's hard enough even WITH readership!

(Which isn't to say I make my comic just to get readers. There's a reason why I make a story I like, instead of trying to tailor it to popular tastes...)

Also, a lot of people are used to reading long stories in smaller chunks. Probably not page by page, but like 10-18 pages? Think weekly anthology magazines. I actually get less enjoyment when I attempt to read a big archive in one go, as I begin skimming at some point instead of paying full attention. (This doesn't happen with prose; I think the lack of images kind of forces my brain to keep reading rather than skimming. X'D) Even though one page a week isn't ideal for even me, it's not bad enough to destroy my enjoyment.

As with everything, I think there's a lot of individual preference involved in terms of how much people like to read in one go. Different strokes for different folks.

[mechafeedalert]

I get that. But this is the same amount of work to posting 1-2 pages weekly, just without the instant gratification of viewers liking or commenting on that 1 page you just posted. If you really want to tell a story, like you really have something to tell and you believe in that idea I don't think slaving away alone in secrecy is a problem. I'm a loner by nature so yeah.. At least I don't think that's a problem.

Also a season should be done in one whole year, no?
At least those are the numbers from my favorite series.

Maybe it just my brain isn't wired like today's viewers, but then again even most popular long-form comics are per chapter uploads. As a reader whenever I don't feel like having so much content poured into my brain I'd just grab the gag a day comics.

Actually I was just thinking about your comic when I posted my post above. I'm one of your few first reader on Heart of Keol. I was floored with how beautiful the art was, and the story telling too was good. Then time flies by, life happens I've stopped visiting about the site because each time I've visited it's like there's hardly any progress on the story. And I hardly have the time to spent. I stopped reading webcomics except some of webtoons so since like 1 1/2 year ago.
Those webtoons isn't necessarily good but you're invested hundreds hours of reading that you couldn't help but have to finish reading until the end.

[keii4ii]

If you really want to tell a story, like you really have something to tell and you believe in that idea I don't think slaving away alone in secrecy is a problem.

Let's not question people's creative passion just because they prefer to update often. There are multiple factors that go into deciding update frequency. Someone like me, for example, absolutely loves and believes in the idea of the story, but has little faith in their ability to execute it. Then there's also a concern about archive burn. Some people feel discouraged when they find a comic with a huge archive. They either turn back, or go "this is going to take a while... I'll read it later" which they may never do. It's a thing.

Also a season should be done in any whole year, no?

I'm way past 2 year mark and still not done with what could be considered season 1 of my comic...

Let's say someone finishes their season 1 before beginning to post it, however long that takes. Then as soon as it's done, they post it. Will people remember to come back for season 2 in another 3-4 years from that point??? I, as a reader, probably wouldn't. I would absolutely take small weekly updates over 3 years of nothing. So weekly (or more frequent) updaters like me are Doing Unto Others, which is a perfectly valid reason IMO.

But for those who would come back for it, they have the option of not reading for a while and then catching up. They have that option even with a comic that updates multiple times a week.

I respect your preferences, and you're certainly not the only person who prefers to binge read. But yeah, those are some of the reasons why creators may choose to update little by little.

(I appreciate your kind words on my work, BTW!)