So how do you come up with a logo?

[PaulDevers]

Oh, uh, well, let's see.

What I primarily did for this is that I used a heck load of references. I looked up logos and fonts of buildings and businesses from the 1970's (when the story takes place) and chose a font based on that. After that, I went over and wanted to create a 'box' around it in spirit that could help frame it. I like the idea of having it be in black and white myself so that I can print it in mono-colors if needed. I think the idea of having a logo be something simple and replicatable is kind of important.
So, in your case, probably look up some things that have to do with your story and use those to base your logo off of in the first place? Maybe a font that you can use to make it more of your own?
I'm in no way an expert on this, btw. Definitely struggled for... an embarrassingly long time to come up with even this.

[DualDragons]

Thank you for your advice! I'll do some research on my behalf then. Being able to replicate the logo is something I agree on.

[Random_Guy]

Okay, here we go.

^This is my logo^

It's a question mark cause my name is Enigma.
It's a pen cause my title is The Gamer With A Pen.

Simple.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I've done a few logos for mine. Basically I just take a font I like and then draw over it, rinse and repeat until I get it the way I want it.
It's a very tedious process.

The last one I made is my favorite, and really, I didn't do that much to it, I converted the font into vector lines and then redrew with the corners of the letters to add some flare to it, then added some extra elements to make it mine. Oh, and I kept the final file as an outline so I could recolor it as needed for every picture I used it in.

New logo (font I used was The Next Font)

Old logo (font under that drawing was Enchanted Land, which turned out to be a Disney font, so...out of fear of the mouse, I dropped it XD)

[Coati]

Dark magic :v
I had to sell my soul for like 5 seconds of decent graphic design skills

[darthmongoose]

I uh.... am engaged to a professional designer. That's my secret. She tells me when my designs look awful and makes suggestions to improve them.

The old logo for Errant (above) really wan't working. People read it as "Current" and I was really frustrated, because the sword in the orange ring kinda representing the Arthurian roots of the story forming the E was so cool to me. Then my partner just said "try something different. You're good at hand-drawing logotypes, just do that."

So we ended up with the Errant logo, which I hand-drew, copied the layers to create a sort of aberration or misaligned print effect, then vectorised.

I will say that if you DO hand-create a logo, you have to be pretty confident you can get a nice, clean finish, or it'll just look a bit amateurish. If you're not sure what to do, my advice is to keep it simple and avoid silly novelty fonts.
Learning how to do fancy text effects yourself and then using simple, clear fonts is generally good. This is a nice tutorial for getting to know some of the techniques:

How To Create a Superhero Comic Text Effect in Photoshop

And learning how to use layer effects in Photoshop to do shiny metal effects always pays off:

Quick Tip: How to Create a Metallic Text Effect Using Layer Styles in Photoshop

[surenlicious]

I definitely did for my novel! You can see it below in my story arc and chapter cover. The logo is actually the Royal family's primairy sealing rune, etched on a slab that is being shattered. It represents the metaphorical cracks slowly breaking the kingdom apart as its toxic culture is finally getting back at them if nothing is done to change it.

Eh, I'm a designer too so I always love making me stuff. XD

[IndigoShirtProd]

For my comic and other works that I have, I hand drew most of them. I worked out multiple sketches to figure out what fit. I looked at other comics and logos for animated shows. I didn't actually come up with my initial logo for The Black Belt Society, a close friend did in high school. I got a critique on the style of the logo so I change it to this several months ago:

The drawn font was still a nod to the initial design my friend created, more defined. But then I got a recent critique saying how it was hard to read on my cover. I considered it and changed it again.

Now it's easier to read and looks a lot better than before. The second part of the logo is this:

I wanted a black belt to be wrapped around the world, but then I realized having the knot in the front would be too busy, so I had it a black headband instead. Plus it was a nod to the character designs.

[AVXP]

I think we are confusing LOGO and a TITLE (graphic).
But never mind.
Instead of looking at these great examples, I think you should Google the subject and follow the rules.
The 'good design rules' are pretty simple and also fairly easy to follow.

Some of the more common ones are....
a) Never base it on a font.
b) Works in B&W
c) Works with colors reversed
d) Works on black background and white background
e) uses an enclosed shape (as in no particles or special effects)
f) Works very small (across the room test) and very large

There's also a few special sauce techniques that some of the examples above are using.
Which is great, but probably still helps to have them pointed out for the science behind them.

I uh.... am engaged to a professional designer.

They could probably list another dozen.

[Iris-Grimoire]

I think the most important part is to communicate a theme. Letters being playful or serious, bent or straight, stylized or clean, that all has to show the reader what story you want to tell.

Splitting Image's was handmade because the idea was stuck my head and I couldn't just wait until I had the funds to commission something made professionally. Maybe I should that once I have them, but for now I'm just really proud of it;;

They're metallic letters, fancy but still readable than most old calligraphy. Their insides reflect some light like a mirror, and they're all damaged, showing a bit of passage of time and as some hints towards the main characters' mental states not being "pristine". The letter that creates the misspelling is corrupted by black magic, showing it's "not supposed to be there", and it bleeds into the A as if it's moving towards something, creating the "split" effect. The version I use also has my online handle using the same technique but that image is huge so I can use it anywhere.

I wish I made this as a vector since it's a very simple look, but right now, it's serving its purpose alright. It's also easy to replicate for that visual consistency!

[Cavechan]

I went to school for it so I've made many, many bad logos and can now make a decent one.

No effects:

With effects:

Use 100% free fonts or make sure to buy and read/understand the license before creating a logo.

Some of the more common ones are....a) Never base it on a font.b) Works in B&Wc) Works with colors reversedd) Works on black background and white backgrounde) uses an enclosed shape (as in no particles or special effects)f) Works very small (across the room test) and very large

All of this.

Also, look around at what other people are doing for their comic logos. Save some that you like the look of for inspiration. Make many thumbnails of different variations. Write down some key descriptive words for your comic that can help inspire the look of the logo. Should it be shiny? Edgy? Dark? Mysterious? etc. Try different color combinations that fit with the feel you're going for.

Oh yeah and make sure it is legible when it's tiny. I had a v1 of my logo where the text was too small at small sizes and was one of the big reasons I had to trash it and start over.

[queenue]

If you aren't experienced with logo design, it's best to keep it simple and choose a nice font. You can get plenty of good free fonts from Google Fonts or Dafont.com (with Dafont be careful, because most of those aren't licensed for commercial use. You can filter results by "100% Free.") The nice thing about Dafont is that it separates fonts by themes, like fantasy, science fiction, horror, etc. So, you can get the right vibe even if you know nothing about typefaces.

I also strongly suggest doing logo research before you attempt your design. Just look at other webcomics/graphic novels in your genre, what do their logos look like? Also, just searching "logo inspiration" in Google will help you out. Save your favorite logos for reference (yep, just like with drawing!) Design is just another form of art; rely on your sense of good composition, shape, line, and color.

Lastly, if you really feel clueless, don't be afraid to find a graphic designer to either do the work for you or consult you on the design. There are a ton of graphic designers on Fiverr, Upwork, and social media with affordable rates, or maybe you have a designer friend you can talk to. You shouldn't be expected to do ALL the work with your comic, it's normal and expected to enlist the help of others!

So, the logo for my current story I kept very simple. Since it's only 3 letters, I drew it myself with some brushes in Photoshop (eventually I'm going to vector it in Adobe Illustrator, but for now I can't afford that program lol). I wanted it to reflect an ocean and beach theme with its brushstrokes. Also, a lot of YA / coming of age titles use this handwritten style.

And, since it's so simple, I can easily change up the colors depending on the color scheme of each design I create! Which is fun.

This is a cover concept I'm working on where the logo is going to be pure white against a sunset sky.

Anyway, good luck with your design and comic!

[magnavarra]

I asked my sister to write it - she used to practice calligraphy=)
I wanted it to resemble somekind of neon signs for bar lounge or a spirit drink. with a bit of cheerful vibe. And I just picked my favourite black and red color for it =)) It also have white outline so it's visible on any background

[Cavechan]

Since it's only 3 letters, I drew it myself with some brushes in Photoshop (eventually I'm going to vector it in Adobe Illustrator, but for now I can't afford that program lol).

That's another good point actually. Make the logo as a vector (shape-based), not a raster (pixel-based) image so you can easily resize it as needed.

The effects version of my logo is a raster though since Illustrator is not so good with these types of effects. In that case, just make sure to start really large. Like mine is 13" wide at 300DPI, but I would recommend even larger than this if possible.

As for vectorizing your logo @queenue there is a program that you can use online for free called Vector Magic (there's also a desktop version that costs more). I used to use it a lot when I had to vectorize stuff. It works pretty well but with your logo, you would lose a lot of the thin/small details, even if you made the raster really big. You would have to vectorize those areas manually if you want it to be super close to the original.

[queenue]

Good point, I should have mentioned you can also use Inkscape to do the entire logo design, which is a free open source vector program!

Oh, and I mean to completely redo the logo with Illustrator's brushes. This is just a working logo for now haha. AI has really nice brushes for this type of design. Plus, converting raster images to vector usually yields some weird and unappealing results for me.

[gabriellabalagna]

Hi, I have a BFA in Graphic Design. Here are some basic rules that might help. If you want to share some designs, don't be hesitant to reach out. I (and others I'm sure) can give feedback. Good luck!

• needs to be readable even at a small scale
• colors & style should match your comic
• should be simple enough so that people will be able to remember it
• can be symbolic of something in your story or could be a mascot
• before finalizing the design, make many iterations and ask for feedback
• it should be unique, google and make sure there aren't any logos that are too similar
• keep its purpose in mind, how do you intend to use it?

[Jophiel]

im an advertising arts student and logos are my weakness jhgfdsa

it's really helpful to sketch ideas in paper. Think of something vague like "sharp, angular, sweet" etc that you feel will describe the one you're aiming for. You can look up inspirations on fonts though try to play around them and take notes of what you like about it. Once you have a vague feeling of what you're going for, make more sketches. Keep them readable always.

When I think of dynamic, what comes first in my mind are bold letters, often capitals. Kinda among the likes of the san serif family. Angles look something fun to work with when I hear of dynamic. And strong colors/contrast imo.

Also adding up to the above post ^ about the purpose. A good logo is flexible when applied to different forms (say, not just covers but also banners, illustrations, cards whatnot. This is more of an advertsing standpoint tho jhgfdsa.).

[ailatte]

I can give you the perspective of a communication designer if you want. Whenever I had to do logos, for a university project or for work, I always think first, what is the tone of voice I want to convey, is it friendly, elegant, business-like, this will help with choosing the typeface, instead of tone of voice you can ask yourself what is the genre of my comic, do I want to be more warm or cold, will help decide color, and always make sure it's legible, and that if the colors of the background change, it can still work, this might mean that you need two versions.

[kitschensyngk]

I've had an interest in typography for as far back as I can remember. I've done lettering for fliers for local events as well as personal projects.

This is actually my second logo for NCC. I designed the letters myself in Inkscape, set them inside a thick outline, and then tilted them slightly to give it a "slightly askew/doesn't quite fit in" look to fit the comic's theme. The Japanese text underneath, given a similar treatment, was a font installed on my machine.

[mappypaint]

Since my comic is car themed, I decided that the logo should look like a car emblem.

Black and White:

Cartoon Chrome: