To start or not to start a new comic? halp me T^T

[Kimcchirific]

There's this story in my head...and it's been there for months now. from characters to dialogues to scenes to episode titles and paneling I have it all in my mind. i even made a storyboard for the first few chapters and i really want to draw it and post it as a new series here on tapas but I'm not sure i can commit to it.

I have been in tapas for 9 months, I have 3 comics and 2 of them are in semi-hiatus...kind off. well, my Say Kimcchi! is doing fine, regular updates twice a week...my other comic, MLC however has only recovered from semi-hiatus mode updates once a month now instead of once a week...and my very first comic here, Umbrella is no longer updated. well, it was originally supposed to be a one-shot short story but I really wanted to continue it, I have it in drafts but it might take more months before i can post another update on that story...

I really want to create that story from my mind. but i don't want others to think i'm abandoning my other 2 comics by starting a new one... and if i did started this comic and wasn't able to commit on updates then it would be 3 comics in hiatus now... also procrastination is really strong on my side...should i just let this story stay in my head and wait till i get my other 2 comics on a stable status? or jump ahead and draw it, take the risk? or would it be better if i draw it, but don't post it as a series until i have created at least 10 epi or more?

help this new story keeps running in my mind and my hands are itching to draw it tell me what you guys think, or if you've been in the same position as me what did you guys do?

[OccasionalNightmares]

Can't tell you what to do with your comics, but you asked what others would do in your position. Personally, I would write down everything about that comic, all the info you think is important, then store it away for later. That's what I've done with my extra stories. Then, focus on the comics I'm currently doing. Later situations may present themselves and allow you to do the new comic as well as your old ones - maybe you'll team up with another artist, or a writer or storyboardist or whatever you might team up with. Maybe your speed will improve and you'll realize you can go for another. Maybe one of your comics finishes and you have a new timeslot - point is, stow it away in a safe and easy to access place until the time comes to make it. But, as long as there's other things occupying all your time that you already struggle with, then it's not yet time for a new comic unless you officially retire an old one for good and swap out it's time.

[Kimcchirific]

@OccasionalNightmares yeah i'm taking notes for a while now I've written some descriptions and made storyboards for le first chapters but haven't worked on it yet. as for teaming up with others, I've been trying to convince a friend of mine to maybe form a collab but the timing just isn't right...I don't want to retire my other comics, they might hunt me lol maybe i really should wait for the right timing...hopefully it'll come and ahh if my speed improves that will be very great thanks for your advice!!

[revisionstudios]

How long are your other comics? Are any of them remotely close to finishing?

If not, I personally don't think you should take on more unless you want to put down one of your current ones. If you're already struggling with updating regularly, it's not good to put more on the pile. You've got to choose your priorities and abandoning your current project (or risking it) for a fresh new one is a bad habit to get into.

If you want to get to this new one faster, look at your current stories and see if there's one you wouldn't mind wrapping up sooner rather than later and edit it down to be more manageable. Do that with both if you want.

It's kinda why I don't even think about other ideas unless other people in my team bring them up. I'm in the long haul for my comic--and while I'm open to doing other stuff, I know I couldn't be at the helm of it because it would take too much of my time away from our current series. If I did expand though, it would HAVE to be a oneshot or at least something pretty short. Running multiple longform comics if you don't have the speed and schedule to accommodate it is just a bad idea.

It's about recognizing your limits and balancing what you can. Sometimes you'll have to sacrifice something in your current schedule to make room for a new idea--if you don't, laying on more responsibilities can just tip the scale over and suddenly you're burned out and screwed.

[DMBrigman]

I guess the question you need to ask yourself is who are you really making these comics for? If you are making them for others to read and you want to build an audience, then you really need to start getting stuff finished. If you are purely making them for yourself and you don't care if anyone reads them, then do what makes you happy.

Think about your long-term goals too, is this just a hobby or do you want this to lead to selling your work, sales, commissions, etc? If you are hoping to become known as a creator, then you have to finish stuff.

I struggle with new ideas all the time, and I think just the idea being new and full of possibilities is what makes it so exciting and tempting to work on. I just write the idea down for the future when I have time and continue slogging away on my current project. One thing to think about is that you will get better at making comics by actually making comics. If this new idea is really something awesome, maybe it would be best to finish a project and make your mistakes. That way when you can start on the new one fresh you will be able to make it even more awesome!

[Kimcchirific]

@revisionstudios my short story comic could be wrapped up already since it was a one shot to begin with but i still have ideas on the story of the two main and the extra chars as well...i've been thinking of wrapping it up marking it as "completed" but ah mah hart i kenat. hmm but maybe i can do 2 more chaps for that and then I can end it for good with no sad feelings... yeah I've tried to focus on my 3 comics only and not thinking of other ideas but ugh this one idea is persistent i cant stop thinking about it. and yes i'm scared of screwing it all up. thank you for your suggestion, i'll try to work first on that other short story of mine and give them their happily ever after

[Kimcchirific]

@DMBrigman wow that question is making me think deep....I think at first I was making my comics for myself and for my friends, but when one of my comics went on hiatus and i saw that despite that i still have little readers left waiting and believing that my comic despite not being popular is actually interesting for them then somehow I've managed to forced myself to draw and continue that comic again. and I didn't want to abandon the characters that I've loved.
As for goals, I dream of publishing a book one day but with my current comics and skills i kind of doubt it, this new idea feels to have potential thou. yes i agree that new ideas are so tempting!! they are so good and feels so positive. I've had lots of ideas before and i just placed them in an old box and then they stopped bothering my mind. but this one just wont stop...this idea started last year but at that time it was weak and i throw it away but as time pass it keeps growing and growing and of all the ideas i had this one seems to be strong lols.
but your question really made me wonder, maybe i should let this idea grow some more before working on it. I really want to finish my current comics for my very few readers left... so until i lose all my readers i will place my current comics as my priority Thanks for your meaningful advice!!!