Hey, The Midnight One here. So, I've noticed for all the popular, rising stars on Tapas, there are a lot of creators, (both comic artists and writers) who are struggling to get a decent amount of attention.
(For the record, which includes me as well. )
So, I decided to create the biggest and most useful resource I could for getting advice for Honing Your Craft and Promoting Your Series. I hope you find this helpful.
Table Of Contents:
- Advice For Writers
- Useful Forum Posts
- Promotion
- Self Promotional Threads
Advice For Writers
I discovered an American writer called Hannah Heath a while back, and she runs a blog on all things writing. She has an entertaining and interesting style of writing, and combined with a sarcastic sense of humour and nerd references, she has a lot going for her.
She has a wealth of advice on all sorts of subjects of writing, and I highly recommend you check it out.
Here's the website.
And a few posts to get you started.
Useful Forum Posts
Here, I've listed as many useful forum posts as possible. People offer their advice, and expertise on all sorts of ways for making it as a creator on Tapas. The subjects include Promotion, Honing Your Craft, General Advice, and much more.
If you have a useful post, or have seen one that's helpful, and isn't mentioned on the lists, please let me know. The more links we have that help people out, the better.
Honing Your Craft
Promotion
Interaction With Fans/Profiting From Your Creations
Promotion
Now, I can't say I have a high subscriber count, but during my time here, I've discovered quite a few methods of promoting your work. Some of them may work for you, and others may not. You can only do what you can do.
Before I list the methods, I'll list a few pointers to being polite while slapping your series everywhere.
No.1 Don't Spam. Period. Post in as many threads as you wish, but keep it period, and don't do it all at once. No-one likes a spammer, regardless of how good the content is.
No. 2 Be respectful. Ask politely, be courteous. Also, don't be needy, or demand subscribers. It can be a quick turn-off.
No. 3 Build connections with people. Look at their series, if you like them, comment, or subscribe. Offer to do subscription trades, shout outs, etc. It's a win-win both ways, and hey, you might make some friends while you're at it.
Alright then, now onto the methods of promotion.
Self Promotional Threads
These are threads on the Tapas Forums, where you can post your series. Other people can come and look through the posts, and see if there's something they like. You can gain a small number of your subscribers through here. (It's worked for me.)
At the bottom, I've listed a few of these threads, so you can go and use them. (Most of the ones listed are for novels, if you've found some good ones for comics, let me know.)
Thanks For Subscribing Images
You can only use this method when you have a subscriber. When you gain a subscriber, go to their wall, and post a message, something like "Thanks for subscribing" and post an image. This could be anything from the banner image of your series to a specially made image with your characters holding up a sign, saying, "Thanks For Subscribing!"
The reason for doing this is often many people like the attention, and they will usually reply with some positive feedback. (That would be me. ) Also, if people happen to land on the person's wall, they might see the picture and click through.
*Promotion Trades**
This is where you go into an agreement with someone, where they promote your series, and you do likewise. This may be via shoutouts, recommending to others, and subscription trades.
You usually have to build relationships with people before attempting this. You'll more than likely get a friend out of it.
Advertising
There are many organisations and companies that you can advertise through, though this will cost you money. It's usually an excellent way of reaching many people in a short period of time. I don't know any ones I can recommend, but if you know of some, feel free to recommend them.
Marketing Yourself/Building An Audience
Marketing is quite a big part of building an audience, especially if you're planning to make a career out of writing/making comics. In the Useful Forum Post section, there's a few on how to market your creations. I found these tips to be helpful, and here are a few of my own.
No. 1 Find your niche. Find what you love to make, develop a signature style so that people can recognise you for that. Take a part of yourself you like, and make it into how you present yourself online, and as a creator.
No. 2 Interact with your Audience. Reply to positive feedback and meaningful comments. Thank people when they tip you, (if you have it enabled.) Run giveaways, Q&A's, create opportunities for people to interact with you on a friendly level. Use, don't abuse your wall. Post frequently, if you can manage it, but don't go overboard.
No. 3 Treat your audience kindly. Always be respectful, and polite. Some may not like your series, and as annoying as it is, that's their opinion. However, if they're mean about it, you need to do something about it. Thank people for taking the time to give feedback.
That's my main pointers. Have you got any to share?
Self Promotional Threads
Here, I've listed threads where you can post your series. Be careful though, as many have rules, or they may only cater to a certain genre. Read through the first post to find this information.
(If there's any I haven't listed, please tell me, and I'll add them.)
NOVELS
BOTH (NOVELS & COMICS)
Hope you found this useful.