What are you looking for on a comic/novel?

[junethunderlight]

There's not a definition of how a good comic, story or novel should be. Sometimes, when I watch a movie with friends, I become the pickiest critic ever and overanalyze it while my friends consider it " the best movie they've watched" (and vice versa). Why? I've realized I always expect a good story to have a non-cliche plot while my partner prefers wild action scenes and other friends just want something that makes them laugh out loud.

We all have our definition based on what we like. What's yours? Does the story you have in mind good character development, dramatic sad moments or adrenaline boosts? Do you prefer dark ambiences over cuter and friendlier aesthetics? Share it with me!

[yansusu]

I feel like that's not so easy to say and would depend on a lot of factors: What am I in the mood to read/watch at that moment? Or how long is the story? For example, I like character-development but it's less important in a shorter story for me while it should definitely happen in a longer story. So I'd say what I'm looking for changes depending on my own circumstances but also with the story I have in front of me.

[CarltonIsaac]

A lot of this -

[Lummy]

recently, i asked myself this question and from then on everytime i watched a movie/read a book/read comic i asked myself "why".
so now i noticed that for me the characters matters for me the most. maybe in the beginning i will care more about the plot and that is what makes me continue watching/reading but if i stay it means i love the characters.
for example i am reading a series of books right not called magisteruim and i really liked the first book (the action and the world), but now as i read the 4th book i noticed that even though i don't like the plot that much i am staying and reading it for the character XD
and with a tv series names arthdal chronicles, when there were too many fighting i noticed that while they interest me i just want them to get over so my favorite characters (who were separated) will finally meet.
so for me the characters are the most important (even though i myself didn't know it sometime ago lol), and of course their development as a character.

and about cliches, i really don't mind them as long as you don't overuse it. if you stop for a moment and think. you will realize that almost (if not all) everything was already made so it is hard to be original (i dont mean that you can't be original, i mean that no matter what book you take you will be probably find similarities of the book with other book and etc, same with comic, movies and etc)
so don't beat yourself over cliches when writing as long as you thought about this thing yourself and then realized that it is similar to some cliche you know as long as you don't go to google and copy the cliches XD
(that is just my opinion)

[junethunderlight]

Yeah, same! Sometimes I feel like writing something chill but entertaining and others I'm into building a complex universe with its own rules, and I usually look for the same stuff I feel like creating on the internet.

[junethunderlight]

I focus on the characters a lot. I always want them to be relatable enough and have their unique backstory (it's such a challenge when you're writing a series with nine main characters like Golden Podium but it's rewarding at the same time).
I expect the same when I read others' webcomics. I don't mind if they're based on archetypes, but flat characters should be forbidden.
Back to cliches, I started reading an online book about them a couple of years ago. The writer made some really good points about overused cliches and, while reading it, I became some kind of "cliche hunter" with my own stories. Reversing and rewriting the ideas that weren't original enough was something fun to do, but then I read another book saying we can't avoid cliches and relaxed a little bit. Still, I always look for something original in every story, something the author wants to tell me what makes their series different from others. I think all stories have that (and should have that).

[Cavechan]

I like an honestly written story, one where you can feel the passion, love, and inner workings of the creator.

I also like stories about really human characters.

Stories that sometimes make me think or are intriguing.

Also completely shameless, not giving a fuck stories.

[Lummy]

yes ^^
i read in another book 'just take the cliche and then twist it' (something about those lines)

[OttoGruenwald]

Something that has moments that'll resonate with me, like I'll remember it a week after I read it and think "yeah that was cool."

[pilot-obvious]

I really like futuristic or dystopian comics that really focus on developing the characters over time. I like serious stories that still have a bit of humor sprinkled in to keep it jovial! We can't be serious all the time, haha. I also like detailed artwork that has creative color palettes!

[lorphis]

I like story with complex narrative and morality. While I don't hate black and white morality like in shonen manga/anime, I prefer the story to have gray morality since in real life things are rarely so black and white. I also like a bit of tragedy but I don't like angst fest where everyone is suffering. I like stories that show that the world isn't all sun shine and rainbows but still have some hope in them. I don't enjoy fan service, or sex scenes. For romance while I can stomach them, it's rare for me to find a romance plot that I enjoy. I prefer story with some fantasy or sci-fi elements instead of slice of life.

[Kiweevil]

First and foremost? Readability. There's a surprising amount of incomprehensible webcomics on the platform. Poor choices of fonts, saturated text colors, confusing panel layouts, or just illiterate jumbled up speech can make a perfectly good concept into something that can't be easily read.