What makes your comic or novel familiar and different?

[Larua1997]

Answer the following -and of course, link to your work!

What makes your comic familiar?
(What makes it familiar to other works, genre, tropes, themes, style,or characters?) It could be similar to a known work (such as Harry Potter or Pokemon) or invoke similar storytelling mechanisms such as The Hero's Journey, Character Archetypes, Tropes, etc.)

What makes your comic different?
(What makes it different? It could be the types of characters, a new twist on a genre or story device, subverting tropes, unique writing/drawing style,or themes that are not as common today.)

(I'm still thinking about my answers, will post shortly!)

[alcchron]

I'd say my comic is familiar in that it's a "travelling to another world story". It has a few similarities to isekai works (mostly the magic system), but it's more like The Chronicles of Narnia plot-wise. It's also similar to American Gods, with a lot of mythological characters that show up.

It's different in that the basis of the storytelling and many of the mythological characters are from Nigerian and Haitian mythology, and that the main character isn't the "chosen hero" of the other world (he's actually more like MissingNo in Pokémon, if you're familiar). If I wanted to be petty, I guess I could say that the fact the main character is black and gay (and his struggles are discussed) is pretty different too!

The Alchemist's Chronicle | Tapas

[DasIstWunderblyat]

Oh yeah I know these!

• A Classic clichéd to death premise. Don't we love teen orphans wanting to know their true origin?
• Common elements of supernatural or horror stories, such as the concept of apparition, creatures, and mirror scenes where the reflection are not you.
• Supernatural abilities and magical power which in itself a widely used concept for fantasy series. Where is the last time you see a fantasy story without any kind of magic involved?
• Mean adoptive uncles! Vernon Dursley would be proud.

WTF

• Character who don't deserve to be the main character (read to see more.)
• Most of the characters that have been introduced are all aliens. This series is not simply set in alternate earth or a complete fantasy world, but it is set in another habitable planet where earth exists. Simply put it is a magical alien ghost drama series with monsters and weird creatures.
• Weird world building and magic system. Also adjustments were done in familiar concepts such as spirits/ghost and fairies.
• Simply weird story direction.
• Character will speak in Broken English for 'realism' purposes. I know the stupid writer has their priorities straight.

Karana | Tapas

[Hexigate]

Familiar things:

• The fantasy world is, in many ways, similar to Earth. Even though its largely inhabited by aliens alongside humans, their civilization runs pretty parallel to our own; even down to its issues.
• Magic in the world is less flicking a wand or fingers to make fire, and more like manipulating a phenomenon of nature. (akin to how we use electricity.) It's also less magic and more different kinds of radioactivity that powers the tech in the world.

Kinda different things:

• I don't know if there's another story out there that is set in a high-fantasy environment but follows a detective and his team in a story structure more akin to a police procedural/detective story. I think it'd be pretty cool to have the main characters be traveling around the world and meeting all kinds of people (and we get to see it all with them) in that fantasy-adventure style, but for the sake of solving crimes and mysteries, as well as the overarching mystery that ties the story together.

Aegis | Tapas

[JMann]

The whole goal of my comic is to put the familiar in tension with the new and different.... I love that kind of contrast. My favorite songs are always happy sounding with sad lyrics!

The familiar is the art style. I learned to draw by studying classic cartoon characters... Jack has obvious affinities with Bug Bunny or Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh. Also familiar, I hope, is the general vibe of smart characters outside in beautiful nature. All my favorite comic strips [_Calvin & Hobbes_, _Bloom County_, older _Doonesbury_] seemed to spend most of their time hanging out in meadows. I hope to draw trees half as well as Bill Watterson did!

The difference is the freedom of publishing online. I can be more frank about philosophy, politics, and religion than my heroes ever could in the confines of newspaper comics. I can use stronger language. I can be open about beliefs that might have gotten you blacklisted in the 1980s or 90s.

Anyway, I hope you'll check it out. It's a labor of love.

Jackalope Landing | Tapas

[JoshRaid]

It's a stick figure.

Stick Fight | Tapas

[cherrystark]

What makes my novel familiar? Small scale magic. Magic isn't always dragons and socerers. Sometimes the magic is your lucky rabbit's foot or your grandma's frying pan. Similar concept to other series.

What makes my novel different? Focus on character relationships. Variations in stories. Lots of female characters. My characters are my favorite part of the series.

The Museum | Tapas

[HippieGhost]

What makes my novel familiar?

• It satirizes existing power structures
• The characters are relatable and realistic
• High-fantasy setting is one most are familiar with

What sets it apart?

• Multiple perspectives and variance between the many kingdoms
• A unique race own my own creation (undarians)
• Anarchistic irreverence
• Satirizes tropes in other media without resorting to bigoted jokes

You can check out The Aphuanian Tales below! It's an amazing set of stories with a little something for everyone, and a wide variety of themes including LGBT themes. I promise it'll be worth the read!

The Aphuanian Tales | Tapas

[sorin_gran]

FAMILIAR:

• The reincarnation premise is similar to the likes of Mushoku Tensei and The Beginning After the End.
• Involves Sword and Sorcery like many other Fantasy stories.
• Involves familiar fantasy creatures.

UNFAMILIAR:

• My magic system (Auraspheric Arts and the Verse) is based on Gustavo Theory which has never been used for a magic system before.
• Main character is just as likely to kill allied supporting characters versus the antagonist. Not intentionally, of course, but it could happen even if the allied character never did anything to antagonize him. (Reasons of this happening is related to magic system)
• Made a completely new board game just for my story (Dragiu)

Here's my novel if you're interested:

Invade the Verse | Tapas

[TheOddFungi]

Ooooh this is a great question!

What makes my novel familiar:
This story has almost a forbidden love kind of feel to it. There is also the "inner demon/monster inside me" kind of trope used. If anyone has read Tokyo Ghoul you will feel similar vibes later in the story. And if anyone has read the manga "Black Cat" by Kentaro Yabuki my MC will be kind of similar to Train Heartnet, as that was a huge inspiration when I first wrote it back in middle school.

What makes my novel different:
I like to think my story is different because of the choices my characters make. I wanted this story to not be as predictable as it may be just going off the tropes I mentioned above. I also think it is different because of the fact that I try to write openly about the MCs struggles with PTSD and finding his way, which I personally haven't seen a lot of.

When it comes to characters like him, as an assassin in a cult who wants to find redemption, I tend to see a lot more often these types of characters are written as silent edgy types and aren't given a lot of emotion or their struggle is really watered down or we just don't get to see it, so I wanted to be realistic with my MCs struggles when it comes to his anxieties and fears.

I'm not saying that character type is bad. I just really wanted to have my MC portray another side to that, because it's too often that boys aren't listened to about their emotions or told to just "man up" and stop crying. I want my MC to be like an inspiration for anyone struggling, so I hope I can do that justice.

Red Dragon Part 1: Broken | Tapas

[Larua1997]

Thank you for the responses so far! I love reading them!

Farmilar:

• 5Forrces is meant to be familiar and nostalgic, playing around with a lot
  of tropes and storytelling devices from the 90's era of anime.
• Elemental "Magic" System! From Sailor Moon to Captain Planet to AvatarTLA, there is just something fun about elemental powers that I can't resist!
• The "vibe" of the comic is very "old school anime"
• It invokes a lot of familiar tropes such as lost kingdoms, unsolved mysteries, and ancient evil.

Different

• The history of the comic is pretty unique, as it is based on something I made in my tween years (I still have the originals!) and revised/rewrote/redrew 20+ years later. The commentary and comparisons on the how story and my writing/drawing process have changed since I was 12/13 are interesting and hilarious. Some of the original pages are pure, nearly Sonichu-level cringe.

• If this comic came out back in the late 90's/early 2000's, it really wouldn't stand out that much. Since many of the themes, tropes, narrative devices etc. are not as popular today, I think it stands apart as something with a different vibe.

• While the comic was pretty derivative when I wrote it, I spent a lot of time on the worldbuilding to make it a unique environment with a rich history and distinct locations.

• The characters- despite being initially tropey- reveal surprises and unique personality quirks as they get to know their teammates.

• While elemental powers is nothing new, I credit my 12 year old self for putting a new spin on it! The element system consists of Nature, Weather, Water, Fire, and Time.

5 Forrces - Legends of Lunasa | Tapas

[kitschensyngk]

I take the familiar story which we've all grown up with, of misfit junior high school kids desperate for friends, trying to fit in, and instead switch it out for a story of a group of mismatched, maladjusted adolescents who come to realize that the concept of "fitting in" isn't all it's cracked up to be, exposing the cliches and stereotypes inherent therein. I also exemplify the myriad ways there are of messing up someone's childhood and how our young heroes try to overcome them.

Nachos Con Carne | Tapas

[Frenemy]

What makes your comic familiar?

I have gotten a lot of comparisons to cartoons like Ren and Stimpy, Adventure Time, Flapjack and chowder, with the art style and story telling.
I’m really influenced by the cartoons I grew up loving I am a bit older so although I do enjoy adventure time which I get compared to a lot with my art style I am actually more influenced by cartoons like Ren and Stimpy, Ah Real Monsters, Doug, and Rockos Modern Life as well as comic like Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, and the Maxx, and Cow and Chicken.

What makes your comic different?

I think my unique art style and my style of story telling. The character designs. As the story goes there will constantly be new characters being met and fun and interesting side stories.

I also have it formatted to look like old comic book pages. I wanted it to look like the comic books I grew up reading that inspired me to make my own.

Cosmic Safari | Tapas

[N1ghtm4r3]

what's familiar about my comic series Knights Chronicles is it is a good vs evil story , fairly standard for the usual superhero story, plus some of the inspirations should be fairly apparent , like as is aid a few time my work is much inspired by gundam, power rangers mostly so if you see both those shows you kind of get some where i come from

now as for what is different, i don't think anyone would mash power rangers and gundam into one story ,but i did, ,each of the main heroes will be pretty different from each other ,not just species because they are anthropomorphic ,,but each has their own personality and it will show as i keep going, and each of them is a different model , i try and vary their size and so on to make each have their own identity, i also have a lot going on in there so pay attention there are some in universe ore Easter eggs around if you want to see some extra story

https://tapas.io/episode/1979693

[Sairren]

Familiarities:

• It's a colorful fantasy world with magic in abundance everywhere. Elves, dwarves, orcs, dragons, and more are all present and can be found with a little searching.
• Magic exists, in both an arcane and divine format, and people are also given blessings from the gods to help give the mortal races a headstart in their lives.
• Good vs. Evil is pretty common, with Heroes and Adventurers available to take on jobs that counties or individuals can't handle themselves.

Differences:

• The main character doesn't get a uniquely strong power that separates her from the rest of the world. She's only just above average and has to work much harder than her peers just to keep up. And the blessing she was given by the gods is actively causing an issue for her to be a "shining star" among those who outperform her with less effort.
• The two characters who become the MC's mentors are selfish, callous, smug, and incredibly destructive. They regularly taunt and mock their enemies for fun and do what they want when they want, and they were highly infamous criminals in the past. But they take interest in the MC and are going to make her just as powerful while hiding their own interests in why they would.
• Heroes and Adventurers loath each others' existence in this world. The names "Hero" and "Adventurer" are more akin to titles than anything. Where an Adventurer is similar to a freelance janitor to clean up your local goblin problem, a Hero is a near guaranteed dragon slaying and much more expensive.
• A person's gift from the gods can vary highly and given at random whether the people like it or not, and to try and defy it is incredibly difficult.

Drunks and Fanatics | Tapas

[Larua1997]

Love the Heroes and Adventurers concept! Just subscribed and looking forward to reading!

[lidiash]

Familiar:

• Premise sounds like Persephone/Hades myth retold with guys and extra step: Andy (Persephone) is brought to the Underworld against his will to be married/given to Ba(Hades, Death).
• I think there is an expectation early readers (based on Webtoon reactions) expected Ba to be in awe of Andy's beauty, and the two falling in love at first sight.

Different:

• Death wanted a WOMAN. He was offended when presented with a man.
• Ba and Andy mutually DON'T like each other, they clash and argue. Ba lowkey tortures Andy, Andy bites back. They were forced to stay together, but it wasn't romance at all.
• Andy is said to be cursed, was stolen away from his husband, nowhere close to lovely or shy persona. Ba appears less like a powerful god and more like a petty being who has powers and exercises it on others.

The Death and Him | Tapas

[cyborgmermaid]

What is familiar:
Portal fantasy with an alternate Earth
Lovers from rival kingdoms
Fantasy creatures are real and in hiding

What makes it different (or at least not widely used):
Vampires treated a fantasy race instead of undead monsters
Humans are magical too
I promise no elf vs dwarf or vampire vs werewolf

Stargazer | Tapas

[sc101]

Familiar: probably the sci fi aspect with super abilities.
Different: No character is important enough to have a 'hero's' arc at least if my current plot development works.

Rotten Apples | Tapas

[CytricAcid]

FAMILIAR:
Bishonen protagonist! A brooding poet who exudes vampire energy! Queer characters abound, focusing on a queer romance! Possible enemies to lovers...?

DIFFERENT:
It's in the 70s. The protagonist is also a huge dick. Actually, everyone is kind of a dick, but Edwin beats them all. Somehow, this works.
Deals with more of the pitfalls of the hedonistic era and the overindulgent lifestyles.
Too many prog rock references.

Out Of My Book | Tapas