Apr 2019
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Apr 2019
Apr 2019
Raven_C
Apr '19

Yeah i definitely have some old ideas and characters that are sort of in the back burner for me to either abandon one day or repurpose when I have more time. My old comic Morsel (which is still on Tapas) is pretty much abandoned because I no longer like the idea but I'm gonna reuse the characters in another story some day.

There have also been characters I don't feel attached to anymore so I let go of them. In elementary/middle school, I had a bunch of OCs that I only vaguely remember now. Haha. Plus, I've come to the conclusion that some of my old ideas aren't always going to work in a comic structure, so I might just write a novel or make a game out of them.

Insanebaker92
Apr '19

That does happen all the time, I may change a bit to make it a bit more interesting before adding into my comic. Even the idea I don't need, I still keep it somewhere in case in the future I can look back at it again and change a bit before adding into my comic.

Rodimus13
Apr '19

We have a million ideas. We keep the ones we love most stashed close and ONE DAY when we have time after this story is done, we will pull out the next one.

DokiDokiTsuna
Apr '19

Recycling seems to be the name of the game, and I agree wholeheartedly. Whenever I have a new idea, I try to stuff as many older resources into it as I can: old character names, designs, color schemes, etc. It's great when I come up with "crowd stories" that have lots of main characters, because then I can salvage a ton of old ideas at once~. ^^

MangoTango
Apr '19

Yass reuse or recycle but kinda improve or change the ideas better in a way for me personally. I don't like reusing old ideas very exactly.

most of my "old ideas" tend to be things that I honestly don't wanna look back or like yes,, like what you said, stories I grew out of and lost interest with reasons. Some were even things that I definitely had a bad experience with when I shared these "ideas" with some old friends.

There was always a reason why I dropped or cancelled using it.

but this recent comic I am starting today is a precious old "idea" I had been keeping 10 years ago in my silly drawing book (over the next years I never knew I was going to get back to it in forever because of how silly I think it is) BUT now,, I stumbled upon it, realized how much it made me happy back in the days so, I am reusing the idea with more development, logic and all seriousness pff. I am honestly very happy to reuse this idea, improve it and kinda also brings me more to my good memories when I was younger.

((probably gonna make a meme out of this comparing 2009 version of idea and 2019 version of idea showing my silly childhood art vs now lmao))

vothnthorvaldson
Apr '19

At this point... I try to forget about them. Not completely, but put them really far from me.
My brain is working constantly at full intensity and it tires me terribly. Also difficult to concentrate on a single project when so many ideas, new and old, are turning in my head constantly. My main effort is always to clean up, sort, store, throw away. Otherwise I can't perform at all.

Reign
Apr '19

I’ve turned my old characters and refined and changed their original story to turn into a One-Shot. This way I can get the hang of making manga before I make a serialized story that’s really important to me.

Wumbl
Apr '19

Use them if they're actually good and I just lacked the skills to use them.

Dismantle them for parts, if they're not good but some little aspects were interesting and can be developed.

Toss them if they're unsalvageable.

Pomms
Apr '19

I agree with recycling stories. Keeping notes on those harts/half written stories are good things for me to come back to every once in a while and see if they're worth it or not. In fact, that's how my novel here on Tapas was created - from this old story I found when I was reading old stuff.

Though I have to say that there's a couple of notes that I wrote many years ago and I still read them and think "Yup, this is good as it is", but I haven't yet written those stories yet..maybe one day!

Likri
Apr '19
1

I try to save the old ideas, drafts and characters for reusing, or inspiring - even if I outgrew the initial idea, or now see gapping plot holes. That doesn't mean the concept can't be polished up with my current knowlege and experience if I still find it interesting enough and worth telling.

LordLacroix
Apr '19

I think I never droped an old idea they still lives in my brain, what I didn't do yet was publish them. But every single thing I created is resting and being evolved inside my mind as we speak.I remember them all.

JRHoch
Apr '19

What do I do with old ideas? Recycle, recycle, recycle.

DiegoPalacios
Apr '19

If i see an old idea has potential, i polish it with the knowledge of art/writing i have nowadays. (gotta say i`m considering to restart practicing drawing)

praelia
Apr '19

I'm someone who gets so easily attached to my characters, so it hurts when I have to drop them :sweat_smile: Though I understand, sometimes your old writing/character designs can be cringy or unoriginal which forces you to change or drop them completely

And when you guys say recycle, what parts of a character concept do you like reuse? In my experience, I've reused designs, names, and concepts (aka roles or titles, like "mentor who helps the protagonist" or "cool ninja"). Call me uncreative but I just can't help but trying to make things work. Even if it's something that I would never mean to share

VibrantFoxRegular
Apr '19

I don't think I've ever reused names or designs, the latter especially given they were fandom. But I usually recycled personality traits, quirks, mannerism type stuff as well as some fashion choices for characters especially one that had distinct "looks" if that makes sense.

I've definitely done this ^ sometimes it's a recycled cliche other times it's the way a character impacts another from a rivalry, to a loss or the motivator or obstacle to the protagonist

i think the most I've ever done with repurposing a character was slipping old oc's or unused oc's into the background mostly for myself. never in a way that they stand out but having them assume those small roles like barista at the protag's favorite coffee shop or rando that gets knocked over in a chase scene. it's likely the only way my one large ensemble cast will ever live on till i find a way to rewrite their story :sweat_smile:

baasinsimple
Apr '19

I try not to deliberately reuse ideas because I don't want to shove the ideas in places where the don't belong, I try to keep it as natural as possible.

simplykit
Apr '19

yeah! i feel the same way! :blush:

i store them, keep a record like a notepad file or in my cp :open_mouth:

i might need them when im stuck and out of ideas :grin:

Next121
Apr '19

SAVE THEM.

You never know when those ideas are going to come in handy in the future.