Why can't I find an artist?

[ToonsJ4]

I have been trying to find an artist to collab with on webcomic for a while now, but I'm getting little to no responses. Am I doing something wrong?

I can even get it published since I work with a publishing company.

Please don't tell me it has to do with being paid because there is nothing I can do other than splitting profits. Also, I have seen other people partner together as unpaid work, so that's not much of a reason.

[Kelheor]

Are you making a good, interesting pitch though?
I really recommend checking out this thread and every thread quoted in it!

!Before you post your request please read the following post and check out the linked resources to help make your collaboration post a good one! To ensure that you are communicating your project effectively to the community, please include the following list of information within your post. Introduction: Tell us a little bit about yourself Project Details / Pitch / Sample Paid or non-paid? Collaboration? Partnership? Skills you are looking for / what you are looking for Required Software (…

[smokesalty]

From what I see, it's because you're not providing any examples of your work. Sure, you have concepts and ideas, but there isn't any execution being shown. Anyone can come up with an idea. Most artists want to know that the story their working on is one they enjoy and is written well.

I, as an artist wouldn't consider working for someone who hasn't shown any of their work (similar to how a writer wouldn't hire an artist without seeing what their art looks like first) It's a risk to work with someone when you don't know their quality of work.

[darthmongoose]

You haven't really been giving much detail about the comic you want to write, and you have no links to samples of anything you've written.

From an artist's perspective, it's impossible for them to feel confident that you have any writing skills, are the kind of person who sticks with and completes long term-projects or exactly what you want the artist to sign up for.

Artists have plenty of choice for writers to work with, so they'd really prefer to work with somebody who writes to a high level of quality, is experienced at managing and completing projects and who has a strong idea of what they want to make and can make it sound exciting and like something that'd be fun to draw.

[ToonsJ4]

How would a writer do that? Can I have an example, please?

[Lensing]

Do you do storyboards for your stories?
That would be something I want the writer to do

[ToonsJ4]

I thought the writer and artist would talk about things like that first. I always put in my posts that anyone could ask questions, so I assumed we would go over how things were going to work, schedule, etc, as part of the questions. Also since it was a collab I thought we would be making the story together.

[Lensing]

Yeah, artist and writers should talk about that first, that´s what I tried to do here
I really dislike storyboarding, dialogue & script writng for example, I love penciling, inking, coloring and lettering.
I do like story writing

[Kelheor]

Just like an artist would - you should have a published portfolio. Writing you can actually show to people since we're on Tapas platform, you can publish your works here. But in general, doesn't really matter where, you can pit a link to a Google document if you want, what matters is that people can read what you have, to see your skills.

[smokesalty]

I recommend sharing examples your script work- you can link a google doc with your work on the forums (make sure the doc is set to sharing by link) You don't have to have an entire story written, but it should show how your able to establish a scene and characters. (although having something completed can show that you're able to finish projects)

I occasionally respond to artists looking for writers with an example of my work. This is what I've done for a request: https://forums.tapas.io/t/need-authors-for-webtoon-unpaid/69149/2?u=smokesalty

Of course, I did this for an artist who was requesting a certain type of story, so I wrote down ideas and concepts for their story. I've shown examples of my work being my comic, my ideas for their story and my story plotting skills as well as examples of how I write my scripts. This gives the artist a bit of an idea of my skills and writing style.

If you have any novels/short stories I recommend sharing them as well. You just need a sort of portfolio just as an artist would show off their art and comic work if looking to work with a writer.

Even so, finding an artist for a long term project is hard. Hell, I haven't had any success with artists who have requested for writers, but that's pretty normal. You just gotta keep working on your craft and enjoying writing

[TedGravesArt]

These are good points. I'm going to be a bit pragmatic for a second, so bear with me here.
Artists like to work on things they're passionate about. Time is valuable, particularly when working on something as time-consuming as comics. The more passionate an artist is about something personal they're working on, the more valuable that time becomes, which means they require more compensation to put it down to do your thing. That compensation doesn't always have to be money, sometimes connecting to a project on a personal level and really believing in it can be enough, but that's rare. I'd have to really really believe in a project to sacrifice that much time that could be spent on my own stuff, especially if I'm being asked to do it pro bono.
I know it's hard to get the money to pay your artist, but remember that artists are skilled workers, and what we do is very hard. Depending on the comic, the art can take far, FAR longer than the writing. For example, it took me only a few weeks to write a whole season of my comic, but the art production for those issues is going to take several years. That's the difference. That said, a profit split isn't very attractive since it would probably be 50/50, and the time investment here is very lopsided.
I think your best bet is to find an artist that cares deeply about the story. When I worked with a writer years ago it was because they had a number of rough story outlines, and one of them really spoke to me. When we started working on it I was heavily involved in the worldbuilding. He'd bounce ideas off of me and I would bounce art and designs off of him. It was a deeply collaborative process, and that scratched a really unique itch that I never knew I had. My passion for creating and representing that world became more valuable than other things I could spend my time on. That's what makes you really attractive to a collaborative partner.
So yeah, having a writing portfolio with examples of your work is a very very good idea! Maybe have a box of unfinished ideas as well that you can kind of run by people to gauge what they're most interested in, something that you can create together.

[Sinicalcomics]

Heyo! I am actually a writer who was fortunate enough to find an artist and we currently are working on our story Cross. The thing I notice with new writers trying to get an artist on their team is that they don't know when to ask and how to ask.

Read Cross :: Ch. 0 Pg. 7-12 | Tapas Comics

Ask yourself these questions:

Do you have a clear and concise goal with your comic?

Have you done any prep work for your comic? Scripts, Treatments, Outlines, etc.

Are you open to criticism and willing to give up some power over your story?

If you are not paying them with money, what do you have to offer?

These questions are important when it comes to any group project. However, THE most important question is to ask

Are you dedicated and are you showing this dedication?
If you are truly passionate in your story, that passion will rub on others. You don't need to be the greatest writer to attract potential artists, you just need to show that you love what you are doing.

I wish you the best of luck, my friend! I hope this helped you a little!

[sushy00]

Splitting profits is not reliable at all for a source of income. How does the artist know they get their fair share? Also most of the time there is hardly any profit.

[ToonsJ4]

I have a few comments.

Yes I did have a goal planned out.

I have received complaints in the past for asking an artist to make my own creations without giving them any power over it (didn't actually do that, they all just assumed for some reason). For this reason I bluntly state they can ask questions and that we would make/plan the story together.

I don't get the chance to show dedication because none actually gave me a chance.

What did you offer your artist instead of money?

[ToonsJ4]

You also have to consider things from the writers perspective. Yes I understand the income issues for an artist, but writers have income problems too. I never hear about anybody mentioning things from the writer's perspective.

I am not saying writers should force artists to draw for free, but just take what I said into consideration. There are many of them who are in situations where they will never have enough to afford an artist and because of that they just give up entirely on creating a webcomic.

It's sad, especially when many of them dreamed of making one for so long.

As for the story doing well in terms of profits, no one knows the future or how things will turn out, but everything has a risk. Just gotta choose which one you're willing to take.

[ToonsJ4]

I'll try sharing examples the next time I search. As for getting an artist for a story, couldn't even get one for a short one. Even one chapter.

I've seen other writers barely say much (just an idea, no summary) and somehow recruit an artist within a very short period of time (unpaid). They also had no portfolio or even an example of their work.

I've received complaints about having the story written out because they assumed they would get no input (never said that, thought we would work equally). If I wrote out a short summary/ideas and said we would make the story together they still didn't like it. They would complain saying I needed more.

The whole thing is just confusing.

[LunarScyphozoa]

I feel like if you can’t pay an artist in any way, you can’t really get upset when one doesn’t show up

[ToonsJ4]

First off, if my words sounded offensive I apologize. That was not my intention. Second, let's think of this differently. Someone has a dream they want to fulfill, but they can't afford it. Instead of turning to others for alternative solutions of how to get around this or maybe see a flaw in past approaches they instead tell that person just accept it and don't get upset.

If what I am saying sounds offensive, again I apologize. Just trying to make a point.

[Legendofgenii]

It’s the pitch I think.

If you want to attract an artist the pitch needs to really sell your project - especially if there’s no pay.

I quickly looked at your previous posts, and I didn’t see your name mentioned anywhere, or a link to your website (other than the Amazon page), or the Publishers website.

With the poor pitch, anonymity and lack of payment I’m not sure you’ll find many artists who will want to take the risk.

I’d have a look at the collab thread Kelheor linked above and rework your pitch.

[migxmeg]

It's not offensive but it is important to accept that you can be doing all the right things and still not find an artist that wants to work with you for free. To be frank, there is no such thing as deserving that someone share their hard-earned skills and limited time with you (that goes for everyone - artists too, and other disciplines). It's super wonderful if you can find someone to work with you - and there was some great advice already in this thread for that - but having a dream doesn't obligate anyone to help you achieve it.

And "profit split" in a pitch, is something I (and probably most artist?) read as zero. Most webcomics aren't making any money at all compared with the time they take to create and many of the ones that do only got there after years of consistency and effort.

If you're going to find a collaborator it really needs to be on the strength of the project and the skills you bring to the table. But it's sadly not a guarantee.